johnism

I was wondering if any one use a cx bike as their all around bike?

Campag4life

A cx bike is not the best all arounder. A 29er mtb is and I just built a Ti hardtail. Best all arounder I have owned. It is also pretty fast on hardtop with skinny slicks...within a mph or so of a roadbike...aerodynamics and weight keeping its speed down fractionally. Same wheel diameter as a cx and road bike but with wider rims and available with front and/or rear shock and taller rubber than a cx bike. They are also popular with rigid forks and single speed. Cx bikes beat you up for trail riding and jumping curbs in the city and their wheels are not as robust. 29ers have come into popularity because of their exceptional ride quality in particular compared to a 26er mtb and certainly compared to a cx or road bike on less than smooth surfaces. A good combo to own is a road bike and 29er.

bitterken

I'm not trying to be snarky, but I think it would depend on what you mean by an all around bike and what you see yourself doing most with the bike. Like most things, there are compromises with each type of bike, and it's going to depend wholly on what you can and cannot compromise on.

Personally, I don't mountain bike or go on technical trails, so a cross bike (with multiple gearing and tire/wheel options) would be fine for most of what I use a bike for.

ptle

That's what I've got... any a dedicated commuter bike.

Dheorl

It depends entirely on what you do most. I have a CX bike and a 26er mountain bike. Used to be great but my priorities are shifting so I'm planning when I have the money to move to a proper road bike and a different 26er MTB.

simonaway427

CX bike (Spec. Tricross) and 26'er MTB here. CX bike is perfect for commuting and training. No issues with using it as a dedicated road bike.

caloso

I think if I could only have one bike, it would be a CX bike. You could swap wheels (or even just tires) and go from pavement to trail easily.

SillyRabbit

^ +1

therhodeo

I use a CX bike as my main ride and the only thing slowing it down is me. Road tires and a compact crank and its a nice all around ride.

knucklesandwich

I've come to believe that if you can only have 1 bike, a cross bike is probably the way to go. But having gone from having 2 cx bikes to 1 and a road bike, I've also come around to the realization that (on the road) the drop-off from a road bike to a cyclocross rig is bigger than people think.

gus6464

I use a cross bike as my main bike right now. I swap out between 25s and 32s for road and dirt. The bike with 25s is plenty fast on the road and right now the engine is holding everything back more than the bike. I am going to be buying a road bike next year which then my cross will go to dirt duty full time.

A cross bike is a great first bike when you don't know what you want to do yet since it can do it all.

johnism

can you explain this more ... not sure I understand what you mean. Oh my ride back ground is I do group rides and commute , with some distance rides and I have a ( mnt , cx , road bikes) and was thinking about selling them all and building a hell of a cx set up and then just have one bike.

kbtommy

Heck no, at least not for me. I've got a road bike, a cross and a 26er mtb, but if I had to choose one to keep, it'd be the road bike - if for no reason other than I ride it way more than the others. The cross bike is just for goofing off, riding to the store, mid-length rides where I get bored and head into the woods, or trips to the beach. The mtb is... kind of gathering dust, unfortunately, though I'm hoping to get it out more this summer.

ptle

If you're only going to have one bike, a cyclocross bike is the way no way to go. You can throw road bikes tires on there and use it as a road bike. You could put commuter tires on there and use it as a commuter bike. Obviously you can use it as a cyclocross bike. Some cross bikes can accept larger tires, which will be fine for moderate level single track mountain bike.

A 29er is nice, but it can't be made into an effective road bike as much as a cyclocross bike. The cyclocross bike has the same disadvantage when it comes to converting it to a mountain bike. I'd rather have my bike cause me to be slow while mountain biking than road biking.

knobster

Agree with this post. I can't do mountain biking because of a bad wrist so I sold my 29er since it was doing nothing but gathering dust. I had only a Tricross but longed for something more agile. I now have a road bike, a cross bike and a second cross bike for bad weather. The cross bike is my long distance ride and casual rides with the wife. My road bike I ride when I'm either training for a race (TTT) or wanting to ride at a more faster and fun pace. I do notice a difference between the cross and road bike though. The road bike is more fun since it's quicker in steering and acceleration. I don't hold a faster average on the road bike than the cross bike. The cross bike is my go-to bike when doing centuries as it's quite a bit more comfortable with it's more upright stance. Plus come cross season, it's a blast.

johnism

I am wondering if the speed difference could be related to the difference in chain rings or is the geo that much different ?
For example caad9 road and cx9 doesn't seen that much different except the the BB height ... or am I missing somthing

Psimet2001 

A cross bike is a great all around bike. I used one for racing and commuting and the commute was a 50 mile round-trip. I had road tires on it for the main commuting season and then switched back to cross tires during cross season. I ride it during early season as well.

If you plan on racing road though I would seriously consider getting a road specific frame/bike. The handling and brakes would be worth it.

MrnRo

hi everyone
I'm pretty much new at all this so i have a question, I've recently bought a kona jake cx bike to be my one and only. I mostly drive on roads and i average about 15 mph. Now jake has "Continental SpeedKing Cross 700x35C" tires which are knobby and a bit wide. So my question is - how much difference would some decent 700x25 slick tires make?

Psimet2001 

Conti speed kings are a straight block tire - they are fine for use on pavement, grass, and hard pack surfaces. They are a great choice for cross races in the midwest when the conditions are dry.

Nice 700x25 road specific tires will make a great difference to the feel and speed of the bike. Definitely worth the money.

gus6464

Lot less rolling resistance which means you have to pedal less to reach the same distance and your avg speed might increase. My avg speed increased about 1mph after switching out my cross tires for 25's and of course I was less tired riding the same distance with the big tires.

If you are driving mostly on roads I say get yourself a pair of 25s. Some Continental GP4000S in 25 would be a nice tire. If you want to go cheaper I recently got a pair of Vredestein Fiammante for $20/ea and have turned out to be a great cheap tire. They are heavier than Conti's though.

ptle

The 700x25 will definitely make a difference because they are much smaller and not knobby. You'll probably feel faster on the road, but it may be a little harsher ride. They'll be less vibration because of the lack of knobs on the tires.

knobster

Depends on the frame. Some cross frames have nearly the same geometry as you stated above. Others have a much longer head tube providing a more upright position. My Tricross is more similar to a touring bike geometry than a pure road bike. This makes it more stable but turns like a truck. Long rides and casual rides, this is great. Road racing, I'd rather have something with quicker handling and more sensitive brakes.

RT

The brakes are the weak link of cross bike (cross racers will beg to differ, and they are probably right for their application). The simple solution is to get rid of the cantis and install mini V's. The braking power is unlike anything I've ever stopped with, and the Tektro or Sinz calipers are only about $10 a pair. You'll need new cables too to compensate for the additional reach. My 2009 Fuji Cross Comp has nice compact geometry, and when the wheels are swapped out, aside from the visual difference of the mini V brakes, it looks just like a road bike.

As far as tires go, mine came with 700x30. Check Sheldon's tire size guide by using the inside width of your specific rim to determine how low/high you can go in tire size. I run the 30's when on trails and 25's on the road.

eippo1

I use a cross bike for my do everything bike and use it for commuting as well as riding trails. I don't really see it as a replacement for my road bike because it's heavy as ****. When I got it, I thought I wanted a smooth steel ride that would be different from my Tarmac, but I've come to realize that part of the reason that I love my Tarmac is because I love a stiff, light ride. So I'm getting rid of my steel Masi in favor of an aluminum cross bike with tighter geometry like the Colnago World Cup or the Santa Cruz Stigmata.

Hunt-man

If you need knobby's and slicks get a 2nd set of wheels. Some 25's / slick will make a big difference compared to knobby 35's.

Put some good Koolstop brake pads on there and you'll hardly notice the difference compared to a caliper brake.