Preparing road bike for rough commute

tantalus2002
tantalus2002 Posts: 6
edited October 2016 in Road general
I'm after some advice. I've recently changed jobs and now my commute takes in a rough cycle path and a couple of gravelly off road paths. My road bike which is based around a Giant Defy frame, Shimano RS wheels and 105 chainset has always been fine for a road based commute but I'm worried it's a bit fragile for the current route. As buying a new cross or gravel bike is out of my range, are there any good modifications I can make to the current setup to make it a bit more robust?

Comments

  • trek_dan
    trek_dan Posts: 1,366
    Buy the bigest tyres you can fit on to smooth the ride a little.
  • tangled_metal
    tangled_metal Posts: 4,021
    And check spokes. My road bike used to need the wheel truing almost weekly due to my rough road commute. All on the road but it's a very rough road near work. I'd get spokes that worked loose and always a slightly buckled wheel. Easy enough to pull into shape again which was needed for braking. Now I've got a better bike for it with disc brakes which don't seem to mind a wheel that's a bit bent out of shape.
  • fenix
    fenix Posts: 5,437
    Check out Paris Roubaix footage - bikes arent as delicate as you think.

    Bigger tyres and keeping an eye on pressures is probably all you need.
  • fat daddy
    fat daddy Posts: 2,605
    The bike ..... just decent bigger tires .... the biggest things I have discovered about going off of the road is this :-

    if you are cycling in the dark you will benefit from a lot better front light .... its not about being seen on rough roads but about seeing what is just about to take your front wheel away from you

    Cleaning gear - your bike will get exponentially dirtier and your gears and brakes will clog up with wet grass, grit, mud, stringy stuff ... make sure you are ontop of cleaning it each weekend

    Glasses - if you don't already wear eye protection, now is a good time to invest, mud gets flung up a surprising amount

    head torch, or a bike ight that is easily detachable .... when you do ostop in the dark to try and work out whats got tangled in your deurailur, its usefull to have a light source you don't need to hold.

    shoe covers .... puddles on the road slowely get you wet. ..... puddles on a gravel path, for some reason, go right down in your shoes the second you go through them
  • slowbike
    slowbike Posts: 8,498
    My Shimano RS wheels and 25mm tyres on a carbon frame were fine for Tour of Flanders ride earlier this year.

    Not sure I'd want to ride that sort of surface everyday though - I'd definately go for N+1 - doesn't have to be new.
    I'd want fixed mudguards
    decent tyre width - 28mm+
    groupset that is inexpensive to repair/replace (105 just about fits that)
  • Anonymous
    Anonymous Posts: 79,667
    A bit gravely does not sound too bad.
    Cycle paths and gravel do not really need bigger tyres.

    Its much nicer on bigger tyres, but then your old commute probably would of been too.

    Its not Paris-Roubaix (which kills bikes in a single day by the way!) or flanders, so its mainly about your comfort, not the bikes wellbeing.
    Not sure why the slghtly different conditions would necessitate mudgaurds (if you don't have them already), but bigger tyres may need bigger mudguards (if you do).

    How would you feel about having bigger, lower pressure (if bike can take it) tyres on the bike for non commute times?
  • slowbike
    slowbike Posts: 8,498
    If he's using 23mm or 25mm tyres atm - then cycle paths and gravel would certainly benefit from having wider tyres - especially during the cold & wet periods. Cycle paths generally get grotty in the wet - there isn't the traffic to clear them and the council don't sweep them either. That's also why I'd use mudguards - otherwise you arrive at work splattered in muck ...

    Not - it's not PR or Flanders - so the bike won't be destroyed - assuming he makes it to work without coming a cropper on the cycle path or gravelly bits ...

    you can always have 2 sets of wheels - commute set and non-commute set ... ?
  • Anonymous
    Anonymous Posts: 79,667
    100% agree its better to go wider (I put 38mm slicks on my CX bike for commuting and thats just road!), just that (and it depends very much on actual surfaces involved) its probably not really necessary.
    Np trying them though.
    I am a big fan of trying different things in cycling.

    I trashed a brand new 28mm 4 Season tyre on an unswept cycle path. It would have trashed any tyre though.
    It was my bad riding and decision not to ride on the road that caused the expense.

    If OP has 23mm then changing to 28mm will make any other use of the bike very different.
    If they are currently 25mm, then its possibly not worth the hassle and expense to put brand new tyres on.

    Wheels are a faff to keep changing. IMO.
    If the journey really is that bad then its time to find a second bike.
  • bikegangster
    bikegangster Posts: 98
    Use some touring tyres. Such as Marathon Supreme, Kenda Tendril/Bitumen or Continental Sport Contact II. I try not to go over bigger than 32c as acceleration and climbing hills will be slower.
  • homers_double
    homers_double Posts: 8,290
    Alternative route?
    Advocate of disc brakes.
  • mr_eddy
    mr_eddy Posts: 830
    I would echo the tyres but I would go 1 step further and say maybe a new wheelset. I know that may seem a little ott but a decent hand built wheelset or even a decent factory set based around 32 spokes with decent hubs combined with some 28c Marathon plus tyres will be practically bomb proof.

    Yes you will add some weight but if its commuting on gravel paths then top speed is not going to be the main concern, Reliability, comfort and puncture protection is arguably more important and the above would give the best result.

    I would say £200 will get you some decent factory wheels and 28c Marathon (or similar) tyres. £300 should get you some handbuilt wheels.

    Failing that wider tyres at lower pressures.

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