Slicks OK on the touring bike - If so, what kind?

I have a Trek 520 that occasionally rolls on gravel roads
(slowly/carefully) and I¹d like to change out the 700x32c Conti Top
Touring 2000 tires for some road slicks. Would the slicks suck on
these roads?

If I decide to just stay off the gravel entirely, what kind of slicks
can I then use?

Thanks.

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In article <[email hidden]>, bfd

Quoted message said:

"PCB" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

I have a Trek 520 that occasionally rolls on gravel roads
(slowly/carefully) and I¹d like to change out the 700x32c Conti Top
Touring 2000 tires for some road slicks. Would the slicks suck on
these roads?

If I decide to just stay off the gravel entirely, what kind of slicks
can I then use?

Read the Bicycle FAQ:

http://www.faqs.org/faqs/bicycles-faq/part3/section-11.html

OK, thanks.
From that article, I gather that the bike will ride on gravel just fine
if the tires are slick. It does leave open the possibility that slicks
might have less traction on surfaces that are softer than the tire -
But gravel is a combination of harder and softer surfaces. So I am
going with the "OK for slicks on gravel" mentality.

What kind (size, type, brand, etc) of slicks would be right and/or
preferable for my rims?

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PCB said:

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

If I decide to just stay off the gravel entirely, what kind of slicks
can I then use?

What kind (size, type, brand, etc) of slicks would be right and/or
preferable for my rims?

What don't you like about the Contis? You didn't mention your weight or type
of riding (loaded touring, light touring, fast day trips).

700 x 32 tires are appropriate for gravel roads. If you "decide to just stay
off gravel entirely," then depending on your weight and load, 700 x 28s or
25s might be your best bet. The Avocet Carbon 12 slicks would be a good
choice in any of those sizes.

Art Harris

PCB said:

I have a Trek 520 that occasionally rolls on gravel roads
(slowly/carefully) and I¹d like to change out the 700x32c
Conti Top Touring 2000 tires for some road slicks. Would
the slicks suck on these roads?

Tread doesn't help much on gravel, but breadth and the resulting ability to
use lower pressures without suffering pinch-flats is useful. I've toured a
lot of dirt roads with 25mm slicks, and it's tolerable as long as you keep
the pressure high and get out of the saddle.

Quoted message said:

If I decide to just stay off the gravel entirely, what kind of slicks
can I then use?

Anything that isn't too narrow for your rim or too fat to fit your frame. I
don't know what rims your Trek uses.

James Thomson

"PCB" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

I have a Trek 520 that occasionally rolls on gravel roads
(slowly/carefully) and I¹d like to change out the 700x32c Conti Top
Touring 2000 tires for some road slicks. Would the slicks suck on
these roads?

TT2k's are pretty close to *being* slicks already. If you have anything to
gain, it's from going to a lighter, narrower, higher pressure tire, not from
changing away from the Conti's already-vestigial tread pattern.

I'd be surprised if the wheels that come on a 520 will comfortably mount a
tire much smaller than a 28. You have, what, 32's now?

If you're not an overly heavy rider, a 28mm touring tire would certainly
work and give you a bit of an improvement. It's something you should think
about when the current tires wear out. IMO, however, it's not an improvement
worth ditching a perfectly good set of 32mm TT2k's for,

My 2c.

RichC

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In article <[email hidden]>,

PCB said:

I have a Trek 520 that occasionally rolls on gravel roads
(slowly/carefully) and I¹d like to change out the 700x32c Conti Top
Touring 2000 tires for some road slicks. Would the slicks suck on
these roads?

If I decide to just stay off the gravel entirely, what kind of slicks
can I then use?

_ I ride 28mm slicks on gravel roads all the time. They even work
reasonably well on dry hard pack dirt. Loose sand is another story
entirely.

_ Booker C. Bense

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On Fri, 02 Jul 2004 00:49:01 -0500, PCB <[email hidden]>

Quoted message said:

I have a Trek 520 that occasionally rolls on gravel roads
(slowly/carefully) and I¹d like to change out the 700x32c Conti Top
Touring 2000 tires for some road slicks. Would the slicks suck on
these roads?

Nope, slicks are fine. Somebody posted the results of some
experiments where he used slicks on his mountain bike, and found
them as good or superior in most off-road conditions. Narrow slicks
would not be as good, but you're on-road, albeit with a different
surface.

I've ridden 23c slicks on a few gravel roads, and off-road once. The
width of the tires made it difficult off-road. Unfinished bike
paths, not yet paved, are no problem.

Quoted message said:

If I decide to just stay off the gravel entirely, what kind of slicks
can I then use?

Any kind you want that fits your bike.
--
Rick Onanian

"PCB" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]

Quoted message said:

In article <[email hidden]>, Rich Clark

Quoted message said:

"PCB" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

I have a Trek 520 that occasionally rolls on gravel roads
(slowly/carefully) and I¹d like to change out the 700x32c Conti Top
Touring 2000 tires for some road slicks. Would the slicks suck on
these roads?

Slicks are fine on packed gravel, the wider the better.

[...]

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

I'd be surprised if the wheels that come on a 520 will comfortably
mount a tire much smaller than a 28. You have, what, 32's now?

All I know are that the brand of rim is Bontrager Fairlane, and that
the tire is listed on the inventory sheet as 700-32c, and that it has
"32-622" listed on the sidewall. So does that officially mean they
are 32s?

Yes. Avocet are the only manufacturer I know that makes a genuine slick in
a 700x32. I use them.

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

If you're not an overly heavy rider, a 28mm touring tire would
certainly work and give you a bit of an improvement.

I am 130 lbs, so I'll assume that 28 would work. Can anything
narrower work well on these rims?

How wide are they? If they're 19mm or up the answer would be no.

--

A: Top-posters.
Q: What is the most annoying thing on Usenet?

PCB said:

My reason for wanting slicks is that I feel they are all-around better
due to more pavement contact. I want to be able to reach 40+mph (or at
least get significantly closer to it) on downhills that I currently can
only attain 34mph on with the TT2Ks.

I prefer slicks too, but they're not going to increase your speed that much.

Quoted message said:

All I know are that the brand of rim is Bontrager Fairlane, and that
the tire is listed on the inventory sheet as 700-32c

You need to measure the inside width of the rims, then use this chart to
determine an acceptable tire width.

http://www.sheldonbrown.com/tire-sizing.html#width

Art Harris

In article <[email hidden]>, Rich Clark

Quoted message said:

"PCB" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

I have a Trek 520 that occasionally rolls on gravel roads
(slowly/carefully) and I¹d like to change out the 700x32c Conti Top
Touring 2000 tires for some road slicks. Would the slicks suck on
these roads?

TT2k's are pretty close to *being* slicks already. If you have anything to
gain, it's from going to a lighter, narrower, higher pressure tire, not from
changing away from the Conti's already-vestigial tread pattern.

My reason for wanting slicks is that I feel they are all-around better
due to more pavement contact. I want to be able to reach 40+mph (or at
least get significantly closer to it) on downhills that I currently can
only attain 34mph on with the TT2Ks.

Quoted message said:

I'd be surprised if the wheels that come on a 520 will comfortably mount a
tire much smaller than a 28. You have, what, 32's now?

All I know are that the brand of rim is Bontrager Fairlane, and that
the tire is listed on the inventory sheet as 700-32c, and that it has
"32-622" listed on the sidewall. So does that officially mean they are
32s?

Quoted message said:

If you're not an overly heavy rider, a 28mm touring tire would certainly
work and give you a bit of an improvement.

I am 130 lbs, so I'll assume that 28 would work. Can anything narrower
work well on these rims?

--
¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯ O ALERT: Please help a friend find
¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯ / / his abducted son by visiting:
¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯ // http://www.haveyouseenskye.com
¯¯¯¯¯¯ ©"""""""""""© Thanks.

"PCB" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

My reason for wanting slicks is that I feel they are all-around better
due to more pavement contact. I want to be able to reach 40+mph (or at
least get significantly closer to it) on downhills that I currently can
only attain 34mph on with the TT2Ks.

Changing just your tires will not yield that much of an improvement. You,
your wheels, and the rest of your bike will still be aerodynamically the
same, and wind resistance is the big factor at speeds that high.

Quoted message said:

All I know are that the brand of rim is Bontrager Fairlane, and that
the tire is listed on the inventory sheet as 700-32c, and that it has
"32-622" listed on the sidewall. So does that officially mean they are
32s?

Yes.

Quoted message said:

If you're not an overly heavy rider, a 28mm touring tire would certainly

Quoted message said:

work and give you a bit of an improvement.

I am 130 lbs, so I'll assume that 28 would work. Can anything narrower
work well on these rims?

Doubtful. Those rims are designed for touring bikes and hybrids. They're
great for that purpose.

Using a narrow tire on a wide rim is asking for trouble, especially when
trying to go fast in a descent, which is the last place where you want tire
problems.

RichC

In article <[email hidden]>, Rich Clark

Quoted message said:

"PCB" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

I am 130 lbs, so I'll assume that 28 would work. Can anything narrower
work well on these rims?

Doubtful. Those rims are designed for touring bikes and hybrids. They're
great for that purpose.

Using a narrow tire on a wide rim is asking for trouble, especially when
trying to go fast in a descent, which is the last place where you want tire
problems.

Yeah, I better not use a 23. But I wonder if a 28 would still have
problems.

On the following tire chart that Arthur Harris referred me to (thanks,
Arthur!), a size 28 tire is shown to be compatible with all of the same
rims as what a 32 tire is compatible with:
http://www.sheldonbrown.com/tire-sizing.html#width

I won't take the tire off to measure the inside of the rim right now,
but the exterior of the rim measures to be 22.5mm wide.

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¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯ O ALERT: Please help a friend find
¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯ / / his abducted son by visiting:
¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯ // http://www.haveyouseenskye.com
¯¯¯¯¯¯ ©"""""""""""© Thanks.

PCB said:

Yeah, I better not use a 23. But I wonder if a 28 would still
have problems.

Quoted message said:

I won't take the tire off to measure the inside of the rim right
now, but the exterior of the rim measures to be 22.5mm wide.

The Fairlane has the same cross section as the Maverick:

http://www.bontrager.com/mountainrims/detail.asp?id=90&pt=6

You could probably get away with a true 25 (many tyres measure narrow), and
a 28 should be fine.

James Thomson

PCB said:

Yeah, I better not use a 23. But I wonder if a 28 would still have
problems.

28mm will work fine. i rode 32mm (28mm actual) avocet cross-ii's and 28mm
(28mm actual) avocet duros on the fairlane for 6,000 miles. never tried
narrower, tho.
--
david reuteler
[email hidden]

On Fri, 02 Jul 2004 00:49:01 -0500, PCB <[email hidden]>

Quoted message said:

I have a Trek 520 that occasionally rolls on gravel roads
(slowly/carefully) and I¹d like to change out the 700x32c Conti Top
Touring 2000 tires for some road slicks. Would the slicks suck on
these roads?

More on this: My weight, 210 pounds. 20mm front slick at 110 psi,
23mm rear slick at 145 psi.

Today's ride:
Gravel roads were _fine_ today, did a few miles of them. I wish I
had bug spray, as a swarm of some sort of bug wouldn't leave me
alone until I exceeded 10mph -- difficult going uphill while tired.
Downhill was easier. Rough portions required sub-20mph speeds, and
rattled the cap off my shifter.

Rode some five or more miles of unpaved bike-path, too. Where it was
graded and ready for paving, not bad, but when it became completely
off-road, I struggled and ended up walking a few miles. What
appeared to be a 1/4 mile stretch of Whoop-Di-Doos (6 foot long, 2
foot high hills/depressions) turned out to be over a mile followed
by soft, gnarly, rough terrain. Lots of worrying about my wheels,
and often wheels washed out.

I'll go back with my mountain bike, with 1.9" semi-slicks mounted.
--
Rick Onanian