MRT2

I suspect Wal Mart sells a lot more bike tires than all the local bike shops in the USA combined. We enthusiasts wouldn't buy a tire from Wal Mart except under the most dire of circumstances, but the rest of the general public sees a tire as a commodity, and will buy the cheapest one.

I used to be into high end audio gear, and audio enthusiasts would feel the same way when some once proud brand suddenly is slapping its name on cheap gear sold at big box stores. Same thing. Non audio enthusiasts buy their gear at big box stores, not specialty stores, and there are a lot more of them than there are of us.

techsensei

Giant became huge when they became the OEM for Schwinn in the late 70's. It was only after Schwinn decided to go with another manufacturer that Giant began selling bikes under their own name.

rekmeyata

Maybe, but that still doesn't play well for Goodyear other than the money side of the equation. That's fine if Goodyear wants to sell crappy bike tires at Walmart, but then come out with a line of high end tires to cover the whole spectrum, but just to sell cheap crappy tires may make people think their car tires are cheap and crappy. It's kind of like taking 26 ounces of crystal clear water and putting a drop of nasty water, that one drop spoiled the 26 ounces of crystal clear water, well Goodyear is doing that to themselves.

chaadster

The idea that these Goodyear's must be cheap and crappy is faulty. CS can (and do, under Maxxis label) make fine high-performance tires, but even economy tires designed for durability can be good tires. All the Goodyears need to be is "good enough," and they win.

jefnvk

Bingo.

Tooling to make bike tires likely isn't cheap. Add in competing with low cost Asian manufacturers on products you are selling for $10 a pop at Wal-Mart, there likely just isn't profit there to justify capital expenditure.

Now, enter Cheng Shen tires. They can get in with the biggest retailer in America, Goodyear can make a buck having them affix a label with your name onto their product, and Wal-Mart can market them as a "quality" tire. Win-win-win. As others have mentioned, they aren't horrible tires, I like the Forte branded ones I have well enough for what I paid. They may not pass the discerning eye of everyone here, they may not make sense for the type of biking many here do, but for the person putting on tire that cares the most about whether it fits on their rim, there isn't much discerning being done.

rekmeyata

While tooling may not be cheap, most of the high end tires are built in Asia anyways, so all Goodyear has to do is to contract with one of them, and then hire a bicycle tire engineer like Specialized did two years ago, and start making decent tires as well as the cheap ones if they must. The start up costs may be high but not as high as buying your own equipment and doing it all in house.

And there must be profit in the mid to high end tire market otherwise we would either be paying exorbitant prices for tires or not finding any at all. I'm sure there is a lot of profit in tires that's why you see end of the season $75 road tires going for $35. It's a lot like furniture, they have sales where they mark furniture off 50, 60, 70% from suggested retail, do you think furniture retailers are losing money when they do that? no, and neither are the bicycle tire companies. So your profit argument doesn't hold water.

jefnvk

Could they make a profit, if they really wanted? Probably. Would it likely be more than a drop in a bucket next to their other tire businesses? Doubtful.

You are looking at this with the idea that Goodyear has a desire to make a quality bike tire. I am looking at this as Goodyear wants to make a quick buck licensing their name, as is very common in all forms of industries and products. I doubt either one of us can prove which it is, unless we happen to be sitting in on meetings at Goodyear.

rekmeyata

I hear you, I just have a difficult time wrapping my brain around any reason a quality car tire making company would tarnish their name by making a crappy product that could damage their reputation unless they plan on getting out the quality car tire business and start making crappy car tires in order to spin a fast buck.

Just as personal thing, if I bought a bicycle tire made by Michelin for example, and got a crappy tire I would hesitate to buy a car tire from the same company, I know, I'm weird for thinking like that.

jefnvk

Completely understandable, not weird at all. My first bike tire selection was motivated by the fact that Kenda modeled a pedal bike tire design and tread off a motorcycle tire I had on my Honda that I liked

I work in the auto industry, and sit in on enough manufacturing meetings to not even bat an eye when something is rebranded and resold under a different manufacturers name anymore. Even happens intra-company, it is ridiculous how things are justified by the business folks!

Lucillle

I'm getting a vintage Dahon folding bike, it should be here tomorrow. Seller says it has almost new Cheng Shen tires.
I'm a senior and I ride 6-10 local, flat terrain, street miles a day, I'm hoping to build up to more. My question, is that I'm trying to understand the differences between different quality tires. I'm on a fixed income, and if a brand of tire is fine for the kind of riding I do, I don't want to pony up money for expensive tires that maybe don't have any additional qualities I'm actually going to use.
When does it make sense to upgrade, and when does it make sense to just wait until and if a new or better tire is needed?

10 Wheels

Tires for neighborhood riding don't need to be the expensive ones.
Up grade when you Tour or do Real Commuting to work and back.

Do you still have your nice Cannondale Touring bike?

Lucillle

No I sold the Cannondale, haven't done much riding the past couple years, am trying to start back riding more since I got rid of the vehicle a little while back.

10 Wheels

That was a fine bike.

BlazingPedals

The exact width doesn't matter as much as the bead seat diameter. For a mountain bike/comfort bike 26" wheel, that is almost certainly 559mm. If a 2.1" tire fits in your frame, then you can use it or anything reasonably close but smaller, such as 1.75" or even 1.5" Tread is only useful in dirt or grass; so if you're only on streets and sidewalks, consider a less aggressive tread or even a slick, which will have less rolling resistance.

Virtually all modern tires will have a size stamped in the sidewall somewhere. It'll read something like 54x559, which is the width in mm and the bead seat diameter in mm. Tubes come in ranges of size, but not tires (tires don't stretch.)

Wileyrat

Yeah, that'll definitely convince me to switch from Vittorias.

JanMM

While I've had good luck in recent years with Primo, Forte, Schwalbe, Michelin and Panaracer tires, my favorite brand would have to be Acme, except that I've never been able to find any Acme tires. Until now, that is ---> @cme Bike Parts | FlatFree Bicycle Wheelsets

indyfabz

What 10 Wheels said. For the type of riding you will be doing right now, you don't need expensive tires.

nycphotography

I'll make a specific recommendation, and others can chime in, or suggest alternatives..

Buy two of these:

Continental Touring Plus Reflex MTB Tire (size 26 x 1.75)
wiggle.com | Continental Touring Plus Reflex MTB Tire | MTB Road Tires

They have a smooth tread center groove that should be much faster rolling, and they should be fairly puncture resistant but I'd be curious what others have to say on puncture resistance.

Sy Reene

I see a lot of places sell Vredestein tires, but very rarely come across these being mentioned on BF. Any opinions on their lineup?

Esteban32696

I am partial to Schwalbe tires & tubes.

GrandaddyBiker

I know someone who works at the Goodyear plant in Gadsden Alabama. He told me that they have made Goodyear bike tubes and tires in their plant for years. Right here in the good old USA.

12strings

Most of the major brands have tires from $20 up well done over $100. It's not so much a matter of brand a it is product level. And in general, if you buy a $100+ tire, it will not last as long as a $20 tire.. but it will roll smoother, faster, and be more comfortable.

1989Pre 

https://americancycleandfitness.com/p...re-76292-1.htm

GrandaddyBiker

Maybe the Goodyear bicycle tires and tubes are made in China. However, I know for a fact that for years, they have been made in Gadsden, Alabama. Right here in the USA.

chaadster

Upgrade when you start thinking your tires aren't good enough.