Bicycle Mechanics - tires - 27" vs 700x28c

Hi,

What are the pros and cons of 27" and 700x28c tires? And after reading about tires I'm still not sure which one gives the bigger wheel dia. I have a vintage that now, when I got it has 700 and I' m about to receive delivery on a hardly used original set of wheels that have 27".

Thanks,
Jack

Hi,

What are the pros and cons of 27" and 700x28c tires? And after reading about tires I'm still not sure which one gives the bigger wheel dia. I have a vintage that now, when I got it has 700 and I' m about to receive delivery on a hardly used original set of wheels that have 27".

Thanks,
Jack

There is a much wider selection of mid/high performance tires for 700c than there is for 27". That alone is reason enough to switch, not to mention the fact that 27" most likely means steel wheels as well.

There is an 8 mm difference in rim diameter (700c is smaller). 700c x 35 will rollout about the same as 27 x 1.25. 700c tires are available in sizes from 23mm wide (some of which are closer to 21mm) which is about 3/4" up to 40mm wide - almost 1 1/2" in width. What will fit is a function of clearance between the stays, bridges and crowns. For reference my '83 T400 Cannondale was designed for 27 x 1.25 tire and fenders. I'm running 700c x 37 tire and fenders today for touring on gravel railtrails.

I disagree that 27" = steel rims. Plenty of quality alloy wheels were and are available in 27". Many quality bikes from the 70's and 80's were built using quality 27" alloy wheels (trek 520s, Fuji, Schwinn Paramounts, Cannondales, among numerous others).

There are a lot more choices of quality 700c tire sizes, but recently things have improved. You can get quality 27" tires such as Schwalbe Marathons, Panaracer Paselas, and Continental Gators. Even Performance Bike has their house brand available in 27 x1 and 27 x 1.25 with/without Kevlar belts for the budget minded.

In some cases you can swap out 700c wheels for 27" but in some cases you'll need different (long reach) brakes to make up the difference. If you're thinking about a switch, see if your brake pads can move down 4mm (about 1/4") to match the diameter of the 700c rims.

If you have a bike with steel wheels, well, they have got to go. Steel wheels barely provide adequate braking when dry and NONE when wet. If you need to replace wheels (and your brakes will work or you're willing to swap them also) then I would replace them with 700c


Good Luck

Doug

There are no pros to 27 inch wheels. It's an obsolete size. Will it make any difference to the bike or the ride? No.

27 inch wheels are just a bit taller (about a quarter of an inch), but I don't know too many people who go back to 27 inch if they already have 700c.

There are no pros to 27 inch wheels. It's an obsolete size.
That's absolutely right. The only reason to use 27" wheels is if you already have decent ones (aluminum rims and adequate hubs and spokes) and the frame won't accept 700c without a brake change.
Given a choice, 700c is THE way to go.

Thanks for all the good info. I'll use the like new vintage wheels that are on there way, and rebuild the 700c set that is partly vintage.

Again thanks,
Jack