Tyre width

[HertzvanRental]

I have had a couple of rides on my Claud Butler Majestic, running 1 1/4 tyres. I am amazed how much smoother it seems when set against my road bike, which has 23mm tyres. Do you think this is solely due to tyre width and, in the case of the Majestic, lower pressures, or are other factors in play?

 

[Grand Primo]

Hi Hertz (great name) I don't know about yours but Terry at Stallion Cycles put new 27x11/4 wheels from SJS on my Carlton Ten, with Schwalbe B Active tyres. The one time I took a tyre off the rim, I was amazed at the huge inner tube, big enough for my kids to take swimming. Must soak up a lot of bumps!

 

[growingvegetables]

Old steel frame?

Just bought a £30 clunker 1980's 6-speed Peugeot - purely as a winter hack. A rust-bucket to throw away in spring.














And I'm in love. I'd forgotten how superbly those old machines rode. Spidery front forks with a thinner taper and longer curve; tapered seat stays. Soaks up bumps and poor surfaces effortlessly.

Aye - but it's not just an oldie's nostalgia. Both my sons have tried it - and come back with ENORMOUS grins from the sheer pleasure of the ride.

 

[ChrisEyles]

@growingvegetables - haha, I know that feeling exactly, still remember it from my first ever road bike (a lovely five speed puch alpine)

I sold an old 1970s ten speed a little while ago, and it was great to see the chap who bought it come back from a little test ride with just that smile on his face. It was his first encounter with a road bike too, brought it all back to me.

@HertzvanRental - well a 1,1/4" tyre has about twice the volume of a 23mm one, so will give a cushier ride at a lower pressure than you could run the thinner tyre at.... but I'd hesitate to put it all down to tyre sizing, there is something magic about those old bikes!

 

[HertzvanRental]

Thank you all. I shall enjoy the CB for its own sake!
You're quite right about the rictus smile, though!!

 

[raleighnut]

Old steel frame?

Just bought a £30 clunker 1980's 6-speed Peugeot - purely as a winter hack. A rust-bucket to throw away in spring.














And I'm in love. I'd forgotten how superbly those old machines rode. Spidery front forks with a thinner taper and longer curve; tapered seat stays. Soaks up bumps and poor surfaces effortlessly.

Aye - but it's not just an oldie's nostalgia. Both my sons have tried it - and come back with ENORMOUS grins from the sheer pleasure of the ride.

Why do you think some of us are hooked on old (and not so old) steelies, and a good 531 (or531c) frame ain't that much heavier.

 

[Illaveago]

It was earlier on this year that I rediscovered how good the old steel bikes were to ride. It was when I was giving my friends old 60's BSA a test ride after restoring it. Like a lot of people I had forgotten how good they felt, light and agile and not as much vibration as I was feeling from a Carerra Vulcan with front suspension.

 

[sidevalve]

Carbon is for pencils, alloy is for aeroplanes - but Steel rules.

 

[mjr]

The falcon Majorca steel road bike on 27x1 1/4 is a cushier ride than my aluminium hybrid on 37-622, which just seems wrong and suggests material matters more than tyre width. My steel roadster on 40-622 gets ridden most (as did the one on 37-590 before it).

 

[mikeymustard]

Old steel frame?

Just bought a £30 clunker 1980's 6-speed Peugeot - purely as a winter hack. A rust-bucket to throw away in spring.














And I'm in love. I'd forgotten how superbly those old machines rode. Spidery front forks with a thinner taper and longer curve; tapered seat stays. Soaks up bumps and poor surfaces effortlessly.

Aye - but it's not just an oldie's nostalgia. Both my sons have tried it - and come back with ENORMOUS grins from the sheer pleasure of the ride.

There I was thinking "WTF is this guy on? And then finally I scrolled down and read the rest of your post. Ha ha very droll

 

[biggs682]

Carbon is for pencils, alloy is for aeroplanes - but Steel rules.

that is a great one but very true

The current R.E.W Reynolds i am using at mo originally had 27" wheels on but i swapped then for some 700s with 28c tyres and that still retains the same quality of ride .

 

[DCLane]

Old steel frame?

Just bought a £30 clunker 1980's 6-speed Peugeot - purely as a winter hack.

I've got the Peugeot below as my bike for between campuses due to security issues at the other one. And I really like it. It's got 700 x 32 wheels with new Delta Cruiser tyres on which roll smoothly, if not quickly:

 

[mjr]

It's got 700 x 32 wheels with new Delta Cruiser tyres on which roll smoothly, if not quickly

I always thought DC's were fairly quick. Faster than Marathons which themselves held up quite well in http://www.fietsersbond.nl/de-fiets/onderdelen/banden/testresultaten-bandentest (unlike M+) - are they not, then?

 

[DCLane]

I always thought DC's were fairly quick. Faster than Marathons which themselves held up quite well in http://www.fietsersbond.nl/de-fiets/onderdelen/banden/testresultaten-bandentest (unlike M+) - are they not, then?

Possibly. Note that I'm currently using the bike between campuses, often in traffic. Oh, and whilst wearing a suit.

I need to a) raise the seat and b) give it a proper ride before knowing for sure.

 

[HertzvanRental]

I've got the Peugeot below as my bike for between campuses due to security issues at the other one. And I really like it. It's got 700 x 32 wheels with new Delta Cruiser tyres on which roll smoothly, if not quickly:

That looks nice!