Optimal Mountain Bike Tire Pressure

Mountain bike tyres are run at a lower pressure than road tyres so that the tyre can conform to the terrain and provide added grip.

Optimal mountain bike tire pressure. On the side of the tire there are embossed letters dictating the recommended tire pressure. There was a time when most riders would opt for 23c tyres on the road pump the tyre pressure up to around 110psi for every ride letting out just a little air to provide extra grip in poor weather. Mountain bike tyre pressures. These two extremes however represent only the upper and lower pressure limits.

A thin road tyre would have 6 8 bar of pressure much like a road bike have a look at our tyre pressure calculator for road bikes while for a fat bike tire a pressure of 0 5 bar will suffice. Mountain bike tires are forgiving and will work at just about any pressure that doesn t exceed the highest number printed. Road tires typically require 80 to 130 psi pounds. For standard trekking wheels the most frequent choice would be a tyre pressure between 3 and 4 bar.

Typical mountain bike pressures range from 22psi 1 5 bar to 35psi 2 4 bar generally with more air in the rear than the front. Tubeless tires come with a recommened psi rating but i have found that the factory settings suck. Mountain bike tire pressure that is too high will make for poor contact with the ground and a less controllable ride while mountain bike tire pressure that is too low will make your tires behave unpredictably and will make them susceptible to. Once your tires starts burping air its time to.

To get the best tire pressure first start with tires inflated to about 35 psi then ride the bike on your favorite trail and go down in pressure. Keep going down 2 psi at a time until the tire starts to burp air after big jumps or hard cornering. This is optimal as the mass of that little section at the bottom of the tire going up and down unsprung weight is very small and essentially the entire bike and rider sprung weight maintain. This is because more of your weight is on the rear so it needs more support.

Outside of these ranges decrease the pressure a couple psi for light wheel loads or don t since the difference between the optimal 36 psi and 40 psi for a 40 lb wheel load is likely not an issue and your pressure gauge likely reads high anyway and increase the pressure a few psi for heavy loads or don t since the tire is possibly being overloaded and you should consider getting a wider. Proper tire pressure lets your bike roll quickly ride smoothly and avoid flats narrow tires need more air pressure than wide ones. Riding with an appropriate mountain bike tire pressure can make a huge difference in how a ride feels and how much control you have over your bike. The added volume in a mountain bike tyre means despite these lower pressures it is less likely to pinch flat.

It will usually be between 30 and 65 pounds per square inch psi.