breezwhey

I have both a 90 Trek 930 and a 95 Trek 750. The 750 is a great gravel bike. I checked frame geometry on the more popular modern gravel bikes, and the 90s 700 series have almost identical dimensions. I have 700x38 (I already had them) on the 750, but it will easily take a lot larger. I’ve read where 41s are the max, but I think that’s because of the front derailleur being in the way. I removed mine (went 1x8)and I think 45s might fit. I have 26x2.25 on the 930 with room to spare. I think your 800 is somewhere between the 2 bikes. I did try the 930 on gravel, but it’s a better MTB and the 750 more comfortable on longer gravel rides. I’d go for it, it’s a very cheap solution.

brianinc-ville

Sorry I don't have better pictures, but here's my trusty 1984 Peugeot Carbolite P-whatever wearing Kenda KrossCyclos in 27 x 1 3/8.




Unfortunately, on the ride home that day I learned why people don't usually run fenders on forest trails -- one stick = one less vintage Bluemels fender in the world:

Jimbo1983

My old SR Semi Pro (or Pro-Am, not 100% sure). I have 38mm tubeless 650b tyres on it, have done some light light-touring on it and just general mixed road riding. I've had this frame for years, I got it straightened by Yellow Jersey back when we lived in SoCal, and powder coated as the paint was knackered. My favourite bike in its current setup.

Paramount1973 

This bike takes chunky gravel pretty well and is about to get upgraded to Maxxis 2.15 DTH tires. Then it will do even better. As shown, it has 42mm Panaracer Tservs and I commuted on them for several years. I took those off a couple of years ago and switched to Schwalbe Big Apples to ride on at the beach that summer. They rolled surprisingly fast and handled gravel pretty well so I left them on. I expect the same or better performance from the Maxxis DTH tires plus I’ll be saving about 300 gm per tire.

lonesomesteve

I no longer own any skinny tire bikes, but here's my most gravely all-road bike. It can comfortably handle anything that you might refer to as a "road."


It's a 1982 Trek 710, pretty heavily modified with added canti brake posts, a bunch of other braze-ons, and dented chainstays to make room for 650b x 42mm tires.

Pompiere

My 1992 Performance Parabola may have been ahead of its time for the gravel bike craze. It's basically a road bike with generous tire clearance, a tough frame and plenty of mounts for racks and water bottle cages. The only things I changed from stock are the stem, saddle and crankset. I've also added fenders so I can ride in wet weather.


1992 Performance Parabola

Charliekeet

So... 650b - would love to make my '85 Cannondale SR more gravel-capable and get to 32s or 35s. So I think I'm giving up on 700c for it because I can't even get certain 28s on it (certain ones I can). Problem is, it's 126 spacing, 6-speed freewheel stuff. Where are people getting their 650b 126 rear wheels? Is this an expensive proposition??

I'm wondering if it's time for me to move on to a different frame with at least 130 spacing and more clearance, but despite its limitations, I love the bike as the rear triangle is so stiff - I'm a Clydesdale.

JaccoW

One option is to rebuild the hub inside a 650B rim. Which requires a rim + spokes + new brakes + tyres.

Paramount1973 

I set this 700c Novara X-R hybrid up for commuting, the commute had stretches of gravel, rough roads, pavement, MUP, and steep hills. I rode it as the main commuter bike the last two years I worked before retirement. 8 speed bar end shifters, 48-38-24 crankset with a 11-32 cassette and cross levers. It currently has Vittoria Hyper Randonneur 38mm tires which are quite slick. The frame could handle 42mm and I’d like to increase the tire size. I’d like to ride it as a 700c alternative to my drop bar 26ers. Tire suggestions welcome.

bOsscO

Not a fan of the big S but have a look at their Pathfinder Pro 2 Bliss tires. They come in 700x42.

mstateglfr 

Hypers were a great tire. I have some 35mm(marked 37 i think?) tires on my touring/commute bike and they feel quick. Its a shame they got rid of the tire and I should have bought more when PlanetX had em for $18 a tire. Just a filthy good deal.
As for what to use now, look into Panaracer Gravelking SS as it comes in a 43mm size. I actually just received a pair yesterday from Nashbar! Its 1mm larger than you mention, but they are supposed to be a great mix of size and smooth rolling for low resistance.
Obviously there is Compass/Rene Herse as an option too- they have 3 different tire styles for each size and are also made by Panaracer.
Lastly, WTB has the Resolute which is a 42mm tire. I used those for my last gravel tires and even thought they have some lugs, they move very well on pavement. Pretty light tire too.

shelbyfv

Many BFers have used 130 wheels on vintage Cannondales w/o drama. Nothing more than a jiggle is needed to fit.

Charliekeet

I know some say yes... but some say NO, from what I've read over the years.
Assuming that were possible, is it much easier to find 130s in 650b? It's rarer than MTB wheels, obviously.

gugie 

QUOTE=lonesomesteve;21765728]I no longer own any skinny tire bikes, but here's my most gravely all-road bike. It can comfortably handle anything that you might refer to as a "road."
It's a 1982 Trek 710, pretty heavily modified with added canti brake posts, a bunch of other braze-ons, and dented chainstays to make room for 650b x 42mm tires.[/QUOTE]
Oh, Frek!

Is that Frek III?

lonesomesteve

Counting the bikes I've built for my wife and son, I suppose you could call this Frek V. Except that technically my wife's bike is a Fraleigh.

vascoboy

My commuter...versatile.

daviddavieboy

I am admiring many of you folks taking your C/V bikes on trails. I have done so myself but cringing at times when hitting rough stuff. It was for this reason I built up a new gravel-ish touring bike and now my bikes with hundreds of hours invested do not have to see any more rocks. This is my 2nd bike with disc brakes (first was a disaster) and I hate to say but at close to 300# loaded for overnights it is nice to be able to stop with only one finger going down hill.

Germany_chris

What’s the point of spending all that time and money just to baby it?

Kabuki12

If I am knowingly going to be on dirt or light gravel roads(not that often) , I prefer my 1973 Mondia with its 27" x 1 1/4" Michelin Pro Tech tires . It seems to handle it OK , they measure 1.39" when inflated. Definitely stretching the limits of the frame but it works and rides very smooth on paved roads with some ability to take to the off road.

daviddavieboy

Who said anything about babying it. I put 2500 KM on one and 2000 on the other. The point of the time and money is to enjoy it no matter how one chooses to do so. If Eroica Cali happens this spring it will be the last time for any gravel on the old bikes.

Dylansbob 

This was from my shakedown ride last spring. I quickly decided I didn't like the stem-mounted bag support and installed a VO rack to the canti studs.

Sir_Name 

Anything to add about the Fairlight?? Did you discuss sizing or anything else with them prior to purchase? My next bike will be either the Secan 2.0 or Faran 2.0 when the time comes. Likely the Secan to avoid some overlap with another bike. They seem to tick just about all of the boxes in what I’m looking for.

As for C&V ‘gravel bikes’ I think of primarily tire volume and gear range. As others have said, it really comes down to where you want to go. 25mm tubulars will ride hardpack all day. Apart from a ‘91 Rockhopper MTB I have three bikes that I built with mixed surface riding in mind.

‘83 Woodrup 753, 32mm rubber, 50/28 x 13-30 7sp gearing:


‘71 International Gugificazione, 42mm rubber, 46/30 x 11-42 11sp gearing:

(I was still playing with fit when this photo was taken)

‘81(? I forget off the top of my head) Grand Touring, 38mm rubber, 48-16 fixed/SS (I need to drop the gear inches a bit...):


Just to throw it out there...a word of caution, if running fenders off-road it’s good practice to keep the stays snug, but not tight. If you pick up a stick or rock with the front wheel you want the stay to pop out of the mounting hardware at the eyelet rather than things getting jammed up. I’ve had that happen once and was glad all I had to do was pop the stay back in place and snug it down trail-side. The next bike for mainly off-road riding will be fender-free.

mstateglfr 

Ive had it for almost a year and a half and absolutely love the frame- it is simple, well designed, and fits what I wanted.
Admittedly, the design isnt for everyone.

It is a lower trail design, which i really like, but many large brands seem to design around higher trail. I like a gravel bike that rides like my road bikes since my gravel roads are simply unpaved roads. I just want more tire clearance over a paved road bike, basically.

The frame is very well fabricated- its a neatly welded front triangle and the rear triangle is brazed. The printed cable guide is very simple and sturdy. Paint has been excellent, as expected.
I dont think I need a 44mm head tube, but its the trend, so it exists. The front end is stiff as expected, but I have never thought its uncomfortable compared to my other bikes. 43.5mm wide tires definitely eliminate any harsh/stiff feeling that could be created from the trendy stiff front end.
The front triangle tubing is 853, but this is not a light frame. It is a strong frame that is overbuilt for most in order to comply with fatigue testing. The 853 DZB(double zonal butted, which is really just triple butted) downtube is basically a mountain bike tube that exists so a gusset isn't needed.
The frame is by no means heavy compared to other steel disc gravel frames, but it isnt light compared to steel road bike frames. Just keep that in mind.
The ovalized top tube is for lateral stiffness apparently, but I like it because it makes carrying the bike easier/more comfortable.
I bought the Hope headset upgrade so that was already installed and it is very nice.

I have looked at the Secan 2.0 and the only difference I've seen from the original is that the fork now has mid-mounting points.
Thats cool and could be appealing for those wanting to use the bike for bikepacking, but I have a Black Mountain MC for commute/touring that so I dont have a need for fork mounts.

The frame builds up easily since all cables are routed outside the frame. I get that there is a strong industry trend to route all cables internally from the bars, but having them on the outside makes setup and maintenance super easy and I dont think twice about the cables routed externally.

Tire clearance is excellent too. I'll suggest a couple of great tires- - wtb Resolute are 42mm, pretty light, have significant tread, but roll fast. These are great overall and work well on dirt singletrsck too.
- panaracer gravelking ss 43mm. The ss version stands for semi-slick. These are heavier than Resolute, but still light. They are basically a slick and seem to roll faster than Resolute tires. Seriously comfortable and fast tire. I moved to these recently because most of my gravel rides are 2/3 gravel 1/3 paved.


Edited to add- there are a handful of other steel gravel frames i considered.
Ritchey Outback 2.0- good weight, low stack, limited tire clearance.
Ribble CGR 725- stack too low and frame a bit heavier.
All City Cosmic Stallion- came super close to buying. Awesome paint schemes, good weight, but stack a bit too low.
Jamis Renegade S1 frameset- again, came super close to buying. At the time the stack wasn't high enough, but they have since tweaked geometry at least on the largest frame. This is a fantastic option with a 631 and carbon fork with mounts.

Just mentioning these in case you haven't considered them. They would have sizes that work great for most who aren't goofy tall like me.

non-fixie 

Just built a new "all-road" touring bike. The gearing will be improved for when I really go into the hills (COVID-19 permitting) and will involve a triple chain set. The Strada Bianca tires have served me well on the rough stuff on other bikes.

gomango

I'm going for a Faran 2.0

It checks all of the boxes for me.

I'm ready to send the deposit this week as soon as I choose the frame color.

I'll likely retire the Bilenky and that will just about cover the frameset.

https://fairlightcycles.com/product/...v=79cba1185463