Kenda Tires Question & Marin Bikes

Hello,

Getting back into biking after many, many years.
Sr. Citizen, now.

A few questions, please:

a. Have decided on a Hybrid style for new bike.
Saw a Marin which seems very nice.

Is Marin a known "good/quality" brand ?

b. Where I'll be going, I will be doing about 50 % on asphalt, and 50%
or so on gravel/dirt. The Marin bike come with
Kenda Krossplus, 26" x 1.95", Dirt-Street Combo
tires.

These have the knobs/cleats only on the outside of the tire; the middle
doesn't have any, and is relatively smooth.

The smooth part probably makes pedaling on asphalt easy, I would
imagine, compared to an all knobby tire like the typical mountain bikes
have. True ?

But, do you think they would be good, at all, on light grave/dirt ?
Thoughts on ?
Kenda a good brand of bike tire ?

c. what do you think of the pass-thru frame design ?
Sure seems like a good idea.
Popular ? If not, why not ?
Popular at all with men ?

Any thoughts would be most appreciated.

Thanks,
Bob

On Apr 14, 3:33*pm, Bob wrote:
Hello,

Getting back into biking after many, many years.
Sr. Citizen, now.

A few questions, please:

a. *Have decided on a Hybrid style for new bike.
Saw a Marin which seems very nice.

Is Marin a known "good/quality" brand ?

As good as any major brand. Quality comes from the mechanic who builds
it. I had a Marin city bike for many years which I adored. It was the
San Anselmo with the gearhub they made for only one year.



b. Where I'll be going, I will be doing about 50 % on asphalt, and 50%
or so on gravel/dirt. *The Marin bike come with Kenda Krossplus, 26" x 1.95", Dirt-Street Combo

tires.

These have the knobs/cleats only on the outside of the tire; the middle
doesn't have any, and is relatively smooth.

The smooth part probably makes pedaling on asphalt easy, I would
imagine, compared to an all knobby tire like the typical mountain bikes
have. True ?

But, do you think they would be good, at all, on light grave/dirt ?
Thoughts on ?
Kenda a good brand of bike tire ?

Kenda makes a lot of tires at different price points. I'm not a huge
fan of those tires, but they aren't terrible. Tires are easy to change
if you fancy something different.


c. *what do you think of the pass-thru frame design ?
Sure seems like a good idea.
* * *Popular ? *If not, why not ?

In theory, not as rigid. But it really doesn't matter a lot if you're
not a linebacker. We've had reports of the really really low frames
being palpably flexible.

* * *Popular at all with men ?

Swedes and Dutch have no problem riding "women's" bikes. The stigma is
fairly uniquely American. If you have limited mobility or are mounting
a loaded bike, a low stepover is a good feature.

A frame intended for women, though, will often be shorter from saddle
to stem. Keep that in mind.


Any thoughts would be most appreciated.


I think you should test ride some bikes, have fun, and make up your
own mind.

On 4/14/2011 3:33 PM, Bob wrote:
Hello,

Getting back into biking after many, many years.
Sr. Citizen, now.

A few questions, please:

a. Have decided on a Hybrid style for new bike.
Saw a Marin which seems very nice.

Is Marin a known "good/quality" brand ?

Your only concern is the frame itself, since the components are all
usually made by somebody else anyway (and easily changeable). Heck, the
frame might even be made by someone else. As long as you don't pound the
frame hard (jumping, or hitting pot-holes) it should do well enough. If
you are enormously strong or heavy you should watch the frame for
cracking around the tube joins--but then again, you would need to watch
that with any frame.


b. Where I'll be going, I will be doing about 50 % on asphalt, and 50%
or so on gravel/dirt. The Marin bike come with
Kenda Krossplus, 26" x 1.95", Dirt-Street Combo
tires.

These have the knobs/cleats only on the outside of the tire; the middle
doesn't have any, and is relatively smooth.

The smooth part probably makes pedaling on asphalt easy, I would
imagine, compared to an all knobby tire like the typical mountain bikes
have. True ?

But, do you think they would be good, at all, on light grave/dirt ?
Thoughts on ?

The "combination" tires (smooth centers, knobby shoulders) are silly,
but not for the reasons you may think.

A smooth or nearly-smooth tire does just fine on pavement, and even on
DRY dirt and gravel. The only times smooth tires don't work well is in
mud or ice&snow.

As I have seen it, the combination tires shoulder knobbies does only one
thing: keep them from cornering on pavement as steady as they would if
the tire was just smooth all-the-way-across. The shoulder knobbies do
not significantly add to the tire's effectiveness in dry dirt, gravel,
mud or snow/ice conditions.

You would probably do better to just get some tires that are slick or
nearly-slick all the way across--but ONLY if you never ride in mud or
snow. If you want to do the mud/snow thing, you're going to need
full-knobbies.

Kenda a good brand of bike tire ?

Kenda is fine. If the tires are very inexpensive ($20 each) then it's
good to watch for problems the first time you inflate them--things like
odd bulges and uneven rim seating.

If you find that you want tires with better-than-typical puncture
resistance, look at the CST Salva and Salvo tires.


c. what do you think of the pass-thru frame design ?
Sure seems like a good idea.
Popular ? If not, why not ?
Popular at all with men ?


Low step-over frame designs aren't as strong as the higher step-over
ones are, and usually won't be as lightweight either. For many casual
riders those differences won't ever matter tho'.

Any thoughts would be most appreciated.

Thanks,
Bob

I think that if a tax assessor places a certain value upon your home for
reasons of determining property taxes, then the city should be required
to buy your house for that price if you demand it.

DougC wrote:

If you find that you want tires with better-than-typical puncture
resistance, look at the CST Salva and Salvo tires.

Other similar tires, which cost more but come in more sizes, include
the Michelin Pilot City and the Schwalbe Marathon Plus.

Chalo

On Apr 15, 11:48*am, Chalo wrote:
DougC wrote:

If you find that you want tires with better-than-typical puncture
resistance, look at the CST Salva and Salvo tires.

Other similar tires, which cost more but come in more sizes, include
the Michelin Pilot City and the Schwalbe Marathon Plus.

Chalo

Those weigh as much as my 47mm Contis. An outstanding achievement.

On Apr 14, 1:33 pm, Bob wrote:

snip


b. Where I'll be going, I will be doing about 50 % on asphalt, and 50%
or so on gravel/dirt. The Marin bike come with Kenda Krossplus, 26" x 1.95", Dirt-Street Combo

tires.

These have the knobs/cleats only on the outside of the tire; the middle
doesn't have any, and is relatively smooth.

The smooth part probably makes pedaling on asphalt easy, I would
imagine, compared to an all knobby tire like the typical mountain bikes
have. True ?

But, do you think they would be good, at all, on light grave/dirt ?

Speaking from no experience with that type of tire, so FWIW, I'd say
no - not good at all. I imagine they'd be funky to ride on any
surface.

Thoughts on ?

I ride mostly on paved roads, but prefer a varied experience, relish a
ride that incorporates a variety of surfaces - including dirt and
gravel - and Vittoria Randonneurs work great for me.

I thnk the Vittoria Randonneur Cross or Randonneur Cross Pro might be
just the ticket for the sort of riding you describe.

snip

On 4/14/2011 5:05 PM, landotter wrote:
On Apr 14, 3:33 pm, wrote:
[...]
c. what do you think of the pass-thru frame design ?
Sure seems like a good idea.
Popular ? If not, why not ?

In theory, not as rigid. But it really doesn't matter a lot if you're
not a linebacker. We've had reports of the really really low frames
being palpably flexible.

Popular at all with men ?

Swedes and Dutch have no problem riding "women's" bikes. The stigma is
fairly uniquely American. If you have limited mobility or are mounting
a loaded bike, a low stepover is a good feature.[...]

I like this for a bike with a low step-over height:
http://www.ransbikes.com/Fusion_ST-N.htm.

--
Tºm Shermªn - 42.435731,-83.985007
I am a vehicular cyclist.

On 4/14/2011 4:33 PM, Bob wrote:
Hello,

Getting back into biking after many, many years.
Sr. Citizen, now.

A few questions, please:

a. Have decided on a Hybrid style for new bike.
Saw a Marin which seems very nice.

Is Marin a known "good/quality" brand ?

b. Where I'll be going, I will be doing about 50 % on asphalt, and 50%
or so on gravel/dirt. The Marin bike come with
Kenda Krossplus, 26" x 1.95", Dirt-Street Combo
tires.

These have the knobs/cleats only on the outside of the tire; the middle
doesn't have any, and is relatively smooth.

The smooth part probably makes pedaling on asphalt easy, I would
imagine, compared to an all knobby tire like the typical mountain bikes
have. True ?

Yes.


But, do you think they would be good, at all, on light grave/dirt ?
Thoughts on ?

Yes.

Kenda a good brand of bike tire ?

Not bad.


c. what do you think of the pass-thru frame design ?
Sure seems like a good idea.
Popular ? If not, why not ?

Style, mostly.

Popular at all with men ?

No, style, mostly.

On Apr 15, 10:33*pm, Tºm Shermªn™ °_° ""twshermanREMOVE\"@THI
$southslope.net" wrote:
On 4/14/2011 5:05 PM, landotter wrote:

On Apr 14, 3:33 pm, *wrote:
[...]
c. *what do you think of the pass-thru frame design ?
Sure seems like a good idea.
* * * Popular ? *If not, why not ?

In theory, not as rigid. But it really doesn't matter a lot if you're
not a linebacker. We've had reports of the really really low frames
being palpably flexible.

* * * Popular at all with men ?

Swedes and Dutch have no problem riding "women's" bikes. The stigma is
fairly uniquely American. If you have limited mobility or are mounting
a loaded bike, a low stepover is a good feature.[...]

I like this for a bike with a low step-over height:
http://www.ransbikes.com/Fusion_ST-N.htm.


I'm usually open minded when it comes to taste and design, but that's
****ing hideous.

Op 16-4-2011 16:04, landotter schreef:
I'm usually open minded when it comes to taste and design, but that's
****ing hideous.



Every so often Tom comes up with this bike. He is so predictable. Not
only is this bike hideous, it also serves no purpose at all. It is just
different to be different.

Lou