Road Tire Sizes: How Many of You Have Evolved?

[XXtwindad]

Just have spent the last few days on 35c tires. Panaracer Gravel King Plus. From the asphalt to the dirt and back again. So much fun! I don't feel like I'm losing too much on the road and it's just a perfect size for going up the dirt trails here in the East Bay.

I don't see myself going back to sub 30. My tires sizes are rated for "Mature Audiences Only" now. 30-35c. 32c is probably the sweet spot.

Anyone else never going back "sub-30?"

[tuscanyswe]

No you are all alone in this wide tire choice .. :banana:

Dont you have a firefly that will not fit 30s? :) If so thats quite the sacrifice for a couple of mms.

[XXtwindad]

No you are all alone in this wide tire choice .. :banana:

Dont you have a firefly that will not fit 30s? :) If so thats quite the sacrifice for a couple of mms.

Now that you mention it... my Firefly will fit a 30. In the back. The fork will not.

[tuscanyswe]

Now that you mention it... my Firefly will fit a 30. In the back. The fork will not.

Its not uncommon to ride a larger rear tho. Id say it would be worth it if that means u will continue to ride it. But then again its also my size .. :)

[m_sasso]

Never left 23mm for pavement, 22mm for wood and my Mt. bike rolls on 48mm for dirt.

[FlashUNC]

Nah. Anything over 28 is silly for road.

[OtayBW]

23 and 25 for pavement.

[charliedid]

Nah. Anything over 28 is silly for road.

I agree.

[Bob Ross]

23 and 25 for pavement.

We can hang. :::beer:::

[cyan]

So much fun! I don't feel like I'm losing too much on the road and it's just a perfect size for going up the dirt trails here in the East Bay.


Slightly OT, but what kinds of dirt trails are perfect with your 35c tires?

[skiezo]

My Ti DeSalvo like it's 25's all day every day but it does like it's 27 tubulars for some of its diet.
I do have one being built that can take 35's but it will be sporting 30's for now.
I see no need to go past 30 for a mainly road bike.

[stephenyi]

All my bikes have tires that range from 24 to 30mm measured width. Around 26-28 seems to be the sweet spot for me on pavement.

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[Clean39T]

For all-day tooling around and enjoying the scenery, and hitting some gravel roads (not jeep tracks), I'm looking forward to having some 35-38mm capacity shortly.

If I ever get into bikepacking, deep gravel, or loaded touring, I'll explore 650x47 or greater...or if my girth expands significantly and I need that extra flotation.

But there will always be a place for the responsiveness and aerodynamics of 25mm rubber on light and aero rims attached to a light and aero bike with a light and fit me on top of it all.

And for covering distances at speed in relative comfort on actual pavement, I have a hard time seeing a need for anything beyond 28mm tires mounted on wide rims, call it measured 30s, give or take.

Everything has trade-offs.

[old_fat_and_slow]

Evolution is overrated.

Still rockin 700-20's on front (my supply is dwindling)

700-23's on rear.

You know they're pumped up to 125 psi too!!!

[Frankwurst]

I've played the game. At my age anything under 34 is not in my stable. Time is not on my side but enjoying what time I have left is thanks to fat, fluffy, go where you want at your pace fun tires is.:beer:

[wgp]

23 and 25 for pavement.

We can hang. :::beer:::

Adding myself in this camp! :banana:

[OtayBW]

We can hang. :::beer:::

Adding myself in this camp! :banana:
Alright! I'll buy the first lemonade, and by lemonade, I mean....well, you know...:rolleyes:

[avalonracing]

Just have spent the last few days on 35c tires. Panaracer Gravel King Plus. From the asphalt to the dirt and back again. So much fun! I don't feel like I'm losing too much on the road and it's just a perfect size for going up the dirt trails here in the East Bay.

Horses for courses... If I lived in the East Bay I would probably spend a lot of time on 35c tires because going from the road to those trails is a blast out there. But back here in the Mid-Atlantic the trails all but require fat MTB rubber so it makes sense just have 25s on the road and an MTB for the trails.

[bikerboy337]

My gravel bike rocks 38mm Barlow Pass tires for a chunk of the year, it’s fun to ride, use as my rain bike, post rain bike as we have tons of crap on our roads... just rolls over everything and is fun... it’s about 1mph slower than when I run 25s... but I’m old and don’t really care about speed... the squish is fun on the 38s on my Ti Warbird....


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[slowpoke]

Grant was right.

[merckx]

Use 35mm tires on the road for a month. Then mount a pair of 25-28mm tires. Go for a ride. You will answer your own question.

[Waldo62]

I run the largest tires the frame allows. Those range 25-38. On the road, I'm happiest on 28s and 30s and I don't love 25s. If I know I'll be riding gravel, I ride my Lobsah with 38s. Not many frames permit me to run 30s.

[gibbo]

If the road needs > 28s I use my mountain bike.


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[Hilltopperny]

I like the ride of skinnier tires on a road bike fine, but I had one of my fastest 50 milers this year on 35mm Bon Jon’s and my gravel bike set up 1x! At over 200lbs and not competing with anybody they are great!

Hell, yesterday I did a 50 miler with a 2.5 mile dirt and loose gravel climb and the rest was mostly pavement both rough and smooth on my Chebacco with 42mm 650b Pumpkin Ridge knobbies and I did not feel any real detriment to speed! I bombed down the rough stuff faster in fact and on the looser climb I had more grip.

Fat tires smooth out the rough stuff and keep the bike planted for me which in turn makes me a little faster. I intend on running 38mm 700c Gravel King slicks on my Parlee for the road rides I will be doing this fall and will see how it goes.


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[ciclista_tifoso]

.

How much of a difference, really, between a 28 and a 32 width? I ask because I'll have a (disc-brake) gravel bike soon, and plan to have thinner width tires (as in 32mm -- the frame can take up to 45) installed, at least initially, as much of the riding will be on road/non-gnarly off-road terrain.
I had 23s, 25s, and 28s on my road bike. The rims on this 'gravel' bike will be about 23mm internal width, so the 32s may widen a bit once installed.

I will be curious to see how much slower -- or not -- I'd be if I took my gravel bike with 32mm tires out on the weekly groupride with other riders on skinnier tires (though I imagine more than half will likely be sporting 28s on their bikes).

[Kirk007]

For good pavement. 25 tubulars and some 25s that measure out at 28 seem to be my favorite. Unfortunately what I consider to be good pavement seems to be harder and harder to find. In the past when I've done this exercise (my personal history repeats itself), I found that I could enjoy 32 compass tires but nothing larger and nothing less supple. Now I'm retesting with Compass Bon Jon extralights, which measure out around 38 on my rims vs. compass loup loup pass. - 650b and measuring around 39mm. om my rims. I gotta say the loup loups are pretty fun - width but smaller total radius. The Bon Jons, for what they are, are amazing but its a lot of tire and volume for the road, for me. So far the loup loups are holding their own and I wouldn't be surprised if I end up liking them as well as 700 x 32 or perhaps even skinnier.

But here's the unexpected result so far (purely subjective and not definitive) for me: the greater width and volume isn't mooting out some of the jolts and thunks from potholes and road surface undulations as much as changing bikes does (in other words, even with loup loups there are some undulations bumps in our local roads that are every bit as jolting on the big tires as on 25s) but switching from, for instance, the F10 dogma with deep carbon wheels to a steel bike with steel fork and 25-28 mm tires on alloy wheels seems to have a greater damping response. I suspect the engineers will say "impossible, you don't get more compliance out of a frame/rim than a tire." Regardless of what's mechanically true, subjectively I've been experimenting with the wider tires too gain a bit more forgiveness from hitting the unseen bump or pothole and I'm not sure I'm getting that result on asphalt.

[RJR]

Steve built my Hampsten around 25s with fenders and I got made fun of for those fat tires 10 years ago! I've only got one bike for the moment so the Hampsten is wearing 35 Bon Jon's and I've bested my local times on them all summer. I can hit up the gravel roads or roll the paved rides without a second thought. However, when my DeSalvo is done, it will wear the fatter tires and the Hampsten will go back to 28s and be used for mostly road rides.

[XXtwindad]

Slightly OT, but what kinds of dirt trails are perfect with your 35c tires?

In the East Bay Hills, Canyon Trail, which is the connector trail between the East Ridge and West Ridge is a real bitch and a half. I don't know how to measure grades, but it's at least 10 percent. (First pic...and the that's not the really steep part) The other pics are of the East Ridge Trail. The GK+ are great for going up. Never lost traction, in even a really muddy, steep section. I wouldn't want to go on long downhills with them, though, because it's a file tread.

But man, are these tires (and this bike) so much fun!!!

[XXtwindad]

I run the largest tires the frame allows. Those range 25-38. On the road, I'm happiest on 28s and 30s and I don't love 25s. If I know I'll be riding gravel, I ride my Lobsah with 38s. Not many frames permit me to run 30s.

Grab the Lobster and we'll do some East Bay "gravel." :)

[XXtwindad]

.

How much of a difference, really, between a 28 and a 32 width? I ask because I'll have a (disc-brake) gravel bike soon, and plan to have thinner width tires (as in 32mm -- the frame can take up to 45) installed, at least initially, as much of the riding will be on road/non-gnarly off-road terrain.
I had 23s, 25s, and 28s on my road bike. The rims on this 'gravel' bike will be about 23mm internal width, so the 32s may widen a bit once installed.

I will be curious to see how much slower -- or not -- I'd be if I took my gravel bike with 32mm tires out on the weekly groupride with other riders on skinnier tires (though I imagine more than half will likely be sporting 28s on their bikes).

I notice it, for sure. The last part of my descent is on Skyline, approaching Joaquin Miller Road. Totally rutted out. Chalk marks all over the place designating pot holes. Riding 25s was like a jackhammer. 28s were marginally better. 35s? Pass the Grey Poupon.

[charliedid]

I'd ride my Gunnar with 32 Gravel King SK's all day long on roads/trails like those.

[charliedid]

That said I'm probably avoiding the fact that you have these things called hills. When I lived there we rode a bit of that stuff but I did more hiking back then and drooled over custom mountain bikes I could not afford. 1986-87:)

[Dave]

I moved up from 23 to 25 and dropped pressure by 15-20 psi. 80 front 85 rear. Weighing 135 helps. No gravel where I live and no bikes that would handle a 32.

[ERK55]

Steve built my Hampsten around 25s with fenders and I got made fun of for those fat tires 10 years ago! I've only got one bike for the moment so the Hampsten is wearing 35 Bon Jon's and I've bested my local times on them all summer. I can hit up the gravel roads or roll the paved rides without a second thought. However, when my DeSalvo is done, it will wear the fatter tires and the Hampsten will go back to 28s and be used for mostly road rides.

What are having Mike build for you? I recently built up my new Desalvo-titanium, medium reach rim brakes. I love it, one of the smoothest bikes I’ve ever ridden.

[blindwilly]

I sold my csi which maxed out at 25 rear and 23 front and bought an old school crosshairs with 32s. I’ve found that I am consistently about 2 mph slower on the crosshairs. I don’t know if that is due to tire size, bike fit, bike weight, geometry, or user mentality (probably a combination of all these things) but I don’t regret the decision. I like the versatility of the 32s and the ability to handle varied terrain with very little compromise on both rough and smooth surfaces.


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[retropean]

Yes, 25 and under is unrideable. Send all your useless frames with tight tire clearances to my address. :banana:

[mep]

Use 35mm tires on the road for a month. Then mount a pair of 25-28mm tires. Go for a ride. You will answer your own question.Indeed, that's what I would recommend to anyone. I suspect I came up to a different answer than you did, which is the best part.

[EB]

Living the supple life over here - narrowest tires in my life are 38s that come out to nearly 40 mounted. Considering turning in my spandex card as most of my kit is coming from kitsbow and 7mesh these days.

[AngryScientist]

nope. no way.

25 max for the road over here.

[Gummee]

For JRA I'll ride my CX bike with 32c TL GP5Ks on it and really enjoy the smooth ride over the 'less than stellar' pavement.

Depending on the time of year, I'll ride grave on the same 32c GP5Ks or till recently 35c G-Ones tubeless.

I just installed some 40c Conti Terra Trails but haven't had a chance to ride them.

Road bikes all have 23s or 25s on them 'cause that's what fits.

M

[charliedid]

Living the supple life over here - narrowest tires in my life are 38s that come out to nearly 40 mounted. Considering turning in my spandex card as most of my kit is coming from kitsbow and 7mesh these days.

Quitter :)

[AngryScientist]

25mm life.

https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-67lBDyZA7rk/X0zhxqzwESI/AAAAAAAAEO4/sSp2SxWTjvQyp6nxmQ8NCIrHw94SgsP6wCLcBGAsYHQ/s1200/IMG_6261.jpg

[cyan]

In the East Bay Hills, Canyon Trail, which is the connector trail between the East Ridge and West Ridge is a real bitch and a half. I don't know how to measure grades, but it's at least 10 percent. (First pic...and the that's not the really steep part) The other pics are of the East Ridge Trail. The GK+ are great for going up. Never lost traction, in even a really muddy, steep section. I wouldn't want to go on long downhills with them, though, because it's a file tread.

But man, are these tires (and this bike) so much fun!!!

Thanks for the examples/pics! Didn't realize that 35c tires handle such trails well, probably close to their limit. Agree with you going downhill with them may not be a good idea.

[rustychisel]

Could it be the premise of the thread title is wrong?

Evolution or regression? If you wanna ride a bike like you did when you were 10 and dad bought your first Schwinn, fine. It doesn't concern me.

If you're a bit lardy and need fatter tyres to get you where you wanna go, fine. It doesn't concern me.

[ColonelJLloyd]

Nah. Anything over 28 is silly for road.

Depends on the tax base where you ride.

[mtechnica]

25c on c17 rims here on both bikes.

[ColonelJLloyd]

For good pavement. 25 tubulars and some 25s that measure out at 28 seem to be my favorite. Unfortunately what I consider to be good pavement seems to be harder and harder to find. In the past when I've done this exercise (my personal history repeats itself), I found that I could enjoy 32 compass tires but nothing larger and nothing less supple. Now I'm retesting with Compass Bon Jon extralights, which measure out around 38 on my rims vs. compass loup loup pass. - 650b and measuring around 39mm. om my rims. I gotta say the loup loups are pretty fun - width but smaller total radius. The Bon Jons, for what they are, are amazing but its a lot of tire and volume for the road, for me. So far the loup loups are holding their own and I wouldn't be surprised if I end up liking them as well as 700 x 32 or perhaps even skinnier.

But here's the unexpected result so far (purely subjective and not definitive) for me: the greater width and volume isn't mooting out some of the jolts and thunks from potholes and road surface undulations as much as changing bikes does (in other words, even with loup loups there are some undulations bumps in our local roads that are every bit as jolting on the big tires as on 25s) but switching from, for instance, the F10 dogma with deep carbon wheels to a steel bike with steel fork and 25-28 mm tires on alloy wheels seems to have a greater damping response. I suspect the engineers will say "impossible, you don't get more compliance out of a frame/rim than a tire." Regardless of what's mechanically true, subjectively I've been experimenting with the wider tires too gain a bit more forgiveness from hitting the unseen bump or pothole and I'm not sure I'm getting that result on asphalt.

IME optimal tire pressure for larger tires, especially tubeless, is lower than I would normally have thought and not easy to find/settle on.

[XXtwindad]

Could it be the premise of the thread title is wrong?

Evolution or regression? If you wanna ride a bike like you did when you were 10 and dad bought your first Schwinn, fine. It doesn't concern me.

If you're a bit lardy and need fatter tyres to get you where you wanna go, fine. It doesn't concern me.

Man, that is some deep **** right there. You might be on to something. The last few rides I did on 25c tires, I was bounced around like a jackhammer the entire ride. When I got home, I felt like I need some more self-abnegation. I tried to reread James Joyce's "Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man." A true exercise in tedium. The suffering was intense and beautiful.

Then, I switched to 35c tires. A funny thing happened. They caused me to detour into my local bakery shop where I ordered a croissant and a fritter. It was almost as if the tires had a mind of their own...

[echappist]

Man, that is some deep **** right there. You might be on to something. The last few rides I did on 25c tires, I was bounced around like a jackhammer the entire ride. When I got home, I felt like I need some more self-abnegation. I tried to reread James Joyce's "Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man." A true exercise in tedium. The suffering was intense and beautiful.

Then, I switched to 35c tires. A funny thing happened. They caused me to detour into my local bakery shop where I ordered a croissant and a fritter. It was almost as if the tires had a mind of their own...

All them $10 words, but you are a wordsmith :)

That said, instead of self-abnegation, I was expecting you to write self-flagellation ;)

[makoti]

25s on the road on all my road bikes. I have a set of 28s I will try, but I can't see riding those all the time. I've got 32s on the bike I use for gravel. Too much on the road.

[slambers3]

X

[rustychisel]

Man, that is some deep **** right there. You might be on to something. The last few rides I did on 25c tires, I was bounced around like a jackhammer the entire ride. When I got home, I felt like I need some more self-abnegation. I tried to reread James Joyce's "Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man." A true exercise in tedium. The suffering was intense and beautiful.

Then, I switched to 35c tires. A funny thing happened. They caused me to detour into my local bakery shop where I ordered a croissant and a fritter. It was almost as if the tires had a mind of their own...

Heh heh. Try Immanuel Kant. You'd fail my ethics class.

[FlashUNC]

Depends on the tax base where you ride.

East Bay roads look like the remains of the first battle of the Marne. Anything over 28 is silly for pavement unless you're talking Roubaix cobbles.

[professerr]

23s on wide-ish rims is the sweet spot for me on the roads I know. Maybe 25s if I'm doing something interesting and new. 28's feel too bouncy bouncy to me, no matter what combo of rim or pressure, and the turn-in is slightly wonky when railing it.

[ChristianWong]

Man, that is some deep **** right there. You might be on to something. The last few rides I did on 25c tires, I was bounced around like a jackhammer the entire ride. When I got home, I felt like I need some more self-abnegation. I tried to reread James Joyce's "Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man." A true exercise in tedium. The suffering was intense and beautiful.

Then, I switched to 35c tires. A funny thing happened. They caused me to detour into my local bakery shop where I ordered a croissant and a fritter. It was almost as if the tires had a mind of their own...

I'm a big believer in fat supple tires - 32mm would be my preference for pure (poor) road riding.

That being said, I'd be grabbing that Firefly of yours 9 times out of 10 even with the skinny tires.

[Davist]

been riding 28s since the 80s. then had a cannondale that only fit 25s. thought it was faster, and it was. Now on a canyon with 32 GP5K tubeless at ~60psi, thought it was faster and it is, not to mention the ride is great. Looking at the paceline club bell curve on strava, admittedly not scientific, I'm up and to the right, so maybe many of us could benefit. Pandemic fitness is playing a part for me this year admittedly.

[verticaldoug]

I ride my Zank with 28s. It's my one bike to rule them all.

As long as the gravel is not sandy, the 28s are fine.

[weisan]

We keep making the mistake of focusing on one component or one aspect and forget that the overall result is the sum total. There are so many different moving parts and variables.

I have got road bikes that ride like heaven with my favorite saddle of choice but sucks when I moved that saddle over to gravel application.

I have got road bikes that ride great with a 25-28 tires but less so with a 32-35 mm tires.

When we try to combine things like that is akin to making a dish using all our favorite "ingredients" - chocolate ice cream + fried chicken + Kimchi + blueberry banana milkshake + Japanese rice crackers...what do you think you gonna get?

At the end of the day, the real test is in the pudding...

If you try something thinking it will work and your own real world testing proves otherwise, you must be ready to accept the result without passion or prejudice and move on, don't overthink.

[Johnnysmooth]

We can hang. :::beer:::

That makes three of us

[Seramount]

another vote for 23 / 25...

[GregL]

I participated in my first road race 25 years ago. My tires were labeled “700 x 23”. My tires today still have the same labeling, but actually measure 27mm on wider rims. I don’t think I’ve evolved much, but the science behind cycling has.

Greg

[Marvinlungwitz]

.

[mhespenheide]

When I was a teenager racing USCF juniors, I rode and raced Michelin Supercompe HD's in 23mm. I was 148#. Now that I'm 47, 190#, and riding roads with far worse pavement and a little gravel and dirt roads here and there, I like 32-33mm for light mixed use and true 28-30mm for road use. If I had a loop or route with smooth pavement, I'd be happy with a true 25-27mm.

That said, I'm finding some local mixed routes that I'm already itching to try out 650b at 42-47mm. But I'll hold off on that for a while.

[tuscanyswe]

Long ago, my go to tires were the larger silk Clement - Del Mondos or P-R.
I like riding wide tires on all surfaces, even smooth asphalt, I really enjoy the plush ride, not to mention the sound.

Modern, supple, wide clinchers are a gift from heaven, IMO.

I’ll put on as big a tire as I can squeeze on.

Btw, I’m not sure what being heavy has to do with tire preference - I’m a flyweight.

Likely a lot i would think. Same as tire preasure. Heavier riders will generally (there is ofc individual preferences) like a larger tire as it will give them the same kind of cushion as a lighter rider would feel from a smaller tire size.

[commonguy001]

I feel like the changes made have been mostly due to where I now ride and the conditions I ride most. I never thought My “road” bike would fit 40s and have disc brakes or a +8 low gear our back. It’s also ridden by a guy in his 50s who doesn’t have the same punch he did in his 30s and weighs about 20 pounds more although he’s continuing to work on that last part. Now I rarely ever just ride road anymore for a number of reasons but a lot of that has to do with what I have access to from home and unpaved is just closer and much less traveled.
Seems like my road bike is really not just a road bike anymore and I’m okay with that progression as it keeps me rolling and the smiles are still there.

[pdonk]

I went from 23s to 25s on the moits and liked it. When I got the sv it came with 37s. I thought they were slow in the beginning, but now really like them, especially since I dropped the pressure.

In my last ride I rode about 3km of really rough gravel to connect 2 nice roads with no problems. If I had 30s or 32s I'd likely go hunting for nice gravel rides.

[zap]

Road tire size..........have huge 25 tires on road bikes now. Width dictated by wider rims. I see no reason to go wider for road bikes.

[Clean39T]

We keep making the mistake of focusing on one component or one aspect and forget that the overall result is the sum total. There are so many different moving parts and variables.

I have got road bikes that ride like heaven with my favorite saddle of choice but sucks when I moved that saddle over to gravel application.

I have got road bikes that ride great with a 25-28 tires but less so with a 32-35 mm tires.

When we try to combine things like that is akin to making a dish using all our favorite "ingredients" - chocolate ice cream + fried chicken + Kimchi + blueberry banana milkshake + Japanese rice crackers...what do you think you gonna get?

At the end of the day, the real test is in the pudding...

If you try something thinking it will work and your own real world testing proves otherwise, you must be ready to accept the result without passion or prejudice and move on, don't overthink.

You get the bicycle equivalent of The Homer.

https://media.wired.com/photos/593252a1edfced5820d0fa07/master/w_1200,c_limit/the-homer-inline4.jpg

Everything you said is spot on.


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[tuxbailey]

Around here it is either pavement or MTB trail. So 25c for my road bike, not that it could fit anything wider.

[David Tollefson]

My road bikes use 23's and 25's, and won't take much more. No issues at all.

My gravel bike rides on 42's, and my next gravel build will allow for more.

My MTB will take 2.3's. But it still has drop bars.

[Marvinlungwitz]

.

[BlueHampsten]

38c Specialized for my gravel road bike.
26c or 26c Panaracer Gravel King for my touring bike that I use for the Eroica
Strade Bianche rides
28c Pro4 Endurance for my road bike

So many tire choices these days is a good thing.

[sparky33]

The skinny tire road bike wears ~28s, and it’s good for roadie riding.

Though I’m riding 35+ Rene Herse tires more often on pavement.

[Clancy]

When I first got my T-Lab, the biggest tire I could fit were 28’s, the fork was the limiting factor. I switched the fork out and can now run 32’s.

For pavement only, 32’s are overkill but oh so comfortable. But 28’s tend to stay on the bike. I simply can’t imagine going back to 23’s pumped up to 95-105 psi. I was bouncing and buzzing all over the place. I simply didn’t know.

Those that scoff at anything bigger than 25’s (and the one who thinks 22’s are cool?)

All I can say is what my mentor always warned me of .....contempt prior to investigation.

[ERK55]

Was the initial fork the one supplied by T-Lab?
And, if you don’t mind, what fork did you switch to?

[oliver1850]

Most of my road frames won't fit anything above a 25 or 28. Some are tight with 23s. I have one road bike with 18 mm tires and a couple of 27" conversions with 35s. Most are in between but 23-25 mm tires are most common.

[apple]

I've moved from 21 to 23 to 25 and sometimes 28 if they fit. I don't think I notice a difference, but who knows. My gravel bike is a hardtail mtb with 2.2" tires and is pretty stellar for gravel and MTB.

[Upcountry]

I have definitely drank the Kool-Aid! Even as a skinny guy at 145lbs, 28mm's at 60psi feel really nice on my crappy rural roads. I was an early adopter of the 25mm GP4000s's when they first started popping up years ago, albeit on narrow 15mm rims, but even those were a very noticeable improvement on the 23's of the past. I still have a buddy or two who I watch pump their 23's up to 110psi and I just cringe....

[John H.]

About 5 or so years ago I moved to the largest tires that my rim brake bike could fit- 25mm Conti GP4000.
As I changed bikes I always looked for more clearance and bigger tires.
My last rim brake bike could fit 28mm tires.

From then- I moved to disc brake bikes. Always buying bikes that could take the most tire. Right now I have Schwable Pro One Tubeless in 30mm. They seem to be a good blend of speed and comfort. I don't notice them to be any slower than 28mm tires.
My current bike can fit as large as 32mm Conti GP5000- and they look huge!

FWIW I am 5'10 and 145 lb. Roads are somewhere between ok and crappy in terms of pavement quality.

[XXtwindad]

About 5 or so years ago I moved to the largest tires that my rim brake bike could fit- 25mm Conti GP4000.
As I changed bikes I always looked for more clearance and bigger tires.
My last rim brake bike could fit 28mm tires.

From then- I moved to disc brake bikes. Always buying bikes that could take the most tire. Right now I have Schwable Pro One Tubeless in 30mm. They seem to be a good blend of speed and comfort. I don't notice them to be any slower than 28mm tires.
My current bike can fit as large as 32mm Conti GP5000- and they look huge!

FWIW I am 5'10 and 145 lb. Roads are somewhere between ok and crappy in terms of pavement quality.

Unless you're racing, I think that within a year or so, "30" will be the new normal.

[m_sasso]

Already think of the battery, motor, twist grip, the new normal of people calling themselves cyclists. Why not 30mm tires?

Most of us here are not normal.

[XXtwindad]

Already think of the battery, motor, twist grip, the new normal of people calling themselves cyclists. Why not 30mm tires?

Can I borrow your toe clips sometime? 😉

[Ozz]

Already think of the battery, motor, twist grip, the new normal of people calling themselves cyclists. Why not 30mm tires?

Most of us here are not normal.
If it has a motor, isn't it really a motor-cycle? I suspect at some point, vehicle licensing and driver license endorsements will be required....sorry for thread drift...

Back on topic....yes, I "evolved" from 23's to 25's about a month ago. ;)

So far so good.....more comfortable, not faster, not slower, so I guess that is a win.

[johnniecakes]

I still have a buddy or two who I watch pump their 23's up to 110psi and I just cringe....

I must be one of your buddies :banana:

[KidWok]

I have bikes set up based on tire sizes. Previously it was 25, 28, 32, and 35. I used to take the 32 out in most conditions, including group road rides and also solo gravel rides into the mountains. It seemed to be the most versatile size, though sluggish on the road and narrower than I wanted for gravel. I got hit by a couple of cars in November and replaced my commuter/touring bike that ran 35's, so I set that up with 650b x 47's. Then I took the Gunnar CrossHairs running 32's and bumped that up to 38's.

So now I can choose from 25, 28, 38, and 47 widths. I've found that I now much prefer taking the bike with 28's out. Before, it would be left home quite often in favor of the 32's. I only take the 25 out if I know the route is mostly smooth pavement. The 28's feel better for all day riding, especially if I know I'll be hitting chip seal or rough pavement.

Different courses for different horses as someone has said. Tire choice is really only one aspect of how the bikes are equipped and chosen. All four bikes are geared differently. On the 47 equipped bike, I just took off the SPD's and went to flat pedals. The 25 and 47 bikes have fenders. 47 has full racks. So on so forth. Sometimes, I take the 47 out on my in-city 25 mile road bike rides just because I want a harder workout but don't want to plan for a longer route.

Tai

[weisan]

I got hit by a couple of cars in November and replaced my commuter/touring bike that ran 35's, so I set that up with 650b x 47's. Then I took the Gunnar CrossHairs running 32's and bumped that up to 38's.
Tai

Tai pal, I am confused, surely you are not suggesting that we should all go out and get "hit by a couple of cars" before we see the light and upgrade to fat boys, are you? :D

[Bob Ross]

Tai pal, I am confused, surely you are not suggesting that we should all go out and get "hit by a couple of cars" before we see the light and upgrade to fat boys, are you? :D

I thought he meant the fatter tires would offer more protection for the next time he got hit by a car. :banana:

[Clancy]

Was the initial fork the one supplied by T-Lab?
And, if you don’t mind, what fork did you switch to?

Not at all. The first fork came stock with the frame. T-Lab later changed forks to one that accepts larger diameter tires. I swapped-out the old stock T-Lab fork for the newer version. Give ‘em a call, they’ll help you out.

Since swapping out the fork and having 2 wheelsets my T-Lab has truly turned into an All-Road bike.

[Red Tornado]

700 x 25 on the "fast" road bike. Actually measures 24 when aired up.

700 x 28 on the backup/sometimes CX road bike (compact/slightly lower gearing and use long MTB V-brake pads for a little extra stopping power). Actually measures 27 when aired up. Used to have a second set of wheels I used for CX on this bike. I put 700 x 32 cross tires on those wheels; maybe could have fit 35's in the frame if there was no mud.

Recently finished a Pure Fix SS/fixie. Stuck some 700 x 25's on it because I had them laying around. Would like to put 30's on it eventually.

[XXtwindad]

Obviously many variables to consider, but, for the type of riding I like doing, and the area I live in, 32-35c tires seem like the ticket. Also, for the places (at least stateside) that I want to visit, such as the Blue Ridge area and Vermont, there’s lots of gravel options.

Such as this: https://bikepacking.com/routes/green-mountain-gravel-growler/

For the ability to go off road, you are perhaps a little slower on the road. I think it’s a more than acceptable trade-off.

[charliedid]

Obviously many variables to consider, but, for the type of riding I like doing, and the area I live in, 32-35c tires seem like the ticket. Also, for the places (at least stateside) that I want to visit, such as the Blue Ridge area and Vermont, there’s lots of gravel options.

Such as this: https://bikepacking.com/routes/green-mountain-gravel-growler/

For the ability to go off road, you are perhaps a little slower on the road. I think it’s a more than acceptable trade-off.

Yes I think most of us feel the same way....depends where you live and ride etc. I still don't think I could be happy without a light weight skinny tire bike but who knows.

Bikes are good fun regardless of the tire size.

[colker]

Unless you're racing, I think that within a year or so, "30" will be the new normal.

I don´t know what you mean by normal. I never call a road bike "normal": it´s a fast, minimal in every aspect machine to go the distance or burn the legs. Over tarmac even bad tarmac i want a stage race road bike w/ 700x25 and i can ride 700x23 no problem. I believe comfort comes from being smooth on the bike: grip the bars lightly and let the bike deal w/ the shock. As long as you have traction why have a fatter tire? Skinnies make the bike zippy and quick. Ride on good tires and good wheels and ignore the hype. Road riding is never normal.. it´s not for everyone.

[XXtwindad]

I don´t know what you mean by normal. I never call a road bike "normal": it´s a fast, minimal in every aspect machine to go the distance or burn the legs. Over tarmac even bad tarmac i want a stage race road bike w/ 700x25 and i can ride 700x23 no problem. I believe comfort comes from being smooth on the bike: grip the bars lightly and let the bike deal w/ the shock. As long as you have traction why have a fatter tire? Skinny tires make it zippy and quick. Ride on good tires and good wheels and ignore the hype. Road riding is never normal.. it´s not for everyone.

“Riding for fun” is the new “racing.” Best way to do it IMHO ... 30-35c tires.

[pelicanrando]

I had a 10 year run on 700x32 (with fenders) and 700x45 (without fenders) on my Pelican, and pretty much drank the wider tire kool aid full on. At that time I only had one bike, and rode a lot of off-road along with rando rides. At PBP this year, drafting some Japanese riders on modern aero bikes who were dancing up and down the hills, I finally got a hankering for light road bike again.

Got a Look 595 (my first carbon bike) and went from a 26lb bike to a 16lb bike with 700x25. I'm light so I've been running them 60psi front / 70psi rear. I am having a blast on the skinny tires!! It's fun to ride something light and responsive, and I don't find it to be uncomfortable compared to my 32s. For dirt, I set up a cross bike with 700x38 steilacooms. It's a lot more fun to shred on than my Pelican.

So yeah, I guess I evolved back into the skinny tire world, after being a full Jan/Grant convert. I'm branching out from one bike that does it all, to different bikes for different rides.