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79 Raleigh Competition GS with 32 tires?

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79 Raleigh Competition GS with 32 tires?

Old 02-04-20, 09:15 AM
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tammons
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79 Raleigh Competition GS with 32 tires?

Where I am located now, there are a lot of dirt and gravel roads, and I was thinking about trying some 700x32 tires on my competition GS. I think the front will be okay, but the back bottom frame is tight.

Anybody try this and if so which tire?
If it did not work, what did you have luck with?
I am looking for a tire with a decent road rolling resistance.
Like with a solid center tread.
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Old 02-04-20, 09:18 AM
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Have you taken out the adjustment screws and pushed the wheel all the way back? That should help. Also which year GS? Older road bikes tend to have better clearance than later ones. Assuming the bike has normal or standard reach (and not short reach) brakes, you can usually find a way to make a 32c tire work.

There are lots of good 32c tire choices out there. Panaracer gravel kings might be a good choice for you given your intended use.
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Old 02-04-20, 09:19 AM
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Yes all the way back. 1979.
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Old 02-04-20, 09:44 AM
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Regarding your desire for a gravel tire with a "solid" (smooth) center tread - I've tried a few if these types of tires, with small knobs on the side of the tread and a smooth center. I find that they are very buzzy on pavement, and more importantly are terrible at keeping traction while cornering, because the knobs don't support the tire well at an angle. Some examples are the WTB Byway and the Simworks Homage (based on an earlier Panaracer design). I would stick with a wide but smoother tread tire or one with small knobs all the way around.

The guys at Bicycle Quarterly mention this when talking about development of a knobby gravel tire: https://www.renehersecycles.com/the-...pose-knobbies/
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Old 02-04-20, 09:50 AM
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I was thinking something like the tread pattern of the Continental Tour ride, only that tire does come in a 700x32.
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Old 02-04-20, 10:00 AM
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Yes, I had a '79 and was running 700x32 Panaracer Paselas on it. I had no issues. Mine had a sloping fork crown and many of them don't, so I don't know if that will affect you.

I miss that bike, it was a really excellent ride.
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Old 02-04-20, 10:08 AM
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One of my first 650b conversions was a Competition GS. I was able to fit 38mm tires. It was an excellent rider.
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Old 02-04-20, 10:48 AM
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70's Raleigh specs were notoriously loose, but tire clearance was "ample", but as you go from early to late 70's they tightened up. That said, 32's would almost certainly fit, especially if you're not running fenders.

Pictures of tire clearance around the bottom bracket and fork crown areas with current tires would be very helpful.

"One accurate measurement is worth a thousand expert opinions."
Admiral Grace Hopper

edit: "where I'm located now..." where are you located? Your gravel and dirt may be different than the gravel and dirt I ride on. Here in the PNW, forestry roads are ridden best without any real tread. Knobbies are only helpful when you're ridding in soft dirt.
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Old 02-04-20, 12:58 PM
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I have a 79 G.S. and had 28mm GP 400s mounted to Arayas and it was as tight as I would go on good roads. My rear wheel is forward in the drop outs. Now I have 25mm Gatorskins on H Plus Son TB14s and I think it is perfect. They measure 27 with my Crescent micrometer. Smooth set up and currently my planned EroicaCA ride.


A picture. But not the best.
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Old 02-04-20, 11:33 PM
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FWIW I just bought an '81. It has cheap 27" rims with 1-1/4 Pasela tires. They fit but probably couldn't go any wider.
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Old 02-04-20, 11:37 PM
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Originally Posted by lostarchitect
Yes, I had a '79 and was running 700x32 Panaracer Paselas on it. I had no issues. Mine had a sloping fork crown and many of them don't, so I don't know if that will affect you.

I miss that bike, it was a really excellent ride.
i recall that Raleigh made a. “Running change” to the Comp GS, all bikes of that year may not share the same geometry.
test, don’t guess.
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Old 02-05-20, 03:43 AM
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I have a 1977 Competition GS and was going to ride Eroica California this year on that bike . I have since changed my plans and will ride my Medici. I just got a set of 28’s for the Raleigh and am hoping they fit. I have 23’s on it now and it looks like the larger tires may be tight. I love the ride of my Raleigh and have put many happy miles on it even with skinny tires. I think the ride will be even better with 28’s. Joe. joesvintageroadbikes.wordpress
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Old 02-05-20, 03:50 AM
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Originally Posted by repechage
i recall that Raleigh made a. “Running change” to the Comp GS, all bikes of that year may not share the same geometry.
test, don’t guess.
I have seen some variations as well on the Competition GS. I think they may have changed the dropouts at some point which could affect what tire size you could run. Mine is a pretty tight frame and is the first year of the GS.
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Old 02-05-20, 06:25 AM
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Trying SCHWALBE Marathon 700x35 tires. We will see how they fit.
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Old 02-05-20, 02:14 PM
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My 1979 competition had 32s but they were tight with only a little bit of wiggle room. I ran it with 28s after that.
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Old 02-06-20, 12:06 AM
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32's will fit, but you have to stay back in the dropouts. 28's fit much better and offer about the same ride. IMO I'd stay on pavement, the frame is too nice to trash
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