Are you looking for bike tire terms? There are many different types of bike tires and bike tire components available, so it can become very confusing when looking at all of the different bike tire terms. Popular bike tire terms include beads, clincher tires, foldable tires, presta valves and tubular tires. You will find definitions for all of those bike tire terms below.
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Beads. A bead is one of the inner edges that is found in clincher tires. If you are not sure what clincher tires are, move onto the next definition. A bead will generally feature some sort of strengthening cable that is used to ensure that the air pressure that is in a tire does not make the tire larger than the rim itself.
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Clincher Tires. Clincher tires, one of the most well known bike tire terms, are also known as wired-on tires. A clincher tire uses the previously mentioned beads to keep the tire on the tire rim. The bead sits between the tire rim walls and prevents the clincher tire from coming off.
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Foldable Tires. As the name suggests, a foldable tire is able to be folded for storage purposes. Foldable tires are actually clincher tires. Foldable tires use non-metallic Kevlar beads to keep the tire on the rim. While foldable tires are convenient in terms of storage, they are also harder to change.
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Presta Valves. If you have a high pressure tire on your bicycle, chances are that your tires contain presta valves. Presta valves are the valves that are used to put air in tires. If you are familiar with Schrader air filler valves, presta valves are similar, except they are thinner.
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Tubular Tires. Tubular tires, also known as sew-up tires, are the complete opposite of clincher tires. While clincher tires use beads to keep the tire on the rim, tubular tires are glued to the rim. With tubular tires, the tire itself features a casing that is sewn around the tire tube.
