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Worth buying road tyres for Cyclocross bike?
Hi everyone,
After much researching (a lot of it spent on threads in here - so thank you contributors) I iust bought my first "proper" bike - a Cube Cross Race.
The only extra I bought were some SPD pedals, but I'm wondering whether I should add some slicker tyres before I collect it from the workshop. Looking through other threads, it seems there would be some benefit as I will be mainly commuting on roads, maybe some pavements and jumps up kerbs if needed. But exactly how much would I notice a speed increase? I'm on a tight budget, so if there is only a minimal gain I would rather spend the money on a decent saddle bag and some reflective clothing
Thanks in advance!
If you're new please join in and if you have questions pop them below and the forum regulars will answer as best we can.
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14 comments
Cheers everyone - I decided in the end to go for Conti 4 Seasons. A bit of a compromise between puncture resistance, speed and grip. As a beginner they should see me right and I cam save for a Summer/Winter set up next year. Was tempted by some GP5000s, but with what I've already spent I may have been looking at a divorce!
Good choice - the 4 Seasons is a lovely tyre and saw me through 3 winters with zero punctures. Good wet grip. The only reason I went away from them was that I started doing a small amount of unpaved road on my commute and I needed the grip (oh and also that I got a new bike that I decided would look better on tanwalls!)
Bike tyres are insanely expensive when you consider how much a car tyre costs but they are worth it and the difference between different types is noticeable. I've just swapped from Bontrager R4 Classics 28mm back to my preferred Veloflex Masters and the difference is night and day - despite ostensibly the tyres being very similar (open tubular, limited puncture protection, high TPI, thin tread)
Those Veoflex look very nice!
Apart from grip, how to the 4 seasons hold up on poor surfaces? The Trans Pennine trail runs right past my house and is an option for my commute when I want to avoid the busy roads (dark mornings, bad weather etc). It's paved, but horrendously bumpy.
Do it. I have an Arkose, original tyres were WTB Riddlers. I've got a bit of OCD regarding tyres and have put a few different ones on over the past couple of years: WTB Nano, Conti Sport Contact ii, Panaracer Pasela, Jack Brown Greens, Conti Speed Cyclocross tyres. Jings now I've listed them all I realise I have a bit of a problem! In that time my proper off-road, gravel riding has dwindled and like you the majority of my time is spent on the road for my commute. And I can tell you there is a big difference with a more road oriented tyre with less rolling resistance. You don't expend as much energy, you can use a higher gear more efficiently and climbing hills feels a lot easier. My list has one more addition: treated the bike to Conti GP5000 28mm recently and the difference is incredible, believe the hype! I'm told the durability is not that great though so they do feel like a luxury. In future I'd look at Ultrasport ii especially for £12.50 at Merlin. Perhaps I should stockpile now. Look it's ok, I've got this under control....."Hi my name is Drew and I'm a tyreaholic"
Haha, I did really want to get the 5000, being sold for £38 a tyre at the minute but I've decided that puncture resistance it going to be my main priority - I desperately don't want to get caught out on my way to work. If finances permitted I would have bought these for my weekend rides, but I'll just have to wait.
If you are mainly on roads I would go for a slicker tyre, it will make a difference effort wise and you can also run at higher pressures than you would with a cross tyre. I have swapped for the summer and my average speeds are up and times are down. You can still gravel a bit with care, cross tyres need something to bite into so the current dry spell has made them less of a requirement for me.
X-One tyres are pretty chunky with their tread. Not really needed on the surfaces you will be riding on - you'll wear them down pretty quickly. If you can do a swap in the shop for something with a finer tread such as Panaracer Gravelking SK you'll still be able to go off-road when the urge takes you.
I would definitely look to swap to something slicker as pure cyclocross tyres will wear quickly on road, be noticeably slower, and make a hell of a racket. But, you're really looking at a minimum of £50 to do that unless you can persuade the workshop to do a tyre swap before you pick it up.
Go for something in the 28mm range to retain the comfort of the cyclocross tyre.
These are insanely good value at the price Bike24 are selling them and my favourite tyre by miles - https://www.bike24.com/p2291142.html . Under £50 for a pair of handmade race-ready Italian tyres - it really doesn't get better than that.
If not those and you're looking for something with more puncture protection then Conti Gatorskins are pretty much the standard UK commuting tyre. A bit dull but get the job done.
Can swap out for something cheaper too. Merlin have Continental Ultrasport II (oldie but goodie) at £12.50 in 28 mm. Worth saving the cx tyres for when you need them.
Thanks for the response. As I will be commuting, puncture protection is really important, because who needs to be standing at the side of the road changing a tube first thing or after a day at work? Any ideas how the puncture protection of the Gatorskins compares to say the Grand Prix?
Thanks for the response. As I will be commuting, puncture protection is really important, because who needs to be standing at the side of the road changing a tube first thing or after a day at work? Any ideas how the puncture protection of the Gatorskins compares to say the Grand Prix?
I commuted on Gators for 4 years. From memory, three punctures in that time. And that's on a mix of country lanes, bike paths, and debris-strewn port roads. Did find them to be a bit skittish on white lines and wet manhole covers so they weren't my favourite tyre for the winter - I used to swap to Conti GP 4Seasons for that.
There are several versions of the Gatorskin - wired, folding, and hardshell. Hardshell are supposed to be me most durable but I rode the folding version (25mm). Still in the shed and they're in good nick after 2000+ miles, waiting for if I ever start commuting again. You can get them in a quite frankly massive 32mm version if you want plenty of comfort. I ran those for a while on my CX bike before I started mixing in gravel tracks and swapped to Gravelking SKs.
Unfortunately I don't have any experience with Schwalbe or any other tyre makes, although I will say that often CX tyres fitted to CX bikes have really crap puncture protection for road use, so another reason to swap.
Gatorskins are rubbish and also a rip off.
They have no grip what so ever in the wet and I've fallen on my ass twice on wet roundabouts due to Gatorskins, they went in the bin after that.
I commute on my CX bike and use these which are cheaper, actually have some grip and the 30mm ones are pretty comfy:
https://www.planetx.co.uk/i/q/TYPAJBMM/jack-brown-mile-muncher-700c-fold...
I got them for £12.50 each, Planet X are pretty random when it comes to their pricing.
Grand Prix are a good tyre, make sure you get the folding bead, much lighter and much easier to work with, swap them yourself so you get an idea of how to do it if you get a puncture while out and about.