Tyres for my first hybrid

[j20nyh]

Hi guys, new member here!

I recently purchased my first hybrid bicycle with front suspension, a Cube LTD CLS Pro. Overall I'm really happy with the bike but I've been thinking about changing the tyres and would like some opinions.

After checking out various different hybrids with front suspension on the market I've noticed that they all seem to have skinnier tyres, at the moment I have 622x44 Schwalbe Smart Sam tyres and i'm wondering if I would benefit at all by changing them to a 35 or a 37/38? I do a vast majority of my cycling on the road but do venture on to gravel, mud, and slightly rocky terrain on a fair few of my rides.

I've read the the Schwalbe Marathon Supremes are the best tyre available for the cycling I do but they look too slick in my opinion, am I wrong? Schwalbe Marathon Originals have also been recommended.

What width do you guys think will be best suitable and what is your tyre of choice.

Thanks,

Jon

 

[raleighnut]

Marathons or the M+

 

[SpokeyDokey]

I have 35mm Marathon Deluxe on my bike and they are superb.

They are 'reverse tread' so they roll really well yet have enough grip for the odd muddy/grassy trail.

The deluxe are much lighter than the other Marathons but are pretty expensive in the UK.

I ordered mine from Rose and they took 10 days to get here (the £7.60 postage was ludicrously low imo) and they were much cheaper than in the UK.

http://www.rosebikes.co.uk/article/schwalbe-marathon-deluxe-tyre/aid:643283

 

[SpokeyDokey]

I have 35mm Marathon Deluxe on my bike and they are superb.

They are 'reverse tread' so they roll really well yet have enough grip for the odd muddy/grassy trail.

The deluxe are much lighter than the other Marathons but are pretty expensive in the UK.

I ordered mine from Rose and they took 10 days to get here (the £7.60 postage was ludicrously low imo) and they were much cheaper than in the UK.

http://www.rosebikes.co.uk/article/schwalbe-marathon-deluxe-tyre/aid:643283

NB: they grip like loons on gritty, crappy Cumbrian lanes.

 

[Cycleops]

The narrower slicker tyres will feel faster and still be able to handle the rough stuff. I have some Maxxis Overdrives on my hybrid and they are fine but don't roll too fast.

If riding on soft loose surfaces drop the tyre pressures, it will grip better.

 

[Pat "5mph"]

I have Marathon Originals on one of my hybrids (26x2.00), Marathon+ (700x38) on another.
Both work well on canal paths and the likes, I prefer the originals on tarmac, a little less rolling resistance imo.

 

[sreten]

Hi,

You can get better tyres for mainly on road, but of course they'll be worse offroad.
YMMV but I don't think you'd be better off with skinnier tyres. Your tyres as they
wear will get better on road as the wear decreases the basic off road abillity.
Use the fork lockout for onroad. 44mm is not fat for a hybrid.

rgds, sreten.

FWIW if you want to convert it into mainly a road bike, at the moment
these are easily the best value tyres in 37mm you could fit at the moment :
http://www.planetx.co.uk/i/q/TYVIRNDHYP/vittoria-randonneur-hyper-folding-tyre

 

[Colin_P]

I've got some 700 x 40 Schwalbe Land Cruisers on my Giant Roam

They have a central ridge which is good for the road and knobbles at the sides which help off road.

 

[dee.jay]

I put Schwalbe City Jet's (26x1.95) on my bike and the difference is massive. Much more enjoyable to ride on paths etc. To be honest I'm not bothered about going up mountains so they suit me.

 

[Cyclist33]

Hi guys, new member here!

I recently purchased my first hybrid bicycle with front suspension, a Cube LTD CLS Pro. Overall I'm really happy with the bike but I've been thinking about changing the tyres and would like some opinions.

After checking out various different hybrids with front suspension on the market I've noticed that they all seem to have skinnier tyres, at the moment I have 622x44 Schwalbe Smart Sam tyres and i'm wondering if I would benefit at all by changing them to a 35 or a 37/38? I do a vast majority of my cycling on the road but do venture on to gravel, mud, and slightly rocky terrain on a fair few of my rides.

I've read the the Schwalbe Marathon Supremes are the best tyre available for the cycling I do but they look too slick in my opinion, am I wrong? Schwalbe Marathon Originals have also been recommended.

What width do you guys think will be best suitable and what is your tyre of choice.

Thanks,

Jon

Stick with the Smart Sams, they have a near continuous centre line tread so they aren't appreciably slower on roads, but they are much better off road than Marathons, and being wider, comfier.

 

[j20nyh]

Thanks for your replies guys. A lot of different opinions and recommendations as expected. I guess the best thing for me to do is bite the bullet and purchase some skinnier tyres and see how they stack up against the Smart Sams, as I have nothing to compare them to at the moment. I do think at 44mm they're slightly overkill for my riding though as the majority is spent on the road or on gravel paths with my suspension locked out.

After looking again I think it's a toss up between the Marathon Originals, Marathon Plus and Marathon Deluxe. Maybe weight will be the deciding factor.

Now to decide whether to go 35c or 38c.

 

[sreten]

Hi,

Skinnier tyres won't help much at all. You seem a fashion victim.
A skinny rear with a full suspension front = wrong choice of bike .

Any bike with front suspension should have a fat rear tyre.

rgds, sreten.

 

[j20nyh]

A fashion victim?

Can you please explain further as all of these bikes have front suspension and have skinnier tyres than mine...

http://www.evanscycles.com/products/specialized/crosstrail-pro-disc-2014-hybrid-bike-ec042527 - 38c
http://www.evanscycles.com/products/cannondale/bad-boy-2-2015-hybrid-bike-ec071035 - 28c
http://www.evanscycles.com/products/cannondale/quck-cx-1-2015-hybrid-bike-ec071044 - 35c
http://www.evanscycles.com/products/trek/85-ds-2015-hybrid-bike-ec072172 - 38c
http://www.tredz.co.uk/.Kona-Splice-Deluxe-Kojak-2015-Hybrid-Sports-Bike_73021.htm - 35c

The list goes on, in fact like i said I can't find any others with tyres as wide as mine on a hybrid.

 

[raleighnut]

That's cos yours appears to be a trekking/mountain hybrid whereas others are more road-based in fact the class Hybrid covers a wide range of bikes, mine for instance runs 28mm Schwalbe Marathons but has been biased towards road and gravel path use and last got used for touring. (its an older Ridgeback with CrMo frame and forks) but would be crap at bridleways where yours would be fine.

 

[Elybazza61]

Hi,

FWIW if you want to convert it into mainly a road bike, at the moment
these are easily the best value tyres in 37mm you could fit at the moment :
http://www.planetx.co.uk/i/q/TYVIRNDHYP/vittoria-randonneur-hyper-folding-tyre

Another thumbs up for the Randonneurs(got 32's on the cross bike*) here,been used on road,loose cycle paths and farm tracks;only thing they don't seem to like is wet grass and mud but that's hardly a surprise.They roll good on the road too easily running along at 30kph.


*They come up at 28mm on the Archetype rims though.