How can you tell if a fatter tire will fit?

[CRASH]

I have a Felt 'MP' sitting at the shop for my oldest's Xmas present. I want to replace the thinner QuickBricks (26x2.125) with something fatter. I was going to look at Schwalbe, and today I saw a 3G BOA-G which is 26x3.45! :shock: How can I tell if I can stuff that tire in there before I buy it?

 

[Wildcat]

Along with being fatter, they will be taller also. They may squeeze between the dropouts, but touch the fork crown and/or the kickstand housing or brake/fender mount on the seat stays of the frame. Just measuring the width may not be enough. I would guess the frame that came with 2.125 width tires won't take a 3.45 tire, a 3" tire would be lucky to fit. I have put 26 x 3 on Dyno frames, but that's it, and the rims must be very straight, there's very little clearance. Also, the 3.45 may need special wider rims too.

 

[Tater]

The widest tires you are going to have fit without removing the fenders are 26x2.35 Fat Franks. Forget about those 26x3.35 Boas. There is no fitting them on the rear of a felt.
Have look at this thread for a shot of a MP with Fat Franks: http://www.ratrodbikes.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=6&t=16855&st=0&sk=t&sd=a&start=165

 

[CRASH]

Thanks for that link. That MP looks cool, but my son preferred black tires. So, looking up black Fat Franks I also found black Big Apples in the same size. Anyone have experience with the two and can compare them?

 

[55ColumbiaBuilt]

NIRVE makes a 24 X 3 tire that I am contemplating for a 26" frame. I'm like you...I'm reluctant to buy a tire that "won't-quite-fit" on the bike, and also open for suggestions. Here's a link to the tire I refer to.

http://www.amazon.com/Nirve-......-...&qid=1343905825&sr=1-1&keywords=nirve+24+tire

And this is the look I'm going for.

 

[yoothgeye]

Look at bighit's build-off bike "New School" to see what he fit (with mods) on his MP. viewtopic.php?f=68&t=59820

 

[iRide Custom Bicycles]

Don't be fooled, the 3G BOA-G which is 26x3.45 is not that wide...at least the ones I've seen.

 

[rydr1]

Big apple tires will fit. You may need to adjust the fenders to get no rubbing at all, but these tires are sweet on my MP. Thanks Eric for the hook up on these tire, i couldn't be happier with them.

I saw the black fat franks on amazon a few weeks back. You may get lucky and be able to come up on a set.

From my experience i could barely squeeze the big apple tires with the fenders on the MP. i honestly dont think anything taller or wider will fit without modifications to the fenders.

One way or another, share some pics.