Thinking of downsizing tyre size

[ebo]

Hey all,

I'm thinking of downsizing my tyres on my Charge Mixer hybrid and would like some advice.

I'm finding my Conti Marathon 37 tyres a bit slow. Now summer is on the way, I thought I'de try out a different tyre size to see if it makes much difference to the ride.

I'm probably going to downsize to 25 or 28, but don't know which is best for me. Obviously a lot of it is down to preference, so I was wondering if any of you have had any experience of doing something similar. Would like to know your views before I take the plunge.

My rims are 17mm so should accomodate 25-37 easily.

 

[Pedrosanchezo]

I run 28's on my cx bike for road riding. Panaracer tourguards. Roll pretty well and soak up plenty of heavy roads.
25's might be a bit on the thin side coming from 37's. You might find the 28's quite narrow in comparison anyway. Defo a good place to start. I've been very happy with 28's as an all year round tyre for roads.

 

[DaveyM]

I am in the process of down sizing from 32 CX tyres to 28 Specailized Armidillos, I was told that this would be fine and I could go as low as 25's but no lower (don't know why I couldn't but it was the man from the LBS who told me). So from 37's to 28 or 25 should be a big change.

 

[Pdstubbs]

Good 25s will be fine especially if you're on road. Go for 28 if you going on trails

 

[samsbike]

I think it would depend on how bad the roads are in your area and what you weigh. Given my fighting weight is a bit lardy I really have to pump up my 25 and I am thinking of going the other way to 28/32 just to have lower pressures and a bit more comfort.

Also some 32s come up as 28, so its a bit horses for courses really. Depends on the manufacturer, I think Schwalbe run close to size while some continentals come up smaller.

 

[ebo]

Thanks for the advise guys.

I've ordered myself a pair of 28s owing to me being heavier than I should be. Will hopefully notice the difference and give me a little bit of extra speed.

 

[samsbike]

I wouild be interested to see what the difference you feel is.

 

[ebo]

Will let you know in a weeks time.

 

[Amack]

I am in the process of down sizing from 32 CX tyres to 28 Specailized Armidillos, I was told that this would be fine and I could go as low as 25's but no lower (don't know why I couldn't but it was the man from the LBS who told me). So from 37's to 28 or 25 should be a big change.

Does anyone know why you wouldn't want to fit 23's on a hybrid? Granted it might look funny(esp if its a hybrid with front shocks)but any other reasons?

 

[adamhearn]

The rims may not take 23. Sheldon has a chart with what rims you can run with what tyres.

I dropped from 38's to run 32's on my hybrid used for commuting and haven't really noticed any speed difference but there's a definite drop in comfort on the crappy road surface.

 

[ebo]

Finally got round to fitting the tyres. It was a pain with that Alfine hub, but got there in the end.

I've had a nice long ride on them now and enjoyed it. I'm feeling the road a lot more, but it's still pretty comfortable. I've noticed a slight improvement on speed, and it's a bit of an easier ride now. Overall, I prefer the new tyres, but it's only a small improvement in the ride tbh.

Thanks for all your advice!

 

[inkd]

I went from spesh nimbus 32 to conti gatoskin 28 on my hybrid only cause the tyre needed replacing, looks way smaller but not noticed any difference yet (only been out twice since change) I will replace the other back nimbus when needed.