23mm road tyres - buy up big?

[booge]

I'm one of those people still resisting going road disc. I have my rim brake roadie which is great.
My bike barely fits 25mm tyres so it's 23mm for me.
Although I noticed recently when buying some online they seem to be pretty hard to find.... especially tubeless.
Should I be stocking up now before they're all gone? I still remember buying around about 20mm tyres, clearly they're not a thing anymore.

[elantra]

Yeah I remember in the early 1990’s, 622 x 19mm was the flavour of the month.
Somehow they worked just fine - although some would say because they were mostly being used on steel frame bikes with lethargic braking.

Not that long ago - I’m guessing it was during the COVID-era stock shortages- I also recall being in a local bike shop and they had a huge variety of options in 23mm but the 25 and 28 mm shelves were empty !
In other words, “everyone” was choosing the bigger sizes which left plenty of good ole 23mm on the shelves…

In general I do prefer the 25 or 28 mm, but I have one bike that won’t fit them.
Needless to say it’s really comfortable and I ride it a lot !
So it’s currently got a Michelin Dynamic on the front and a Maxxis Pursuer on the back

[2wheels_mond]

I'm one of those people still resisting going road disc. I have my rim brake roadie which is great.
My bike barely fits 25mm tyres so it's 23mm for me.
Although I noticed recently when buying some online they seem to be pretty hard to find.... especially tubeless.
Should I be stocking up now before they're all gone? I still remember buying around about 20mm tyres, clearly they're not a thing anymore.

Tubeless 23mm is very niche - I expect that there's very few manufacturers that even make those.

Regular clincher 23mm should still be around for a while yet. Plenty of major brands still making them for a range of models (Conti, Vittoria etc.).

[blizzard]

What tyres do you run now? Modern 25c tyres are smaller than older 25mm tyres essentially as modern tyres are designed to measure 25mm on a wider internal rim. So if say a Gp4000 in 25mm barely fits a Gp5000 S TR should have more clearance.

[warthog1]

Give me wider and lower pressures, particularly when running tubeless. I dont see sealant coping with the higher pressures narrow tubeless will require in the event something does penetrate the carcass.
Larger volume and lower pressure makes more sense for that reason and is part of why narrow tubeless is not popular.
Can you make a 25c GP5kSTR or the like fit if you are sticking with tubeless?

[booge]

Just swapped to gp5000. The 25mm scwalbe tyres I previously had blew up to just under 29mm when inflated and I would get occasional tyre rub on inside of the chainstay, only about 2mm clearance to the chainstay. I didn't want to risk shelling out more cash for tyres that end up way wider than I thought.
I managed to previously get some Maxxis 23mm tubeless and they had been great but now worn out.

[g-boaf]

Pirelli used to have 23mm, they were very good tyres. Light as well, important if you are trying to sneak a bike under 6kg.

But actually jokes aside, the 23mm P-Zero Velo was really good. It gripped nicely and was pretty good for puncture protection.

[blizzard]

Just swapped to gp5000. The 25mm scwalbe tyres I previously had blew up to just under 29mm when inflated and I would get occasional tyre rub on inside of the chainstay, only about 2mm clearance to the chainstay. I didn't want to risk shelling out more cash for tyres that end up way wider than I thought.
I managed to previously get some Maxxis 23mm tubeless and they had been great but now worn out.

If the tyre has been tested by Bicycle Rolling Resistance, they will measure the width and height when inflated. Just compare the Schwalbe tyre you used to your tyre of desire to work out if it likely to have more clearance.

Agree that 23mm tubeless is probably not an ideal setup just use TPU tubes at that point