Tyre size for Audax

[IanDG]

700*25 or 28 on my Genesis Equilibrium. 700*35 if I ride my Long Haul Trucker.

[citoyen]

My feeling is that I need a tyre with thinner sidewalls, not to go wider.

This certainly does play a part. For a while, I used 25c Durano Plus tyres until I realised that they were causing me a lot of fatigue due to being very stiff in the sidewall.

145psi though… that’s mad.

[Bobby]

700x30 or 32mm, mainly depends on availability at the moment   

[hellymedic]

I don't think I've gone above 6 bar (90psi).
28 0r 32mm usually, occasionally 35mm.

Sorting faerie visits can negate time saved by riding faster.

Squishier tyres for squishier weather...

[tippers_kiwi]

For my riding I've come to the conclusion 32mm is about the nicest balance between comfort and efficiency. Saying that I did LEL on 42mm (650b) and I've done a couple of long ones on 47mm (650b) and was running 35mm on my Croix de Fer this year which were also great.

Basically, 28mm is for my carbon summer bike (which can't take anything much bigger) and my other rides will all be 30mm or more.

I never really look at rolling resistance charts, I know roughly what to look for in a tyre and I find that trying to buy tyres that have a couple of watts difference would make about the same sense to me as buying a component because it weighs a few grams less, basically I could opt for the salad and get the same advantage....and I don't often do that

[arabella]

I say chaps, can we please cut out the Americanisms?

I saw what you did there

Some light reading  observe particularly the comment about "male heavy", such as, here, audax
Some satire

There's loads more, but since it's unlikely anyone will even read these, then I won't list any more.  sigh.

Meanwhile I've always used, year round, 700x25c vittoria rubino
Anyone know if there's any (objective) correlation between tyre size and rider+machine weight?  Controlled for saddle, suspension, bar padding etc?

[citoyen]

Anyone know if there's any (objective) correlation between tyre size and rider+machine weight?  Controlled for saddle, suspension, bar padding etc?

I vaguely remember seeing a chart some time with optimum tyre size and pressure by rider+bike weight.

Was it a Jan Heine thing? Let me see if I have a copy saved anywhere...

ETA: Google turns up this - I have a feeling the chart I remember was in the issue of Bicycle Quarterly that is mentioned:
https://www.renehersecycles.com/tire-pressure-calculator/

[trundle]

Anyone know if there's any (objective) correlation between tyre size and rider+machine weight?  Controlled for saddle, suspension, bar padding etc?

I vaguely remember seeing a chart some time with optimum tyre size and pressure by rider+bike weight.

Was it a Jan Heine thing? Let me see if I have a copy saved anywhere...

ETA: Google turns up this - I have a feeling the chart I remember was in the issue of Bicycle Quarterly that is mentioned:
https://www.renehersecycles.com/tire-pressure-calculator/

Thanks for the link - that is excellent. And it very concisely answers follow on questions.

[Zed43]

There's also the Silca pro tire pressure calculator which appears to recommend slightly higher pressures than Jan Heine's "firm". FWIW

[sojournermike]

The Silca guide seems sensible to me looking at 25 and 28 mm tyres. The pressures I use seem to sit between the worn road and poor road/chipseal numbers on the Silca site - so I run tubeless 25s at 85/80 r/f at a weight of 80-85kgs

[Cudzoziemiec]

700 x 28 mostly.

(click to show/hide)

Some light reading  observe particularly the comment about "male heavy", such as, here, audax

The problem, for those who want to ditch guys, is that their language doesn’t present them with many versatile replacements; English lacks a standard gender-neutral second-person plural pronoun, like the Spanish ustedes or the German ihr.

When did "you" stop being a standard gender-neutral second-person plural pronoun?

[CrazyEnglishTriathlete]

The Silca tyre pressure calculator is helpful, thank you for sharing.

I ride 25mm or 28mm x 700.  I typically start a ride at or just below 100psi, but on long events, it probably drops a bit during the ride.  The tyre pressure calculator suggests 90psi on good roads and 80psi on worn pavement.  So that's 80psi for most of the UK for me.

[sojournermike]

The Silca guide seems sensible to me looking at 25 and 28 mm tyres. The pressures I use seem to sit between the worn road and poor road/chipseal numbers on the Silca site - so I run tubeless 25s at 85/80 r/f at a weight of 80-85kgs

Just found this one too

https://axs.sram.com/guides/tire/pressure

Sram appear to suggest Silca style pressures for the wet and a bit higher in the dry. I’ve been using the Silca/wet pressures as a consequence of trial and error… and living in Yorkshire!

[Jon+1bike]

  SCHWALBE TIRES & HUNT WHEELS

BOTH do excellent comparisons of tyres & pressures..

https://www.schwalbe.com/en/start
https://www.huntbikewheels.com

[LateStarter]

So many edging up from 28s to 32s and a few wider, not a lot taken the Jan Heine line and gone high 30s, 40s. The 2 tire pressure sites are interesting, I might drop the pressures and see.. I too have edged up from 28s to 32 (GP5000) currently but my first dozen 200s were on my steel touring bike with 37mm Marathons , I even left the 1kg kick stand on and had a couple of panniers , bike must have been 25kgs with supplies for a month! Gone through my "special Audax" bike (Ti Lynskey) phase, it is ok but just not the riding joy  I "remember" ? Recently gone back to my first touring bike a 2008 Aluminium Cannondale Touring and enjoying it more, it will take wider tires, i will refit some lighter "supple" 35s (old "evo" line Marathon Racers, no longer made), the Cannondale is only a few 100 grams heavier then the Lynskey and due to longer wheelbase and bigger fork trail is much more balanced, stable, nice to ride

[Zed43]

I did BCM and TinaT 300 (partly gravel/off-road) with my Rohloff Randonneur on 48mm "extra light" tyres and it was good. But, after tasting the Jan Heine  Kool-Aid I've come to the conclusion that for me at 60kg there's not much to gain with very wide tyres. If Jan would sell narrower EL tyres for 650b I would probably switch, if only for the fact that it gives a bit more space underneath the mudguards.

[sojournermike]

Jan Heine rides a lot on graded gravel I think, where bigger is better. Somewhere he suggests that 32mm on 700c is about right for road use and racing (unless you’re fast enough that aero matters).

For all that there’s some cool aid, he did start the push to lower pressures and considering system losses rather than just tyres losses.

I’ve just moved a groupset from my Carbonda frame to an Elan so I can fit guards over 38s - but it’s really a utility bike that will probably get rolled out for Deano’s rides;) Otherwise, 25 to 32 is my normal range for all riding. I still like rim brakes too…

Mike

[kevinsm]

Take a look here before you decide what tyres you think may be right, you'll be suprised which ones are as fast as you think (or not) or marketed to be. It was an eye opener for me. Albeit I was looking at it for our Tandem, to find that some very puncture resistant 37mm Swalbes testing faster than some supposedly faster road tyres, soon had me ditching the Conti's and investing in some 37mm Swalbes. We finished LEL in time on them, while having the peace of mind of excellent puncture proofness. Over the 32mm Conti's we were running, we could immediately tell the speed and comfort had improved.

37mm Swalbe Allmotion came out faster than most, but a bit heavy, which really only matters on climbing or acceleration, but unbeatable alround. Although they have to be the older rubber compound, the testing explains why.

https://www.bicyclerollingresistance.com/

[sojournermike]

Just seen thisfrom GCN - yep another evening…

https://youtu.be/LGm-gcNEkUQ

[Blodwyn Pig]

Anyone know if there's any (objective) correlation between tyre size and rider+machine weight?  Controlled for saddle, suspension, bar padding etc?

I vaguely remember seeing a chart some time with optimum tyre size and pressure by rider+bike weight.

Was it a Jan Heine thing? Let me see if I have a copy saved anywhere...

ETA: Google turns up this - I have a feeling the chart I remember was in the issue of Bicycle Quarterly that is mentioned:
https://www.renehersecycles.com/tire-pressure-calculator/

I run 35mm Supremes, and am quite ‘Lardy’  and always pump to 70 psi on the Deacathlon track pump and let then slowly loose a bit,  the Rene Herse site says 67psi   

[Jethro]

After many, many years riding on 23mm tyres, I have now realised that wider is better (for me) on our local (bumpy) roads of Shropshire and after testing a pair of 32mm Continental GP4 Seasons I feel quite comfortable. 

I also have a pair of 38mm Panaracer tyres on my gravel bike which I use on the road sometimes but feel that they slow me down a little.

Unfortunately I can only fit 32mm tyres (or wider) on my best Audax bike (Reilly Gradient Ti) or my Ribble Ti gravel bike.

[Suffolk Born]

I have also discovered that in winter, wider is better. Currently on 650b with smooth 47mm WTB tyres, lovely. I now do not have to keep looking out for pot holes and can enjoy the views more.

[Wycombewheeler]

the correct answer is the largest tyre your mudguards will accommodate. in my case 28 or 30mm depending on manufacturer

[Karla]

Hey guys, here's another tyre pressure calculator! SRAM