Tyre Recommendation

[mingus]

I have a Specialized Tricross which I want to take off road for the first time ASAP, with a view to doing a first bikepacking trip in the next few months. As someone who has never purchased off-road tyres i have no idea what i should look for. Either flat out brand/model recommendations or tips on how to select something approipriate would be great.

For the record, i'm currently using the stock wheelset (700c) with 28mm Gatorskins. The bike came with wider (maybe 32-34mm) specialized branded tyres but i don't remember the model.

[RikPerry]

Take a look at the Schwalbe Landcruiser if you can find them out there.... its a 35mm treking tyre with a good center strip for low rolling on roads/hardpack ... we use them in England for the 3 Peaks Cyclocross race which is a good mix of hardcore trail and some road sections.

They are fairly cheap too and hardwearing, Iv'e had a set on all winter over here with no punctures at all.

Rick

[mingus]

Take a look at the Schwalbe Landcruiser ...

I can find them out here (we have the internet after all ) but can only find 26", does anyone know if they're available in 700c? otherwise anything else worth looking at?

[RikPerry]

Yes they do make a 700c size. Keep hunting , Otherwise i can source some and send them over... I have a set that have only done 1x Three Peaks ( 40 miles but only 30 that are rideable )

All the best

Rik

[DaveC]

How much room do you have?  Unless the off-roading to plan on is very tame, I'd gravitate towards the biggest you can fit.  Then reckon on the conditions (hardpacked dirt, sand, loose rock, gravel, gravel over hardpack, mud, forest loam, etc) that wil predominate and the extent to which you want to balance fast v. traction (not always an inverse relationship, but largely so), and choose.

That is to say, tires are confusing.  Get something big and tough with a tread pattern that won't have you hating life and you ought to manage fine.

For instance, the WTB Allterrainasaurus comes in 35c, which is really closer to 40c, has a utilitarian tread pattern, and a very tough sidewall.  Not super fast, and not at all light, but cheap and works well.

[mingus]

How much room? Well, lots. I haven't measured but i think 45mm would fit easily on the front. the rear is a little less spacious but i think 40-45 would be possible. As for what type of off roading i want to do, i have no idea. As i've never really ridden off road at all i don't know what to expect, except that whatever gear i get now is likely to be replaced once i learn a bit more. I guess i'm just looking for something that will aloow me to try out a few different paths and see what takes my fancy.

[phil_rad]

I've been using a schwalbe smart sam on my cyclocross bike with good results for the past year and a half. I'm running the wire bead version, cheap but heavy, they still roll really good and have enough grip offroad, as long as its not too bad. Side walls are tough too.

[Carrotcake]

I've run a se of 35c Panaracer cinder cross on my CX bike for a couple of years. They roll well both on and off road whist offering plenty of predictable grip. I do have to run them at 10-15psi more pressure than normal when I'm carting bike packing about with me. The extra weight is significant enough to deform the tyre more. They are light and pretty tough as they have a high TPI carcass.
I'd fit the biggest tyre you can accomodate. 35c is minimum for me. Had some 28c items before and dented rims on regular occasion.

[Slim]

A higher thread count (tpi) makes for a more flexible but weaker tire.
 The smoother casing uses less rubber to cover it, resulting in weight savings and more flexibility but also less resistance to cuts and punctures.

[OurManInTheNorth]

The tyres the tricross comes with are reasonable for a first attempt as I guess you're not planning full on MTB routes - details from the speccy website:

HIGH-END FREEROAD PERFORMANCE - HARDPACK CONDITIONS
From paved road to dirt road to no road at all, the Borough CX is a single tread that can do it all-urban/transportation, adventure riding/touring and even cyclo-cross racing-thanks to its smooth running center section and minimal hard-biting shoulder knobs.

Throw the original tyres on, give it a go, see if you like it, buy something new after if needed/wanted. I've done cycletouring on a road bike through Russia where we dealt with dirt roads, gravel, cobblestones (think paris-roubaix hell of the north style roads but rougher and for miles and miles), washed out roads, horrendous potholes etc (the road was more pothole than surface in many places!). 1200km on 25mm road racing tyres (Continental Grand Prix 4 seasons so reasonably durable but still a winter race tyre!), no punctures :-)

[mingus]

Seems like reasonable advice OurMan, plust the fact that it's a zero-cost venture i guess i'll throw the old tyres on and see how they go.

Thats a good story about the Conti GP4's as well, i'm on Gatorskins at the mo, done a few hundred k's so far with no probs, got about 400 planned for the easter so will see  how they go.

[bmike-vt]

+1 for conti gp 4seasons for dirt / gravel / rough roads. I've used 28s for about 4 years now for rando events, dirt road rides, and lite touring. Roll pretty well for being pretty tough.

[OurManInTheNorth]

I only used the GP4 for the Russian trip through accident, my friend planned the route via the smallest back roads possible without telling me, I thought we were going to be on smooth tarmac all the way! He used Google maps for 100km stretches of terrain! I couldn't have fitted anything larger in their anyway, they started clogging the mudguards with wet sand when we di an epic bit of pushing/trying to ride along the beach! But I was v impressed with their durability, I was planning on buying new ones every few 100ks!

[intheways]

Schwalbe Marathon (Extreme or Dureme)?