X'igaa Kaa

Some basic information you may need to consider:
70's Nishiki International 10-speed
Right now I have:
Rims - Sunrims CR-18
Wheels - Vittoria Zaffiro 27 - 1 1/4

I've put a little over 1000 miles on them both, and want to get some better tires, and have been leaning towards Schwalbe Marathons. which they do have in 27s, online.
Would it just make more sense to upgrade to 700s so I'd have more tire options and wouldn't have to order them online again in the future?
My thoughts are, that the rims are still just fine, and should have many more miles to go on them, so spending money on new ones just seems excessive right now. but, it might be for the best.
Right now, I'm mostly just commuting around campus and around town, putting in roughly 5-10 miles a day, but I want to tour more as well.

Thanks for your help

wrk101

Excessive. The only way to do it cheap is find a donor bike and make a quick swap. But financially, it does not make sense. I buy all of my tires on line anyway, as I get a lot lower price. I have several bikes with 27 inch rims, and several with 700c rims. But I would not spend money to make a swap.

If I am building up a frame, I will use 700c wheels (off a donor of course).

+1 To the comments below, you can end up having problems with your brakes, which will cost more money to address.

garage sale GT

You can't put 700c tires on 27" rims. Some say a few unusually large 700c tires will fit on the smallest 27" rims because everything has tolerances, but normally it doesn't work.

27" Zaffiros are a 27tpi tire. Pretty thick, coarse sidewall plys.

Try some Conti Ultrasports or Panaracer Paselas if you want more performance. Also, make sure the tube is small and thin. It's fine to use a 700c innertube. If you got innertubes for 23-28mm tires they might roll easier.

Bianchigirll 

if you are inquiring about upgrading the wheelset to 700c from 27 that can be tricky. you will most likely need new longreach brakes. 700c wheels are just small enough that they will often not work frames made for 27" wheels without new brakes

operator

Not true.

Seen it before on a flat repair. 700c on a 27" rim. We had to destructively remove it.

Sixty Fiver

Buy the 27 inch Marathons... barring accidents those rims will last as long as the Marathons and then you can think about the 700c upgrade.

Sixty Fiver

Been there...it is not pretty.

garage sale GT

Hmmm. Didn't I say it was possible? It's also possible to jump in front of a bus. I guess I should have spelled out that you can't do it without serious consequences stemming from too-tight fit.

operator

lol

noglider 

I don't see the point in changing your rims. I'm riding 27" rims and don't plan to change to 700c. I recommend the Panaracer Pasela (non-Tourguard) tire, at $20 on the web. Very nice for commuting. They're not heavy duty. The sidewalls are quite thin, which make it feel light and quick. If you need heavier duty, perhaps the Marathons will be better.

TurbineBlade

To OP: Yeah, I've done it without any problems. Just make sure your road brakes have the extra 4mm of pad movement to reach to the new rims...which is seldom a problem if you're using the old brakes.

That said, I've never had issue with 27" wheels and finding tires.

well biked

I've done a bunch of these conversions over the years, and it seems that it's a problem about half the time. "Sometimes" would be a better word to plug in there instead of "seldom," from my experience.

TurbineBlade

Maybe so - most of the weinmann brakes I've used seem to have pads mounted just about in the middle on a 27"...which usually gives enough for 700c.

YMMV.

Shimagnolo

So you are saying: You can put a 700c *on* a 27" rim; You just can't take a 700c *off* a 27" rim.

cyclist2000

I thought that operater said that you can take it off but you won't be putting it back on and riding on it.

CCrew

Actually, you only need 4mm in travel on the pads in the slots to make 700's work. More often than not that is available. You're making it out like it's magic or complicated and it's far from it.

I'd be more concerned that the rear dropout spacing is correct and not the older 120mm versus the newer 130mm.

well biked

My mileage has indeed varied, that's why I posted what I did. There are old brakes out there that aren't Weinmann's, or maybe Weinmann's you haven't worked on, or maybe frame/forks you haven't worked on, etc, etc.

It's a good practice on this forum to open your mind to the fact that if you haven't worked on a wide range of stuff in regard to a certain issue, you really aren't qualified to make blanket statements based on your personal experience. Report your experience, being specific, but don't make blanket statements like "it's seldom a problem" if, as in this case for example, you've only converted a few old bikes with a certain brake.

Road Fan

Bingo! There's also a Continental Gatorskin available in 27 inch.

What tire do you want to use? These are pretty good ones, in addition to the heavier Marathons or Armadillos.

Road Fan

Look at the reach of your existing brakes and the position of the brake pad. If the pads can move down 4 mm in the slot, you don't need new brakes.

TurbineBlade

Dude, get a life.

I post on here in a similar way to how I speak to real people out there face-to-face. This forum isn't a way for me to polish my thesis composition skills or make myself seem more intelligent.

I used the words "maybe so" and "seldom"....what the hell is your problem?

well biked

Wow, I even gave you the smiley face and everything.

operator

Rofl, bikeforums fight fight fight!

tcs

Shouldn't have to order 27s - millions of bikes out there that use them! Should be able to find them at your LBS, small town hardware and autoparts stores, suburban big boxes, etc.

Available 27s should be fine, and surprisingly, more commonly available in rural American touring destinations.

tcs

corkscrew

I don't understand why everyone wants to convert to 700'cs when their 27's are in good shape.

Old Tech doesn't equate to bad. I'd take a high end pair of 27's over a cheap intro level set of 700'cs anytime and that doesn't require screwing with your brake setup. Most of my road bikes are 27's, only one is 700c, I've never had problems finding tires for any of them. Hell I've even found 27's at the local department store.

Bianchigirll 

how do you like these tires? I bought two x32 pair and have a x28 pair and a 26x1.25 on order. they look nice and seem to be one of the few tires with a skinwall you can buy for under $75. I haven't had a chance to ride them other than around the parking lot.