Use Cases for 700c 48MM tires

[jambee]

I've been riding 700c 44mm slick tires since they came out (thanks Jan!).

Recently, I have been thinking about the next all-road design.

What I see as a benefit of the Rene Herse 700c at 48mm tires is that they come at both slick and knobs. That translates for me to the possibility of having a ride with fenders that with an easy switch of tires will get me through winter or summer (living in Northern Europe, fenders are a must).

For an all-road bike that's basically the road bike I use, what do you consider the benefits of 48mm 700c tires over 44mm?

[.RJ]

Originally Posted by jambee

For an all-road bike that's basically the road bike I use, what do you consider the benefits of 48mm 700c tires over 44mm?

I think for most road and regular road gravel you're splitting hairs and not going to find much difference. When things get chunky though (FS roads, jeep tracks, etc) the bigger tires and knobs I think will make a big difference. The bike that I'll take camping the most has 29x1.9 / 50mm tires on it, its much nicer to ride loaded up than my CX bike with 700x38

[charliedid]

Mountain biking...

[unterhausen]

Really coarse chipseal

[prototoast]

Yeah, I don't totally follow this. If you have 44 tires and you often find yourself wishing that you had a slightly bigger tire, go with 48. If you have 44 tires and you are fine with that, stay with 44. It's not like there is some drastically different purpose to 48s versus 44s. It's just about gradations of the surfaces you are riding on, and personal preferences.

[jambee]

Good points.

The last post is a good point. This is why I was asking for a use case. Basically, I think that running 44mm tires is great and i was thinking "what will 4mm extra get me"?

[thew]

I spend a fair bit of time in an area where the back roads are mostly compacted sand with some soft spots. I think a road bike that could clear 48's would be great there, though I'd probably go with 650b's.

I had a touring bike that cleared 700x45 that I rode on abandoned rail lines (ie chunky, loose gravel). 48 would be even better.

These are relatively narrow uses, though, I don't think I'd go that wide for an all-road bike that would see a fair bit of pavement. In my limited experience, I found 45mm tires fell into an unfortunate middle ground in snow--too wide to cut through to the pavement; too narrow to really float over it.

[unterhausen]

When I was designing my new gravel bike, I wanted to have clearance for 700x2.25. Then I realized I am still not particularly tall and went for 650bx48. It will also clear 700x40, which is what I am running on my current gravel bike.

[spoonrobot]

Being able to ride slightly faster on singletrack with rocks and roots. No speed difference on gravel, slower on the climbs, slower on the road, heavier and more sensitive to pressure. No comfort difference and if the pressure is wrong, less comfortable than narrower tire, had to buy a better gauge because the PSI delta between good/bad is so small. Had to upsize fenders because stays would rub when riding faster on singletrack.

IIRC, 44mm is All-Road while 48mm broaches into All-Road Enduro - but I will have to check my Vintage Bicycle Quarterly decoder ring to confirm.

[Burning Pines]

I've decided I like tires in the 42mm or less range any time I'd also prefer a tire with no tread, i.e., when the primary use is pavement. If I am finding I want more volume I am also finding I want some tread because it means I'm cornering on soft surfaces. The exception is loaded touring or commuting with lots of gear - then I like the balloon tires just great. On my 650b gravel bike I use 48mm Rene Herse knobbies or 42mm slicks depending on the season and ride.

I guess what I am saying is if you like 700x44 slicks for the road just stick with that and get some 700 x 48s for off-road. Just optimize the fender line for the bigger tires - it's fine to have a little bit of a gap IMO.

[azrider]

Originally Posted by charliedid

Mountain biking...

We have a winner!!!

[robt57]

Only thing pops onto my mind is if you are a clyde size rider and could benifit from additional float. I say that as if you are 250lb+ any float embellishment where needed is a plus.

Question is this, is a second set of wheels, 650b and 2.1+ somethings that makes sense if discs?

[Alistair]

Just bought a new gravel bike that came with 40mm tires (Bontrager that looks like a Schwalbe G-One).

They're great for my local mixed-surface ride (20ish miles of pavement, 10ish miles of mixed dirt/gravel). Faster overall than my hardtail with 2.2" XC tires.

But, on my normal road loop (40ish miles of paved rolling hills) it's noticeably slower than 28mm tires. But, so are my 35mm G-Ones by a similar amount. (effort based on avg HR over the loop)

I guess my question would be: Is there really a case for a 40+mm slick tire (vs a file tread or G-one style tread)? If I were swapping tires, I'd pick a 28 or 32 for pavement and a nice high-volume, small-knob gravel tire for off-road.

[jambee]

@Alistair it's practically heresy! As an all-roader for the last 10 years I can attest that there is no difference in my speed between tire sizes up to around 48mm.

Remember that this thread has Jan Heine (who is a forum member btw) all over it.

[benb]

You're getting really close to "keep your current bike and add a MTB" I think. You're within 5mm of a 2.1" MTB tire at that point, and if 44mm is not getting the job done a MTB is probably going to be a heck of a lot better than going up to 48mm on a gravel bike. As soon as you say "the MTB will be too slow on the easy stuff" then you're right back to "why are you on 44s instead of 38s or 35s?"

Some of gravel incredulity from people like Jan Heine about deep gravel and MTBs is amusing.. some of those blogs where he remarks that the MTBs hammer right through stuff that's really hard on gravel bikes... well of course, the whole industry has spent the last 40 years optimizing bikes & tires for those situations where a gravel bike or road bike is just not the right thing.

When a MTB is the right tool for a trail section it's going to put a huge grin on your face vs any gravel bike... generally the situations where you're working gingerly not to crash/lose traction on the gravel bike and you could go right ahead and sprint/hammer on the MTB and it's going to stick like glue.