Well, It Almost Worked: 2.1' Tires On A Gravel Bike?

@oldguyandabike has been playing around with bigger tire sizes on his gravel bike and this recent experiment did not go as planned!

Still, it was an eye opening experience. Have a look and see what I mean.

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Stuff I like to use:

[Bertie..]

68 this year. Started gravel biking on a Topstone four years back. Done several long bike packing trips abd many many overnighters. This year i resurrected my old 2008 On One scandal 29r and built up a monster gravel bike. 29 x 2.4 front, 29 x 2.25 rear tubeless. WOW! As a forner mtb'r I dont know why I never thought of this before. As you say incredibly comfortable and fast enougth on the road. I used carbon corner bars. Absolute game changer for bike packing.

[keven-matthewlarrivee-font]

I just went from 40mm Terra Speeds to 29*2.0 RaceKings and i definately can feel the difference. Am currently on a mostly gravel bikepacking course and i appreciate the extra volume. Thanks for the video

[NateMarks-iu]

You’re on the right track. Running 29x2.1 Mezcals on my Otso Warakin. It’s the bee’s knees. Great tires.

[tommays]

Been Riding Southeast Gravel Series in North and South Carolina and the course in Hot Springs NC and Brewer Plantation SC need BIG freaking tires with all kinds of sand chunck gravel, crazy road washouts super steep decents with deep lose gravel

[marksandoval]

Dylan Johnson, Lifetime Grand Prix gravel racer, took tenth place at the 200mi Outbound Gravel Race using 29x2.2 Continental Race King tires.

[dcv]

Running a 29x2.25 Continental Race King on my gravel bike is awesome! 😎💯👍

[mpvsystems]

I echo your sentiments. Last year I converted an old XC mountain bike frame so I could test using XC tires on gravel. I used Race King 2.2s. Turned out to be overkill 90% of the time. This season I am going to the opposite extreme with an old CX frame. Challenge now makes a 40c tubeless tubular for gravel that is rated for 1.5 to 3 bar. With the ability to run very low CX pressures, this should prove to be more versatile than a TLR clincher setup not to mention the additional weight savings. Here's hoping :)

[Kristian_Saile]

I run 650b with 2.1 Nano’s and have been pleased with its all around competence around where I live in the UP of Michigan…. But I always have thought a 29’er 2.1 would be the ultimate all rounder.

[mkenyon]

Good experiment. I’ve been pondering some 650bs which I am supposed to be able to use up to 2.2. That sounds like that may work better than my 40mm tires on the 10 miles of rooty dirt on my 26 mile loop from home.

[JohnnyYuma]

I currently have 27.5x2.2” Conti Race Kings on my Specialized Diverge but had to do it on 650 wheels for them to fit. I love them everywhere except pavement. I especially love them on singletrack. The side clearance is about 6mm (1/4”) on both the front and back. My other wheelset has 700x47 Specialized Pathfinders, which also have about 6mm side clearance. The official Specialized recommendation for my bike is a max tire width of 47mm on 700’s and 2.1” on 650’s.

[crobbw]

Absolutely! My gravel bike came with 38’ combo tires, I’ve gradually moved up to the largest the frame can handle which is 47 rear and a 50 on the front, I also have a set of 47’s for light gravel/road excursions, now I just need another set of wheels…..always something else I need……

[mellissanash]

RaceKings still exist in a 50mm/2.0 as does Schwable with a few 2.1 tires, those are faster than the Mezcal and good on the road too. Faster than a lot of knobby gravel tires too. May also want to take a look at the Pirelli Cinturato M, which is like a gravel tire meets XC tire and comes in both 45mm and 50mm options. I have 2.1 on my gravel bike, which specs say max out at 2.2 and I will not go back to anything smaller than a 50mm for gravel. Now my road setup for that bike is a 44mm Rene Herse tire in the standard casing. I was sold on the hype and some of it is true, but honestly not worth the full price. Got them open box so I saved $20 per tire, which helped.

[divorceshoes]

Used to ride a current-gen Crux with Pathfinder 47mm tires and a suspension stem. Arm pump got unbearable with the gravel roads I ride at, so I opted to get a Lauf Seigla for my next gravel bike. Installed Schwalbe Thunder Burt tires in 2.25" with that leaf-spring fork and I'm never looking back. Rolls just as fast on road or gravel but with twice the traction and comfort of a MTB tire. Very affordable bike as well, and they make a model with a regular fork if that's preferred. If your local gravel roads aren't graded regularly I can't see an argument for going any smaller than a 45c.

[you]

Once I go that big I am on a lightweight ti hardtail with 120 mm fork susp and flatbar with bar ends inside. Liking the mezcal 2.25 xc tires and roval wheels. And a dropper! Good luck Mammoth.

[GravelHerault]

My own experience with MTB tires on a gravel bike is that they're absolutely great for absolutely everything BUT road climbing. Mostly because of the weight I guess. Maybe that's because I'm not fit enough? but there was a huge gap in *my* performances and fatigue compared to 42mm and even more with 36mm. These things are heavy, and if you get them in their lightest versions, they're fragile, which defeats the whole purpose of using them on a gravel bike. But if you're riding 100% offroad, there's no match: bigger is always better.

[noelbrown]

Hey old man, take a look at Schwalbe "Smart Sam" tire in size 29x2.1, for the front. I have it on the front of a MTB-Gravel conversion using an old cyclocross fork.
After 200 miles off-road it measures 48.25mm on a 25mm rim brake wheel (outside dimension). First tried a Specialized in 2.0 but wouldn't fit because the knobs were too tall and aggressive. Anyway the Sam's up front roll quietly on the road, surprisingly compliant against stones and sharp ledges for their width and hold a very good edge in the turns like a good MTB tire would. I think they would be an excellent gravel tire for the situation where you are expecting to encounter some rough rocky loose single track. I can't say about deep sand. Haven't tried them in anything deeper than 2"" of the stuff, so they're fine in that. When I lived in Palmdale I wouldn't ride less than 2.3" at 15psl, haha.

[Zyzzyx]

I previously mentioned that I love my 650x55 tires. What I didn't mention is that's a recent change, for the last year+ I was running a 55 front, 48 rear. why? Because I had the 48s, might as well use them. Finally wore them down and moved to the 55 in the rear. It has become a different bike. Cushier and faster, I'm often running 1 gear higher than I used to (easy to see with AXS gear display), though maybe not quite the same cadence. Yeah, as you get bigger, those same few millimeters add lots more volume than on the smaller tires.

[GregorF-HansS]

Perhaps you can try to grind down the knobs on the center of the tire??
I ended up getting an XC hardtail earlier this year as I started to mix in a bunch of single track. It was 40% off. So much fun with 2.4" tires. I do lose speed on the gravel roads.

[KevinAngeles-gx]

Try to get a hold of some Rene Herse Antelope 700c x 55c slicks with the stronger endurance casing to test. They may fit your Cyclosys with the lack of knobbies and offer that high volume experience. The slicks may perform well in your dry SoCal environment. Would be interesting to hear your feedback.

[TimR]

I have been amazed how good 2.25" XC Racing MTB tires (Mezcal race) are on my gravel bike. Yeah, I have the luxury of those fitting a Cutthroat. But I didn't think I'd have these on so often. I originally thought it would just be for gnarly rides. But they ride so remarkably efficiently and comfortably I use them for any ride not on champaign gravel (where I swap for 38mm). It's really against expectation. I had expected them to roll super slow like a regular MTB tire. But the efficient XC class tires are amazing