johnhoh

Hi all - I have an XL 2008 Specialized Crossroads Elite and my tires are pretty worn down, and thought it might be fun to go with some color on the replacements. I am not a serious biker at all, just 3-4 miles a few times a week day riding to lunch or dinner mostly on suburban sidewalks. I did a search on amazon for "700x38c tires red" and got a few hits but they had very few reviews, so though I would ask here to see what people recommended. Thanks!

veganbikes

Get a nice set of black tires and don't bother with cheap colored tires that tend to wear through quickly and offer little puncture protection. For tires for that bike I would recommend something like the Continental Travel Contacts which come in a 700x37. They are good quality durable tires that will last and can do a little off road riding. Add color in other ways.

tangerineowl

https://global.bluelug.com/fairweath...ust-17910.html

28 or 32mm.

Doge

Veloflex Masters. Great tire. Not going to get them in 38mm wide, I don't know what 38c is.

Altair 4

My daughter has a red bike. Just for giggles, when she wanted a wider tire for trail riding, I got her a set of Kenda Kwest (700 x 32) in red from Amazon. She doesn't have enough miles on them for me to judge long-term durability, but she does like the look. It doesn't look like like Amazon has them in the width you want, though.

johnhoh

Thanks everyone for your input. There are not many options in my size so I just went with the amazon tire with the most/best reviews, which was the Duro Street Tire 700x38c model DB-7044, in red. They will be here Friday and I'll post my impressions after riding...

Caliper

For casual riding, a few miles several times a week, they should do fine. Don't expect anything astounding for low rolling resistance, supple ride or puncture protection, but round and good looks as top features.

canklecat

FWIW, if you could use narrower tires (up to 700x28 or 700x32), Vittoria Zaffiro and Continental Ultra Sport II road bike tires are available with various colors: colored tread with the Zaffiros, sidewall stripes only on the Ultra Sport II -- the tread is still black.

These are low priced but durable, reliable tires. The Zaffiro were a little harsh at full pressure and sluggish below that, but not bad for bargain tires.

Of the two the Conti Ultra Sport II is the much better tire than its low price would indicate. I rode a set of 700x25 in plain black ($30/pair) all last year and this year switched to a set of 700x23 blue stripe sidewalls -- only $12 each.

A local bike flipper from whom I've bought a couple of bikes occasionally dresses up his better offerings with these tires. Nice touch and attention getter on craigslist. I don't really care about the cosmetics but sometimes Amazon blows out funky colors discounted well below plain black or gumwall versions of the same model.

johnhoh

Is it possible to know (without ordering new ones and trying them) if 28 or 32 would fit snugly in my rims? The stock size for the 2008 specialized crossroads elite is 38

canklecat

Depends on the rim size but it should be no problem. Rims and tires have a pretty generous range of compatibility, especially for casual riding. Rims designed for 700x38 tires are usually designated 622x19 or thereabouts, and should handle anything from 700x28 to 700x42, no problem for casual rides.

My hybrid did have 622x19 rims and for a couple of years I used Continental Speed Rides (nominally 700x42, actually measure closer to 700x38), pretty near the optimal compatibility for ideal fit. Those rims were trashed when I was hit by a car.

So I switched to a set of 622x14 rims, much narrower. Technically outside the appropriate fit, yet those Conti Speed Rides still worked just fine for casual rides. Just out of curiosity I switched to 700x32 Continental Sport Contact II, closer to an appropriate fit for the narrower rims. I don't notice any difference in handling, even on fast curves. I could go as narrow as 700x23 and 700x25, and I do have some road bike tires to try. But I'll probably stick with the wider tires for a more comfortable ride. I'll switch to my road bike if I feel the need for speed. I ride the hybrid for casual solo and group rides so comfort is more important than speed.

The reason I've emphasized "casual rides" a couple of times is because tires that are too wide for a rim usually don't feel any different until you lean into some fast curves at high speed. Then the handling can feel mushy. There's too much rubber unsupported. Whether it matters also depends on inflation, road conditions (wet or dry, clean or sandy, etc).

I doubt it would be dangerous for most of us -- I don't race anymore and don't take unnecessary chances. But I do enjoy a fast ride now and then and prefer good handling. So on my road bike I'm careful to match tire and rim width.

BTW, I checked Continental's and Vittoria's catalog and they don't offer the colored sidewall stripes in sizes wider than 700x25 for the Ultra Sport II or Zaffiro. The 700x28 and 700x32 are blackwall only, available in wire bead (cheaper) and folding (lighter). Great tires for the money, but no fancy colors. But there may be some new/old stock in various colors.

Nachoman

Ten more posts and you will be considered a serious cyclist.

veganbikes

"C" refers to 700A, 700B and 700C just like 650A, 650B and 650C it is a French/Euro designation for tires of different ISO diameters. You will rarely see many of these but I have seen some 700A tires before and luckily had the tire in stock for the customer. Here is a great primer about it: https://www.sheldonbrown.com/tire-sizing.html

Doge

I was aware of that. I don't know what 38c is. Do you know what 38c is?

I assume 38mm wide.

canklecat

From the OP's post -- " search on amazon for "700x38c tires red" " -- it probably refers to the common variations and discrepancies in Amazon listings. Typically Amazon will just follow whatever designations the vendors use. So a 700x23 tire may be listed as 700x23, 700C x 23, 700x23c, etc. Some even use Continental's 28" designations for 700 tires. I've often gotten lower prices on the same items by selecting the same tire under a different designation. So far, so good, always received what I intended to order.

veganbikes

700x38c is the common writing of it. I see it all the time. The 38c referring to the width. I am not sure exactly why it is generally written as 700xXXc but it is.

ridingfool

not sure how wide they make them but I had a pair of Michelin pro 4 in red but top of tire only pretty good performance wise and not bad looking Merlin at of England has them pretty cheap

BikingTech

Post pics of the bike. It sounds like a fun project.

indyfabz

The first number is the rim size (diameter). 700x38c is a 38c tire for a 700c rim.

Doge

I understand all the posts above. I understand that Amazon has cross references to anything people type in. And that is kinda how language evolves.

But other than the assumption we can all figure it out, what does 38c mean? Nothing, Right? So I asked.

Is what are we looking for a 38mm wide tire in Red for a 700c (valid thing) rim?

There should be a rim width specified too as 38mm is wide, as if 38mm wide is what we are looking for the rim width matters too.

veganbikes

No no I get that I am just unsure why we don't do 700cx38? It was more why the "c" is at the end rather then at the beginning after the 700.

johnhoh

I wrote 700x38c because its listed that way in my Specialized user manual

The C is for crochet-type rim. Wikipedia discusses it if you search on ISO_5775#Rims. As a noob I am not allowed to post URLs

alcjphil

The C in the 700c designation has nothing to do with crochet or hook bead rims. It is possible to manufacture crochet type rims of any diameter

johnhoh

got the tires, will post pics in a bit

Iride01 

Red is at the longer wavelength in the spectrum therefore your red tires will be slower perhaps than a color that has a shorter wavelength. Maybe blue or violet colored tires will get you a better speed.

-grin-

GailT

I'm pretty sure the "700x38c" issue is covered here in the archives - it was confusing to me when I got back into biking again a year ago. Can't find the link now, but I think the "c" from the 700c wheel gets transposed, so 700x38c means a 38 mm tire for a 700c tire, which then gets shortened to "38c" tire. So, the c refers to the wheel size, not the tire size, which is assumed to be mm. Makes as much sense as anything else in the confusing vocabulary of wheel and tire sizes.

And good luck to the OP with the new tires.