# changing mountain bike wheels to thinner ones?



## milesness (Mar 2, 2012)

Hi all, I'm new to this forum, I joined because I'm planning on cycling to Holland from Calais and in need of some advice 

I don't have a dedicated touring bike, however even if it takes me longer to cycle I'm not fussed. I have a Gary Fisher mountain bike that I'm making a few upgrades to to make it good enough for touring, however I'm not sure if I should change the standard mountain bike wheels to thinner road wheels (I can't put bigger wheels on, and I'm pretty sure it's a 26" wheel) so that it doesn't take as much energy to pedal.

Basically I just want to know if I should change the wheels to be thinner or not.

Thanks!


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## highdelll (Oct 3, 2008)

Well, that's kind of vague.
What is 'thinner' to you?

Personally, for a touring tire, I'd think a higher-volume with a balance of acceptable weight/durability would be the preferred choice.

As you go smaller, it gets rougher and tougher.


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## milesness (Mar 2, 2012)

what do you mean by 'higher volume'?

and sorry, I have been a bit vague, what I mean by 'thinner' is smaller rims and thinner tyres i.e less width. Better tyres for me would be ones that are faster (I.e don't lose as much pedalling energy) with an acceptable level of strength and reliability for riding on roads and simple dirt tracks, like ones leading into farms.

Thanks, miles


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## highdelll (Oct 3, 2008)

milesness said:


> what do you mean by 'higher volume'?
> 
> and sorry, I have been a bit vague, what I mean by 'thinner' is smaller rims and thinner tyres i.e less width. Better tyres for me would be ones that are faster (I.e don't lose as much pedalling energy) with an acceptable level of strength and reliability for riding on roads and simple dirt tracks, like ones leading into farms.
> 
> Thanks, miles


A 'higher volume' tire is one that is much louder - letting people know that you are coming. 

Seriously though, A higher volume tire is a 'fatter' tire. The 'volume' refers to the 'real estate' the gas takes-up inside of a tire. If the rim size is a constant, you can gauge 'volume' by looking at the cross-section of an inflated tire on that rim.
An ultra-light roadbike racing tire tire might have the cross-section the size of a typical marble; whereas, a fatbike tire would be that of a softball.

A higher volume tire has the benefit of being able to run a lower pressure; conforming to irregularities better and actually decreasing rolling resistance, with the benefit of a comfier ride - to a point.
the downside* is that of increased static weight (uphill) and rotational weight (acceleration)
upside* is you are not on a knife-edge traction limit.

A small volume tire necessarily needs more air-pressure to stave off strikes to the rim (resulting in flats/casing damage) and tends to have a 'harsh' ride.
-Upside* is that they are lighter
downside* - in cornering, they will not give much warning before washing-out

*=more examples can be added


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## alanm (Sep 2, 2009)

Hi Miles,

I've clocked up a "few" Km touring in all sorts of conditions on different bikes from track racing frames to MTB's and lots in between. 

What Highdell says about tyres is true. However, for where you're going to ride your train of thought is spot on.

Here's what you can do, check your existing tyres, I'm pretty sure they'll be 26". Check the width of your rim, it's likely to be no wider than 47mm. If this is the case whip down to the nearest bike shop and buy yourself a set of Schwarbe 'Marathon Mondial HS 428' tyres Marathon Mondial HS 428 | Schwalbe North America (with tubes), whip home, whack 'em on and you're rady to go...simple. People have ridden the world on their predecessors and reports of 20,000 Km's out of a set are not uncommon. 

Good luck.

Al


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## milesness (Mar 2, 2012)

Thanks highdell and alanm, that's really helpful advice . Good news is that I've just bought a trek 800 sport for £30 which saves me the hassle of buying a longer seat post and seems to have a frame that is a bit more suited to touring (I think).

Is the only advantage of smaller tyres the weight? Because I may just stick with the ones currently on the bike to save money, since I've got a list of upgrades to the bike which goes above £100 (Hoping to get some things off freecycle and my local recycling centre), plus I have a few pieces of other gear to buy, and I want to save as much money as possible.

Thanks, Miles


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## littlebadboy (Mar 27, 2012)

Hi! I was thinking of the same thing. I'm not a serious mountain bike rider and was thinking of buying an old cheap Trek 800 Sport and put on tires similar to hybrids. Would that work?


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## Harold (Dec 23, 2003)

Hybrid tires can be good touring tires. They're a bit larger than standard racing tires (35mm vs 23mm give or take) so they will be a bit more comfy. Heavier, durable casings are more common. More tread can be either a positive or negative depending on the surfaces you plan to ride. Gravel - perfect, smooth pavement - less than ideal.

I have 32mm tires on my commuter now and like them a good bit on pavement. Tread is more than most road tires but not quite hybrid level. I rode on a little dirt today and they were just okay. My 38mm hybrid tires are great on a little dirt and gravel because they have more cush and tread.


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## rodar y rodar (Jul 21, 2006)

littlebadboy said:


> Hi! I was thinking of the same thing. I'm not a serious mountain bike reader and was thinking of buying an old cheap Trek 800 Sport and put on tires similar to hybrids. Would that work?


Would what work for what? If you mean the bike, is that a hybrid with 622 wheels, or one of the early rigid mtbs? If it`s a modern hybrid, I really don`t know. If it`s one of the old 800 series Trek mtbs, it could work very well for touring.

Or were you asking about tires? Nate is probably right about the hybrid tires, though I haven`t used enough 622s to form an opinion about any of them. Highdelll`s explanation about volume was very good, but I`d add that there is a lot of leeway and room to fudge when it comes to tire size. For any ride I take, there are times when I`d ideally want more rubber, and times when I have more than I`d like, but you can`t have it all all the time- just have to take your best shot and go with the flow. When you get fatter than you really need, you`ll be pulling extra weight and have higher resistance on good surfaces, but you can still ride. When you have less (within reason), you have to be more careful than if you had those fat heavy tires, but can usually still pick your way through. If you get TOO skinny for whatever road, you`ll soon find yourself walking.

My personal preference is 1.25 to 1.5 for mostly paved trips with maybe a little bit of dirt just to get away from the highway and find a place to camp, 1.5 to 1.9 for half and half between paved roads and easy dirt roads, and as fat as possible if I expect mostly dirt or long stretches of sand, rocks, or washboard.


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## littlebadboy (Mar 27, 2012)

rodar y rodar said:


> Would what work for what?...
> 
> My personal preference is 1.25 to 1.5 for mostly paved trips with maybe a little bit of dirt just to get away from the highway and find a place to camp, 1.5 to 1.9 for half and half between paved roads and easy dirt roads, and as fat as possible if I expect mostly dirt or long stretches of sand, rocks, or washboard.


I think I meant what hybrid tires would work on the Trek 800 which is for a paved road commuter and some occasional dirt roads on bike paths.

Thank you rodar and natehawk for the tips!


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