HELP: Can any road bike take 28mm tyres?

HowItsMade

Still quite the bike noob so apologies if this is a simple question.

I have a Giant Contend with rim brakes thats currently running the stock wheels with 25mm Panaracer Pasela.

Looking to upgrade to to the Continental Grand Prix 4000s II and I'd like to use the 28mm for added comfort and personal preference but not sure if my bike will be wide enough?

Any idea how i would find out?

magicbastarder

what does the clearance currently look like? i.e. how much space is there between the current tyre and the chainstays and seatstays on the rear, and on the front, inside the fork (at three possible contact points - the sides of the tyre, and the clearance between the top of the tyre and the inside of the crown of the fork)?

however, it's looking positive for you:

The Contend can comfortably accommodate 28mm tyres, and most 32mm tyres can be squeezed on (although we would advise to check as some tyres can be wider than advertised!)

https://www.giant-bicycles.com/gb/news/contend-the-ideal-winter-road-bike/22003

Wishbone Ash

If you are using mudguards designed for 23/25mm tyres, you may have difficulty with 28's.

Eamonnator

In my experience, Continental Grand Prix 4000s IIs actually measure a bit wider than their nominal width. For example, I've had 23s that measure close to 25mms and 25s that measure about 27mms. I've never used 28s, but if my experience is anything to go by, you can expect them to be about 30mms in width.
Great tyre, by the way. I have them now on most of my wheels.

harringtonp

When I look at road bikes I often wonder about this too, in general its not easy info to get and doesn't seem to be something manufacturers publish in their spec.

A couple of years ago I bought 30mm tyres which I hoped to try out on a winter road bike in a CX race. They didn't fit but 28mm Continental Tour Ride did. It was a case for me of buy and see.

HowItsMade

Wishbone Ash wrote: »

If you are using mudguards designed for 23/25mm tyres, you may have difficulty with 28's.

Funny, because I actually sent back a pair of crud mk3 mudguards because there wasn’t enough clearance in the rear.

HowItsMade

magicbastarder wrote: »

what does the clearance currently look like? i.e. how much space is there between the current tyre and the chainstays and seatstays on the rear, and on the front, inside the fork (at three possible contact points - the sides of the tyre, and the clearance between the top of the tyre and the inside of the crown of the fork)?

however, it's looking positive for you:

https://www.giant-bicycles.com/gb/news/contend-the-ideal-winter-road-bike/22003

Clearance on the front will be grrand but isn’t looking good on the back.

HowItsMade

looks like I’ll have to ask the bike mechanic and see what he thinks but I’m hoping to buy tyres off wiggle and fit them myself.

I’m not confident it will fit on the rear. If anyone runs 28mm on a giant with rim breaks let me know!

H.E. Pennypacker

My Giant Defy 0 will just about run 28mm Continental GP4000S tyres on a Fulcrum Racing 5 wheelset. That model Giant comes with Shimano BR561 brake which I think are 5800 equivalent.

What model Contend do you have?

HowItsMade

H.E. Pennypacker wrote: »

My Giant Defy 0 will just about run 28mm Continental GP4000S tyres on a Fulcrum Racing 5 wheelset. That model Giant comes with Shimano BR561 brake which I think are 5800 equivalent.

What model Contend do you have?

Thanks, I might just be able to run them so, contend has similar geometry.
It’s only a Contend 2, basic model with Claris groupset.

As I’m sure you’re all well aware of the more interested you get in cycling the more expensive it seems to get *cries*

Joe1919

harringtonp wrote: »

When I look at road bikes I often wonder about this too, in general its not easy info to get and doesn't seem to be something manufacturers publish in their spec.

A couple of years ago I bought 30mm tyres which I hoped to try out on a winter road bike in a CX race. They didn't fit but 28mm Continental Tour Ride did. It was a case for me of buy and see.

Just somethings I came across lately while trying to figure out why tires are not sometimes the width as stated.
The first article is from Sheldon Brown who talks about 'Dishonesty in Sizing'.
https://www.sheldonbrown.com/tires.html#dishonest

The second article is from Schwalbe (page 9)who seems to state that a tolerance of +/- 3mm is permitted on tyre width sizes (although they try to do better.)
https://www.google.ie/url?sa=t&rct=j&q=&esrc=s&source=web&cd=1&ved=0ahUKEwinyKLB0MTYAhXlDcAKHbHbC60QFggnMAA&url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.schwalbe.com%2Fen%2Fcatalogesflyer.html%3Ffile%3Dfiles%2Fschwalbe%2Fuserupload%2FPDF%2FKataloge%2F2015%2FTechInfo-2015_GB.pdf&usg=AOvVaw0c1lov3CYhoQwTd2b9wMIq

Ferris

Don’t know if this helps but I fitted 28mm marathons to a trek 1.5 that I used to commute. Clearance was tight at the rear but adequate. However I had to almost entirely deflate the tyres to get the wheels on and off the bike. It was worth it for the comfort and durability but a consideration none the less.

What I did was buy a cheap pair of lifelines to try first, weren’t expensive, or particularly puncture proof as it turned out.

Wishbone Ash

Marathon Plus 25's are actually 30-32mm in width.

magicbastarder

maybe that's what the plus signifies?

Mercian Pro

HowItsMade wrote: »

Clearance on the front will be grrand but isn’t looking good on the back.

Go for it. At best, both will fit; at worst, you"ll have a new front tire and a spare front tire!
You might also consider the Conti GP 4 Seasons. Similar price and performance but stronger side walls.