wclarkin

I’m sure this is been answered plenty times over on the web, but I couldn’t find a good definitive answer. I’m looking to convert a 1990s trek mountain bike into more of a hybrid style. I’m thinking I’m going to replace the older mountain tires with some smooth, more city oriented tires. Current tires are 26X 2.1. How different of a size can I put on these tires? I know I have to get 26 inch, but do the new tires have very close in size with the old ones or can they be more narrow, like 26”x1.5? To me, the less tire on the road the better, so I’d like to go as narrow as possible. Thanks!

Bigbus

I may be way off base here, but to me a 2.1 seems like a hybrid tire already. You might want to measure your actual rim width, but going down to a 1.5 should still work if you're talking tubed tire. It will push out on the sides to the width of the rim and give you less width where the rubber meets the road. In addition to tires, it seems the largest change up will be your seat. Something big and cushy almost automatically makes it a hybrid.

Bill Kapaun

I'm very pleased with these- They WILL fit. You'll want properly sized tubes with them.
https://www.nashbar.com/vittoria-str...2111tg/p437026

Bill Kapaun

2.1" is about 53mm or MB size.
Hybrids are more typically 35-37mm stock.

2old

I've used 1.25" "slicks" on "2.1" mountain rims effectively (Specialized Nimbus). AIR, the tire spread out a little on the rim,but could be pumped to 80 (or so, maybe 100) psi.

alcjphil

One downside to much narrower tires is ride quality. A narrower tire requires higher air pressure and it also reduces the overall diameter of the wheel. This can result in a much harsher ride with limited improvement in riding speed. A road orientated tire can be narrower, but too narrow might be worse than your current setup. Personally, I would look at tires in the range of 26 x 1.75 as a good compromise for street use. I commuted for several year on 26 x 1.5 tires, but I found the ride quality to be very harsh compared to the 26 x 1.75 tires my bike was equipped with previously. For city use, I would look at smooth tread tires in the 26 x 1.75 to 26 x 1.95 range

cpach

There's less disadvantage to wide tires than you probably think—most speed will be in tires with less tread and more supple casings, but 1.5s will be fine. An arguable advantage is that your bike probably has a relatively high bottom bracket and smaller tires will lower it somewhat, lowering standover height and lowering the center of gravity.

wclarkin

Thank you all for your input! I found a really
good deal for some 26x1.5 tires, so that’s why I was looking at those. Before I buy those I’ll look to see if I can find something slightly wider with smooth tread if it will help with ride quality. Thanks again!

zacster

I'm a little too late then to tell you I use 26x1 1/8" Gatorskins on my converted MTB. I much prefer these skinny tires to any "hybrid" type tire. They are mounted on Mavic XM 317 rims on my 1990 Trek 7000 mtb. I just checked the spec on the rims and they recommend 1.5 to 2.3" wide tires, so I'm smaller than that but I've also been riding them this way for about 5 years now and I'm on my second set. I also upgraded most of the components on the bike, XT 10sp for the derailleurs and brakes, Deore for levers and shifters. It all works really well.

https://www.biketiresdirect.com/prod...inch-road-tire