Thursday, June 8, 2023

Schwalbe GT365 Front Tire Change

New Schwalbe GT365, 55/406 (20" x 2.15") on the front.

In February of this year I posted about the change to Schwalbe GT365 tires (link here). The GT365 tires have been a joy to use. Currently I have the 55/559 (26" x 2.15") on the rear and 40/406 (20" x 1.5") on the front. But I like to test out different tire combinations so I'm going to take off the 40/406 (20' x 1.5") front GT365s  and try 55/406 (20' x 2.15") GT365s for awhile. I want more steering control in thick gravel and soft dirt. So far after one ride I've gained more steering and braking control off road and taking runts with greater ease but lost some speed on the pavement which was expected and not missed.

Schwalbe GT 365s 55mm front and back.

The narrower 40/406s are excellent on pavement but as I've said in my February post I want to try and reduce my time on the paved roads after my crash last year (link here). Originally to get off the road I put on the GT365s, 55mm on rear and 40mm on the front, and a chainring change (link here) on my ICE Sprint FS E8000. Now I have 55mm GT 365s on the front making my trike even more off road worthy.

Front 55/406 (20" x 2.15")

Rear 55/559 (26" x 2.15")

I'm still spending a lot of time on the pavement and the GT365s are a good hybrid tire. It's nice to know I can take a mental break from all the cars and head off on a fire road or tame trail. Also since my crash I've been hyper vigilant while on the road and it gets exhausting after awhile. Even though the drivers insurance company compensated me well after the crash I DO NOT want it to happen again. So I'll go off road whenever possible.

This picture taken after I left the trail
gives you an idea of how much of
the tire at max inflation is still in
contact with road when
on the pavement.