Which tyre - Kenda Happy Medium or Schwalbe Marathon Plus ??

[RussUK]

I've got a Cannondale Quick hybrid bike that is fitted with Kenda Happy Medium, 700x35c tyres. At the moment I am only every cycling on tarmac & not ever really likely to do any off road riding.
I'm thinking of maybe changing my tyres to the Schwalbe Marathon Plus, not sure what size, but thinking of 700x28C (my wheels have got an outside width of 23mm) - is this the best width choice, or should I go wider or narrower ?
Would I notice much of a difference between these two types of tyre, would there be much less road drag ?
Or any other options / recommendations ?

 

[Ceefax]

Re:

700x28c, or 700x32c road tyres would be great for your bike.

The important thing is to lose the knobblies, because they are slowing you down and wasting energy. And they have no benefit if you only ride on the road.

I wouldn't go narrower than 28mm because it's a mountain bike influenced hybrid, and skinny road racing tyres might be too narrow for the rims.
Wider 28mm or 32mm tyres are better suited to the bike, and are more comfortable; yet still fast.



Which size tyre will fit safely on your rims depends on the inner width of your rim, you can use this guide, from sheldon brown site:

 

[RussUK]

Re: Re:

700x28c, or 700x32c road tyres would be great for your bike.

The important thing is to lose the knobblies, because they are slowing you down and wasting energy. And they have no benefit if you only ride on the road.

I wouldn't go narrower than 28mm because it's a mountain bike influenced hybrid, and skinny road racing tyres might be too narrow for the rims.
Wider 28mm or 32mm tyres are better suited to the bike, and are more comfortable; yet still fast.



Which size tyre will fit safely on your rims depends on the inner width of your rim, you can use this guide, from sheldon brown site:

Thanks for your reply and the chart guide. I'm guessing the interior width is probably 19mm, so yes 28c would be the narrowest choice.

 

[xerxes]

Re:

I have a set of Marathon Plus on one of my bikes, they roll well enough, but you should be aware that they are a heavy tyre; check out the weights: http://www.schwalbe.co.uk/tour/marathon-plus/

Having said that, they are pretty much the most puncture resistant tyre you'll find, I've never yet had one and done about 2,000 miles so far.

 

[Ceefax]

Re:

Yeah, Marathon Plus tyres are likely to be much heavier than the takes your taking off.

If you want to be faster on the road, and you don't need such hardcore puncture resistance, you could look at something like Continental Gatorskins which come in 28mm or 32mm.
I use Vittoria Rubino Pro 700x28 on my commuter.

Keep your Kenda tyres, so if you do decide venture off road occasionally, you can just swap tyres.

 

[RussUK]

Thanks again for your replies, I didn't realise the weight of the Marathons, but still think I'll need the puncture proof tyres. There is a lot of flail / hedge cutting alongside the cycle paths done here and also a few local piss-heads think it's fun to smash their bottles along the pathway.

 

[Splatter Paint]

Re:

Marathons are great.