How To Choose the Right Mountain Bike Tire
Tires can make or break any vehicle, and mountain bikes are no different. In fact, besides the suspension system and the shocks that you might have installed on the bike, there is no other thing that can affect the riding and comfort dynamics more than the proper tire for your mountain bike. With the right tire, your riding experience will be much more enjoyable, obviously. Whether you like to ride on the gravel paved road or you like to tear up the mountain trail with your trusty bike, choosing the right mountain bike tire can make all the difference in the world. In this blog post, we will be discussing how you can choose the right mountain bike tire.
This blog post will deal with all the factors that you should keep in mind whenever you are in the market for the right tires for your mountain bike. Buy the wrong ones, and your weekend adventures with the bike won't feel as good as before, but with the right guidance from us and the right tires on your bike, a whole new experience will await you. Let’s start by discussing the factors which determine how to choose the right mountain bike tire.
Choosing The Right Tire For Your Mountain Bike
Here are all the factors that will help you choose the right tire for your mountain bike for optimal control, comfort and grip for your weekend adventures.
Diameter
Naturally, a tire can't work if it doesn't fit. There will be some numbers on the sidewall of your tire. There are two different sizing formats for bicycle tires. There is a metric and an imperial format. The metric format is called the ETRTO (European Tire and Rim Technical Organisation) system, while the imperial format is the traditional sizing system. Most people tend to use the imperial, traditional system, although the metric system is more accurate, particularly for width (more on that later). In the ETRTO size, the first number is the width of the tire in millimetres. The second number is the rim diameter. In the traditional format, it's reversed. The first number is the rim diameter in inches, second is the tire width, also in inches.
Width
The vast majority of mountain bike tires typically range from 2.1in up to 2.7in, although getting tires as small as 1.0in up to as big as 4in is possible. Each rim will have a specific range of width that it is compatible with, so it's worth having a quick Google search of your rim model to confirm you're getting a tire within the range. We'll break the tire widths into three categories.
Small: 2.25in wide - The advantage of a smaller tire is that it is lighter and will generally roll faster. A lighter tire is quicker to accelerate and more accessible to manoeuvre. Typically tires in this range are used for cross-country riding and have small knobs and very thin casings. This is the size for you if you like to climb fast or are doing some longer distances.
Medium: 2.25in up to 2.5in - This will cover your trail, as well as all-mountain and enduro styles of riding. Like these styles of riding, you need a tire that offers good grip so you can push it on the way down and through the corners but is still light enough that you can climb up the other side.
Large: 2.5in and bigger - Tires of this size are suited towards the gravity crowd. They aren't suited to climbing or riding on the flat but point them downhill, and they will come into their own.
Tubes or Tubeless
Identify what you're currently running. When you remove your tire, if it has a bladder (tube) between the rim and the tire you are running a tubed setup. Suppose there isn't a tube; you are running tubeless. Tubeless has very much become the new norm for three main reasons. You can't get a pinch flat in. (A pinch flat is when you hit something so hard that the tire and tube are squashed into the rim with such force that it cuts through the tube.) You can run lower tire pressures, enhancing the grip and rolling efficiency over rough terrain. Minor cuts or holes in the tire are usually sealed by the sealant inside the tire without you even noticing.
Terrain and Tread Pattern
The terrain that you are riding will help to determine what tread pattern you will run.
The softer the dirt (think sand, loam or mud), the more open you'll want your tread pattern to be, and the taller the knobs that you'll like. The taller the knob, the more they are able to dig into the soil. In muddy or sticky conditions, a more open tread pattern allows the mud to clear out of the knobs so your tire doesn't end up clogged.
On the other hand, if the terrain you are riding is tough pack, you'll want something with a lot of smaller knobs very close together. Since the knobs don't have anything to dig into (as the ground is too hard), you might as well have a lot of them contacting the dirt to give the most grip. Also, if you run tall knobs on a hard pack, the tire can give a vague feel as the knobs tend to squirm under load. The further the knobs are apart, the slower the tire will roll (the less round the wheel becomes).
Compound
The compound of rubber or durometer refers to how soft the rubber is. A softer rubber will grip significantly better as it is able to conform more to the ground. The downside is that a softer compound tire will wear out faster and typically roll slower as it is stickier. Durometers range from 40a (very smooth) to 70a (very firm).
Tires can also come in single, dual or triple compound. A single compound tire is the same durometer the whole way across. A dual compound tire will have softer rubber on the side knobs that don't get used as much as the knobs in the middle of the tire that is firmer. Triple compound tires tend to have a firm compound at the base of each knob, then a bit softer rubber in the centre on top, and the tops of the side knobs are softer again.
Triple compound tires are the most expensive as they are the most time-consuming to manufacture. They are the best, though, as the knobs hold their shape the best - due to their firmer base - but still grip the best due to the softest rubbers actually contacting the terrain.
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