Cyclocross - Trek 1000 Convesion to Cyclocross Bike

I am in the process of converting a Trek 1000 road bike for the CX season. I swapped out the fork for one with Canti mounts. Due to wheel clearance I am currently running without a rear brake so some thicker tires will fit. However, there is still minimal clearance. Any suggestions for rear brakes which will allow some tire clearance and mount to road caliper mounts.

How safe would it be to ride with no rear brake? I know it provides minimal stopping power but due to some of the steep descents it will likely come in handy to avoid flipping over the front bars.

you could run an old center pull caliper... like a mafac, weinmann, dia compe, etc. i'm sure they could be had on ebay for cheap. or you can get fancy and run a paul racer. (http://www.paulcomp.com/racer.html)

you could run an old center pull caliper... like a mafac, weinmann, dia compe, etc. i'm sure they could be had on ebay for cheap. or you can get fancy and run a paul racer. (http://www.paulcomp.com/racer.html)

^^ what isotopesope said.

If you still have clearence issues, consider running a wider tire in the front than in the rear.

There used to be, back in the day, bolt on canti mounts. Schwinn made some if I remember. They clamped to the seat stays like a derailleur to a seat tube. If all else fails have some mounts brazed on. You'll need to paint or primer the frame. Sounds like an interesting project. Good luck.

Excuse the ignorance.....I too am converting a road frame (SS Steel frame) to a cross bike. What is value of the cantilever brake setup? I would be able to run center pull but don't have canti posts on my fork.

Thanks for the info/reply!!

cantilever allows for room so that mud doesnt gunk up.. also allows more room to maybe install mudguards if you chose to do so..

Yup, mud and tire clearance. But, if you can find center-pulls, or even long-reach calipers with lots of clearance, you might be able to make them work.

Thanks for the info....If I don't run canti or center pull brakes will I be totally miserable running standard road brakes if I happen upon a somewhat sloppy course?

However, if I used..say MAFAC 2000 CENTER PULL brakes, would I still be able to use road brake cables and campy style levers?

i don't know, my oddball mutantcross Trek ran pretty well in miserable muddy conditions beside the brandywine river today with a half-a**ed rear brake only...mud and grass seem to work pretty good at 'braking' (ha)

Thanks for the info....If I don't run canti or center pull brakes will I be totally miserable running standard road brakes if I happen upon a somewhat sloppy course?

However, if I used..say MAFAC 2000 CENTER PULL brakes, would I still be able to use road brake cables and campy style levers?
a center pull caliper would provide much more tire and mud clearance than a standard road caliper. i would go with a canti up front and a center pull at the rear. the effort would be worth the extra clearance it will provide. then when you're hooked, you're a front brake, fork, and group closer to building up a true cross frame.

standard road levers will definitely work on mafac's and i believe pretty much all center pull brakes.

run it fixed!

or better yet, coaster

Centrepulls should be ok with road levers. Still, you might have some clearance issues. Don't spend much money on this, because you'ld be better off starting from an older mtb frame or touring frame than the Trek. Have fun!

http://i950.photobucket.com/albums/ad341/jediazsr/TrekfutureCyclcross001.jpg

http://i950.photobucket.com/albums/ad341/jediazsr/Conversion.jpg

nice 'compact' design!

how does it ride now?

Are those 700c wheels?
I didn't know the 700 came with 700c? Did you do something to convert the canti brakes from 26 to 700c?

nice 'compact' design!

how does it ride now?

I have been spoiled on the road bikes, where they are light, smooth and fast. This was on road.

So on this bike I have to get use to the difference.

I was amazed on how true the orignial wheels have been, the derailluer and set up all original.

It rides nice, good changes, smooth transition from cement to grass. I still have to get use to the weight(steel frame), a little stiff but I'm still flying fast.

I could throw slicks and ride it as a road but that wasn't the point of this conversion. I wanted to use this to train cyclocross and tear it up on grass, mud and trails.

The compact size> It is smaller size in frame, good clearance when you stand over top tube. The handle bars and saddle position fits me perfect with good leg extention and very comfortable on top part of handle bars and on drops.

So to answer your question it's rides sweet!

I'll have to check out a trek 700 if it comes up then. May be the solution for my bro's "do it all" cross type bike!
Thanks

http://i950.photobucket.com/albums/ad341/jediazsr/Trek6speedCyclocrossCoversion011.jpg
http://i950.photobucket.com/albums/ad341/jediazsr/Trek6speedCyclocrossCoversion008.jpg