LHT and Tire width
 

Well the frames and components are ordered for the 2 builds I will be starting and I will do some pics along the way.
My question is a 26" tire choice, or more accurately a width. I plan to go with a Schwalbe Marathon Supreme. They are available in 2 widths, 1.60 & 2.00.
Thoughts?

http://surlybikes.com/bikes/long_hau...ame_highlights 2.1 on the 26

I just did an Ogre build and went with 40mm Mondials, they are quite meaty, but roll decently. A very heavy duty tire, just ask if you really need more because maybe for hardcore dirt I would but for road and trails, they are pretty heavy duty. I mostly wanted flat resistance and sturdy and they are more than enough for that.

https://s3.amazonaws.com/kingsqueak/...ly_park_sm.jpg

I'd go with a 1.6 for a touring bike. The handling is different when you run a 2.00 tire. I like 'em both but I prefer the 1.6 for a drop bar bike. You certainly don't need the fatter tire for touring.

Got 559-47 Schwalbes on my Koga WTR trekking/Tour bike.. 1.6" is close ..

What are you touring on?

When I tour on gravel I prefer a 50mm wide tire. But for pavement I have toured on 40mm wide when using 26 inch tires.

I have Continental 26x1.75s on my LHT. They handle all sorts of trail surface just fine. Crushed stone, gravel, dirt, fast singletrack, roots, mud it's all good as long as it doesn't get too gnarly.

I am thinking mostly road but this Fall we will be riding the Erie Canal trail.

I just finished riding the ECT from Albany to just past Weedsport. Then I swung south past Seneca Lake to Port Jervis.

http://www.bikeforums.net/showthread...our?highlight=

I have toured on all sorts of surfaces, including bumpy, bare rock, sandy dirt and gravel with the Conti 37c tires that come with the stock bike. My GF has doen the same with the stock tires that came with her 26" wheel version. No problems. I plan to run the 32c version for a PGH to PHL tour starting off on the GAP in a few weeks.

I'm running 2" tires on my 26" LHT (Schwalbe Kojaks and Mondials, depending on use) to take advantage of extra cushioning, lower rolling resistance and added grip. I don't have the feeling the added weight is a problem, at least not on a touring bike.

I commented in post number 5 above that I prefer 50mm for gravel. Shown with Dureme front and Extreme rear, both 50mm width. Those tires are discontinued, if I have to look for replacements I would look at plain Marathon or possibly Mondial.

http://bikeforums.net/attachment.php...hmentid=336221

And for pavement on a 26 inch tire I prefer 40mm width. For this photo, plain 40mm width Marathons (to distiguish between the many Marathons, these have GreenGuard). Good at high pressure, rolled well on pavement. Worked ok on occasional gravel.

http://bikeforums.net/attachment.php...hmentid=336220

But quite frankly, both sets of tires would work on either surface.

If I am going to drive or ride a train half way across the country and then spend a week of time on a tour, I will invest in another set of tires if the ones I have are not the exact right ones for the conditions. That is why I have two sets of touring tires for this bike. When you do that trail you are planning on later, consider if you want to use the same tires or not.

I use Michelin City protek plus 26x1.85 They'll take 90 psi