# putting "cyclocross" type tires on my road bike



## outcast2 (Feb 22, 2012)

Heres my question:
I have a scott S30 roadbike (aluminum with carbon fork), and want to ride some dirt trails. Can I put "cyclocross" type wheels and tires on my Scott and ride dirt trails without damaging the fork and other components? Would it just be better to go buy a hardtail moutain bike built for thar sort of behavior?

thanks,

Jim


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## Ride-Fly (Mar 27, 2002)

outcast2 said:


> Heres my question:
> I have a scott S30 roadbike (aluminum with carbon fork), and want to ride some dirt trails. Can I put "cyclocross" type wheels and tires on my Scott and ride dirt trails without damaging the fork and other components? Would it just be better to go buy a hardtail moutain bike built for thar sort of behavior?
> 
> thanks,
> ...


you will be limited to tire size obviously. If your Scott can handle a 28 size tire, you'll probably have some luck in finding the type of tire you're looking for. I put a 25 on my roadie and it was a pretty tight fit. Doubt my brakes and frame could take anything much bigger.


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## Oasisbill (Jan 15, 2011)

I have a Scott Sub 10 (Flat bars, disc brakes) and it will easily take 28mm tyres, possibly 32, so I have been toying with the same idea for a year now. Take it in to a store and ask to put a cross wheel on. If they fit, be kind and buy the tyres from the same kind gentleman...


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## Ride-Fly (Mar 27, 2002)

Oasisbill said:


> I have a Scott Sub 10 (Flat bars, disc brakes) and it will easily take 28mm tyres, possibly 32, so I have been toying with the same idea for a year now. Take it in to a store and ask to put a cross wheel on. If they fit, be kind and buy the tyres from the same kind gentleman...


disc'ed up frames allow you to go big on tires. Road brakes get tight at 25 IME, so I'd imagine 28 CX treads would interfere. That's the only reason center pull still exist today, because it allows for CX tire clearance. Those center pulls are the biggest POS brakes ever.


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## outcast2 (Feb 22, 2012)

So I should only run into clearance issues between tire and brakes. 
I thought the major issue would be the front forks survivability on the rougher roads. Shows how much I know 

thanks for all the info. 

jim


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## atpjunkie (Mar 23, 2002)

Jim, you'll run out of clearance at the brake and the rear stays @ the BB. a 27 or 28 will be about as big as you can fit. Any tire that has a spead @ the tread area (like a Ritchey Speedmax ) will not work. You need to find a tire that maintains that round profile
You'll be surprised at what a road bike can handle off road


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## cxwrench (Nov 9, 2004)

Ride-Fly said:


> disc'ed up frames allow you to go big on tires. Road brakes get tight at 25 IME, so I'd imagine 28 CX treads would interfere. That's the only reason center pull still exist today, because it allows for CX tire clearance. Those *center pulls* are the biggest POS brakes ever.


center pulls are not used on CX bikes, *cantilever brakes* are...they're not the same thing. while i agree that center pull brakes pretty much suck, cantis most definitely do not...especially these...
View attachment 272420


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## Ride-Fly (Mar 27, 2002)

cxwrench said:


> center pulls are not used on CX bikes, *cantilever brakes* are...they're not the same thing. while i agree that center pull brakes pretty much suck, cantis most definitely do not...especially these...
> View attachment 272420


Youre right, cantis are what i meant to say. and center pull brakes were the worst brakes ever invented. but i also had cantilevers on my old mtb, and they sucked too. They're probably fine for CX racing but when descending on technical trails for 5 or 6 miles, they were horrible. It looks like the newer cantis have a tad more leverage than my old ones, so they have probably somewhat improved. But I can't imagine them being as good as v-brakes or even road brakes. 

How are the cantis on your bike (assuming its your bike) compared to road brakes and mtb v-brakes? As good as? Almost but not quite? A noticeable step down? I'm willing to change my tune regarding cantis if they've gotten much improved in the last 2 decades.


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## curlymaple42 (Sep 13, 2012)

Forks will be fine. Just think of the beating your forks get while riding rough pavement and 100psi tires! Brutal punishment. Slightly bigger tires that are less psi will likely be less of a beating actually!


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## cxwrench (Nov 9, 2004)

Ride-Fly said:


> Youre right, cantis are what i meant to say. and center pull brakes were the worst brakes ever invented. but i also had cantilevers on my old mtb, and they sucked too. They're probably fine for CX racing but when descending on technical trails for 5 or 6 miles, they were horrible. It looks like the newer cantis have a tad more leverage than my old ones, so they have probably somewhat improved. But I can't imagine them being as good as v-brakes or even road brakes.
> 
> How are the cantis on your bike (assuming its your bike) compared to road brakes and mtb v-brakes? As good as? Almost but not quite? A noticeable step down? I'm willing to change my tune regarding cantis if they've gotten much improved in the last 2 decades.


the newer ones are definitely better than in the past. the Avid Short Ultimates on my CX bike can be set up as in the photo, or with the arms lower like old Mafac cantis. the power is greatly affected by brake set up, but they're the best cantis i've used. the new 2012 Red calipers are the best road brakes i've had, and they're quite close to the Shorty's. 
i always found that V-brakes were severely limited by the stiffness of the frame tubes or fork they were mounted on. i ended up using brake braces by Salsa and/or Shimano(the cool carbon one) on the bikes i used V-brakes on and that really made a difference. i'd say a properly braced V-brake set-up is the most powerful brake shy of a disc. then almost a tie between some of the new road calipers and a good canti. the advantage of the canti is that you can set them up so many different ways and customize the feel/power to your liking. and obviously they have much more clearance for mud/grass/sticks/small rodents/fenders/BIG tires.


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## Ride-Fly (Mar 27, 2002)

cxwrench said:


> the newer ones are definitely better than in the past. the Avid Short Ultimates on my CX bike can be set up as in the photo, or with the arms lower like old Mafac cantis. the power is greatly affected by brake set up, but they're the best cantis i've used. the new 2012 Red calipers are the best road brakes i've had, and they're quite close to the Shorty's.
> i always found that V-brakes were severely limited by the stiffness of the frame tubes or fork they were mounted on. i ended up using brake braces by Salsa and/or Shimano(the cool carbon one) on the bikes i used V-brakes on and that really made a difference. i'd say a properly braced V-brake set-up is the most powerful brake shy of a disc. then almost a tie between some of the new road calipers and a good canti. the advantage of the canti is that you can set them up so many different ways and customize the feel/power to your liking. and obviously they have much more clearance for mud/grass/sticks/small rodents/fenders/BIG tires.


good evaluation cx! ok, so I'm easily swayed and won't bash cantis anymore!  

but seriously, I just ordered a CX Disc frame and now i'm second guessing if i really needed the discs!


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## cxwrench (Nov 9, 2004)

Ride-Fly said:


> good evaluation cx! ok, so I'm easily swayed and won't bash cantis anymore!
> 
> but seriously, I just ordered a CX Disc frame and now i'm second guessing if i really needed the discs!


i wouldn't worry about that, you'll love the disc brake performance. w/ more and more people going to them, and more manufacturers releasing road/cx compatible disc brake systems, they really are looking like the future. i'm pretty sure you'll really like it!


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## foto (Feb 7, 2005)

Well, I disagree again. Centerpulls most certainly do not suck. Shitty old centerpulls are shitty. But shitty anything is shitty so there that is. Good centerpulls work just as well as cantis, and the new Paul centerpulls are pretty sweet. If brake clearance is the limiting factor for fitting wider tires, these brakes fix that problem...


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## 4Crawler (Jul 13, 2011)

I built up my old touring bike with 27x1-1/4" Scwhalbe Marathon tires and take it out on dirt trails and gravel roads most every ride. It is not a mountain bike but you can ride easy to moderate fire roads and easy single track trails. You run into traction limits up over about 18% slopes in the dirt and with the center pull brakes, long steep descents get a little tricky dealing with the brake fade:









- Schwinn Sports Tourer Restoration

I ended up building a real cyclocross bike with disc brakes and larger tires to ride the harder dirt trails:
- Monstercross Bicycle Build


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## outcast2 (Feb 22, 2012)

thanks once more guys. Forums like this are a wealth of info that can save one a ton of time and money. I think that the kind of stuff im gonna be riding will require a new bike because of the tire limitation of my current bike. Now to decide which bike to get.......

thanks
jim


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## NJBiker72 (Jul 9, 2011)

outcast2 said:


> thanks once more guys. Forums like this are a wealth of info that can save one a ton of time and money. I think that the kind of stuff im gonna be riding will require a new bike because of the tire limitation of my current bike. Now to decide which bike to get.......
> 
> thanks
> jim


A little late to this but I put 28's on my Secteur. Widest tires that Specialized say will fit and not Cross tires either. But using the bike to prepare for a 79 mile ride with dirt and gravel. Hit some bad dirt/gravel roads yesterday and it was fine with the exception of the Swamp. Then I got off and walked for a couple minutes.


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