Beach / Loose Sand Riding... What Size/Model Tires are You Using?

[Ridetoglide]

Hello.... Question for the guys riding on the beach? What size width ( and brand ) tires are you using for beach riding and how do you feel they perform?

I have a friend looking for a used ebike for the beach and we are trying to figure out how wide of a tire he would need that will perform decently on the beach.

Are 26x4" tires wide enough or would he need something slightly wider like a 4.25, 4.5 or a 4.8"?

I just got a Biktrix Juggernaut Ultra Beast with 4.8" Maxxis Minions and although i have nothing else to compare it to I feel they perform very well on the sand.

 

[JRA]

A wide tire such as the 4.8 on your bike at a very low psi will perform the best on loose sand. However if you have to ride any amount of hard ground on the way to the beach you will suffer from high rolling resistance and possible self steering issues.

I ride beach here in coastal OR on as little as 45c tire width @ 30psi on my front hub motor, essentially 2 wheel drive, drop bar bikes that will cut through loose sand, although a bit squirlley, on my way to the darker hard sand near the tide line where riding is just fine.

But I usually ride 2.3 to 2.8 size tires at around 15psi on my emtb and can ride loose sand trails here as long as they aren't too chewed up by horses. But on the beach I always ride as hard a sand as possible and time my rides for low tide. Even then riding in sand requires more wattage, especially so in loose sand affecting battery range.

 

[Ridetoglide]

A wide tire such as the 4.8 on your bike at a very low psi will perform the best on loose sand. However if you have to ride any amount of hard ground on the way to the beach you will suffer from high rolling resistance and possible self steering issues.

I ride beach here in coastal OR on as little as 45c tire width @ 30psi on my front hub motor, essentially 2 wheel drive, drop bar bikes that will cut through loose sand, although a bit squirlley, on my way to the darker hard sand near the tide line where riding is just fine.

But I usually ride 2.3 to 2.8 size tires at around 15psi on my emtb and can ride loose sand trails here as long as they aren't too chewed up by horses. But on the beach I always ride as hard a sand as possible and time my rides for low tide. Even then riding in sand requires more wattage, especially so in loose sand affecting battery range.

Yeah i carry an electric pump and tire guage with me.... if i am on the sand and have to go back onto hard pavement i air back up to 15psi ( 20 is the max for my tire).

I live on Long Island NY and on the sough shore the sand is very loose, i air down to 5psi, on the northshore its much more rocky and harder sand is run 7 to 8psi.

I have a bike with 3" wide tires and tried it on the sand and did not work well at all

 

[Beebad]

I think about rust when I think about riding on the beach.

 

[Ridetoglide]

I think about rust when I think about riding on the beach.

Yes, what ever can rust up will!!! I put some ebike chain dry lube using a qtip on anything i think will rust like bolts and un painted metal surfaces and that works well. The only surface that is rusting that i cannot treat are the break rotors inside of the functioning surface. If you try to put lube one there it will mess up the brakes

But other than that i was surprised how clean the bike stays after riding on the beach. The chain gets sand on it but thats it. The bike stays much cleaner than when i take it in the woods and muddy trails. The only thing i do while beach riding is avoid salt water and wet surfaces.