new bike and ? with tyres

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philr

New Member
Hello everyone

been reading the forum for a few days now, must say an excellent place to likeminded persons.

i have been riding an old heavy mtb for a while now, mostly weekend jaunts,

found out about the cycle to work scheme and decided to buy a much lighter bike.

i opted for a specialized sirrus as i like the stright bar position.
i have never had a bike with such slim and slick tyres before.

i have done 2 commutes to work now, 11 miles each way. i was expecting to have to slowly work up to the full distance.

i am a bit worried about the tyres performing in wet / very wet etc conditions and when autumn / winter finally arrives,

i noticed a lot of members have eg. a winter type bike, how do the slick tyres perform in less than good road conditions, or should i opt for a semi type slick tyre when getting close to autumn etc.

i am a born again biker so very much a newbie
 

zimzum42

Legendary Member
I have no problems with racing tyres in the wet, they grip pretty well. just be careful on corners and with manhole covers, painted lines etc....

I certainly don't change tyres for winter or anything....
 
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philr

New Member
thanks for reply

i remember those manhole covers from my much younger days, i just bounced when i come off my bike in those days,

must be more careful now as i will most probably go crunch :biggrin:
 

RedBike

New Member
Location
Beside the road
On a smooth road all a tread pattern does is reduce the area of the tyre in contact with the road; and therefore reduces the grip.

A wet road will have less grip; but putting a heavily treaded knobbly tyre on wont improve the situation.

The exception to this is when there's mud / gravel on the road. Then a tread pattern will help.

Winter type bikes are mainly so you don't have to wear out the parts on your best bike riding it harsh conditions. Winter bikes normally have wider tyres (They're setup for comfort not speed) that are slightly more puncture resistant (You get more punctures on wet debris covered roads)
 
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philr

New Member
many thanks i understand much better now, what with winter salted roads etc and lots and lots of water, corroding my nice new bike.

mmm i better be careful or i will end up being a fair weather rider, although my bike is not super high spec, it is a lot of money to me, so i better make sure i look after it when the weather turns bad.
 

Scoosh

Velocouchiste
Moderator
Location
Edinburgh
philr said:
many thanks i understand much better now, what with winter salted roads etc and lots and lots of water, corroding my nice new bike.

mmm i better be careful or i will end up being a fair weather rider, although my bike is not super high spec, it is a lot of money to me, so i better make sure i look after it when the weather turns bad.
Some years ago, I bought a Spesh Crossroads (forerunner to the Sirrus) and commuted on it all during the winter. Only prob was sliding on an icy manhole cover and falling; bent the bike a bit but not so I couldn't continue - or get home later. Bike still going strong (stronger than I but don't tell :wacko:)

Regular wash off, chain lube etc and you'll be fine for the next 20 winters - well the bike will be :smile:
 

Maz

Guru
I also have a Specialized Sirrus. Mine came with 28mm tyres (I suspect yours did too). There is no problem with those tyres in the wet.

I have since replaced those tyres with 23mm ones and there is no slippage or anything on wet roads.
 
I have a Spesh Sirrus too, a Sports '06. I changed the rear tyre for a nimbus armadillo (the bike came with plain Nimbus). I did find that the rear was a bit skittish but this was very rare and might be something to do with me having rotated my stem to gain a more aero dynamic position. I've since replaced the nimbus with narrower lighter conti 4 seasons (25mm) and I've never had a problem.
 

Maz

Guru
HLaB said:
I did find that the rear was a bit skittish but this was very rare and might be something to do with me having rotated my stem to gain a more aero dynamic position.
Excuse my ignorance, HLaB, but which bit is the stem? Is it the thing the handlebars join on to? How did you make your bike more aero exactly?
 

zimzum42

Legendary Member
The stem is indeed the bit that joins the handlebars to the rest of the bike

by turning it the other way the handlebars are lower, meaning you are a bit more tucked up and thus aerodynamic....
 
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philr

New Member
thanks everyone for replies, glad to see the bike is quite popular, for me it was the most comfortable with some kind of upgraded seat, that is supposed to prevent penile numbness, the sales person told me the ladies bikes had the same seat :angry: i had trouble trying to work that one out.

the handbar grips make a much more comfortable ride also as the ergonomic shape suits my rist as i do get a little pain in my right rist on longer weekend rides.

all that being i am now quite confident in riding in most weather conditions, but i will watch out for those manhole covers.
 
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philr

New Member
i do like the look of the bar ends, do they offer and kind of grip assist when standing pedaling going up a hill etc. are they easy to fit at all
 

RedBike

New Member
Location
Beside the road
are they easy to fit at all
They're not hard but they're time consuming.

You need to loosen the brake and gear levers and slide them slightly further in towards the middle.

Then the awkward bit.
You need to slide your grips slightly further inwards so the ends of the bar are exposed. This might involve cutting the ends of the grips off (turning them into a tube).
Assuming the grips aren't held in place by little grub screws spraying a bit of GT85 under them to helps slide them off.
 
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