CanadianBiker32

What can one do to make a road bike become a gravel grinder? thanks

Latif

Depends on the bike. Most road bikes don't have enough clearance at the fork crown to run anything much bigger than 25s, sometimes 27. I have a Salsa Vaya billed as an all around adventure road bike with drop bars that can take up to 40s. My Seven has just enough room for 25s which aren't much fun on any extended gravel.

rms13

Put the widest tires that will fit on the frame. Of course some road bikes might be limited to 28mm or 28mm or even 23mm tires in which case you might not be able to handle some terrain. Most gravel specific bikes have disc brakes and slack upright geometry as well. The actual terrain you want to ride will dictate what features you really need. I've ridden hard packed dirt and manicured trails on my road bike with 23mm tires for short distances with no problems

Marvil15

Do you already have a road bike in mind that you want to try and convert? I've done some stretches on gravel on my steel frame bike with 25cc tires (widest that fit) and even though it "worked" I can't say I would rush out and do it again on a regular basis. Really had to slow it down and handling was pretty sketchy. Have added a Diverge now and even though there's a limit on how wide a tire I can fit -running 35's - with the more slack geometry it's night and day compared to my road bike on gravel.

bikemig 

A touring bike can do the job. You could also find a vintage mtb (with a rigid fork) and do a drop bar conversion. You'll want to do some research on this first. You could also find a vintage road bike that takes long reach brakes and/or, even better, center pull brakes and mount fat tires.

MZilliox

basically 26mm gravelkings or fatter tires is what you need. I prefer 28 or 32mm tires. I like slightly higher bars/ more relaxed fit on my "stoner bike" as well.

otherwise its down to lack of fear and bike control

RPK79

Just ride it on gravel.

My road bike takes 700x30 cx tires with a file pattern in the middle and some knobbies on the sides. I love those for gravel, but I've ridden 23s with no issue as long as the roads aren't freshly graded.

smarkinson

As others have said, check tyre clearance under the fork, through the brakes, behind the seatpost (road bikes try to keep this gap as narrow as possible) and along the chain stays.

And try to avoid riding downhills. Road rim brakes are not ideal for gravel. The rims get covered in dust and crap and rim brakes (or even cantilever) just grind that into the rim which can lead to excessive wear or a lovely grinding sound as small rocks embedded in the pads grind against the rim.

Of course, you'd also need to consider if your gearing is suitable for gravel roads.

BarryJo

What road bike do you currently have and what kind of gravel do you plan on riding (graded gravel, or something closer to single track)?
I've never had a problem riding most of the nasty stuff here in the northeast on my Giant TCR road bike with 25s... well that isn't exactly true, I did this one ride on Mavic road tires and flatted 4 times on a 60 mile ride so tires do make a difference. Continental GP4ks seem to hold up well, but the Continental Gatorskins are supposed to be the best for the off road stuff.
You might be better served if you posted your question over in the "gravel forum": Recreational Cyclocross and Gravelbiking

Danny01

Maybe a CX fork with disc brakes? In the rear, if you put the widest tire you can fit on there, that's pretty much all you can do.

Inpd

Have a look in the gravel grinding forum https://www.google.com/url?sa=t&rct=...hyWLcu3w4zTGkg

This question has been asked and answered a few times there.

DOS

A new set of wheels with wider rims would help. The trend in road rims is wider is better anyway, with 23mm and 25mm wide rims becoming increasingly the norm. These are said to improve both aerodynamics and rolling resistance on tne road. But it also has the side result of expanding width of tires and allowing lower air pressure, both good for gravel. I just bought a set of wheels with 25mm rims and my 25mm vittorria tires blow up to 28mm on the wheels and the ride is amazing. 25mm michelins, which measure big anyway, blow up to postively huge 31mm (and still fit in my CAAD10 frame). So I will use these wheels on both road and gravel with same tires.