# What size tire should I get?



## binnkim (Jul 2, 2015)

I really tried hard to find the right size tire for my wheels but more I search, more confusing it gets. 

My front wheel has 559x17 label and my rear wheel has ERD 541 written on it. They are exactly the same size/width, which leads me to believe they are both 559x17 size. My understanding is the inner wheel width is 17mm. 

I want to get 26x1.0 tires but it's pretty impossible to find info to confirm they will fit my wheels. 


Also Canada Amazon sucks and not much choice is available. 








Can someone please help me and give me some insights? 

Thank you so much in advance. 


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## Kerry Irons (Feb 25, 2002)

binnkim said:


> I really tried hard to find the right size tire for my wheels but more I search, more confusing it gets.
> 
> My front wheel has 559x17 label and my rear wheel has ERD 541 written on it. They are exactly the same size/width, which leads me to believe they are both 559x17 size. My understanding is the inner wheel width is 17mm.
> 
> I want to get 26x1.0 tires but it's pretty impossible to find info to confirm they will fit my wheels.


Read and learn: Tire Sizing Systems


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## binnkim (Jul 2, 2015)

Kerry Irons said:


> Read and learn: Tire Sizing Systems


Thanks! I read this before I posted my question. Unfortunately Sheldon only says that 559 can be used with any tires from 1.0 to 5.0 inches... That's why I'm so confused ..  


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## Lombard (May 8, 2014)

binnkim said:


> Thanks! I read this before I posted my question. Unfortunately Sheldon only says that 559 can be used with any tires from 1.0 to 5.0 inches... That's why I'm so confused ..
> 
> 
> Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk



There is a very good reason you are so confused by bike tire sizing systems. That's because bike tire systems are so confusing! The key is to pay attention to the ISO size which you have done! Your wheels are 559 ISO which is actually still a quite common mountain bike size more commonly known as 26x??, but is starting to be phased out as 26" mountain bikes are being replaced by 27.5x?? which is actually 584 ISO.

The good news is that there are still plenty of 26" mountain bike tires on the market. The bad news is that I believe a 26x1.0 tire to be quite uncommon, if not obsolete. It sounds like you may have a very old road bike if you are looking for a 26" tire this narrow. I haven't seen any tires sold recently narrower than 26x1.5.

Also, Sheldon's remark that 559 ISO tires can be used with any tires between 1.0 and 5.0 inches is technically correct, but misleading. It is the rim internal width that determines what tire width can be used, not the ISO diameter. In your case, that is 17mm. If you look at Sheldon's site again, he says you can use anywhere between a 25mm to 37mm wide tire. HOWEVER, this guideline is VERY conservative and quite dated. You can safely go a little wider or narrower. If you go to DT Swiss' website, pick a rim, go to the specs for that rim and open up the PDF file there, you will see a much more up to date guideline on what widths can be safely used with your existing rims.


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## J.R. (Sep 14, 2009)

Here's a couple 1.25" wide that should work.

Geax Street Runner City Tire

https://www.amazon.com/Kenda-Commuter-Recumbent-Bicycle-Pressure/dp/B000C15E1W/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1464788641&sr=8-1&keywords=26x1+tire


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## Lombard (May 8, 2014)

J.R. said:


> Here's a couple 1.25" wide that should work.
> 
> Geax Street Runner City Tire
> 
> https://www.amazon.com/Kenda-Commut...UTF8&qid=1464788641&sr=8-1&keywords=26x1+tire



I have the Kenda Kwests on my hybrid. They roll nice, are fairly durable and don't break the bank.

I did not know they could be had in size 26x1.25, so I stand corrected.


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## binnkim (Jul 2, 2015)

Thank you so much! And yes I completely agree with you that bike wheel/tire sizing is very confusing. I take Sheldon's website as my bible and he was very specific about all other wheels except the 559 ISO wheels. And I figured mine is 17mm which is much smaller than 1.0". So I wasn't sure it would fit my wheel. 

I'm converting my hybrid bike (Trek 750 - bike frame that I believe is the best from the steel-frame days). I'm a small guy and the bike is just a tad bit too big so I'm converting it to a smaller wheelset (and brakes). 

I will definitely give a look at the DT Swiss' website. Thank you very much for your info. 





Lombard said:


> There is a very good reason you are so confused by bike tire sizing systems. That's because bike tire systems are so confusing! The key is to pay attention to the ISO size which you have done! Your wheels are 559 ISO which is actually still a quite common mountain bike size more commonly known as 26x??, but is starting to be phased out as 26" mountain bikes are being replaced by 27.5x?? which is actually 584 ISO.
> 
> The good news is that there are still plenty of 26" mountain bike tires on the market. The bad news is that I believe a 26x1.0 tire to be quite uncommon, if not obsolete. It sounds like you may have a very old road bike if you are looking for a 26" tire this narrow. I haven't seen any tires sold recently narrower than 26x1.5.
> 
> Also, Sheldon's remark that 559 ISO tires can be used with any tires between 1.0 and 5.0 inches is technically correct, but misleading. It is the rim internal width that determines what tire width can be used, not the ISO diameter. In your case, that is 17mm. If you look at Sheldon's site again, he says you can use anywhere between a 25mm to 37mm wide tire. HOWEVER, this guideline is VERY conservative and quite dated. You can safely go a little wider or narrower. If you go to DT Swiss' website, pick a rim, go to the specs for that rim and open up the PDF file there, you will see a much more up to date guideline on what widths can be safely used with your existing rims.


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## binnkim (Jul 2, 2015)

Geax isn't available in Canada so I purchased the Kenda. I bought 1 to try out first. Hopefully it works out. Fingers crossed. 



J.R. said:


> Here's a couple 1.25" wide that should work.
> 
> Geax Street Runner City Tire
> 
> https://www.amazon.com/Kenda-Commut...UTF8&qid=1464788641&sr=8-1&keywords=26x1+tire


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## Drew Eckhardt (Nov 11, 2009)

binnkim said:


> My front wheel has 559x17 label and my rear wheel has ERD 541 written on it. They are exactly the same size/width, which leads me to believe they are both 559x17 size. My understanding is the inner wheel width is 17mm.


Ignore the Equivalent Rim Diameter - it's only needed to determine the correct spoke length for wheel building, and you're better off measuring the actual rims you'll be building into wheels with your chosen nipples.


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