Road bikes with large tire clearance

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Roadbiker10
Posts: 495
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by Roadbiker10

Hello.

I thought that this could be a thread about collecting info on which road bikes come with wide tyre clearance. As we have seen road frames come with larger and larger tire clearance lately. It would be nice to have a thread were people can chime in from their own experiences with their bikes. Since you always read about how some bikes can take wider than is specified from the manufacturer. When I say wide I mean 32+.

It can even be allroad and not just road, since endurance and allroad have become mixed when it comes to geometry and tire clearance.

Myself, I have a Trek Domane AL which I believe oficially can take 35. I am about to order Pirelli Cinturatos in 35 as I have read they are true to size. I would like to push it as wide as the frame can take with gravel tires but am afraid I will get it wrong if I get any wider than 35.

Another frame that I know of which can oficially take 35 is the new Canyon Endurance.
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TLN
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by TLN

I think it's called Gravel bikes.
Personally I'd describe road bikes as wheel/tyre ration at 100% (105% rules and etc), with modern rims at 32mm external, that ends somewhere at 30-32c measured. 35c and higher is a gravel bike in my opinion.
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Discodan
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by Discodan

It's more than just tyre clearance that makes a gravel bike so it's a worthwhile topic to my mind. My 2020 SuperSix Evo currently has 34mm measured tyres (for a gravel race, but it's not a gravel bike :0) and certainly has clearance still. Maybe it could take 38-40mm which is pretty good for a pure race bike

Roadbiker10
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by Roadbiker10

TLN wrote:
Wed Jun 29, 2022 6:38 pm
I think it's called Gravel bikes.
Personally I'd describe road bikes as wheel/tyre ration at 100% (105% rules and etc), with modern rims at 32mm external, that ends somewhere at 30-32c measured. 35c and higher is a gravel bike in my opinion.
I understand. They have been getting wider and wider though. I mean endurance bikes. All road bikes really but I'm talking about road bikes that can be used for both. It's not a given that any bike which can take wider than 32 can handle gravel or is built to do it.

Gravel bikes come with gravel specific drivetrains. I am more interested in road bikes with road gearing that will more comfortably(wider tires) ride on gravel with double wheelsets. The question then becomes, what is the best compromise gearing wise to do both jobs? I am also including trainer duty in here as well.

Question is how much and how tough terrain can a road bike handle.
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Roadbiker10
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by Roadbiker10

Discodan wrote:
Wed Jun 29, 2022 7:10 pm
It's more than just tyre clearance that makes a gravel bike so it's a worthwhile topic to my mind. My 2020 SuperSix Evo currently has 34mm measured tyres (for a gravel race, but it's not a gravel bike :0) and certainly has clearance still. Maybe it could take 38-40mm which is pretty good for a pure race bike
Interesting. Didn't know that about the Supersix. What kind of gearing do you run?

The manufacturer could say, this is a road bike which can handle light gravel. I believe that was said for the Domane. But I have read that people ride it with 40 full on gravel without a problem.
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PoorCyclist
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by PoorCyclist

I use a gravel bike as an "endurance" road bike, it's a 696 open mold, slack angles, and easy to control in the corners.
It only have road wheels for it, I can't say I am taking advantage of the 50mm tire clearance, I only ride 28mm rear 26mm front.
I was mostly looking for a replacement bike that can take fenders.

Gravel frame is a little heavier that means thicker wall carbon.
This is a good thing since you will be kicking up more rocks off road. Than the alternative of having fragile road bike frame against rocks.

If off roading, think if you will run into mud or not, if you only have 4mm clearance to the stays which is very little, and sticky mud will quickly grind the frame.

Roadbiker10
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by Roadbiker10

PoorCyclist wrote:
Wed Jun 29, 2022 8:20 pm
I use a gravel bike as an "endurance" road bike, it's a 696 open mold, slack angles, and easy to control in the corners.
It only have road wheels for it, I can't say I am taking advantage of the 50mm tire clearance, I only ride 28mm rear 26mm front.
I was mostly looking for a replacement bike that can take fenders.

Gravel frame is a little heavier that means thicker wall carbon.
This is a good thing since you will be kicking up more rocks off road. Than the alternative of having fragile road bike frame against rocks.

If off roading, think if you will run into mud or not, if you only have 4mm clearance to the stays which is very little, and sticky mud will quickly grind the frame.
Those are good points. It would be interesting to know how tough some of these new endurance bikes with large clearance are. Yes, mud could be an issue which I didn't think of. I'm guessing maybe gravel frames are built to be more compliant as well.

I'm sure manufacturers have in mind that some people will use their road bikes with gravel tires. Otherwise why would they make them with so much tire space? Is anybody really gonna ride with 35 road tires?

What kind of gearing do you run?
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spud
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by spud

Trek Domane series will take a big tire - at least 34 mm. It's a pretty nice road bike, assuming you don't mind a long headtube

Roadbiker10
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by Roadbiker10

If you want the bike to be mostly for road but have another wheelset for some gravel. Would 50/34 with 11/32 or 11/34 be good enough for gravel? Would 48/32 be a good compromise if you ride mostly road?

I've seen people who run 1x for road and say it works perfectly. I've also seen some who don't like because of the big jumps. Also with 1x it's a question what the middle ground would be for both road and gravel.
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pmprego
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by pmprego

Roadbiker10 wrote:
Fri Jul 01, 2022 11:16 am
PoorCyclist wrote:
Wed Jun 29, 2022 8:20 pm
I use a gravel bike as an "endurance" road bike, it's a 696 open mold, slack angles, and easy to control in the corners.
It only have road wheels for it, I can't say I am taking advantage of the 50mm tire clearance, I only ride 28mm rear 26mm front.
I was mostly looking for a replacement bike that can take fenders.

Gravel frame is a little heavier that means thicker wall carbon.
This is a good thing since you will be kicking up more rocks off road. Than the alternative of having fragile road bike frame against rocks.

If off roading, think if you will run into mud or not, if you only have 4mm clearance to the stays which is very little, and sticky mud will quickly grind the frame.
Those are good points. It would be interesting to know how tough some of these new endurance bikes with large clearance are. Yes, mud could be an issue which I didn't think of. I'm guessing maybe gravel frames are built to be more compliant as well.

I'm sure manufacturers have in mind that some people will use their road bikes with gravel tires. Otherwise why would they make them with so much tire space? Is anybody really gonna ride with 35 road tires?

What kind of gearing do you run?
Giant defy or trek domane are 35mm approved or more dunno (in trek's case).

I use a 32c michelin in a 23id that grows to 35mm. It's a gravel bike so it's fine. But I'm totally in that "road bike with large tires" boat. Just this weekend I have 2000d+ in tarmac but a descend that includes some gravel so the 35mm tires is just perfect. I'm not going after any uphill climbing record and I don't want flat in the gravel descend so it tickes all the boxes.

The gearing really depends on your power. I'm borrowing my wifes bikes. She struggles a bit with the 48/32 and 11/34. In a flatish ride I did not use the small ring at the front. I pretty sure I'll when doing the big climb in two days. But for the flat I clearly missed at least a 50t big ring. It was really easy to spin out (on faster descends).

Roadbiker10
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by Roadbiker10

pmprego wrote:
Fri Jul 01, 2022 11:29 am
Roadbiker10 wrote:
Fri Jul 01, 2022 11:16 am
PoorCyclist wrote:
Wed Jun 29, 2022 8:20 pm
I use a gravel bike as an "endurance" road bike, it's a 696 open mold, slack angles, and easy to control in the corners.
It only have road wheels for it, I can't say I am taking advantage of the 50mm tire clearance, I only ride 28mm rear 26mm front.
I was mostly looking for a replacement bike that can take fenders.

Gravel frame is a little heavier that means thicker wall carbon.
This is a good thing since you will be kicking up more rocks off road. Than the alternative of having fragile road bike frame against rocks.

If off roading, think if you will run into mud or not, if you only have 4mm clearance to the stays which is very little, and sticky mud will quickly grind the frame.
Those are good points. It would be interesting to know how tough some of these new endurance bikes with large clearance are. Yes, mud could be an issue which I didn't think of. I'm guessing maybe gravel frames are built to be more compliant as well.

I'm sure manufacturers have in mind that some people will use their road bikes with gravel tires. Otherwise why would they make them with so much tire space? Is anybody really gonna ride with 35 road tires?

What kind of gearing do you run?
Giant defy or trek domane are 35mm approved or more dunno (in trek's case).

I use a 32c michelin in a 23id that grows to 35mm. It's a gravel bike so it's fine. But I'm totally in that "road bike with large tires" boat. Just this weekend I have 2000d+ in tarmac but a descend that includes some gravel so the 35mm tires is just perfect. I'm not going after any uphill climbing record and I don't want flat in the gravel descend so it tickes all the boxes.

The gearing really depends on your power. I'm borrowing my wifes bikes. She struggles a bit with the 48/32 and 11/34. In a flatish ride I did not use the small ring at the front. I pretty sure I'll when doing the big climb in two days. But for the flat I clearly missed at least a 50t big ring. It was really easy to spin out (on faster descends).
Thanks. I am looking to get gravel tyres for my Domane AL at the moment. Any idea if a 35mm Cinturato will grow more or not on a 21mm id rim? I've read that the size is true. Which Michelin tyre do you have?

I can't say I have a lot of power. Although I'm light. 66kg and about 245W ftp. I'm not that good at power surges though, but more steady power. As I understand in gravel there are a lot of surges involved.
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Roadbiker10
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by Roadbiker10

The Giant Revolt seems interesting. Never heard of this bike before. Revolt 1 comes with Grx 48/32 in the front. It also has a flipchip with wich you can change the geometry. I've seen that on mtb's but not on road/gravel bikes before.
B7F04D1A-3C91-4635-9BE9-73566065ADAB.png
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pmprego
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by pmprego

Roadbiker10 wrote:
Fri Jul 01, 2022 11:51 am
The Giant Revolt seems interesting. Never heard of this bike before. Revolt 1 comes with Grx 48/32 in the front. It also has a flipchip with wich you can change the geometry. I've seen that on mtb's but not on road/gravel bikes before.

B7F04D1A-3C91-4635-9BE9-73566065ADAB.png
I also find the revolt a very interesting bike.

As for the tire I'm using they are 32c but I'm starting to learn that michelin tires really grow a lot.

smokva
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by smokva

Trek Domane carbon with disc can take up to 38 mm officially. Trek Domane Al2 with long calipers can take 28 mm tires.

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rollinslow
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by rollinslow

when we're not talking pure speed/weight, there is a lot of utility to a road-geometry oriented "gravel bike". My Mosaic GT-1 is a Ti frame that can fit 45mm tires but has pretty aggressive road geo. I originally got it thiking mostly gravel but when I put Bora WTO's with 32mm gp5k tires it is very nice to ride on the road and fast. The extra room in the fork makes fitting rigid fenders extremely easy as well. I think I fall into the boat of more clearance is always helpful if the geometry suits you. Perhaps a Cervelo Aspero?
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