Schwalbe Johnny Watts (and other Schwalbe SUV tyres) User Club

[Stefan Mikes]

Jesus on a motorcycle!

Nicolai is a boutique German e-bike brand that always acts on purpose. Nicolai installs Johnny Watts on its 'slow' e-bikes but purposely uses WTB Groov-E on its 'speed' models. WTBs are by no means cheap tyres! You guys have installed these and those tyres on your e-bikes but @Xyeet already has premium tyres installed!

What do you not understand? Still think Schwalbe are tyre gods? Anyone of you heard of WTB before? That's an old American brand!

 

[California Flash]

Jesus on a motorcycle!

Nicolai is a boutique German e-bike brand that always acts on purpose. Nicolai installs Johnny Watts on its 'slow' e-bikes but purposely uses WTB Groov-E on its 'speed' models. WTBs are by no means cheap tyres! You guys have installed these and those tyres on your e-bikes but @Xyeet already has premium tyres installed!

What do you not understand? Still think Schwalbe are tyre gods? Anyone of you heard of WTB before? That's an old American brand!

I HAVE TRIED NUMEROUS BRANDS OF TIRES AND NEVER FOUND ANY THAT WERE RESISTANT TO FLATTING - UNTIL SCHWALBE. 24,000 KM'S WITH ONLY ONE FLAT ON MY JW 365 (HUGE SCREW IN THE SIDEWALL) SPEAKS VOLUMES TO ME. ASK 100 PEOPLE ON TIRE CHOICE AND MOSTLY LIKELY YOU WILL GET 100 OPINIONS. NEVER HEARD OF THE WTB HERE IN THE U.S. HAVE A GREAT DAY!

 

[Mr. Coffee]

I run with WTB Byways or Ventures on my bike these days. Not really suited for a heavy e-bike though as it is a very supple tire.

 

[Stefan Mikes]

Yet you've never mentioned or recommended these tires before....

If you read carefully the Original Post of this thread, I recommended Johnny Watts to new owners of electric mountain bikes (e-MTBs) who would spend the majority of their riding time in urban environment. E-MTBs come with wide, knobby, aggressive tyres that are slow and noisy on paved surfaces. Replacing Trail or Downhill type tyres with Johnny Watts makes the urban rides quiet and faster while JWs are still aggressive enough for most of trails.

There is another category of e-bikes I even didn't mention in the OP: Speed commuter e-bikes. As long as these are mostly ridden in the city, the appropriate tyres are smooth, with very flat tread yet are made of the rubber with special compounds making the tyre 'stick' to the pavement in both dry and wet conditions. The appropriate tyre should be E50 rated, so 45 km/h (28 mph) e-bikes can run such tyres safely. Examples:

• Specialized Electrak 2.0 Armadillo with Gripton Compound (size 51-622 only)
• Bontrager E6 Hard-Case Lite
• Schwalbe Supermoto-X
• WTB Groov-E.

This thread has never been discussing Speed Commuter E-Bike tyres but Johnny Watts as replacement of MTB tyres for urban use.

 

[Stefan Mikes]

I run with WTB Byways or Ventures on my bike these days. Not really suited for a heavy e-bike though as it is a very supple tire.

E50 tyres are stiff and endurant. WTB Riddlers (which are very supple) are very popular in gravel cycling.

 

[Xyeet]

Jesus on a motorcycle!

Nicolai is a boutique German e-bike brand that always acts on purpose. Nicolai installs Johnny Watts on its 'slow' e-bikes but purposely uses WTB Groov-E on its 'speed' models. WTBs are by no means cheap tyres! You guys have installed these and those tyres on your e-bikes but @Xyeet already has premium tyres installed!

What do you not understand? Still think Schwalbe are tyre gods? Anyone of you heard of WTB before? That's an old American brand!

Thanks, I think I'll give WTB a chance. They seem to be an established brand for tires, but I haven't heard much about them before. It just says they have a Flat Guard, but I couldn't find much information about WTB's Flat Guard technology.

 

[California Flash]

So you have never heard of Wild Trail Bikes, an American manufacturer of premium bike components of Marin County, est. 1982
What your expertise is if you do not know basic facts of the bike industry of your own country?

I HAVE NEVER HEARD OF WILD TRAIL BIKES. I AM SURE NOT TOO MANY PEOPLE IN THIS WORLD ARE AWARE OF EVERY BIKE MANUFACTURER, OTHER THAN MAYBE YOU. HOW WOULD I KNOW THAT SOME COMPANY IN MARIN COUNTY (HAVE NO IDEA WHERE THAT IS) MANUFACTURES A SPECIFIC BIKE BRAND? MY EXPERTISE IS SIMPLY THAT I RIDE BICYCLES OF MANY TYPES. WHAT POSSIBLE REASON DO I NEED TO "KNOW THE BASIC FACTS OF THE BIKE INDUSTRY OF YOUR OWN COUNTRY?). MY PARTICIPATION IN THIS FORUM IS TO PROVIDE HONEST FEEDBACK TO OTHERS REGARDING MY EXPERIENCES WITH CYCLING.

 

[juggernaut]

WTB Groov-E is exactly a tyre of the same purpose. Why should he change?

It is not that Schwalbe is the best bicycle tyre brand in the world. It simply delivers tyres in all sizes in plethora of models. @Xyeet has a premium Nicolai Speed e-bike. The WTBs were installed on the e-bike for speed, durability, and excellent grip on paved surfaces.

I’m not telling him to change, he was asking for recommendations between two tyres, I was adding a further option. Please refer to his original post.

 

[Chargeride]

Get yourself some Finnish Nokian tyres, Russian bears rate them very tasty.

Heres some reviews...

Their Gazzalodi DH tyres were…. utterly shocking.
Less grip than slicks on an ice-rink.
And they weighed a tonne too

I’ve got some Fat Hakka DHs hanging up in the garage. Weigh a tonne and lethal on wet tarmac due to their plasticy finish.

It's not particularly directionally gifted in mud but it grips OK in most conditions. Where it's phenomenal is rocky or droppy courses where the close, thick blocks, reinforced carcass and tubeless compatibility make it almost invulnerable to small arms fire.

its so bulky when you go up a little hill you can feel every single tread of every inch pulling back like a lead weight but then again it is made for Siberian tractors.

It makes my 2.5 roller in the front look like a road bike tire.

Great tire. Can gobble up anything in it's way, even a chipmunk which I ran over last fall in Whistler. I still feel bad for the little guy...

Accelerates like a heavily laden dump truck.

Small animals get stuck in the treads.

GRIPS BETTER THAN A 3 WEEK STARVED BOA CONSTICTOR IN A PRE-SCHOOL PLAYGROUND AT RECESS!!! I'M CONVINCED THAT THIS TIRE HAS LITTLE MAGNETS IN IT THAT PULL TOWARDS THE EARTH'S CORE. YOU ALMOST DON'T NEED A TUBE OR AIR. IT SUPPORTS ITSELF!

Don't think you can take these out for a 20 mile XC ride and still have the strength to keep up with your 10 year old daughter...

 

[Stefan Mikes]

Heres some reviews...

Chris, it is a 28 mph (45 km/h) commuter e-bike...

And this is Hämeenkatu, the main street of the city @Xyeet lives in, only nine years ago (9 December 2015, 18:25)

 

[Chargeride]

I was trying to lighten the mood

 

[Stefan Mikes]

I was trying to lighten the mood

I've been to Finland for several times. It is decidedly the best to visit the northern country of Europe during the summer solstice; the Sun seems to never set, and you have to simulate the night to be able to fall asleep! On the other hand, winter is the most depressive season there as there are only a few daylight hours available! Winds are howling, frost and snow and ice are the usual phenomena

The last time in Helsinki with @Brix was an interesting experience for my gf. She actually hardly ever left the hotel because of the weather! You should try harder to cheer the Finnish up, Chris

Helsinki is absolutely gorgeous in the Summer...

While it is the best to stay indoors during the Winter there Note: You can only buy strong alcohol in very few ALKO shops at a premium price

The last time we were in Helsinki (November 2023), the gale was as strong as it blocked the automatic door in our expensive hotel!

 

[Chargeride]

We wandered into Finland back in 2003, meeting up with some Swedes, Danes and Finns all doing a tour with us up to Nord Cape on offroad tracks
We all agreed to speak English.

One of the Danish lads was called Stig.
I was like, thats sooo Viking.
He replied, Chris is sooo English.

We went in the summer, too hot, a plaque of mosquitos.

 

[il Munduato]

The streets are already knobby.... No need for knobby tires.

 

[Xyeet]

Chris, it is a 28 mph (45 km/h) commuter e-bike...

View attachment 185885
And this is Hämeenkatu, the main street of the city @Xyeet lives in, only nine years ago (9 December 2015, 18:25)

The streets are already knobby.... No need for knobby tires.

View attachment 185976

It looks like this today, we have tram lines now:

 

[Xyeet]

I've been to Finland for several times. It is decidedly the best to visit the northern country of Europe during the summer solstice; the Sun seems to never set, and you have to simulate the night to be able to fall asleep! On the other hand, winter is the most depressive season there as there are only a few daylight hours available! Winds are howling, frost and snow and ice are the usual phenomena

The last time in Helsinki with @Brix was an interesting experience for my gf. She actually hardly ever left the hotel because of the weather! You should try harder to cheer the Finnish up, Chris

View attachment 185974
Helsinki is absolutely gorgeous in the Summer...

View attachment 185975
While it is the best to stay indoors during the Winter there Note: You can only buy strong alcohol in very few ALKO shops at a premium price

The last time we were in Helsinki (November 2023), the gale was as strong as it blocked the automatic door in our expensive hotel!

You can Experience the Midnight Sun in Finnish Lapland, where the sun shines continuously from May to August, providing 24 hours of daylight.

Midnight Sun - Your Guide to Nightless Night | Visit Finnish Lapland

In Lapland, the Midnight Sun from May to August creates the perfect season for Arctic exploration and summer fun during the Nightless Night.

www.lapland.fi

Here's my ice fishing suit from 5 years ago. I wore it during a harsh winter commute on my old e-bike, when freezing rain/sleet mixed with slushy snow.

You need proper knobby studded tires during winter:

Slushy weather is like this at worst: