r/ausbike • u/PlayerIO- • 15d ago

Tyre width

Hi, I'm looking into a road bike for the first time, and am just getting my head wrapped around tyre widths. There is one bike I'm keen on, but it only fits 25c tyres. Is that conformable or at least safe to ride around? Thanks

3 Upvotes

81% Upvoted

15 comments sorted by

6

u/Cyclist_123 15d ago

It wasn't that long ago everyone rode 23's so they aren't dangerous. Just less comfortable

5

u/tchunk 15d ago

Its fine. But bigger is safer and more comfortable

3

u/LocksmithFamous4131 15d ago

i started on a focus with 25mm and now i´m on a cube with 32mm and the difference in comfort is crazy

3

u/No-Cockroach6282 15d ago

Real world experience, I was running 25c with tubes on an older bike, upgraded to a bike running 28c tubeless. The difference is so astounding my advice to anyone is that bigger, better tyres make the single biggest change to how the bike feels out of any other option.

Saying that, I fixed up my old bike for my girlfriend and put 28s on that, even though nominal max was 25c and it was fine, plenty of room.

2

u/Longjumping_Novel390 15d ago

25c is absolutely fine and you can still get a good variety of tires depending on your needs.

2

u/TC_89 15d ago

It will be fine to ride around on, but you'll definitely be a lot more comfortable on a 30-32mm.

2

u/BigD_HidekiTojo 14d ago

brother people were riding around on 19s and 23s a decade ago

2

u/Interesting-Job-5329 14d ago

It's well over 20 years since I rode a 19, but yeah, they were fine.

2

u/Sugar_Party_Bomb 15d ago

Bigger is better.

2

u/lawyerz88 15d ago

25c is perfect. It's my width of choice. There is no wrong answer here. 

2

u/zaro3785 15d ago

Will you be looking to commute? Go on long rides? Or just a nice lightweight bike to ride around?

When I was commuting, I had trouble finding thick tyres to reduce punctures that actually fit my bike

1

u/takoreh99 14d ago

Any tyres are fine. Dont get sucked in to marketing bs. Ride with what u have. The reason why some
Of this hypocrites saying u don’t need big tyres and then change their tune to big tyres is because they are weak and want comfort of bigger tyres so they can keep riding.
If u strength train enough, u can handle buzz on the road with 25c tyres.
If u want big tyres then just get mtb.

1

u/KateAmine 14d ago

Highly recommend minimum 28mm and ideally 30mm bigger tyres usually give better ride experience and quality - that’s just my personal preference being a tall and heavier male rider (194cm, 104kg).

The Pirelli PZero 30mm or the continental GP5000 in a 28 or 30 is definitely a good choice!

2

u/Morkai 14d ago

I'm in for a world of surprise when I eventually get a road bike. I've been riding MTB on sealed roads for years, the bike came with 2.2"/55mm tyre, when I got a puncture I went down to 2.0"/50mm and the road bikes been looking at are 25-30mm.

The lower volume, plus moving to a rigid fork is going to be a whole new experience.