Running plus tires on a fat rim
 

Considering a fat bike Bullseye Gravity Monster that has 80mm rims and comes with studded VeeRubber tires. I'm looking at swapping those out for winter use and running a summer tire but want something that rolls efficiently as this is to be an off road touring / bikepacking rig rather than a beach bike / cruiser.

I don't expect I'll need the full 4" most of the time and have seen that some people are running 3" plus tires and some wider mtb tires. Does anyone have experience with a specific brand that will fit an 80 mm rim without any fuss? I don't want to buy a second wheelset. Currently running tubes with sealant.

Thanks,

Dale.

The max rim width you would want to run with 3" tires is 50mm.

80mm rim would exceed the width of 3" tires.

And if you are going to get a fat bike...get a real one. Not a bike shaped object from Bikes Direct.

If you're paying I'm all over it.

You would still want to retain the same tire diameter overall. Lots of us run 29x3.0 in place of 26x4.8 or 27.5x 2.8 for a bike built for 26x4.0. Running smaller diameter wheels will drop your Bottom bracket and result in pedal strikes.

With fatbikes tires matter. With a set of tubeless compatable rims and a pair Jumbo Jims and it will feel like a roadbike compared to what the gravity monster comes with.

I see what's up now. First time thinking about fat bike dimensions.
So you run a second wheelset, in my case 27.5s.
Is it a pita to build a fat bike hub onto that rim size? In this case 135 front 170 rear or can you buy stock rims in that size?

I've read a lot about how hinky the V rubber mission tires are and plan to get JJ's down the road. To me I'm just buying a platform to build up from as I have a lot of upgrade parts and donor bikes to draw from.
A 6061 frame and standard non proprietary fittings is a good base when one cannot afford to plop 2K+ to see if one likes the genre. One bike I'm looking at has already had hydro disc and a suspension fork added while the other is near new and at a good discount.

I'd look at one with 197mm TA to be futureproof and be able to get 5" tires. The higher BD ones have that, like my Sturgis. It also came with tubeless rims, Maxxis tires, 1x, hydraulic discs. Paid for itself compared to buying a bullseye and having to upgrade all that.
And yes, tire quality matters a lot.... ask me about the cheap studded Vee tires I once used......

A funny thing about CL. I had negotiated a price and was ready to pull the trigger on two different fat bikes by Tuesday, pending a trial to see how they fit (one was medium, the other large). I would have bought either without haggling but both sellers kept putting the sale off because it was not convenient for them to get together.

Well, a different deal came along Friday and I wound up with a Specialized Fatboy. 2x10, Tektro Aries Mech brakes, Ground Control 26x4.6 tires, Sram drive train. Gently used and in good shape (mainly an urban rider).

As it came stock
https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/...b8ef5f84_c.jpg

After a few initial upgrades
https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/...07fb60ee_c.jpg

And then it was time to take it for a ride.
https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/...3fe6f5b5_c.jpg

The tires were pumped up hard and rolled pretty good. I have a section of downhill that I coast on my road bike to stand still and this one did almost as well. I'm impressed.
Off road, even hard it climbed great, up and over boulders and small logs etc...
https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/...d66204cd_c.jpg

https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/...6dc5c285_c.jpg

At the top I did some single track downhill and the brakes worked awesome for mech disc. Easy pull, fair modulation and stopping power that made my back tire skid out. Even on steep sections I could stop where I wanted confidently.
https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/...9eb07a40_c.jpg

Further upgrades will probably be platform/clipless spd's, a bottle cage system and maybe my C17 instead of the B67 saddle. I really like the feel of the B67 and can ride it all day every day but I think it's overkill because of the tires.

With this bike I can now see my way to downsizing the herd to three keepers (plus a couple of project bikes). My 700c road touring bike with a second set of wheels for 650b gravel, my FG and this fat bike for off road touring/trail riding.

https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/...e4869b83_c.jpg

Ready for touring

https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/...8bd54e68_c.jpg

Congrats on your purchase. Much better decision than the Bikes Direct bike. With the Gravity Bullseye Monster you would have spent more money in the long run fixing/replacing stuff. The Specialized Fatboy is a Solid bike.

hey, the new buzz word is bikepacking....
Congrats that's a great looking bike
as for the BD haters, whatever, though I agree you'll have a much better time not having to tinker with the FB

btw: which rack did you go with? Also which frame bag is that? it's a perfect fit!!
Lots have gone to those enormous seat packs instead of panniers to avoid singletrack scraps.

Thanks :)

The frame bag is a Blackburn Outpost Med size. I dislike seat bags as most attachment systems are meh* (sway and sag) and space is limited. I have a Carradice saddle bag I prefer if I want to go that way. The only downside to the panniers will be bounce and the attachment system on rough trails so I will have to see about that.

When I look at the BD bikes I just see a cheap blank canvas to work with as I like to tinker and have a lot of spare parts. Most people replace saddles and pedals and many suggest replacing stock tires on most bikes as well so you are left with redoing the brakes and maybe a drive train later on. But you have a steel frame you can afford and customize the way you want down the road. True, the Fatboy is nicer out of the box but right away I see I have a tapered Al fork I can't mount cages to (easily) and an Al frame I also can't easily add cage bolts to. When one adds a frame bag you lose both inner cage positions and are only left with the under side DT spot so for bike packing that becomes an issue.

Six of one, half dozen of the other. I'm happy with the FB because I got it used at a good price but I could build a pretty good BD monster for $500 using the new price difference of the FB at $1800. That's $1300 worth of upgrades. My choice was that my wife would be pissed if I bought that FB at $1800 when I have 12 bikes in the garage and the laundry room still needs renovating ;)

LOL, another n+1 addict
fat bike are hard to hide, which is why I can only have one
so much easier to say to the Mrs. "new bike? you mean the black one there? nope, I've had that for two years, remember it's the one that only cost $500...."

I do the same thing with guns. I just hope when I die she doesn't sell my bikes and guns for what I told her I paid. :D

I like those wheels.