Hey Stephen! I ran into you at one of these T-shirt rallies! I think you were on a blue waterford? I was probably on a green Bianchi touring bike or maybe a salmon velo orange neutrino?
Anyways, I was playing around with a lower end mixte bike with swept back bars, and even when I took the wheelset off the Bianchi (running 32mm RH tires), I was much slower on it. At lower speeds it was about the same, but the body position makes it an absolute parachute. Getting above around 16mph took noticeably more effort, and if there was a headwind, it was slow going. Really comfy though, and makes me want a platypus for shorter rides. I don't have a ton of experience with the wider RH tires but I do have a 26" 55mm RH set of slicks for my 90s MTB in "gravel mode". It feels on-par with my 700x32 set on my Bianchi but the MTB is heavier, different body position, 26" vs 700c etc so it's not exactly apples to apples. My understanding is that they all use the same casing layup, so I would expect them all to be pretty quick. Basically if you're already running RH slicks on your platypus, that already seems like a pretty quick setup. (Not sure how fast the IRCs roll though). Hope to see you riding around! On Thursday, February 12, 2026 at 10:12:21 AM UTC-6 [email protected] wrote: > *OP here with a quick update:* > > I recently picked up a *Heron *touring frameset (Waterford/Riv/Grant > mashup) and will post about that build soon. > > As for the *Platypus *— I bought it last year as a fully built adventure > setup (*38/24, 11–32, Cliffhangers w/ dynamo, ~55mm tires*). In reality, > I’ve mostly used it for slower paved endurance miles around the park. > > Out of curiosity, I mounted a pair of *38mm Schwalbe Pro Ones* (intended > for the Heron) and took it out. > > *Big difference*. > > Holding 15–18 mph felt easier, and tapping into 20+ came more naturally > compared to the 55s. For my current paved riding, the 38s feel much more > aligned with how I’m actually using the bike. I still plan to move them to > the Heron, but now I’m considering something similar for the Platypus — > maybe the new *Michelin Pro 5 in 40mm *(if anyone has feedback). > > I also ordered a *165mm New Albion XDD 46/34 crankset*. The 173mm arms > felt long, I’d occasionally spin out the 38–11, and I rarely used the > 24–32. The new gearing should better match my riding. > > Lastly, I’m considering a lighter *135mm rim-brake road wheelset *for > paved duty. The Cliffhanger/dynamo setup is great, just too robust for my > mostly road miles. > > I'll attach photos of the Heron, current Platypus, and a mock-up with > lighter wheels. > > *TL;DR:* 38mm tires feel much better than 55mm for how I’m riding the > Platypus right now. > > [image: 617473740_3099066500271185_4740946772037065320_n.jpg] > > > > > -- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "RBW Owners Bunch" group. To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an email to [email protected]. To view this discussion visit https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/rbw-owners-bunch/12bb3d7e-3364-4130-a0f0-b05862c5137fn%40googlegroups.com.
