Quote:
Originally Posted by Tambohamilton
So plus size tyres do get a lot of grip at low speeds, but get more and more unruly as you go faster. Which is the opposite of good!
There are also quirks and problems with handling which are in a similar vein, for plus tyres.
All that said, fat bikes are hilarious fun! But they're essentially fun for all the wrong reasons. And if you already have a plus bike, crack on! No harm in it. I just wouldn't recommend them to anyone  |
Just discovered this thread (usually use the one in the UK OT section). As you say, plus tyres are great for bumblers, my dad's Trek Fuel with them is superb for him on rough Scottish hill tracks as he's in his sixties and not thrashing it - they give him grip at the point he wants it, and he isn't sliding the bike around so progressive breakaways etc are something he doesn't need. In contrast I really dislike large tyres (anything over a modern 2.4" basically); they dull steering response and accuracy, they bounce, and are basically a large and uncontrolled spring, much like the old balloon tyres were in F1. And if you ride hard you can either get them soft enough that they have traction but you then smash the rim on rocks and get squirm, or hard enough to dispel the latter two but then have zero traction. I'm not even a fan of the square profiles that modern wide rims create; I'd far rather a rounder profile which gives marginally less peak grip but a far smoother transition from grip into slide, which is what gives you control when pushing, especially when it's slick.
Fat bikes are great if you're trying to ride across snow (like in Canada/VT etc) or the Sahara, but for riding around a trail centre they're just comically bad and only really chosen by slightly weird types.