A "do it all" disc braked road bike
Discussion
dai1983 said:
Is there genuinely any tyres out there that would roll and last on the road but also give enough grip and absorbtion around the woods?
Yes.Schwalbe Smart Sams. I am using them as my commute - half road, half offroad. Done about 250 miles this year so far on them and they are great.
To ensure puncture resistance I have lined them with Panaracer Kevlar Tape.
Chicken Chaser said:
dai1983 said:
Is there genuinely any tyres out there that would roll and last on the road but also give enough grip and absorbtion around the woods?
Interested in this too, I think i'd get 2 pairs - 28c slicks for the road and only the road and then something 32c-35c with a fairly small pattern in centre with some bigger edges to it. I'm also undecided on what to do about pedals! I dont wear SPD anymore, only SPD-SL so that would be interesting off-road! Might have to try SPD again with a super stiff sole.
Pinnacle are going to be speccing them as standard as James Olsen the bike designer prefers them to the WTB Nano's everyone seems to love. Tubeless ready too.
I'm considering this https://www.canyon.com/en-gb/road/endurace/endurac...
But tempted to push the budget to this https://www.canyon.com/en-gb/road/endurace/endurac...
Hoping to try them at road cc bath event at the end of Feb.
But tempted to push the budget to this https://www.canyon.com/en-gb/road/endurace/endurac...
Hoping to try them at road cc bath event at the end of Feb.
Rob_T said:
dai1983 said:
Is there genuinely any tyres out there that would roll and last on the road but also give enough grip and absorbtion around the woods?
Yes.Schwalbe Smart Sams. I am using them as my commute - half road, half offroad. Done about 250 miles this year so far on them and they are great.
To ensure puncture resistance I have lined them with Panaracer Kevlar Tape.
I took my winter steel road bike and turned it into a more versatile commuter/gravel bike jack of all trades, I stopped going on winter club rides with it as I bought a decent Alu bike to use for dedicated winter road use and a carbon bike for summer.
Is great for pulling a trailer with kids in it, but is a bit too nice to leave chained outside shops.
Running 32c Vittoria Randomeur tyres are great for bad tarmac and gravel, really tough tyres , but are so bloody draggy up steep hils. Every morning I commute up a steepish climb and the weight of the bike and draggy tyres are very noticeable. Having a 11/30 cassette helps, but its hard work compared to my lighter bikes with 23 & 25c tyres. Im a stong climber as well
When I get the urge to ride down gravel roads and such like the bike is great at a easy pace , until I start to press on I realise the tyres and the bikes are a bit out of there comfort zone and a CX bike would be better
Rim brakes are useless off road, I had to unplug the brakes several times as they were full of mud , although this is common sense and they arent designed for this, the bike is a few years old and converting it to disc brakes isnt financially worth it
For me at least the bike becomes a "jack of all trades", but master of none and for it gets frustrating, tbh I'd rather have bikes that excel at certain things, rather than something is OK across the board
Also I find the weight of the steel frame, combined with wide draggy tyres does become an issue to me, im the first to laugh at other riders when they boast how they saved 15 grams off a seat post, but the weight of my bike it does bug me (plus im only 10.5 stone and no fat) . Maybe if the bike was made out of lighter ALU, had 28c tyres on and was lighter it would be more suitable, ultimately I should have got a CX bike , but didnt, so just make do with what Ive got.
Not sure if the above is any use, mainly how you often have to rob peter to pay paul to get a jack of all trades
Is great for pulling a trailer with kids in it, but is a bit too nice to leave chained outside shops.
Running 32c Vittoria Randomeur tyres are great for bad tarmac and gravel, really tough tyres , but are so bloody draggy up steep hils. Every morning I commute up a steepish climb and the weight of the bike and draggy tyres are very noticeable. Having a 11/30 cassette helps, but its hard work compared to my lighter bikes with 23 & 25c tyres. Im a stong climber as well
When I get the urge to ride down gravel roads and such like the bike is great at a easy pace , until I start to press on I realise the tyres and the bikes are a bit out of there comfort zone and a CX bike would be better
Rim brakes are useless off road, I had to unplug the brakes several times as they were full of mud , although this is common sense and they arent designed for this, the bike is a few years old and converting it to disc brakes isnt financially worth it
For me at least the bike becomes a "jack of all trades", but master of none and for it gets frustrating, tbh I'd rather have bikes that excel at certain things, rather than something is OK across the board
Also I find the weight of the steel frame, combined with wide draggy tyres does become an issue to me, im the first to laugh at other riders when they boast how they saved 15 grams off a seat post, but the weight of my bike it does bug me (plus im only 10.5 stone and no fat) . Maybe if the bike was made out of lighter ALU, had 28c tyres on and was lighter it would be more suitable, ultimately I should have got a CX bike , but didnt, so just make do with what Ive got.
Not sure if the above is any use, mainly how you often have to rob peter to pay paul to get a jack of all trades
I've got a Whyte Charing Cross. It's a cyclo-cross-cum-fast-commuter/road bike. While it's not a current model, they do a range starting from the Somerset Compact at £850 up to the Wessex at £2250
The Charin Cross has an alloy frame, carbon forks and cable operated disk brakes (this model is about 5 years old when disks on road bikes were a real novelty and there weren't any hydraulic options). The current range does include hydraulic systems.
I've done cyclocross enduro events, I've done 100mile road sportives, time-trialled and commuted on it. As an all-rounder, I can't really think of what might be better.
Ive got two sets of wheels, one with CX tyres, and one with road tyres
The Charin Cross has an alloy frame, carbon forks and cable operated disk brakes (this model is about 5 years old when disks on road bikes were a real novelty and there weren't any hydraulic options). The current range does include hydraulic systems.
I've done cyclocross enduro events, I've done 100mile road sportives, time-trialled and commuted on it. As an all-rounder, I can't really think of what might be better.
Ive got two sets of wheels, one with CX tyres, and one with road tyres
Cheers for the suggestions for tyres. I initially built my cx bike up as a do it all but have ridden it 100% on the road using 4seasons tyres. I've been looking at getting a SS MTB to use off road as I didn't want to break my commuter or mess about changing tyres/fitting and removing mud guards. My man maths calculated that if I'd bought a second set of decent wheels, tyres, 10 speed cassette and rotors I could buy or build a second hand bike.
I may try some of those dual use tyres and see how I get on. Funds can then be diverted to a decent MTB or frame in the next end of season sell-a-thon!
I may try some of those dual use tyres and see how I get on. Funds can then be diverted to a decent MTB or frame in the next end of season sell-a-thon!
I bought a Cube Cross Race Pro in October as a mix of road/trail winter commuting bike.
On Sunday I was chucking it down some trails with some friends on their hardtails and full-sussers. The only bit I was nervy about was some big rock steps and two extremely steep straight-down descents, and I would happily have done them if I'd had a dropper-post to move my weight backwards. I just didn't want to damage my full length mud guards. Everywhere else they couldn't keep up.
Today I rode it to the office (13 miles) on a mix of icy/frosty roads, bridleways and rutted farm tracks. It's brilliant, particularly with the hydraulic disc brakes.
Tyres are Schwalbe Rocket Ron, so nice and knobbly for mud, but surprisingly, pumped up to 80psi it's only 1-2 mph slower on the road than my road bike. They are not visually worn and I've done 400 miles on them so far.
On Sunday I was chucking it down some trails with some friends on their hardtails and full-sussers. The only bit I was nervy about was some big rock steps and two extremely steep straight-down descents, and I would happily have done them if I'd had a dropper-post to move my weight backwards. I just didn't want to damage my full length mud guards. Everywhere else they couldn't keep up.
Today I rode it to the office (13 miles) on a mix of icy/frosty roads, bridleways and rutted farm tracks. It's brilliant, particularly with the hydraulic disc brakes.
Tyres are Schwalbe Rocket Ron, so nice and knobbly for mud, but surprisingly, pumped up to 80psi it's only 1-2 mph slower on the road than my road bike. They are not visually worn and I've done 400 miles on them so far.
I was lucky enough to get a GT Grade Carbon 105 in the end of year sale for <£1300. Brilliant bike, can't speak highly enough of it. I've got 2 sets of wheels, a roadie set of Ksyrium Elites with 25c slicks and an off road set of Stans Grails with 33c knobblies.
Doubt there are any left now though and the 2017 version is overpriced for what it is IMO.
Doubt there are any left now though and the 2017 version is overpriced for what it is IMO.
I'm in a very similar position in that I want to replace my all rounder with a better all rounder. My main concern is weight, but I also want discs and have up to 1200 ish to spend. Canyone have the endurance or AL SLX in random guises at these price points particularly on the outlet. I did buy one from the Outlet last year but after some messing about with the spec that differed to what was advertised I didn't go through with it. I am still looking though.
Other than Canyon Cannondale has always been a contender - CAAD12 very racy but fits the bill. I rode a low end Synapse which I didn't like, I think mainly because it felt heavy, it had non hydraulic discs and I just couldn't get it to move well.
Other than Canyon Cannondale has always been a contender - CAAD12 very racy but fits the bill. I rode a low end Synapse which I didn't like, I think mainly because it felt heavy, it had non hydraulic discs and I just couldn't get it to move well.
I think theres 2 schools of thought in here now.
Youve got guys who are looking at something which will take 35c tyres (or greater) with guards, be able to go over a variety of surfaces (comfortably and confidently) and then there are those who want a more relaxed geometry with high head tube race bike with clearance for 28c or 30c slicks.
Something like the Pickenflick, Croix De Fer or Canyon Inflite etc satisfies the big tyre options with a slack, easy going frame which would ride over anything whilst something like the Canyon Aeroad, Equilibrium Disc, Datum, Synapse probably is more akin to an endurance road machine. They would be absolutely fine for towpaths, probably forestry roads too but over Bridleways their geometry might not be so suited.
I've gone round and round and round again on what to get now (too much choice) and i'm just going to have to pick one and accept its shortcomings. I've still got the Supersix for blasting around on and that will be fine for another year or 2 when i'll probably upgrade to something like a Synapse Disc.
Youve got guys who are looking at something which will take 35c tyres (or greater) with guards, be able to go over a variety of surfaces (comfortably and confidently) and then there are those who want a more relaxed geometry with high head tube race bike with clearance for 28c or 30c slicks.
Something like the Pickenflick, Croix De Fer or Canyon Inflite etc satisfies the big tyre options with a slack, easy going frame which would ride over anything whilst something like the Canyon Aeroad, Equilibrium Disc, Datum, Synapse probably is more akin to an endurance road machine. They would be absolutely fine for towpaths, probably forestry roads too but over Bridleways their geometry might not be so suited.
I've gone round and round and round again on what to get now (too much choice) and i'm just going to have to pick one and accept its shortcomings. I've still got the Supersix for blasting around on and that will be fine for another year or 2 when i'll probably upgrade to something like a Synapse Disc.
If you follow that train of thought about limitations,why not buy a Thorn Audax which will accept road and mtb hubs.
Thorn make some good bikes but as they are primarily into making touring and expedition bikes disks haven't caught on yet because of heat related issues or the fear of heat issues.
Thorn make some good bikes but as they are primarily into making touring and expedition bikes disks haven't caught on yet because of heat related issues or the fear of heat issues.
smifffymoto said:
If you follow that train of thought about limitations,why not buy a Thorn Audax which will accept road and mtb hubs.
Thorn make some good bikes but as they are primarily into making touring and expedition bikes disks haven't caught on yet because of heat related issues or the fear of heat issues.
Spent 9 days in the alps on a fully loaded (23kg or so) adventure bikein september, no disk issues, got them quite hot a few times but no fade and only 3 deaths!Thorn make some good bikes but as they are primarily into making touring and expedition bikes disks haven't caught on yet because of heat related issues or the fear of heat issues.
Eddh said:
I have just bought a PX London Road, it seems great, came with 35mm tyres on it which are really comfortable and seem to roll well. I will be getting some knobblies to go on it too for taking it on footpaths and blue graded trail centres.
I do like the look of the PX London Road, and theres some great deals on them. Something about steel though....Gassing Station | Pedal Powered | Top of Page | What's New | My Stuff