Tire upgrade for Jamis Satellite

[HerrFaust]

I bought a Jamis Satellite as my first roadie, and as I drift more towards city/century/credit card touring (loaded to come, on another bike...), I realize the folly of my 23c tires. Does anyone know how wide I can go with tires on this bike? I'd like to try the Panaracer/Riv Roll-y Poly (700x27/28c), if possible.
Thanks!

[whittierider]

How much spare room is there with the existing tires?  I  do the kind of riding you're talking about on 25's.  My frame and fork might handle 26's, but definitely not 28's.  I don't know of any performance-oriented tires that come any wider than 25.  All other things being equal, wider tires would have less rolling resistance (because they don't have to bend so sharply at the edge of the contact patch), but manufacturers simply don't make the performance tires in the greater widths.

[HerrFaust]

Thanks! I realized another problem--the brakes, even when they release for tire removal, might not go far enough for 28s. All might be a moot point. So, do you have any recommendations for 25s? I'm looking for something that can take a beating. Our (Chicago) roads are horrible, and I'm hoping to bike to Milwaukee this spring.  

[cyclesafe]

A typical modern road bike can accommodate no wider than 25mm tires.  The constraints are the intersection of the chain stays and also the reach of your brake calipers.

Not to worry though.  I'd get a Schwalbe Marathon Plus in 25-622 - about as flatproof as you'll find.  If you want to spend less money, try a Specialized Armadillo.  Both are wire bead, unfortunately.

[HerrFaust]

Thanks, again. I think I'll go for the 25c, this time around. I'm eventually going to buy a new wheelset (I already dislike my stock). I know that a lot of people dig the 650b conversion for older steel. Anyone do it for a newer bike, such as, say, a 08 Satellite with a carbon front fork?

[whittierider]

I put 28's or even 32's on our tandem.  (I really prefer the 28's.)  Because of the brake problem you mention, that requires letting some air out to get them out of the bike, or not pumping them up all the way until they're in the bike.  It does work though, and there's still clearance to go to at least a 35mm tire.

I use 25mm tires on my single bike.  I'd like to try all the tires, but I know if I did, and then decided on a favorite, by then it wouldn't be available anymore anyway.  So I just keep researching it from time to time and occasionally trying another one based on the research.  Of the ones we've tried, my current favorite is the Continental Grand Prix 4000 with black chilli (their brand name).  There are very few tires that have lower rolling resistance than these, and they are also quite good in the puncture-resistance department.  The Michelin Carbons were also good, but have since been replaced by the Michelin Krylion Carbon which I have not tried but presumably they're at least as good as the older Carbons.  The Continental Gatorskins are outstanding for puncture resistance, but their rolling resistance is 50% higher than that of the 4000's and they don't have as nice of a ride.  I've been getting a flat every couple thousand miles with the 4000's, even with the ultra-thin 49-gram Performance LunarLite tubes which I use to further reduce rolling resistance.