27.5 vs. 27.5+ - What should I get

[alexis]

I am seriously looking at the Trek Powerfly range and cannot decide between the FS5 (27.5x2.35) and the FS7 Plus (27.5x2.8).
I note that the top end of the range of the Powerfly they are ALL plus-size. Can anyone advice me on the pros and cons of plus tyres?

 

[DaveMatthews]

I have 27.5 x 2.6 on my Giant, and they seem pretty darn fat to me!
Fatter should be better grip on the sides and overall. More rolling resistance for any kind of more regular road riding I suppose.

 

[alexis]

I have been riding (Trek) Hard-tail MTBs for years - never experienced a full-suspension bike let alone one with Plus tyres. My local dealer loaned me his personal Trek Fuel EX (which the powerfly FS is based on) regular MTB with 27.5+ and full-suspension. The experience was brilliant, making previously bumpy gnarly trails seem like I was riding on a carpet - loved riding this beast so was it the fact that this was an full-suspension bike, the PLUS tyres or BOTH.

 

[DaveMatthews]

Both, with a heavy nod to the rear suspension much more than the tire IMHO. Bigger tires can have a lower psi for a cushier feel, but that can in some instances get you into pinch flats.

 

[Oldmanlevo]

I ride a turbo levo fsr...it came with tubeless 2.8's. I love the feel, grip and the fact that i can run at 12-14 psi (a tubeless feature)...with the power being sent to the tires, i think the bigger tires are perfect. They are heavier by default, but i prefer the grip over the weight concerns...

 

[Re-Cycle]

Riding a Merida E-Onesixty with 2.8 Maxxis tires. It's my first experience with the plus-sized tires but I'm very happy with them so far. As with an e-mtb the weight isn't really an issue there are not many disadvantages I think. Maybe in muddy conditions skinnier tires will perform better, but my e-mtb will not see much of that

I personally would go with the plus-tires if I had to make that choice.

 

[ChrisB NZ]

Agree with Re-Cycle. The 2.8 tyres give you so much grip, confidence and a real plush ride. With an E-bike you don't notice the extra rolling resistance.

 

[R120]

Downside to puls tyres can be vagueness and lack of feedback.

A lot of E-MTBS came with plus tyres over the last few years, but we are seeing quite a few bike brands now moving down to 2.5/2.6 ( not quite plus tyre!)as people have realised you don't need a plus tyre to cope with the motor.

The suspension will have far more effect on your test ride experience than the tyres.

Plus tyres are worth trying though, and its easy enough to downsize if you need

 

[Bonz]

I am seriously looking at the Trek Powerfly range and cannot decide between the FS5 (27.5x2.35) and the FS7 Plus (27.5x2.8).
I note that the top end of the range of the Powerfly they are ALL plus-size. Can anyone advice me on the pros and cons of plus tyres?

Another factor could be price and availability. Plus size tires can be very expensive but they are great fun.

 

[Gary]

loved riding this beast so was it the fact that this was an full-suspension bike, the PLUS tyres or BOTH.

Without knowing how you ride, where you rode the bike and how the owners bike was set-up it's impossible to say.
super low pressure plus tyres are brilliant for comfort and straightline grip but lean them over properly and hit a turn hard and they're horrible or ride super technical trails in the wet and they're vague.
Soft suspension will also translate to loads of comfort and lots of grip but will lack support and again be pretty horrible to ride fast/hard.
The motor can hide/negate a lot of the downsides to plus tyres when just riding easy trails but they'll stil be massively apparent when you point the bike down anything fast/technical and even more so should the conditions be wet/soft.
Plus tyres are also incredibly pressure sensitive, too soft they marshmallow in corners, too hard they rebound badly. ie. it's almost impossible to find a pressure that would work well for a ride involving wet mud, rocks, roots as well as manmade jumps and berms where as a narrower more supportive tyre will cope with all of the above within a wider pressure range
Loads of folk love plus tyres. I happen to hate them for that vagueness, marshmallowness and rebound. but comfort is not (and never has been) one of my priorities and a due to it's support a smaller 2.3-2.5 actually grips better everywhere I want most grip.

As with FS, Plus tyres do seem to give beginners lots of confidence but if you want to progress to becoming a better rider and riding more challenging terrain I'd bin them off for a good set of 2.3-2.5s

 

[LawmanMtb]

Plus all the way IMO

 

[MartinW148]

Never ridden an e-bike without plus tyres, but mine give masses of grip and let go reasonably progressively.

I agree with the comment regarding the pressures, after having mine converted to tubeless the LBS pumped the tyres up so hard they were sliding all over the place. I do sometimes get the vague feeling, almost like you have a flat on the front, but I think that's more the soft(ish) suspension set up as I don't get this with some rebound wound on.

To answer your question, can the lower spec trek be upgraded to plus tyres and vice versa (I guess this comes down to rim size). For my money I would get the plus tyres, they will feel odd at first (I came from an XC MTB with 2.1 tyres) but you get used to them pretty quickly.

 

[alexis]

Thanks all for your replies - all the comments are taken on-board - great to hear "real" experiences rather than just tech-talk. I know it is a silly way of deciding the spec of your next bike (especially one as expensive as an e-bike) but looking at the ENTIRE 2019 Trek Powerfly range only one model (the cheapest FS5) comes with a 27.5 tyre. All the rest right up to the most expensive carbon variant wear the Plus tyres so I guess I may opt for the FS7 which is the cheapest of their Plus bikes - one advantage of the Trek plus bikes is that you can switch to 29/2.35 on these Plus frames, a tyre size I am familiar from my existing Trek non-assisted mountain-bike. Please keep sending your thoughts and advice as I am not 100% set on the Plus variants yet!

 

[alexis]

Without knowing how you ride, where you rode the bike and how the owners bike was set-up it's impossible to say.
super low pressure plus tyres are brilliant for comfort and straightline grip but lean them over properly and hit a turn hard and they're horrible or ride super technical trails in the wet and they're vague.
Soft suspension will also translate to loads of comfort and lots of grip but will lack support and again be pretty horrible to ride fast/hard.
The motor can hide/negate a lot of the downsides to plus tyres when just riding easy trails but they'll stil be massively apparent when you point the bike down anything fast/technical and even more so should the conditions be wet/soft.
Plus tyres are also incredibly pressure sensitive, too soft they marshmallow in corners, too hard they rebound badly. ie. it's almost impossible to find a pressure that would work well for a ride involving wet mud, rocks, roots as well as manmade jumps and berms where as a narrower more supportive tyre will cope with all of the above within a wider pressure range
Loads of folk love plus tyres. I happen to hate them for that vagueness, marshmallowness and rebound. but comfort is not (and never has been) one of my priorities and a due to it's support a smaller 2.3-2.5 actually grips better everywhere I want most grip.

As with FS, Plus tyres do seem to give beginners lots of confidence but if you want to progress to becoming a better rider and riding more challenging terrain I'd bin them off for a good set of 2.3-2.5s

Thanks for the long detailed response - much appreciated especially as you have highlighted some issues (tyre pressure) that I was not aware

 

[Mabman]

My complaint with plus is only for front use. Wide low psi tires experience too much self steering due to the large contact patch for my taste. I prefer a narrower tire on a wide rim, I have landed on a 2.3 Vigilante on a 700c i35 rim as my personal sweet spot, which I feel gives me more precise steering yet I am still able to only use 1bar which soaks up the small stuff and has plenty enough traction.

I do prefer a plus tire in the back though for it's bigger contact patch and bump absorption, I ride a HT btw. I do notice it deflecting while on pavé some but on trails hardly ever, but I don't charge the DH's that hard and mostly try and stay in contact with the trail. 2.8 Trail Blazer on a 650b i35 rim, also run at 1bar. I have a 650b i40 rim and 2.5 tire around to try if I ever get around to it.

 

[alexis]

Finally made up my mind and went ahead and ordered the Trek FS7 Plus with 27.5 x 2.80 (tubeless) - now the long wait because thanks to Samsung and leaky notebooks we have to wait a whole month for the bike to arrive to Cyprus by ship from USA (Wisconsin)!
Thanks everyone for your input

 

[DaveMatthews]

Finally made up my mind and went ahead and ordered the Trek FS7 Plus with 27.5 x 2.80 (tubeless) - now the long wait because thanks to Samsung and leaky notebooks we have to wait a whole month for the bike to arrive to Cyprus by ship from USA (Wisconsin)!
Thanks everyone for your input

Congrats, it looks like an awesome ride!

 

[alexis]

Congrats, it looks like an awesome ride!

Thanks Dave - I decided on this colour instead of the stelthier all-black

 

[DaveMatthews]

View attachment 6633

Thanks Dave - I decided on this colour instead of the stelthier all-black

Gorgeous! You won't be hard to see at night!

 

[alexis]

Gorgeous! You won't be hard to see at night!

 

[Bonz]

View attachment 6633

Thanks Dave - I decided on this colour instead of the stelthier all-black

Nice bike Alexis, my friend has one and really enjoys it.
It’s a nice bright green like my Merida.