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Comment by Fradow | Hacker News Reader

I'm in agreement with almost everything except the tires. Unless your commute has a significant portion of rough surfaces, you definitely want to use some road tires. Not the super skinny ones used on road bikes, so you don't have an issue with tram lines/pot holes/curbs, but good reinforced road tires (so you don't have flats when going over glass/nails/whatever).

I've been commuting daily on a mountain-bike (chosen for the comfort of a full suspension and the braking power of disk brakes), and switching from the factory all-terrain tires to road tires about 2/3 the width has been a huge improvement: a lot less rolling resistance, and a lot more grip, especially when it's raining (despite less width).

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There are slick gravel tires. The author of the article sell some of his own brand Rene Herse. They are made by japanese brand Panaracer who also produce slick and treaded gravel tires under its own name and for other companies.

Slick large volume gravel tires are also sold by most bicycle tire brands. Most of them are tubeless compatible which remove the need for reinforced heavy tires as any puncture usually seal itself thanks to sealant.

I've also commuted for years on thin cotton road tubulars so it really depends on the kind of roads your are riding on. But having high volume will certainly improve comfort and also allow for better grip in the wet and better ride when the bike is loaded which is often the case if you are commuting.

Panaracer Pacenti's have been my goto everything tires for a few years now. Excellent hybrid tire.

I've commuted on a roady, a steel big tire bikepacking bike (basically a hardtail MTB) and now a gravel bike. I'd say the tires on gravel bikes tend to be the best compromise between comfort you get from a big volume tire, and the speed of a road or commute tire. They can run pretty high pressures, which is the biggest factor for rolling resistance, and they're pretty skinny relative to MTB tires.

For me, the minute rolling resistance tradeoff between the gravel tire and a commute tire is worth it. The road and bike network here kinda suck for smoothness, I'd rattle apart if I ran a road tire.

Thanks for the feedback! I've not had the occasion to try gravel tires.

For me, the main reason to use road tires is grip on asphalt, not rolling resistance improvment. On your commute, you may need to stop in an instant, and more grip = quicker stop = safer (I've had a few close calls, especially downhill under rain).

Obviously, that's also dependent on your regular commute road condition.

Braking is the main reason I love gravel tyres for commuting: their increased size means a larger contact patch which directly translates into a shorter stop (as stopping on skinny tyres with disc brakes is typically traction-limited).

The tyres on my gravel bike look just like fat road tyres: no knobs.

Have you considered tubeless? I hear that gives the RR benefits of high pressure but at lower pressures.

Quality "touring" tires are amazing for this. They have a little bit of tread in case you need to do some dirt but very minimal. They are extra thick rubber because nobody wants to replace a tire if they are trying to bike 3000 miles over multiple months and they have low rolling resistance. They fit most bikes and come in very useful sizes like 35 or 38C. Schwabe Marathon is the classic choice but there are tons out there!

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