Mountain Bike Tire Sizes Front Back

Tires come in three diameters.

Mountain bike tire sizes front back.

Read our review on the michelin wild rock r2 all mountain tire. For downhill bikes the tire width can go up to 2 5. This is also why a narrow tire goes on the rear wheel. Previously the tire was only available in a 2 3 inch width and the brand released the new version in june 2018 in 2 5 and 2 6 inch widths.

Measurements like 26 1 which is the 27 5 size and 28x two fractions which is the 29 size are fractional inch markings. Typical mountain bike tire. All mountain and trial bikes have tire width in the range of 2 25 to 2 4. Tires are also measured in width.

At the extreme end there are 69er and 96er mountain bikes that mix and match 29 622 and 26 559 wheels on the same bike as well as terry women s bikes with 24 520 front wheels and 700c 622 rear. Additionally rear tire tread designs should complement the front tire but can be very different to achieve rear specific goals. Fat bikes have tire width over 3 7. In general the desired tire width for the most common biking styles are as follows.

Tubeless tires are recommended when you want lower tire pressures. Check your tire s sidewall the numbers there indicate your tire size roughly its outer diameter and its width but not always in that order. Cross country bikes have tire width between 1 9 and 2 25. Share a link to this answer.

Alongside the tire size you have the option of running tubeless or tubed tires. We mounted tires to 30 mm internal diameter wheels. 26 inches 27 5 inches and 29 inches. Most riders prefer a tubeless system.

Frame limitations while there is generally quite a bit of room in the front suspension fork a 2 3 2 5 tire can probably fit the frame can only accommodate a certain size tire. It s lighter requiring less energy to rotate. We now have several models in the 2 5 and 2 6 widths that are becoming much more common in the current mountain bike tire market. As tires continue to trend wider so too are the tires in our test.

It s important to note that you cannot mix fractional markings with decimals. Trail and all mountain bikes will have tires in the 2 25 to 2 4 width range. A cross country bike will have tires in the 1 9 to 2 25 width range. With mountain bikes you re mostly safe from fractional sizes but it s worth mentioning them for completeness.

2 2 and 27 5 indicate a tire that has a width of 2 2 and an outer diameter of 27 5. Some special tires can even be wider up to 3 inches with some models. Sticking with only a wide front tire is a good compromise. On the typical cross country mountain bike you won t get bigger than a 2 1 tire back there.

Downhill bikes which are meant to withstand the abuse of drops and rock gardens are typically equipped with tires up to 2 5 wide. Mountain bike tire size and width. When wtb redesigned the vigilante last year they went all out on a modern front tire for aggressive mountain biking. We selected tires in the 2 3 to 2 6 inch width range.

By necessity those run very different tires front and rear.