Gravel tire

[Tbof]

What’s the best tire size for combining road with rail trails ?

 

[Magic]

Buy a tire for the majority of what you ride. Rail trails are typically either paved or super hard packed, so I personally wouldn't really call it gravel. A 28c road slick is just fine for mixed road like HOH or Monkey Knife Fight. If you find a lot of off road, you can go with some kind of 30-33c with slight tread, or a 38-40c gravel tire for majority off road.

If you don't care how fast you are, the larger side is fun so you can also hit some light singletrack. Of course make sure it fits your frame.

 

[szymon]

Cx file treads work well on the road or gravel but a lot depends on if your frame can fit a 33-35 tire.

 

[bigW]

28c road tires will work nicely here in NJ.

I’m running Kenda Kwik 30c tires on my Spooky CX bike. I can run them at 85PSI where they will roll nicely (check rim specs for running any high volume, high pressure tire) or drop to 40PSI for the rough stuff. Perfect for typical NJ gravel ride which has lots of pavement mixed in.

I would not use them for 100% paved day after day ( if nothing else the tread will get worn off ) Get a second wheelset if you are using the same bike for big gravel rides and big road rides

W

 

[MadisonDan]

Specialized 38C Pathfinder tires have been great for me.

 

[GreenMachine]

Panaracer SK GravelKings are great 700x43

 

[The Kalmyk]

Maxxis Velocita because you wont be riding only gravel around here on your gravel ride. Run em low and rip

If you’re baller like that then go Renee Hurst

 

[terrabike01]

Maxxis Rambler 700x38 Great gravel tire and rolls fast on pavement

https://www.maxxis.com/catalog/tire-512-139-rambler

 

[CrankAddictRich]

I'm riding 650s... 650x50 Maxxis Re-fuse. The file tread feels great on the road and the extra volume and sizes lets me basically go into any gravel or rock without any nervousness.

 

[The Kalmyk]

I'm riding 650s... 650x50 Maxxis Re-fuse. The file tread feels great on the road and the extra volume and sizes lets me basically go into any gravel or rock without any nervousness.

This is a great choice for anyone listening! The Velocita a slick like the Re Fuse but with a different trend pattern. Knobby tires around here will get worn out quick if you ride a lot. When that happens it essentially its a crap. The Velocita, like the Re Fuse being slicks with micro tread, they show almost no wear with around 2k miles on them.

 

[CrankAddictRich]

I also have a set of WTB Horizons in the garage to try... they are 650x47's and have one stripe of totally slick tread in the center, with alternating stripes of file tread spreading out to the shoulders. The WTB's feel like a more supple tire just in handling them. The Maxxis are bulky and feel bulletproof when handling them... like they'd never puncture. Before I put them on, I was certain they'd feel slow, but I've been pretty surprised. The WTB's will probably feel faster on the road and handle better, but I worry that they won't have the durability. I had previously tried some WTB ByWay's and they felt great, but I was constantly dealing with a nagging leaking air pressure.

 

[chaloots]

I'm currently running 38C pathfinders on my diverge and like them a lot, 1/3 of my riding is on gravel and dirt.
prior to that i ran 32c and then upsized to 36c gravel king. while both worked well i perferred the larger size. the larger size didnt slow me down as much as i though they would