Slicks - 1.5" or 1.25"?

[Dossa]

Was planning on running Schwalbe City Jets in a 1.5" flavour for my P7 build but was wondering if it would be worth using an even narrower tyre, eg Panaracer Pasela 1.25"

http://www.sjscycles.co.uk/panaracer-pa ... ch-(32-559)-prod968/

Or better just to stick to 1.5's? Sacrifice a bit of weight for comfort?

Another tyre to consider is the Panaracer Hi Road - any better/worse than the Schwalbe's in anyone's opinion?

http://www.sjscycles.co.uk/panaracer-pa ... ch-(38-559)-prod966/

Or any other (amber wall) slicks to consider - Specialized Nimbus perhaps? Hmmm.....

Cheers,

Matty

 

[Andy B]

What do you think you'd gain by going to 1.25" tyres over 1.5" tyres?

 

[marc two tone]

for your mtb, right?

don't go too skinny as you need some proportion to frame etc...

1.5" good rolling tyres in my experience.

 

[Pierre]

I couriered for a season on Continental Sport Contact 26x1.1s (I think - posting from phone so can't look up the exact dimensions) and they were excellent. I still use them on my commuter, though I don't rack up the same weekly mileage. They're not too heavy, they roll very well at 80-100psi, the rubber they're made with is sticky enough to grip well but not so soft they cut up easily - they come with a one year puncture-proof guarantee! (and a Conti inner tube)

I'd suggest either those or Schwalbe Marathon Plus for hassle-free commuting, although I'd probably add Vredestein S-licks into the mix for money-no-object lightweight slick of bling.

Slight self-plug: give me a shout if you want me to find a price for the Contis or Schwalbes - I can't always beat Wiggle / CRC but I'll give it a go...

 

[Twister]

FWIW, I've gone from 1.5 City Slicks to 1.125 (I think) Conti Gatorskins.

I've found the gators to be smoother, lighter, easier to install and surprisingly more comfortable and yes that's at 100psi. :shock:

I did see some amberwall Continental Avenue 1.3s on eBay the other day that I might have tried if I hadn't missed the end of the auction. :cry:

No disrespect to the post above but I've found there are a lot of nearly new slicks advertised. Perhaps because people buy them and don't find them comfy so sell them immediately.

 

[bmx4130crmo]

Panaracer Pasela, you get it in 1.25 and 1.5, black- and skinwall, good choice.

cheers

 

[kampos]

My £0.02 ; I use the Schwalbe City Jets and they are ideal I think ; in the past I used lighter/narrower ( 1.0 Turbo S anyone remember those?) and often got punctures. None with my current set so far.

 

[gtRTSdh]

The problem is that fully round slicks look a bit pants on an MTB.

I've bought a set of folding scwalbe hurricane 2.0's which at least look the part but have a solid centre section for speed!!!

 

[CAPIN]

If you want killer look and performance for city commuting, go for KOJAK 2.0
I had Huricanes on my city singlespeed and recently changed to KOJAKS and i love them. They are also very light in comparison to other city tires. 460g

The absence of any thread makes the bike look really clean, fast and silent.
I feel like im riding a formula 1 car
The 2.0 width keeps the bike in proper MTB proportions and really helps in the city aswell. (tram tracks, steps, holes on the road, cobblestones etc)
I also like the subtle embossment on the sides..
Dont have very good photo, just this:

 

[JamesM]

What do you think you'd gain by going to 1.25" tyres over 1.5" tyres?

Higer pressures. Thinner tyres can run higher pressures, and it's not just the tyres max pressure but the rims too. The thinner the tyre the higher the pressure you can run for the same outward loading on the sides of the rim. I'd say 1.25's could probably run 15-20 PSI higher than 1.5's. Plus they will obviously be lighter and it's rotating mass too which is like 2 x normal mass. the only downside is that the circumfrance will be less so your highest gear will be a bit lower. This will be offset slightly by the higer pressure though. I have run 1.25's at 95-100 PSI and 1.75's at 60 PSI and there is a big difference. Infact on the 1.25's I was rolling faster down the hills than my roadie friends because most of them seem too scared to pump their 23c tyres up past 80 PSI