fuji_owner

Hi guys,

I'm looking for a new bike to, hopefully, satisfy my bike lust

I already have 2 good road bikes, one of which is "race-able". Now I'm looking for a combo bike for off-road riding, which is close to what cyclocross is, and touring.

I don't know what the finer differences are between road bike geometry and cyclocross geometry, except that the latter has more tire clearance and uses cantilever style brakes.

But I also want to be able to mount racks and use fatter tires for touring and commuting.

One thing to consider is the material. How does 753 or 853 steel compare with 4130 chromoly in terms of rust resistance, ride quality, etc.

Is this doable? Is it weird? Are there bikes out there that already have this combo, or should I resort to custom build?

Thanks!

cvall91

I can't tell you anything about the material. But cross bikes have a more relaxed geometry, so a taller head tube. The fork has a wider gap for more clearance, allowing bigger tires and also so mud does not get stuck. These bikes usually come with bigger tires already, not full on MTB knobby tires, and not skinny road bike tires, little of both. That's pretty much it as far as I know. They either come in cantilever, regular ones that road bikes come with (don't know the name) or disc brakes. And they have the appropriate holes to install fenders and racks.

merlinextraligh

Lot of bikes that are marketed as cross bikes have fender/rack mounts.

UCI rules only allow a maximum width tire of 32mm, but many CX bikes have clearence for wider.

Many CX bikes will work well touring.

Just avoid the truly purpose built CX bikes that don't even come with water bottle mounts.

Bacciagalupe

Numerous cross- and cross-like bikes are fine for gravel/dirt trails and touring: Salsa Vaya, Surly Cross Check or LHT, Specialized Tricross, Soma Doublecross, Jamis Aurora.

The differences between cross and road bikes aren't that significant. Cross bikes tend to have more clearance for wider tires and fenders; will come with canti brakes, and are just starting to get disc; they usually have larger front triangles and cables running along the top of the tube, to make the bike easier to carry. Some will have a slightly longer wheelbase.

One key item that will probably need some tweaks is the gearing. Touring usually requires low gearing, as you will eventually have to lug 20+ pounds of gear up a steep hill at the end of the day. You're likely to need a triple and wide cassette.

I'd probably go for a Surly Disc Trucker. It's a bit heavy and a tad slow, but it's a versatile bike, already has low gearing, 26" tires, should work well for paths, pavement, commuting, touring, and general recreational rides.

CoMotionRider

I have the Salsa Vaya. I looked at the Surley Disc Trucker but I liked the way the Vaya rode. I think the Vaya is more geared to offroad and gravel paths and mid weight touring. For heavy touring the LHT i think is better suited, it has 36 spokes. I use the Vaya for commuting and some club rides, rail to trails and I have had it on a single track a few times. Just have to change the tires. If I was going to tour across the US and take camping and cooking gear, I would get new 36 spoke rims for the bike. For 4-7 day carrying full gear, I will go with the rims that came stock on it. I rode the Vaya across North Carolina and it rained several days and I love the disk brakes.

WhyFi

I was looking in to something like this a little while back. The favorite that I came across was the Hampsten Strada Bianca, which is custom but not crazy expensive.