Cyclocross - Rim Width for Clinchers

I'm building up a cross bike that'll be used mainly for training and racing. I'll probably go to tubulars next year but I'd like a multi purpose wheelset for this year.

Standard road clinchers ar 19mm wide. Tire size reccomendation for this width is 19-28mm.

I plan on using 32-35mm wide clinchers. Should I find a 21mm or 23mm rim width? Do the standard road wheels work with the 32-35mm clinchers? What is ideal?

Thanks

pazman

Standard road rims work just fine with cross tires but if you have a choice you might want to go for something wider like the Velocity A23.
http://www.velocityusa.com/default.asp?contentID=746

plan ahead if you'll be swapping wheels, you'll have fewer adjustments to the brakes if they're the same width.

Good advice black_box. I don't want to be adjusting brakes everytime I swap wheelsets. Looks like I'll go with the road wheelset.

Bonus for me using the road wheelset - they'll be my road back-ups/trainers in the off season.

Thanks

Any CX clincher can be mounted on a narrow road rim, even MTB wide tires will stay on a 20mm rim fine. Difference is that a wider rim will make your tire footprint a bit wider too and hold more air volume inside the tire, help provide a bit more floatation/traction for when that is desireable. With the proliferation of 29er MTBs, there are now a lot more wide 700c rims available than several years back. If you have a barral adjuster inline somewhere with your brakes, adjusting pad clearance amounts to all of a 5 second tool-less operation.

Standard road rims work just fine with cross tires but if you have a choice you might want to go for something wider like the Velocity A23.
http://www.velocityusa.com/default.asp?contentID=746

I just upgraded from 19mm wide Mavic Open Pros to Velocity A23s. Very happy with the change. I'm using 700x25 road tires now and will switch to wider tires when needed.

While wider tires will fit on a narrow rim, they are not recommended. The Mavic website states that a 700x28 is the widest tire recommended for the Open Pro and its other 19mm wide road rims.

Michael

+2 on the Velocity A23's. They will behave the most like tubulars, with lower pressures.

I also agree on planning ahead for wheel changes. I built and carry three sets of wheels, two that are the same (front and rear) and one for mud. This way I can make tire swaps at the last moment on site and have a spare set in the pits. Hubs become the only consideration and there is a plethora of considerations out there for you to make from lifetime use to weight to bearing material. Good luck with that research. I use Shimano 105 hubs because, for me, they have a good balance of quality lifetime use and weight.

While wider tires will fit on a narrow rim, they are not recommended. The Mavic website states that a 700x28 is the widest tire recommended for the Open Pro and its other 19mm wide road rims.Right, but those recommendations are very conservative. People have used Open Pros on 29ers with no real issue. That said, the advantage of wider rims is being able to run lower pressures and still maintain traction on hard cornering.

Regarding the brake adjustments, I don't find it a big deal if you have barrel adjusters on both brakes. I use sissy levers and adjusters are built into them.

261792261793261795261796Sorry to dredge up an older thread, but would the Alex DH19's behave similarly to the Velocitys? http://www.alexrims.com/product_detail.asp?btn=4&cat=4&id=95 and other than weight would Shimano MTB (Deore type) hubs work out OK vs an Ultegra or 105 hub?

261792261793261795261796Sorry to dredge up an older thread, but would the Alex DH19's behave similarly to the Velocitys? http://www.alexrims.com/product_detail.asp?btn=4&cat=4&id=95 and other than weight would Shimano MTB (Deore type) hubs work out OK vs an Ultegra or 105 hub?

I don't know anything about the Alex rims except to say that 19mm width and 23mm width are different off road. The behavior of the tire at lower pressures would be the determining factor for me.

The mountain bike hub is 135mm wide versus the 130mm width of the road hub, therefore they will not fit the spacing on your cross bike. If you want cheaper than 105, then you're better off with one of the "numbered" varieties offered by Shimano or just purchasing an a23 wheelset from a builder.

However, that's just my opinion. Take it or leave it.

I need to check is my 2009 Canonndale cyclocross 5 (CAAD 9) has 132.5 spacing or 130 - if 132.5 it may stretch.

It has 130mm spacing and can't be stretched being Alu. You can get a new axle and reduce a MTB hub to 130mm. I use a set of LX hubs with velocity fusions as training/everything wheels.

Both 130mm and 135mm hubs fit the C'dale CAAD9 CX9, so it must be 132.5mm rear spacing.


What is the best online source to purchase the new US made tubeless ready A23s?





Check the new US made A23s. They are tubeless ready.

Erik, Alu frames are not supposed to be stretched. Just a heads up. Your frame is 130, use hubs with that spacing only. 132.5 frames are steel, my Poprad has this spacing.

The weird thing is that when I put 130 spaced hubs in the dropouts, I need to compress a bit, and when I put 135 29er wheels on it nedds to stretch ever so slightly (which is easy to do on the frame (it has a bit of give both in and out). That is why I think the dropouts are really at 132.5 - Who knows though, I don't have calipers and I can't find the spec for the 2009 CX9 online.


Erik, Alu frames are not supposed to be stretched. Just a heads up. Your frame is 130, use hubs with that spacing only. 132.5 frames are steel, my Poprad has this spacing.

I just got a Surly CrossCheck frame, and their rear dropout spacing is 132.5 for just that reason; they call it "Gnot-rite" spacing

Erik, Alu frames are not supposed to be stretched. Just a heads up. Your frame is 130, use hubs with that spacing only. 132.5 frames are steel, my Poprad has this spacing.

It's perfectly safe to use a hub where the spacing is slightly off - you'll have to force it in a bit, but Al is easily springy enough to do this safely. What you shouldn't do with Al is cold set it, that is, permanently bend the stays to accept a new spacing. And putting a 135mm hub in a 130 frame is pushing the limits a bit, though I did once use a 126mm wheel in a 130 Al road frame for several months without problems. Putting a 135 hub in a 132.5 Al frame is no problem at all though, and I wouldn't worry about it. I wouldn't be surprised if the CX9 was made with 132.5 spacing.

Honestly, the biggest concern if you put a 135mm wheel in a 130mm frame isn't the bending of the stays, it's the stress on the dropouts caused by misalignment. This would bother me on a steel frame, too - the attachment point for the dropouts is the weak point on either steel or aluminum frames.

Standard road rims will work fine with cross tires. Most clincher cross tires are designed around a narrower rim anyway.

I use H+Son TB14s (23mm) for clinchers and find that the side knobs of Mud 2s don't quite sit low enough. It's not a problem in most conditions, but it's less than ideal.

I ditched the 135mm wheels and am running my old 130mm road rims now. Cynikal (http://www.bikeforums.net/member.php/11001-Cynikal) scared me, I don't want to ruin my 60cm 2009 CAAD9 CX9! I love this frame - best bike I have owned. It has a 60cm top tube and 20cm head-tube which fits me like a glove. The new Cannondale 61cm CX frames only have a 59cm top-tube.


It's perfectly safe to use a hub where the spacing is slightly off - you'll have to force it in a bit, but Al is easily springy enough to do this safely. What you shouldn't do with Al is cold set it, that is, permanently bend the stays to accept a new spacing. And putting a 135mm hub in a 130 frame is pushing the limits a bit, though I did once use a 126mm wheel in a 130 Al road frame for several months without problems. Putting a 135 hub in a 132.5 Al frame is no problem at all though, and I wouldn't worry about it. I wouldn't be surprised if the CX9 was made with 132.5 spacing.

Honestly, the biggest concern if you put a 135mm wheel in a 130mm frame isn't the bending of the stays, it's the stress on the dropouts caused by misalignment. This would bother me on a steel frame, too - the attachment point for the dropouts is the weak point on either steel or aluminum frames.

I'm on 23mm clincher rims. Good stuff.

I run 35's on my 19mm rims. No problems with clinchers even down to 35 psi. The only time I run them that low is for some cushion on light mountain trails. I fear for my rims much more so than any rim to tire fit issues as I ding the rims on a regular basis. I'm pretty much at the limits with this combo I think and tire fit isn't the show stopper. Running more pressure puts me even more in the green regarding fitment. I wouldn't hesitate to run wider tires for that matter but 35's seems to be a good choice for most of my uses.