Minimum Tire Width

[jkvt]

Well - I see a thread about maximum tire size, so how about one about minimum tire size.

The minimum tire size for these rims is 1.5" and 100 PSI. I was looking at picking up some 700x42 lower rolling resistance tires (Continental Contact Plus Travel), which is about 1.65". Does anyone else run that small, or considerably below the 2.35" tires that come with the bike? I'm trying to figure out pros and cons. Right now main pros I see with this, vs the same tire that's wider, is better rolling resistance as the max PSI is higher. The main con is a somewhat harsher ride. Is there anything else significant I should be thinking about when going this narrow? I'm really just trying to maximize the miles out of a charge here.

Thanks!

 

[Gleam]

With narrow tire, considering weight of motor, you might face snakebite punctures. you ll have to avoid any harsh ride with tires so narrow, otherwise you might get rim dents

 

[ki11a]

sounds like a bad idea...maybe just go tubeless for higher PSI

 

[jkvt]

Thanks folks! I'm not one to solicit advice and then go against it, but the day after I posted, before the responses, I just decided to bite the bullet and grab a pair because they were discounted quite a bit. I'll see how they do and worst case I'll sell them and go up another 5mm.

I appreciate the responses!

 

[ki11a]

let us know how it goes!

 

[jkvt]

FYI just wanted to follow up. I put the narrow Continental Contact Plus Travel tires on. They are solid.. unfortunately a bit too much. I've put about 100 miles on them so far. Bottom line is they don't seem to roll as well as the Smart Sam tires, even with the slicker tread.

I was well aware of the weight of the tires when I bought them but I think that's having more of an impact than I would have hoped. A few other things I ran into - the sidewall is really solid, but from what I now understand, that is bad for rolling resistance. On top of all this they don't really accept a ton more pressure than the Smart Sam's and maybe the small increase in pressure isn't enough to offset the inherent lack of rolling a narrow tire had compared to a wider one.

I will say this, great choice if anyone is looking is looking for a bullet proof tire but does not want to dish out the money for a Marathon Plus. These things really are a rock. Unfortunately, in my case, I wanted something that rolls well and can resist punctures well.

Good news is I have another bike they will be perfect on so will be moving those tires to it. In the meantime, I ended up buying the 2.0 inch Schwalbe Marathon Almotion, which, from a ton of research, look to roll incredibly well and have reasonable puncture resistance. I doubt they are as puncture proof as the Continental, but I keep a 4oz bottle of slime with me anyways... and I think the tube I'll use from the Smart Sam's has some in it anyways.

 

[Decrepidude]

FYI just wanted to follow up. I put the narrow Continental Contact Plus Travel tires on. They are solid.. unfortunately a bit too much. I've put about 100 miles on them so far. Bottom line is they don't seem to roll as well as the Smart Sam tires, even with the slicker tread.

I was well aware of the weight of the tires when I bought them but I think that's having more of an impact than I would have hoped. A few other things I ran into - the sidewall is really solid, but from what I now understand, that is bad for rolling resistance. On top of all this they don't really accept a ton more pressure than the Smart Sam's and maybe the small increase in pressure isn't enough to offset the inherent lack of rolling a narrow tire had compared to a wider one.

I will say this, great choice if anyone is looking is looking for a bullet proof tire but does not want to dish out the money for a Marathon Plus. These things really are a rock. Unfortunately, in my case, I wanted something that rolls well and can resist punctures well.

Good news is I have another bike they will be perfect on so will be moving those tires to it. In the meantime, I ended up buying the 2.0 inch Schwalbe Marathon Almotion, which, from a ton of research, look to roll incredibly well and have reasonable puncture resistance. I doubt they are as puncture proof as the Continental, but I keep a 4oz bottle of slime with me anyways... and I think the tube I'll use from the Smart Sam's has some in it anyways.

I'm trying to resist swapping out the smart sams on my new Moscow+ and have been drooling over a pair of Vittoria Terreno dry's, looking to narrow to 29 x 2.10 from the stock 2.25". I want to go tubeless to save weight and improve rolling resistance. I wouldn't go any skinnier than 2.0"...

 

[jkvt]

I've only put 18 miles on them so far so take this with a grain of salt, but I put the Almotions on and am impressed so far. They ride nice and the tread area seems very rigid so will hopefully live up to the puncture resistance I'm hoping for. They better for the cost. They also don't weight too much, at least compared to what I pulled off the bike. They have 2.10" too. For what it's worth, when I ordered them, Schwalbe had a sale going on the previous version of the tire. $59 US each. I spoke to someone at Schwalbe and he said the previous version rolls slightly better than the newer one.

 

[soyabean]

There's a reason why the new NCM Milano+ comes with Schwalbe Big Ben Plus tires.

The Schwalbe Marathon E-Plus appears to be a bit chunkier against rolling resistance, but preferred for high-mileage folks, like someone doing daily food deliveries.