Road Bike, Cycling Forums banner

23c vs. 25c

54K views 42 replies 33 participants last post by  No Time Toulouse 
#1 ·
in the market for new tires, always rode 23c's...just wondering and tinkering with the idea of going to 25c's (possible smoother ride?) - ride in pennsylvania, no racing at all but i like a good performance tire; nothing too heavy - roads not too bad but condition of pave varies on every ride. running 6'-2", 185lbs.....just wanted to get some +/- feedback from those who switched to 25's.
tire i'm looking at now is the vittoria zaffiro pro clincher.
 
#31 ·
28s and 32s

Why stop at 25?

I started running kevlar bead 28s on my touring bike at 85lbs. Very comfy.

On my cross bike (commuter, trainer) I run 32s at 65 lbs and it's very comfy despite being an aluminum frame.

When you look at tires, don't just look at width. Different tires have a different cross section. Look at height. Specialized 23s and 25s are not only narrow but very low profile. Panaracer 28s are nearly round in cross section, so they are very high profile. Height provides cushion for comfort and flat prevention.
 
#34 ·
In the spring when the 35mm studded tires come off I am planning to mount 28mm tires on the rims instead of the 23mm tires that were used this year. Until recently I thought that generally the narrower the tire the faster it was, but have been learning otherwise lately which was quite a surprise and still is an idea difficult for me to accept because narrow tires are so much associated with the faster bicycles that it seemed obvious and certain and common sense that narrow tires and rims must be faster.
 
#38 ·
Whatever works for you.
 
#42 ·
Yeah, back when I bought my 2007 Trek Pilot 5.0, fellow riders were criticizing the choice of 25mm tires on it when most roadies were still riding 23mm tires. I got comments like "You will go so much faster on 23mm tires". I'm now riding 28mm tires on both my road bikes and will never go back.
 
This is an older thread, you may not receive a response, and could be reviving an old thread. Please consider creating a new thread.
Top