Help.. New and in need of some advice.

[bencran]

Hello, very new to the forum, however, I have been riding a bike for around 25 years.

I own a specialised crosstrail sport disc. Bought it last year as I wanted something to both go 'offroad' and to ride on the road. However, I've never been offroad and don't really intend to do so. It has suspension which can be locked stiff, but I've heard horror stories about that, so not sure if it's viable? Bike feels a lot faster when locked.

Anyway, my real questions are:

I have 700x38c tyres fitted at the moment, they have tiny nobbles, so I expect they aren't all that fast. I have had a look at new tyres, but couldn't find any 'slick', road looking tyres in that size. I have heard you can go smaller, so 35 to accommodate tyres? Is this possible? and which kind of tyre would suit a more road going ride?

I'm not trying to convert my bike into a road bike. I am trying to make it as fast as it can be without getting into huge cost.

I am looking into a set of clipless pedals to achieve some more economy when I ride, but I'm still guessing tyres would probably be the best thing to change to make any real difference.

Thanks if anyone can help!?

 

[bencran]

Also, I have tektro draco brakes and have (through moving house twice) managed to snap my front brake hose, right where it joins the fluid housing. All fluid has seeped out since. Not exactly sure how to go about fixing it. I have seen hose kits online, but I think I just need to clip the hose, change the ferrule and o ring and replace.

 

[raleighnut]

Tyres : Schwalbe Marathon/Marathon + and 35 or even 32 will be fine
Brakes : If you are not absolutely sure of what you are doing......................Take it to a bike shop, ..........If they fail you're f**ked

 

[andyfraser]

+1 from me for Marathon/Marathon+. M+s are available in 32, 35 and 38 mm (and 25 and 28 but depending on your rim widths they may not fit). I have 32s on my hybrid and they're fine. If M+s are too heavy or overkill for you then Marathons are perfectly good and available in the same sizes. Gatorskins are available up to 32mm and are much more of a road bike tyre. They get a mixed reaction but I like them.

What width are you rims and what's important to you i.e. comfort, speed?

As @raleighnut says, go to a shop for the brakes. They're in a good position to advise you once they've seen what's needed.

 

[bencran]

Good question, How do I go about finding that out? All I can find on the specs sheets online is that it is a 700c disc, alloy double-wall, pin joint, 32h, I don't know how thin I can go, but I'd like a happy medium of comfortable and fast.

Thanks

PS. Bike currently has specialized trigger sport 38 tyres fitted.

 

[andyfraser]

The rim size was on stickers around the rims of my hybrid and road bike in the form 622x? where ? is a number. Someone will probably be along soon to explain how to work it out more scientifically. In the meantime, this may be useful: http://sheldonbrown.com/rim-sizing.html

 

[Cyclist33]

Good question, How do I go about finding that out? All I can find on the specs sheets online is that it is a 700c disc, alloy double-wall, pin joint, 32h, I don't know how thin I can go, but I'd like a happy medium of comfortable and fast.

Thanks

PS. Bike currently has specialized trigger sport 38 tyres fitted.

I'll take a punt and say minimum 28 mm, maximum 42 mm, although as you say, a happy medium somewhere in the middle.

 

[Cubist]

As for the brake hose, Draco are a simple inline compression connector, so you're in luck. You need a spare olive and pin/spigot. Preferably get a new inline connector and they should come with the olive and pin.

Cut the hose as close to the caliper or reservoir, they're the same connector, as you can, using a sharp Stanley blade and on a flat surface so you can make the cut as perpendicular as possible. Raise the hose so you don't lose too much fluid, but you're goingto need to bleed them anyway, so it's tnot the end of the world. Now, unscrew the inline connector from the caliper, dismantle it and remove the end of the hose with the old olive and spigot inside. They aren't reusable. You should now have a female and a male half of the inline connector. Slide the outer housing onto the hose, then the male connector insert, then the olive. Now, hold the end of the hose in a pair of pliers, and tap the spigot/pin into the open end of the hose, until it's absolutely flush. You may need a bit of a tap with a small hammer to get it all the way in. It's tight!

Now, insert the hose into the female end of the connector making sure the flat end of the pin sits against he inner flat surface of the connector, and slide the olive towards the end of the hose. It should sit just behind the flange of the spigot. Now slide the male part of the connectortowards the olive and thread it by hand at first into the female housing. Once you feel resistance you need to use a pair of spanners to tighten the two together. This crushes the olive inside the male housing, and creates the hydraulic seal you need.

Next, screw the complete inline connector into the caliper, making sure the o ring is in place, and then slide the outer housing down over the connector.
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Now you need to treat yourself to a bleed kitand bleed the system. Kits available from eBay and come with instructions.

 

[bencran]

Firs off, thanks everyone! A wealth of knowledge for me to start.

Just fitted some SPD pedals and bought some shoes, so will have a ride tomorrow and try not to fall off.

Had my brake apart earlier, both the ferrule and the olive look intact. I don't know what caused the brake to lose it's hydraulic fluid, but it's all gone. I'm going to reconnect the brake, fill with fluid, bleed and assess that at a later date.

Wheels; they say:

 

[bencran]

I'm assuming that means they are 622mm(700c)x19mm.

So I could run 700x28 tyres?