Author Topic: 20" 406 tyres for recumbents  (Read 18233 times)

Phil W

20" 406 tyres for recumbents
« on: 16 September, 2019, 06:27:19 pm »
Been looking at what tyres are available in 20" 406 size

Schwalbe Durano 28-406, 190g
Panaracer Minit Lites, 32-406, 190g
Schwalbe One 28-406, 200g
Conti Contact Speed 28-406, 295g
Kenda Kriterium 32-406, 325g
Panaracer Paselas, 37-406, 310g
Schwalbe Kojak 35-406, 230g
Schwalbe Marathon Plus 35-406, 560g
Conti Contact 37-406, 420g
Maxxis DTH 38-406 , 288g
Maxxis Gypsy 38-406, 406g
Schwalbe Marathon 40-496, 530g

Any others to consider? Those with 20" on front of their recumbents; what tyres have you fitted, and your impressions of them?

Re: 20" 406 tyres for recumbents
« Reply #1 on: 16 September, 2019, 06:43:17 pm »
If it is a two wheel recumbent I've found the Kojaks very good.  Despite being slicks, quite tough and easy rolling.  I have schwalbe marathons on the LWB tourer, Kojaks on my SWB recumbents for audax and day rides.  I don't use a trike so can't comment on that.
Sunshine approaching from the South.

First time in 1,000 years.

Kim

  • Timelord
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Re: 20" 406 tyres for recumbents
« Reply #2 on: 16 September, 2019, 07:25:18 pm »
Over several years and various bikes:

Marathon (older version) 40-406: Does what it says on the tin.  Hardly ever punctures.  Good touring all-rounder with enough siping for non-technical off-road.
Marathon (the current version) 40-406: As above, but a liability on roads with a thin film of leaf chutney.
Marathon Plus 35-406: Indestructible (except for manufacturing defects and wire through the sidewall or similar), heavy, harsh ride compared to Marathon, bastard to fit.  Good tyre for cold commutes and people who can't fix punctures.
Marathon Racer 40-406: Didn't give these an extensive test, but they seemed to combine the grip and rolling resistance of Marathons with the puncture-resistance of ...not Marathons.
Kojak 35-406: Light, grippy on tarmac (hopeless on mud), comfortable, cheap.  Rolling resistance seems quite sensitive to pressure (at least on a trike).  AIUI they're not as fast-rolling as you'd expect.  Did I say cheap?
Durano 28-406: Good all-round road tyre.  Rubbish off-road.  Doesn't seem to puncture too often, and easy to change when it does.
Pro One 28-406:  Fussy about rims, awkward to fit, fast, useless off-road.  Not tried it tubeless.  Only fits properly tubeless.
One 28-406: If you're planning to use a tube, you want this, rather than the Pro One.  Much less arsing about to make them seat properly.  Rolls well.
Big Apple 50-406: Cheaper and less effective than a front-suspension ICE trike, but makes a huge difference to comfort on poorly-maintained roads.  Can't vouch for the rolling resistance because e-assist.  Seems decent on gravelly stuff.
Silento 47-406: Low-end tyre I had on a folding BSO for a bit, reasonable off-road grip.

Auntie Helen

  • 6 Wheels in Germany
Re: 20" 406 tyres for recumbents
« Reply #3 on: 16 September, 2019, 08:12:50 pm »
Go-Cycles are appreciated in Germany

nu-Traks are cheap as chips and not bad in the dry.

Klaus had a Tioga tyre on his Quattrovelo and liked it

Scorchers for the fast amongst you, but they don’t live long.

I am really sad the Durano Plus is no longer available. i have 4 left in stock, then I have to find something else as good.
My blog on cycling in Germany and eating German cake – http://www.auntiehelen.co.uk


Re: 20" 406 tyres for recumbents
« Reply #4 on: 16 September, 2019, 11:14:12 pm »
Do the 406 Kojaks size at 32mm like the 622s, or are they a truer 35mm? (my mudguard is a bit too close for a 40, but my 28s have acres of space and I'm considering the middle ground).
simplicity, truth, equality, peace

LittleWheelsandBig

  • Whimsy Rider
Re: 20" 406 tyres for recumbents
« Reply #5 on: 16 September, 2019, 11:16:20 pm »
Panaracer Minits Lite are nice 406-32. More at the Contact Speed end, rather than Marathon Plus.
Wheel meet again, don't know where, don't know when...

Phil W

Re: 20" 406 tyres for recumbents
« Reply #6 on: 16 September, 2019, 11:20:40 pm »
Do the 406 Kojaks size at 32mm like the 622s, or are they a truer 35mm? (my mudguard is a bit too close for a 40, but my 28s have acres of space and I'm considering the middle ground).

Having had those on my recumbent sat next to my road bike with 32mm I'd say yes. But the road bike is tubeless on wide rims. I haven't been impressed with Kojak puncture resistance but suppose ok for summer.

Phil W

Re: 20" 406 tyres for recumbents
« Reply #7 on: 16 September, 2019, 11:24:01 pm »
Panaracer Minits Lite are nice 406-32. More at the Contact Speed end, rather than Marathon Plus.

A summer tyre I presume? What's the rolling,  puncture resistance been like, and how many miles you getting out of them?  I do quite like the 32mm width of tyre for compromise of speed and comfort.

Auntie Helen

  • 6 Wheels in Germany
Re: 20" 406 tyres for recumbents
« Reply #8 on: 17 September, 2019, 05:31:17 am »
Panaracer Minits Lite are nice 406-32. More at the Contact Speed end, rather than Marathon Plus.
I had a bad experience with the Minits Tough Version with 9 punctures in 1000 miles (compared with usual 1 puncture for 3000) so if the Lite are less tough than a Tough...  :hand:
My blog on cycling in Germany and eating German cake – http://www.auntiehelen.co.uk


LittleWheelsandBig

  • Whimsy Rider
Re: 20" 406 tyres for recumbents
« Reply #9 on: 17 September, 2019, 05:46:58 am »
We run 406 tyres on our Moultons for brevets and low rolling resistance is our priority. Puncture resistance and longevity is not. After 2000km on lightweight tyres, the rubber gets a bit thin for reliability. We ride other bikes in winter.

Minits Tough are shit tyres in just about every way and share nothing with the Minits Lite, other than their name

Duranos were dispiriting to ride and about half (4 or 5) had casing failures/ distortions. We gave up on them years ago.

Ultremos were a bit too skinny but quite fast. Conti Grand Prix was our preference before being discontinued, so Contact Speed is the current fallback.

A winter project is to set up some tubeless rims for 406 Schwalbe Ones.
Wheel meet again, don't know where, don't know when...

Re: 20" 406 tyres for recumbents
« Reply #10 on: 17 September, 2019, 08:28:14 am »
I run Schwalbe big apples  :thumbsup:

zigzag

  • unfuckwithable
Re: 20" 406 tyres for recumbents
« Reply #11 on: 17 September, 2019, 10:07:49 am »
i wish schwalbe stared making a tubeless pro one in 406x35, it would be a popular choice among small wheel riders wanting to go faster. their current 28mm tyre is not practical for general use.

Re: 20" 406 tyres for recumbents
« Reply #12 on: 17 September, 2019, 11:25:40 am »
I like tyres over 40-406 in size on my trike because I can run them a fraction softer than skinnier tyres and therefore deaden a little of the road buzz.
One tyre not mentioned so far, the 40-406 Tryker, fast and grippy but the softer compound does like to pick up glass/flint shards.
I run 42-406 M Supremes on the front of my trike, but they're made in that size anymore.
I'll probably swop to the 40-406 M Racer but may go back to the Tryker once I wear the Supremes out.
I like the 50-406 BA on the back, I tend to wear the back tyre out quickly due to wheel slip and I think the BA has the greatest depth of rubber before I wearout anything vital while still rolling reasonably well.

Phil W

Re: 20" 406 tyres for recumbents
« Reply #13 on: 17 September, 2019, 02:31:57 pm »
I see you can also get Panaracer Paselas in 37-406 and 310g.  So pretty light for the size, and somewhere between the light racy end and heavy duty bombproof end.  No info on the tech in use, as in what's shown for Minits Lite and Minits Tough.

The minute lites are interesting as you could carry a spare tyre on a brevet and the all up weight is only 380g for both tyres.

Phil W

Re: 20" 406 tyres for recumbents
« Reply #14 on: 17 September, 2019, 02:40:20 pm »
A winter project is to set up some tubeless rims for 406 Schwalbe Ones.

I'd be interested to see how that goes.  I'm sticking with tubes when it comes to the recumbents.  I'm coming to the view of having a set of tyres for the colder months and a set for the summer and / or long brevets.


Re: 20" 406 tyres for recumbents
« Reply #15 on: 18 September, 2019, 09:37:58 pm »
ICE Qnt,has Go-Cycle tyres 50-406 They just fit under the mudguards, had them on for 18 months now with no problems, Rear is Marathon 47-406.

Trice XL has kojak 35-406 on the front and 40-406 Marathon Racer on the rear.

ICE Vortex Fs has marathon 40-406 all round.

The Trice XL is the Lightest and Widest & fastest of them all and the rear AIR suspension is great.

rogerzilla

  • When n+1 gets out of hand
Re: 20" 406 tyres for recumbents
« Reply #16 on: 18 September, 2019, 11:08:27 pm »
I use Durano folders on the Moulton.  They are fairly hard work but have been reliable.
Hard work sometimes pays off in the end, but laziness ALWAYS pays off NOW.

Re: 20" 406 tyres for recumbents
« Reply #17 on: 19 September, 2019, 03:55:01 pm »
Maxxis DTH 38-406 folder, 120 tpi. 290g.

Phil W

Re: 20" 406 tyres for recumbents
« Reply #18 on: 25 September, 2019, 07:38:11 pm »
I've gone for some Paselas 37-406 for the front.  Seem nice and supple and will see how they go.

Re: 20" 406 tyres for recumbents
« Reply #19 on: 28 September, 2019, 11:24:32 am »
Interesting choice. No puncture protection belt? Might make it more comfortable. I'm very impressed with the 26" Pasela Protite which has some kind of belt, as does the Maxxis DTH I referenced (called Silkworm but no information as to what it is).

Phil W

Re: 20" 406 tyres for recumbents
« Reply #20 on: 28 September, 2019, 01:03:26 pm »
It's for a front wheel and unless you go for marathon levels of puncture protection I'm not convinced the puncture belts make a big difference. Often it may just be the thickness of the rubber including tread or where you ride in the road. Having said that,  back wheel (different size) will supposedly be a bit more robust type. Anyway will see how well it does.

Re: 20" 406 tyres for recumbents
« Reply #21 on: 05 October, 2019, 10:50:54 pm »
Have added my experiences:

Schwalbe Durano 28-406, 190g // durable, pretty quick, a bit harsh, narrower than I like (have pinch flatted)
Panaracer Minit Lites, 32-406, 190g // only 28mm in width, not durable
Schwalbe One 28-406, 200g
Conti Contact Speed 28-406, 295g
Kenda Kriterium 32-406, 325g
Panaracer Paselas, 37-406, 310g
Schwalbe Kojak 35-406, 230g // pretty good flat resistance, but not quick
Schwalbe Marathon Plus 35-406, 560g // can be hard to fit, not the most comfortable
Conti Contact 37-406, 420g
Schwalbe Marathon 40-496, 530g // original marathon was a good alrounder, Greenguard not as comfortable, feels sluggish
Marathon Racer 40-406, 340g good alrounder but not a lot of grip
Big Apple HS430 50-406, 495g comfortable but not a lot of grip with this newer tread
Scorcher 40-406, 3xxg, not very durable, too many flats
Maxxis DTH 49-406, 350g very sticky, lots of scrub
Maxxis DTH 38-406, 285g my favourite, good comfort


tonycollinet

  • No Longer a western province of Númenor
Re: 20" 406 tyres for recumbents
« Reply #22 on: 06 October, 2019, 09:54:57 am »
Took Kim's advice a couple of years ago and installed Big Apples after suffering numb feet from road buzz.

They are great for comfort - and who cares about rolling resistance :-)

(Although rolling resistance is not bad - I run them between 40 and 50psi)

Phil W

Re: 20" 406 tyres for recumbents
« Reply #23 on: 11 December, 2019, 11:11:29 am »
Have added my experiences:

Maxxis DTH 38-406, 285g my favourite, good comfort

Looks interesting, and in the kind of width I like to run at the front.  Thanks for adding.

Phil W

Re: 20" 406 tyres for recumbents
« Reply #24 on: 01 January, 2020, 09:41:35 am »
Found this Maxxis Gypsy in 38-406 which comes out at 404g, their equivalent of the puncture  proof urban tyre I guess.

https://www.maxxis.co.uk/catalog/tyre-269-48-gypsy#