FordTrax

I am looking at at a very nice older Trek Mountain Track - older in the sense of old enough to be an American made frame. It is on 26" wheels which is helpful since it is for my 10 year old grand daughter who is in the 95% in height and growing rapidly. Had her mom check her inseam and it is 28.5". (She is maxed out on her 20" pre-caliber and it is not big enough). The bike has a 26" stand over with a 16" seat tube.

The rims are the original Weinmann 26x1.5. It has (probably the original) wider mountain bike mud large knob tires on it. I would like to replace the tires with something a bit less knobby and not a wide - perhaps something of a hybrid bike tire with small knobs on the outer edge. Since she will probably be riding on grass, gravel roads and parking lots and maybe some pavement.

With the Weinmann rims at 1.5" what would be the minimum safe tire width?

Any suggestions for a good hybrid tire for grass, gravel, and pavement that not gong to break the bank

Bill Kapaun

Anything from a 26x1.25" to 26x2.2 will work fine.
I'd suggest something in the 1.50-1.75" range.
On my grocery getter, I use 1.25" front and 1.6" rear street slicks and avoid dirt/sand.
Some of these should be good choices-
https://www.biketiresdirect.com/sear...-wirebead&so=i

grumpus

I'd be surprised if the rims are actually 1.5" wide; the standard way of describing the width of a rim is the internal width in millimetres - when you know that you can calculate appropriate tyre widths. As a rule of thumb the narrowest tyre will be around 1.5 times the rim width - you could go lower but there's no particular advantage in doing so. Be aware that narrow tyres with smooth tread may not be any lighter or easier to pedal than wider tyres with lumpy tread, and increasing inflation pressure may actually make them slower not faster.

ScottCommutes

You could Google "pink bike tire 26 inch" and take it from there. If you are spending some $$$ to fix up an ancient bike for a kid, make sure that you are making the bike look cool and modern.

soyabean

26x1.50 rims were the norm for all vintage mtbs.

They are very forgiving too. You can throw anything you want on them as long fork/stays are in the clear.

Schwalbe balloon tyres are awesome for commuting

FBinNY 

Don't confuse the nominal width of the mounted tire with the actual (inside) width of the rim itself.

Once you remove that tire and measure the rim, you can refer to any of the rim/tire width guidelines, like this one, available on the net.
Note, these are only guidelines and there's plenty of latitude at either extreme.

Trav1s

Kenda Small Block 8 or Specialized Crossroads are options to consider. I'm researching gravel tire options as an option for a slightly smaller 26" Trek 800 Sport that I am building for my 9 year old daughter. This will be her last season on her current 24" bike.

I have used tires sized anywhere between the 26x1.5" and 26x2.25" on 90's wheels without problems. Sweet spot is right around 26x2" IMO

grumpus

I'm a fan - I have at various times used Big Apple, Super Moto, Fat Frank, Crazy Bob, all good tyres, they roll well and soak up the bumps too. Mostly pretty reasonable prices, Super Moto costs a bit more but it's a sweet tyre. Just don't inflate them any more than you need to, you won't benefit if they're too hard.
​​​​​​

Bill Kapaun

IIRC, the 800 Sport is Hi-Ten steel vs Cr-Mo. MUCH heavier.

Trav1s

Yep is it Hi-Ten 5 lbs - working with what I can find.

t2p

I’ve run 26 x 1” to 2.15” tires - prefer 1.5 to 2.x

two of my current favs pictured above - Panaracer Pasela 1.75 and Maxxis DTH 2.15

1.75 Panaracer Pasela 1.75 - top picture

2.15 Maxxis DTH - bottom picture

also have set of Schwalbe Billy Bonkers 2.10 for another bike … Rene Herse Naches Pass (1.8) for another bike

RCMoeur 

I've run 1.25" tires on wider rims like that with no problems at up to 85-100 psi. Just need to make sure the tire is properly seated prior to bringing it up to full pressure.

slow rollin

I kinda doubt the rim is 1.5 in OD. Just measured and my dh rims or the rims on the DJ are around 1.25in OD.
Anyways here are two examples. Bontrager has 28c tires on a little under 1in OD rims.
Fischer has a 1.5 up front and a 1.9 out back. I prefer the 1.9, and off roading it grips pretty well for fire road/hardpack. Rolls fast at 55-60psi on the rear.
I would look for something like that with continuous center knobs and some knobs for cornering like a conti race king, kenda small block 8, or michelin dry country 2.
1.5-2.0 would be the size I would go for.

Weogo

Schwalbe Hurricane is on the lighter side, durable, center ridge & side knobs, what I have on my bike.

FordTrax

Thanks for the responses. I am picking up a 15" Specialized Expedition in what looks to be excellent condition. My grandaughter is 10 and in the 95 percentile for height, she is maxed out and then some on her 20" pre-caliber. I saw no point in buying a 24" since she is already well into that. I am looking at 26x1.9" replacements the current tires are aged. She rides on multi surfaces - grass, asphalt, and gravel. So this hybrid should be perfect with some of those "gravel" type of tires with the faster inner tread pattern and the knobs towards the outer. I made some notes to check out the suggestions above.

BTW: it was hard for me not to go for the lovely Fuji Road Bike in Pink and White (in a small size too). Super sexy bike. As a roadie that bike looked fast just sitting there on MarketPlace. But I told myself she will outgrow the hybrid in a couple of years and then ... pretty road bike. However, I do find some of these "older" hybrids to be very classy ... like that Giant and GF posted above. They just look almost timeless.

FordTrax

There is already what I consider a cool thing - there is a dashboard type of thing on the handlebars that I could not figure out at first - but last night looking at the pictures I realized it was a gauge that shows you the gear that the crank and cassette are in. I assume the owner must have installed this aftermarket - but I don't recall ever seeing one. But it might actually help my granddaughter learn shifting. Kind of a cool thing. Since the bike is a lovely green color with white specialized outlined in gold I am going to get a "gold" water bottle cage. Put a silver rear rack on it with a trunk bag. And a new seat. It already has a kickstand on it ... which is killing me ... a kick stand. But yes I will try and junk it up a little bit.

BTW: I take issue with the word "ancient" I view this more as a "classic" or a "vintage". LOL.

FordTrax

That ATX with gumwalls ... looking good! Classic good looks. I will look at the Naches Pass I never think of Rene Herse ... maybe because I am a roadie

Clyde1820

Some possibilities for a decent tire that'll accommodate pavement, hard-packed dirt/gravel:

PanaRacer GravelKing SK TLC, in 26x2.1", ~$45-55:
https://www.amazon.com/Panaracer-Gra.../dp/B0848W93H2
https://www.panaracerusa.com/product...g-gravel-tires

Maxxis DTH, in 26x2.15" #TB00334100 tan wall, or #TB72683000 black wall, ~$40ea:
https://www.maxxis.com/us/tire/dth/

Serfas Drifter City CTR, in 26x2.0", ~$40ea:
https://www.serfas.com/shop/products...fter-city-ctr/

Schwalbe Marathon Plus Tour, in 26x2.0", ~$60ea:
https://www.schwalbetires.com/Marath...-Tour-11159358

ReneHerse -- If the price doesn't shy you away, they make exceptional tires. Very fast, light, and moderately durable for gravel/dirt/pavement. I wouldn't want to try them on grass, but that's just me. (Have a set of the ReneHerse Rat Trap Pass 26x2.3" tires, myself, on a Trek 970. Great tires.)
https://www.renehersecycles.com/prod...tires/26-inch/

ScottCommutes

I'm working on my daughter's bike right now. She's 8. The bike is burnt orange and black. I bought it (already old) for my older son and he beat it up a bit. I put pink cables on it but it needs more "girl". I might have to Goof Off all the old mountain bike stickers all over the thing and get some cooler stickers. Also looking at pink spoke covers, seat, grips, etc. I don't want to go too crazy because in about two or three seasons, it will get handed down to my youngest. He's a boy.

One rule I have used at my house is that when you wear parts out (mostly tires), you can help pick out new pretty ones.

grumpus

That was available for a while OEM or after market but rarely used. It could help, it's bling or junk depending how you/she sees it.

Quote:

Originally Posted by FordTrax

BTW: I take issue with the word "ancient" I view this more as a "classic" or a "vintage". LOL.

Matured to perfection is how I like to see it. Oh, bikes - yeah, classic vintage retro cool hipster reduce reuse recycle ...