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Mountain Bike Tyres

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Mountain Bike Tyres for Sale

The tyres on your mountain bike are the most important upgrade you can make. As the only contact point your bike has to the trail, having the right tyres fitted will not only increase your skills and confidence, they’ll also help keep you upright. When looking at upgrading your rubber, tyre diameter, width, terrain and riding style are important considerations.

Tyre Diameter and Width

Before looking at anything else, it’s important to understand what tyre diameter and width you’ll need to fit your bike and wheels. Tyres, like [wheels], will commonly come in three different diameters, 26in, 27.5in (aka 650b) and 29er. To ensure compatibility, the label on your tyres should detail the size required.

When considering tyre width, mountain bike sizes can differ from as narrow as 1.8 up to 3.4 inches in width. It’s worth noting that wider tyres will offer greater traction, cornering stability and ride control on the trail. However, wider is not always better, in addition to being heavier, you’ll need to ensure that your frame and fork has the necessary clearance.

Tubes or Tubeless

Traditionally, mountain bike tyres ran an inner tube inside the tyre, responsible for holding the air pressure in the tyre. Whilst this makes changing a flat as simple as patching or replacing a tube, it requires the tyres to be inflated to a higher pressure to avoid pinch flats. A higher tyre pressure sacrifices both traction and ride comfort.

As a result, tubeless tyres and compatible wheels do away with the need for an inner tube by creating an airtight seal between the rim and tyre. This technology is very similar to how modern car and motorbike tyres operate. The tyre can also filled with liquid sealant which will plug any small holes that may occur while riding. Tubeless tyres can be ran at much lower pressures, improving traction and control with reduced risk of flats.

Tyre Style

It’s important to match the tyre tread to your desired riding terrain and style. Your local bike shop or fellow riders may be in the best position to tell you what works for the nearby trails.