Bicycle thread

[MrWellAdjusted]

Most road bikes even old ones won’t take a very big tire. That Surly is special for tire clearance. It’s kind of a anti fancy road bike bike. It has a sticker on the chain stay that says “fatties fit fine”. But still won’t fit tires as big as a modern gravel bike. Brake caliper clearance is a issue as well as frame clearance.

Have you tried to put on a slightly heavier tire on your pacer? I did see a YouTube video where they put a specific tire on under standard calipers. It wasn't a big tire, I'll look for the video.

 

[MrWellAdjusted]

Here's one with a cyclocross tire. I did see video with a road bike with gravel tire with very little tread.

 

[North ride]

Right now it has Schwalbe Marathon tires in a 32c size. They are a bomb proof touring/commuting tire. Pretty heavy but the roads up here are poor and lots of gravel. Plus I’m not going to fast club rides like when I lived in southern Canada so I’ll take the weight for lack of flats.

 

[North ride]

Brake calipers come in different sizes as well for putting big tires on a old bike you want long reach brakes.

 

[MrWellAdjusted]

And you've ridden on a gravel road with those? Good to know. The Schwalbe plus look as tough as nails, also.

 

[North ride]

And you've ridden on a gravel road with those? Good to know. The Schwalbe plus look as tough as nails, also.

Ya no problem on gravel. I’ve ridden gravel on 23c supple racing tires as well they rode fine but got a lot of flats. Not recommend by me at all.

 

[Yinzer Moto]

I like gravel bikes.

This one is mine

I had this frame custom made for Sally. Split top tube. Stainless steel lugs. Disc brakes.

 

[MrWellAdjusted]

This is pretty wild. GCN tries to break carbon wheels.

 

[North ride]

I like gravel bikes.

This one is mine

I had this frame custom made for Sally. Split top tube. Stainless steel lugs. Disc brakes.

Sally’s bike is a beauty! Built local to you ?

 

[North ride]

Carbon wheels are strong. I have them on my MTB that I use to pretend I’m still a 25 year old free rider. And for BC ski hills and shuttle rides. I can’t manage to break them

 

[Yinzer Moto]

Sally’s bike is a beauty! Built local to you ?

Yeah, a friend built it. He was trying to get started as a custom builder.

 

[2whlrcr]

The gravel bike trend speaks to me the most, and I'm considering taking the plunge

You could also look around for a used CX bike. Most have canti brakes and will fit tires up to at least 35mm.

 

[Yinzer Moto]

The Kenda Kwick in a 30mm width was a favorite tire of mine when I worked in the bike shops. I sold truck loads of that tire because it would fit on most road bikes with standard caliper brakes. It was comparable to a 28mm in other brands.

 

[skibum69]

I like steel bikes too. I used to the the Surly rep in Onterrible and Atlantic.

This little bike always surprised me with just how capable it is.

I don't get the whole gravel bike thing but I've been out of the bicycle game for years.

 

[Stormdog]

I Don’t have either a gravel or road bike, but if I was going to pick one over the other it would be a gravel bike for sure.
I’m guessing it depends on where you live, I don’t have any interesting paved roads I feel safe on, but have untold miles of gravel within easy striking distance.

 

[Yinzer Moto]

Gravel bikes are the dual sport motorcycles of the bicycle world. They will do everything but don’t do anything great. I can ride singletrack on my gavel bike or pound out some pavement miles.

 

[skibum69]

I pound out the road miles on this beautiful machine.

 

[MrWellAdjusted]

Are steel bikes in greater demand than I thought?

 

[skibum69]

I like the titanium.

 

[FLrider]

Rode up Alpine Tunnel one year.... Still have the Santa Cruz Blur as it has been a great bike!