the Schwalbe Big One / G-One 2.35" 29'er

[Reid]

Well, this is a blog report. 15PSI in front is OK but does not work well enough for the rear (the rear is more heavily loaded by far) because the relatively narrow 19.5mm internal width of the CCS rim is not suitable for such a wide tire as the Big One if the Big One is underinflated. To side-ways goosey. Too flopadoodle. Too flibertysnippet.

Pardon the technical lingo.

I think for me 20PSI may be the practical minimum. However, rolling resistance at lower pressures is not much or any higher on real world sufaces, esp. if the surfaces are at all rough. The tire underinflated lays down its tread much like a caterpillar tread. And in so widely distributing the load, the bike is much less disturbed by bumps in the road. The bumps get passed over without up-bumping the bike much. So, as vibration is prevented, so too, rolling forward energy is preserved. The bike pedals easier. The only countermanding factor is sidewall stiffness and, of course, tread thickness dissipation of energy upon flexure. But see how the patch, once laid down, becomes immaterial as to contact area, if it is laid and lifted mostly caterpillar-like?

The MicroSkin or LiteSkin carcasse Schwalbe offers in this philosophically engineered line of tires is a key enabler of lowest practical rolling resistance at reduced inflation pressures.

Anywho, it is a grand, smooth, super easy pedalling ride on these son of a beach racing tires.

Addendum: Time and long riding will teach me what pressures I like best. This AM I made a few miles @ 20PSI front and 25PSI rear with of course, good results. The tires are not critical of my fooling around with pressures. Shame my rims are so narrow that the full volume and lateral stability of the tire cannot be enjoyed. I would replace the rear rim in particular if I could find a 30mm inside width 36H. I have room for it now, I think.

 

[john peck]

Not looking so much for speed as something I can use on beach or gravel or a gravel beach, got summa dem too.
Steep hills also. And jungle game trails.

 

[Reid]

Not looking so much for speed as something I can use on beach or gravel or a gravel beach, got summa dem too.
Steep hills also. And jungle game trails.

Today I am running 35PSI in both tires. It seems better! But so does 20PSI.

In other words, it is all good with these tires. I highly recommend them. Please try one on the front of your CCS. It will fit. And you can adjust the front fender to clear. And try it tubeless! It will work great tubeless. And you will not flat on normal surfaces. "Still not pedaling," the guy above notes...and he was running with the anti-advantage of a tube! There is no reason to run inner tubes on our CCS bikes. You know, once converted, it is very easy to maintain a tubeless bike. I am using Orange Seal brand "Endurance" sealant. It is supposed to last longer before needing to be replenished. But there are many cheaper equivalents.

Today I scrubbed the new tires clean with a brush and damp cloth. The tiny bit of sealant that had escaped last week from the bead seating area when the tires were installed, came off as a long, very stretchy latex thread.

This bead seating rub-off thread was instructive of how tubeless sealants work: latex emulsion (particles suspended in water). When colloidal latex is forced through a small channel, coagulation automatically occurs; an irreversible clotting and mechanical chain linking is set up.

I have today replaced both valve cores of the Stan's Schrader conversion tire valves. The close internal tolerances of a Schrader insert valve do become clotted.

Rotate your tire valve anywhere up from the bottom, when checking pressure in the tire? And save the eventually-clogged, replaced valve core. It can be made like new again by soaking in naphtha or other latex solvent.

Tubeless. The take home of this thread is not the Big One/G-One Speed, alone: it is that you can with no downside at all, convert your stock Kenda tires to tubeless running and increased flat resistance and lowered rolling resistance.

Yes, you can. Repeat:

 

[john peck]

GGolly. Reid, if you can run on pressure that low, you might consider becoming a jockey Anything less than 45 psi, and
I'm riding on rims. Just put 26"x2.35 Kenda Kraniums on the light gasser, fast rolling on firm sand. The heavy one's got a 2.7"
Butcher in front that serves to intimidate anything in it's path. One scary lookin' tire, but I can steer no matter how soft the
sand or mud gets. I'm really beginning to hate the marathons on the CCS. Simply not made for an ebike with a galoot like me
riding. I thought they were dodgy on the wet, but they're worse on hot asphalt. Riding on cinder trails has not improved their grip.
Got some all surface 29" x 2.25s ordered. I'm kinda of tired of trying to keep the bike under me.

 

[Reid]

GGolly. Reid, if you can run on pressure that low, you might consider becoming a jockey Anything less than 45 psi, and
I'm riding on rims. Just put 26"x2.35 Kenda Kraniums on the light gasser, fast rolling on firm sand. The heavy one's got a 2.7"
Butcher in front that serves to intimidate anything in it's path. One scary lookin' tire, but I can steer no matter how soft the
sand or mud gets. I'm really beginning to hate the marathons on the CCS. Simply not made for an ebike with a galoot like me
riding. I thought they were dodgy on the wet, but they're worse on hot asphalt. Riding on cinder trails has not improved their grip.
Got some all surface 29" x 2.25s ordered. I'm kinda of tired of trying to keep the bike under me.

Hi John, I am about 165 today (am losing weight by virtue of having no e-assist the past few weeks, grin) and because of the relatively large volume of the present tires there is no fear on streets of rim cutting the tire.

But I think I may stick with 30 or 35PSI, a slightly high sort of pressure for this tire, for the front, anyway.

The tire is still smooth at that pressure front and rear.

The pavement traction of the G-One Speed sort of tire at any pressure is astonishingly good.

Will hazard to say that the proprietary OneStar compound of these Schwalbe tires seems to be very good in the wet. I project this by braking tests only and not by cornering tests that I am afraid to try out at all.

I had a slip-out last November on my other bike with Michelin Protek Urban tires 700 X 38C. Wet concrete patio at a university building. Bike slipped right out from under me, boy was I caught by surprise as I turned at a very low speed. Injured my shoulder, which all these months later still hurts when I exercise.

Traction on wet surfaces is therefore a super high priority for myself. I feel your pain. I would buy a 500mile lifespan tire if it would guarantee I'd never have a slip and crash. The G-One/Big One lasts a lot longer than 500 miles and I think at this point it is as near a guarantee against slip and crash as I can possibly have on this bike.

On dry and not sandy pavement the front tire simply cannot skid no matter how hard the brake is used. The bike will endo before it would break traction. You expect that, however, of a decent tire. But the very wide contact patch of the present tire, which will only expand and get longer and wider on heavy pressure, inspires the feeling that it cannot slip out from under you on clean pavement. It feels secure, seems very secure on the wet, too. I just don't have the gumption to test it very hard in wet weather cornering.

Yet so far so very good. G-One Speed and LiteSkin for me. My bike these days about pedals itself. Without the electric assist system. I will never have a regular bike tire or heavy duty or puncture resistant reinforced bike tire for my preferred ride again.

PS: I want to make clear that even very low rolling resistance does not make a bike like this keep up with road bikes. It is the wind resistance. This morning I went out early and was passed by all manner of road bikers togged in lycra on aero bikes and in aero postures. The low rolling resistance of a fat tired bike does make a big difference you will feel at low speeds. If my bike at 16mph (which I can easily pedal all day long) is saving me 15W of power over stock tires, I would not be surprised at that. And for a weak cyclist like myself, not having to input 15 more Watts to go 15 or 16mph, is a big plus. The bike just goes up to speed easy and is easy to cruise on level ground I think a couple of mph more than stock tires allow. Definitely much easier to accelerate. These tires are LiteSkin, very light, lower inertia than stock tires. And reducing the mass at the OD of a large wheel like a 700c/622, really does make the thing easier to spin up to speed. Heavy OD of a wheel means you have not only to accelerate mass of the bike forward, but also accelerate ugly mass rotationally. Two different kinds of acceleration, the accomplishment of which absorbs power rather unrecoverably, in direct proportion to how fast you want to, or need to, speed up.

 

[Asher]

Great post Reid .

400 or so miles on the front tire, little signs of wear. The knobs that actually touch the ground don't look any more worn than those that don't.

Tire would probably last even longer with wider rims (35mm ideally) that spread weight over more tread.

 

[john peck]

Already knowing that marathons have soft sidewalls I tried 10 more psi. Now acceptable,
but I'm still too big for 1.75s. I can get near pedal-strike sideways on the Krainiums
pullin' some Gs. Better than a laxative.

 

[john peck]

Automobiles are dangerous. Scarin' the beegeezus outa myself is one thing, but when there's a ton or two
of iron bent on my demise, mobilizing my middle finger is somehow an impotent gesture. Today I was cut off by
two cars simultaneously coming from opposite directions. One of them cutting off the other as well. I was
caught in a pincer movement. The drivers escaped,.... lucky for them. Hydraulic disc brakes are a good thing.

 

[Bruce Arnold]

Automobiles are dangerous. Scarin' the beegeezus outa myself is one thing, but when there's a ton or two
of iron bent on my demise, mobilizing my middle finger is somehow an impotent gesture. Today I cut off by
two cars simultaneously coming from opposite directions. One of them cutting off the other as well. I was
caught in a pincer movement. The drivers escaped,.... lucky for them. Hydrolic disc brakes are a good thing.

Got to watch those people like a hawk. They aren't even looking out for each other, much less two-wheeled vehicles. Most drivers have no clue that there is a world outside their windshield. They think they are in their own sitting room. Like you, I've been very glad to have good brakes.

 

[john peck]

As cyclists, we are supposed to follow the rules of the road, but somehow right-of-way does not apply to bikes.

 

[john peck]

Update: 29s arrived today, mounted one to the rear. A 29" x 2.125" will not work in a CSS,(at least not very well).
The asymetrical bottom stay is too narrow one one side. It turns fairly easy but rubs. Oh well, still works in front.
'Spose ya cud sand that edge, but why?
On the upside, discovered & replaced a broken spoke, tightened the kickstand, & got lotsa practice changing the rear tire.

 

[Reid]

Update: 29s arrived today, mounted one to the rear. A 29" x 2.125" will not work in a CSS,(at least not very well).
The asymetrical bottom stay is too narrow one one side. It turns fairly easy but rubs. Oh well, still works in front.
'Spose ya cud sand that edge, but why?
On the upside, discovered & replaced a broken spoke, tightened the kickstand, & got lotsa practice changing the rear tire.

Whoa and no worries there, John! You can with a hand file align the tire to the space between the chainstays and seat stays. First, however, try to true the wheel with tire for zero rub. Then, if needed, and pull the rim as much as possible to the required side by spoke tension adjustment. Get your spokes reasonably all the same tension on the one side. The other side will have lower spoke tension, because the wheel is dished; one side is going to have much tighter spokes than the other. Pluck them like the chords they are to hear their pitch, to keep you in the ballpark when roughing in the spoke tension. They must all be under fair tension in order to share the total load.

My G-One Speed 2.35" cannot fit in a CCS without crushing down the chainstays. So, I crushed the chainstays with a good deal of difficulty and consecquences.

But, for sure (!) you can make your 2.15" tire work if you are careful about both truing the wheel and carefully centering what you get, between the chainstays.

 

[john peck]

The wheel is true the way it is. I'm not messing with it. Just the whole process of mounting, removing, & replacing was
enough hassle for me. Went to ride this morning & was introduced to 'ERROR 8'. I hadn't plugged it together right.
"OH NO, I've murdered my bike!!!!!".....but it was okay once I calmed down & figured out what the hell 'ERROR 8' could be.
Am not crushing stays!! How could you do such a thing?!? It's abhorrent; worse, it's heresy!
Nah, I'll 'experimentally' put one of the 2.125s in front, & hunt for a 1.95.

 

[Reid]

The wheel is true the way it is. I'm not messing with it. Just the whole process of mounting, removing, & replacing was
enough hassle for me. Went to ride this morning & was introduced to 'ERROR 8'. I hadn't plugged it together right.
"OH NO, I've murdered my bike!!!!!".....but it was okay once I calmed down & figured out what the hell 'ERROR 8' could be.
Am not crushing stays!! How could you do such a thing?!? It's abhorrent; worse, it's heresy!
Nah, I'll 'experimentally' put one of the 2.125s in front, & hunt for a 1.95.

Well, no-one should crush chainstays like I did!

OTOH, I have two Schwalbe G-One Speed "2.0" inch Snakeskin I am not using. I will give up one of them and keep one in reserve. PM me if you would like one? Cost for you is postage. It is about 1.9" wide in a CCS wheel. It will clear the chainstays plenty well.

 

[john peck]

I appreciate the offer Reid, I really do, but you needn't trouble yourself. As for stays, I once crushed the stay on a beloved
road bike tightening a kickstand. IF we didn't screw up once in a while, we'd never learn a thing.

I've probably got 25 lightly used tires hanging in the carport. I could open a shop with all the new & used parts I have.
If bikes were horses, I'd own a livery stable like my grandfather had, Peck's Corral, horses & mules bought & sold.

 

[Chris Hammond]

I was talking about bikes with a friend at work the other day, I mentioned I had a lot. He asked how many, i guessed 15. When I got home I decided to count, it's actually 16. Granted this includes kids and grandkids but I think I have a problem

 

[john peck]

Actually, the wife limits me to 6; I keep having to get rid of one every time I get a new one.

 

[Reid]

I have three.

• A no-name cruiser I used to get my life restarted a year and half ago. Redid it in matt dark red from Krylon Fusion spray cans.
• Then, in May a year ago, I got a coaster braked single speed track frame Critical Cycles Harper off Amazon for two bills delivered.
• Then, in December of last year, I received day after Christmas that which I had prepaid for in September: a nice new CCS second production L in red.

That's one more bike than I need. I only need a spare for extended family members' very rare usage, or in case I break the CCS.

Goal is to die with nothing but underwear to give away. Easy come easy go, we wish as fish.

 

[Chris Hammond]

Only 4 of the bikes I have actually are mine. The rest are for family.
Mine include the CCS, a road bike that was my commuter prior to the CCS, a Pivot Firebird MTB for trail riding, and an old Trek steel frame MTB that I use for family rides towing grandkids in a trailer or on the trailer bike.
The CCS actually cost more than all 15 others combined. I bought nearly all of them used. Most people don't ride their bikes much, so if you know what you are looking for you can get some great deals. I just bought my youngest son a road bike last week, the guy actually had 2 identical bikes he was selling as a pair for $300. We spent some time making sure all the best stuff was on his bike, (the bike computer on one of them is worth over $100 alone) and I plan to sell the other one for $300.

 

[Asher]

Update: 800 miles or so on the G-One. The "mohawk" seam is gone, but the treads still look strong.

I'm guessing it would wear even slower with wider rims that flatten the tire more.

Not clear how long these will last, maybe 2,000 miles? The back tire would probably wear twice as fast, so I'm not sure I'd want this tire for the back. Probably put the Marathon Supreme 2" back there.