I’m saving up for a road bike, I might get a CX bike though.

What are standard CX tyres like on the road? Just thinking the perfect thing would be a longish road ride with the ablity to dash down some of the dirt tracks too.

Or would I be better getting road tyres and just going for road ride. Then putting the CX tyres on for a not road ride?

Or something else?

You’ll not get CX tyres on a “road” bike due to there not being enough space in the frame or around the brakes. Putting road tyres on a CX bike will make it almost as good as a dedicated road bike and still give you something with a bit more flexibility.

http://singletrackworld.com/forum/topic/what-are-cx-tyres-like-on-the-road

I’ve put a pair of folding Hutchinson CrossLight 26×1.25″ tyres on a Retro Rigid MTB. It is much faster on tarmac than the previous 2″ off-road tyres and seems grippy in the wet on the Peaks roads. Limited off-road excursions so far, but definitely a ‘Cross bike on the cheap.

PaulD

A cx bike with 28mm slicks on won’t be any slower on the road than a real roadie, and fine for dry weather off-road fun.
28s are supposed to have lower rolling resistance than 23s.. Offset this with a slightly less aero tyre and higher position and you won’t be much worse off, but more comfortable!
I am getting some cx tyres for mine, but not got to using them yet, as I’m enjoying hooning around on slicks!

PaulD – you’ve just invented the “Hybrid”.

You need one of these for it..

bikewhisperer – Member
28s are supposed to have lower rolling resistance than 23s..

Which is why all the Pros use them.

Oh…..

Which is why all the Pros use them.

The rolling resistance is lower, but the aero resistance is higher. Makes more of a difference at pro tour speeds than your average bimble.

I am not sure that 28’s have lower rolling resistance than 23’s as 23’s can be run at higher pressure (slightly). The higher the pressure the lower rolling resistance. If the pressure are equal I think you have trouble noticing the difference.

Anyway, CX tyres that aren’t too agressive or sticky are just fine on the road.

Anyway, CX tyres that aren’t too agressive or sticky are just fine on the road.

but will wear pretty quickly and be next to useless if you come to use them offroad.

I don’t know – I found that they lasted suprisingly well but then fast rolling cx tyres don’t have big chunky knobs so presumably the wear is less noticeable…

Anyone tried any of these tubeless?

OP – I have two sets of 28mm tyres for my CX bikes and I don’t need both. There’s a pair of Continental GP 4 Seasons in almost new condition I’d sell for £35 posted, or a pair of used Specialized Armadillo something-or-others (I’ll check what they are if you’re interested in them) for £20 posted.

To answer the original question – 28mm tyres are great on a CX bike, as they provide greater comfort than narrower tyres due to the higher volume, you can run lower pressures a little more safely, plus they are great for a mix of on road/off road – a 28mm slick is fine on dry trails, bridleways and paths and gives you the best mix of a road/off road ability.

Are the 4 seasons 28mm digger?

A cx bike with 28mm slicks on won’t be any slower on the road than a real roadie

Erm, yes it really will be. Whether it’ll be that much slower that it’ll bother you may be a different matter, but it will be slower.

OK, so a wider tyre at the same pressure as a narrow tyre will have lover rolling resistance. However, it is impossible to get wide tyres to >100psi, that is why pro’s and serious roadies use 23s.

To answer the initial question, when I first got my cross bike to replace an old roadie, I put the 23mm roadie tyres on and the cross bike was faster. The old roadie was very old and flexy though.

Now I run semi-slicks, 35mm, and there is not much noticable drag on the road. Pressure is ~70psi, but it’s going up now the dry weather is here, too many pinch punctures on rocks!!