There is no other component of prams where there is so much incorrect information.
What types of tyres are there?
First of all, the whole thing can be divided into 3 areas
1 Combined pram tyres
2 Retro pram tyres
3 Tyre sets with swivelling front wheels
Tyre differences
Here the differences are quite obvious. With retro prams and combi prams you have 4 identical tyres, this means for you:
When you take a turn, you have to lift 2 tyres into the air. Either lean slightly on the push handle or lift it slightly. You will do this intuitively and unconsciously after just a few minutes.
With the sets with swivel tyres, pushing is absolutely relaxed and easy. If you do decide to go for a walk in the woods, the front wheels can be locked. This makes it much easier to drive straight ahead even on uneven ground.
Pram tyre materials
You have a wide choice here, and unfortunately there is also a lot of incorrect information.
The most common tyres are pneumatic tyres. In terms of function, they are like bicycle tyres with an inner tube. You can patch them like a bicycle and change the inner tubes and casings. In order for them to have a cushioning effect, they must have a pressure of 0.6 to 0.8 bar. They are, so to speak, the standard for prams from EU production.
Right after these come polyurethane foam tyres. Polyurethane tyres are often falsely offered as air chamber tyres. However, they do not have much in common with real pneumatic tyres, except for the fact that they are puncture-free. They offer good cushioning, but tend to squeak from time to time. You simply need to put a little oil between the rim and the tyre to get rid of the noise.
The pure luxury is gel tyres. These have a casing like a pneumatic tyre, but are absolutely puncture-free. The gel absorbs shocks reliably. These tyres are excellent in almost all respects, but the set of 4 here weighs a little more than the other options.
Last but not least, some retro prams have solid rubber tyres. These do not cushion in any way. However, with retro prams it is not necessary for the tyres to have damping properties, as these prams already have better damping from the outset.
Pram tyre rumours
Only pneumatic tyres are good - no, this is not true - all tyres today offer a long service life. The damping properties are also very similar in all tyres today. Furthermore, every pram has a multi-adjustable suspension, which again minimises the benefit of pneumatic tyres. Pneumatic tyres only have their positive properties when they are correctly inflated.
Small swivelling front wheels are better than large ones - this is also not true in any way. The size of the swivel tyres is usually very small in products from the Far East. Small tyres are much more sensitive on uneven ground. Here it is true that large tyres have no disadvantage.
Tyres must be as wide as possible- This statement is also wrong. Most tyres except for retro prams are already universal tyres. This means that they are excellent both in the city and in the forest. Of course you can buy extremely wide tyres. Extremely wide tyres do not sink into the mud, but honestly, would you drive through 1 metre deep mud with your pram? In a normal puddle there will be no difference.
The rolling resistance is enormously different- Again, this is only partly true for prams. The pram tyres all have almost identical rolling resistances. We have tested this several times. You will hardly notice any difference when pushing. The total weight of the pram has a much greater influence.
