Tyre question

Sesshoumaru

Hi,

I started cycling to work via the train station about 18 months ago. I started on a cheap secondhand Halfords bike. Now I've upgraded to a Dahon bicycle. My first spin in to work this morning on the new bike was great, I really love it. I never invested so much in a bicycle before, but I do really like it.

What I did find though was that it felt like the tyres on it (Schwalbe Citizen) were not as fast as what I had on my old bike (Schwalbe Marathon). One of my last cycles on the old bike was on Friday and for the first time I actually cycled all the way home from work. I mapped out my route on Google Maps and it was about 26 kilometers from Dublin city centre to where I live in Celbridge. It was a good cycle and actually not as tough as I thought it would be. But after my first 8 kilometer cycle on my new bike this morning, I feel the same cycle home on the new bike would be a little tougher and a little slower with the tyres the bike came with.

Now I'm thinking of replacing the Schwalbe Citizen tyres on my new Dahon for a new pair of Schwalbe Marathon. I really feel like the Marathon tyres make a big difference. But maybe I just need to get used to the different gearing system? When I got my old bike 18 months ago, that was my first bike in a long time! So maybe it's not the tyres? I just don't want to waste good money and find my new bikes feels about the same speed after buying new tyres.

mr spuckler

schwalbe marathons would not be considered to be one of the faster tyres out there! their first purpose after all is puncture protection rather than speed.
have you checked the pressure is up to the level recommended on the tyre? there's a pressure rating expressed in bar or psi on the sidewall of the tyre.

i've never ridden a folding bike but wouldn't have thought that they're necessarily built for long journeys or speed?

Wishbone Ash

Sesshoumaru wrote: »

.. One of my last cycles on the old bike was on Friday and for the first time I actually cycled all the way home from work. I mapped out my route on Google Maps and it was about 26 kilometers from Dublin city centre to where I live in Celbridge. It was a good cycle and actually not as tough as I thought it would be....

As far as I recall there was an eastery blowing on Friday so the wind at you back instead of the prevailing headwind may have made it seem easier. Tyres make a small difference but ironically the Marathon Plus that you are aspiring to would be considered one of the slowest and heaviest out there.

Wishbone Ash

mr spuckler wrote: »

...i've never ridden a folding bike but wouldn't have thought that they're necessarily built for long journeys or speed?

I didn't realise we were talking about a folding bike!

robyntmorton

I didn't realise you could get folding sport bikes with derailleur gears!

magicbastarder

i didn't realise what a tracker mortgage is!

mr spuckler

Wishbone Ash wrote: »

I didn't realise we were talking about a folding bike!

i wasn't sure myself so googled dahon bikes and they all seem to be folding!

Sesshoumaru

mr spuckler wrote: »

schwalbe marathons would not be considered to be one of the faster tyres out there! their first purpose after all is puncture protection rather than speed.
have you checked the pressure is up to the level recommended on the tyre? there's a pressure rating expressed in bar or psi on the sidewall of the tyre.

i've never ridden a folding bike but wouldn't have thought that they're necessarily built for long journeys or speed?

Thanks for the reply. My old bike the Apollo Contour has 7 gears and I definitely remember feeling it was faster after I got the Marathon Plus tyres installed. Now that I think of it, I do remember the bike mechanic saying 'that'll be a nice upgrade for you now' or something like that when i collected it.

I think though after reading some other threads I'll probably make the investment again. It is actually important for me to not get punctures. My daily commute is at a minimum 8 kilometers. But sometimes I'll take a different train to Heuston station instead and add another 4.5 kilometers to my daily cycle (if the weather is nice). Over the last 12 months with the Schwalbe Marathon Plus I've had zero punctures. Before that it was just too frequent.

I've never really had other bikes since I was a kid. So I can't comment on what folding bikes are built for or not built for. But if you look at the Dahon site they do seem to have a lot of different bikes in a lot of different categories.

mr spuckler

Sesshoumaru wrote: »

Thanks for the reply. My old bike the Apollo Contour has 7 gears and I definitely remember feeling it was faster after I got the Marathon Plus tyres installed. Now that I think of it, I do remember the bike mechanic saying 'that'll be a nice upgrade for you now' or something like that when i collected it.

I think though after reading some other threads I'll probably make the investment again. It is actually important for me to not get punctures. My daily commute is at a minimum 8 kilometers. But sometimes I'll take a different train to Heuston station instead and add another 4.5 kilometers to my daily cycle (if the weather is nice). Over the last 12 months with the Schwalbe Marathon Plus I've had zero punctures. Before that it was just too frequent.

I've never really had other bikes since I was a kid. So I can't comment on what folding bikes are built for or not built for. But if you look at the Dahon site they do seem to have a lot of different bikes in a lot of different categories.

i'm 100% with you on puncture protection, i've been running marathon plus on every commuter bike i've had for several years. also have them on mrs spuckler's bike and the baby's bike trailer.

bear in mind the pressure comment, i notice a real difference every time i top mine up to the recommended pressure and run them at the top end of that recommended range too.

Sesshoumaru

robyntmorton wrote: »

I didn't realise you could get folding sport bikes with derailleur gears!

I went for a bike with low maintenance (my idea of low maintenance anyway!). So no derailleur gears for me.

http://dahon.com/bikes/mu-n360/

Time will tell I suppose.

Sesshoumaru

Wishbone Ash wrote: »

As far as I recall there was an eastery blowing on Friday so the wind at you back instead of the prevailing headwind may have made it seem easier. Tyres make a small difference but ironically the Marathon Plus that you are aspiring to would be considered one of the slowest and heaviest out there.

I have nothing to compare it with TBH. That was my first time cycling home (with no train in between). It was just I felt the tyres that came on my new bike required more effort to keep rolling at the speed I like. But the new bike has a completely different type of gearing system and I also don't have much to compare with in bikes. So it could just be my imagination!

mr spuckler

even if you were cycling the same bike 2 days in a row it can also feel much tougher some days than others!

as you've said there are a lot of variables, but both of those tyres running on optimal pressure won't see you riding at noticeably different speeds.

robyntmorton

Sesshoumaru wrote: »

I went for a bike with low maintenance (my idea of low maintenance anyway!). So no derailleur gears for me.

http://dahon.com/bikes/mu-n360/

Time will tell I suppose.

That makes more sense (I was looking at the website and saw their "sport" ones)

I'd say the puncture protection tyres are going to be the best idea for you. It's the trade off between a little slower maybe or having to repair a puncture.

Effects

What's the average pressure people use?
I run on 700x25C tyres and keep them at 90psi. Higher than that usually gives me too bumpy a ride.

Sesshoumaru

mr spuckler wrote: »

even if you were cycling the same bike 2 days in a row it can also feel much tougher some days than others!

as you've said there are a lot of variables, but both of those tyres running on optimal pressure won't see you riding at noticeably different speeds.

Thanks for the advise. I also definitely noticed the Marathon Plus were harder to cycle when the pressure dropped a bit. The tyres on my new bike were at 60psi front and back when i checked last night, which I think is the manufacturers recommendation.

I've asked a bike shop near my office to give me a quote to change the tyres anyway. As you said as well, puncture resistance is important on a commuter. It's been so long since I had gotten a puncture I had kind of forgotten that was actually the reason I changed to Marathon Plus in the first place

mr spuckler

Effects wrote: »

What's the average pressure people use?
I run on 700x25C tyres and keep them at 90psi. Higher than that usually gives me too bumpy a ride.

depends on the tyre obviously - when on 700x25 marathons i think i ran them at 110. am now on 28s and think they're rated for max of 90 so have them at that.

Effects

Just read a few articles that said running them at max isn't the best idea!

mr spuckler

what i've read seems to suggest a slight potential increase in rolling resistance at very high pressure because the bike can bump along rather than absorb bumps, as well as a loss of comfort.

i'm fine with the comfort side and don't notice the other if it happens so i'm happy with running it high.