Ditch the road bikes, bring on the cross?

I current own 3 bikes - 2x roadbikes and a fixed gear and commute around 100 miles per week. I don't race or cycle with a club and at weekends I'm very erratic with cycles. In the summer I'll get out and do another 100 miles on the bike each week and in the winter I want to go offroad for an hour max and have fun (I don't own a cross/MTB of my own currently).

Road bike 1 is a Dolan Prefissio setup with full mudguards and a blend of Shimano 105, Ultegra and Tiagra kit. It runs 20mm gumwall tyres (as they were £5 a tyre) and it fits great. It's my commuter and sees around 10o miles a week and currently 95% of my miles. I've got an additional set of wheels (Shimano 105's) in the garage for swapping if a 'at home' puncture is present any morning.

Road bike 2 is a Kenesis bike, similar to the above but hasn't yet been ridden (it's 2nd hand and has just arrived). It was bought as a donor bike for future projects - whatever they may be!

The track bike is being stripped, re-painted and re-built - it's irrelevant in this discussion as it will be kept and will become my fair weather commuter and mostly do it all bike.

So I'm thinking of getting rid of both road bikes and getting myself a cross bike with discs (a must), mudguards and a spare wheelset. This would allow me to be able to throw on muddy tyres for off road use and slicks (i.e. 30-32's) for daily commuting. I cycle down the Edgware Road 3x a week and discs are essential IMO as I've had a few near misses recently due to poor braking power and so are mudguards too (I know I'm getting old).

As mentioned I don't race, but I do occasionally like 100 mile + days in the saddle. I can't see an issue with a wider slick tyre for these days. Am I going a bit mad or does it make sense moving across to a cross frame/setup for my needs (I'm fully aware of the changes in geometry)?

CX bicycle tend to be a little more relaxing compare to a standard road bike.

Perhaps something like the Genesis Equilbrium Disc might fit your need, 28mm tyres + mudguard is a done deal.

I would be careful with swapping disc wheel, as the pads will be bedded in to the original wheel, it would be worth getting another set of pads specifically for the other wheels.

Simplon Inissio

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One road
One cross (that accept mudguards)
One fixed

All those double duty in between jobbies all seem a bit dorky in my eyes.
If you have the opportunity to own more than one bike then specialize each to different needs/conditions/moods.

I had no idea when it comes to disc brakes - didn't realise about pad wear effecting different wheelsets.

So maybe just a cheap CX and keep a commuter then? I've got room for multiple bikes - I'll strip down the Kenesis and setup a proper cross bike. Can whip off the mudguards on the Dolan during summer

Cheap CX will make you able to ride unbelievable things compared to ur present horsies :-)

I regularly swap wheelsets on my disc MTBs. The spacing can require you to recentre the calipers or you can use some Syntace shims to space the discs the same. You do get a different lever feel but it works fine.

I would be careful with swapping disc wheel, as the pads will be bedded in to the original wheel, it would be worth getting another set of pads specifically for the other wheels.

Errm, wut?

The pads bed in according to the disc rotor surface. Change the wheel and you'll have pish brakes until you bed them in again, etc etc.

Or you can change the rotors over, easy if shimano centre lock, a 2 minute ball ache if 6 bolt iso flavour

I swap disc wheels all the time on my XC bike and my CX bike - I've never come across this issue.

Makin it up I tells ya!

What I would suggest though is that the rotors are all bedded in using the same type of pad - sintered / organic / whatever.

Anyhoo disc brake thread >>>>>>