Fatter tyre to replace 20 * 1 1/8"??

[John U]

Hi,

I bought my son a 2nd hand kuwahara nova earlier this year for him to race on. He had crack on it and went quite well but he's currently a bit scared of how fast it is. It came with Intense tyres on which are 20 * 1 1/8". They're fairly skinny and high pressure so they're bloody fast. It is a race bike so not unexpected.

I was wondering if there are any other fatter tyres out there that would fit this rim. It's not as simple as going and buying a 20*1.5 is it? I would like to slow the bike down a bit with something fatter, lower pressure, maybe more grip to give him a bit more confidence on it. I've heard tyre choices are pretty restricted for this wheel size. My knowledge of bmx is pretty limited.

Any help greatly appreciated.

 

[steve24]

Hi John, yep they are fast! No- standard 20"is a different wheelsize than 20X 1"1/8th

I lowered the gearing on my daughters bike, bigger cog freewheel on rear and smaller chainring. She can still sit on 25kph....

As to tyres I would be surprised if you have clearance for a wider tire??

I had considered a front wheel swap to a 20" so I could put a wider tire but did the gearing instead. She got used to the twitchy feel of skinny tires.

 

[John U]

Thanks Steve. I'll get some photos of the clearance.

 

[SummitFever]

You can get 20" 1 3/8 tyres. They are the only other options for this rim size. 20" 1.5, 2.0 etc tyres will not fit. The BSD is different between the two different 20" rims.

20" 1 3/8 tyres are still skinny though.