crazyravr

What will I gain by going from my stock Bontrager 35mm tire on FX2 to something like Schwalbe Plus 28-30mm?

hokiefyd 

What specific tires do you have now and what specific tires are you considering? Bontrager make a number of 700x35 tires. Do you have the H2 or H5 or perhaps a different model? Schwalbe make a number of tires in that size range called "Plus" (Delta Cruiser Plus, Durano Plus, and Marathon Plus). The "Plus" generally means an extra thick puncture protection belt, so you'll gain some resistance to flats at the trade-off of weight and ride quality (they're heavy and ride "dull").

crazyravr

The tires on it now are the H2 700x35mm.
I was thinking of replacing these for summer commuting, mostly paved paths and road, with something a bit easier rolling thus Marathon Plus was recommended and I was going to go with 28mm tire. Also, I was going to look into 28mm gatorskins.
But if I will gain nothign really other than "maybe" more puncture protection, cant say that I care and it will not be a worthy upgrade for sure.

hokiefyd 

I'm not sure you'd gain a lot in the rolling resistance department. If rolling resistance is your primary measure, then the Bicycle Rolling Resistance website will be a good resource for you. The Road Bike section looks to be mostly 25mm tires, and the Tour Bike section is mostly 37+mm tires. But it's helpful to look at certain models to understand where they stand relative to others. The Schwalbe Marathon Almotion looks to be the Marathon model to get if you're looking to minimize rolling resistance. How would the stock Bontragers stack up with the Marathon Plus? It's hard to tell.

sail

On my FX 7.4 I went from 32mm Bontrager AW1 which is a fairly smooth road tire to 27mm Vittoria Open Pave which is lighter, thinner tire that takes higher pressure. Big difference in the way the bike feels and steers, more responsive and seems faster. Thats great on the road or trail but around town with bumps, sand and gravel it's a much harsher and less steady ride. I'm more reluctant to go on limestone trails but do even though they just aren't suited for it.

Next time I'll go wider as much as 32mm but in a lighter tire than the originals, a sure feel around town is more important as I age than the illusion of the little bit of speed gained on the road.

I'd think going from 35mm to 32mm would make a big difference in feel depending on the weight of the tire and tread. I've got Schwalbe flat resistant tires on another bike, not sure of the model that are great tires but kinda heavy.

hokiefyd 

Note also that the stock Bontrager tires, despite being labeled 35mm, may actually measure 31mm or 32mm. If you replace them with a 32mm labeled tire that actually does measure 32mm, you may come out with the same actual size.

Some examples: the stock 35mm tires on my Trek Verve were 34mm wide and only 29mm tall (they had a wide but squatty profile). The stock 35mm Kenda tires on my daughter's Raleigh Alysa are actually about 31mm wide and 32mm tall. So if I replaced them with 33mm tires that really did measure 33mm, I'd actually have LARGER tires than the original 35s! The stock 38mm tires on my Giant Roam are about 37mm wide and tall (so they're pretty true to size).

Schwalbe tires in particular are usually pretty true to size. And I do bet your Bontragers measure small. I bet your 35mm Bontragers and 32mm Schwalbes are about the same actual/installed/inflated size.

Tikaani

My Trek DS2 came with Bontrager LT2, 700x38. I started doing street rides on the weekend so swapped a set of Continental GrandSport Race in 28c onto the rims. Made a big difference in my ability to keep up with the faster riders on street bikes. Also improved the cornering feel over the LT2s.