Okay i know i've seen the answer to this somewhere.. and i tried searching but i must be botching the 'search info'

but this weekend i went from 700x23 kenda kontenders (blah) to 700x28 panaracer tservs (yum) and i feels like i'm pushing a higher gear inch..(my legs also no longer hurt.. and i love how comfy thoes tires feel) soo before anyone flames me... i run a 45x16.. and i'm thinking about throwing on a 17tooth cog.. does running bigger tires really affect your gear inch THAT much? just wondering thanks alot
-badcow

cattle

There's more surface area and rolling resistance, that's why.

bongz. also, yes.

yeah i'm well aware of the extra surface area.. however, being 235 it feels like i'm rolling faster on 28's then 23's.. i'll just throw on a 17 and leave it be.. thanks!
-badcow

cattle it is

Moving from 23's to 28's creates a slight increase in gi (1"?). An internet gi calc (may i recommend https://software.bareknucklebrigade.c...it.applet.html) will let you know exactly how much, and what kind of difference the 17 will make in the mix.

they make 17's??? i may have to pick some up immediately, i love me some narrow rubbers.

17 tooth cog

god damn it, i was hoping for some insanely narrow tires.

wow.. thanks for that internet calc., that program is amazing.. that is what i needed.. thank you!

-badcow

Wider tires do have an increased diameter, and because pi times your diameter is the distance you go each time the wheel spins you go further per spin of the cranks.

bike tires are usually square, as in the width equals the height.........so by getting a wider tire you also get a taller tire

as someone about the same size as you, I run wider tires as a rule (for comfort, mostly). I just made a run on 23s last night. They are super fast, but you have to ride them hard as rocks. You should read the rivendell article on wider tires.

https://www.rivbike.com/node/18

food for thought.

To be honest, I don't think it's the higher effective gear you're feeling. The difference between 700Cx23 and 700Cx28 is all of 0.4 gear inches! I seriously doubt I'd feel the difference at all, even if I tried.

On the other hand, going from a 16T to a 17T drops your gearing by about 4 gear inches...

700x23 kenda kontenders with wire bead are 'meh'. 700x23 kenda kontender lites with kevlar bead are the best value/quality/weight tires ever. EVER!

^ ^ ^ Yes, kevlar rules... If someone decides to shoot my tires from their car, I can rest assured they hopefully won't puncture!