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. | Tire Exchange, 26in tires | | | | | | | | | | |
. | | | | | | | | | Rider Comments>>> | | |
. | Manufacturer | Model | Size | Compound | UST (y/n) | Bead | Weight | Who has it? | Doug | Clay | |
. | Continental | Mountain King UST | 2.4 | | Y | Kevlar | 730 | Doug | Mounted as a rear tire, tubless with about 100g of Stan's sealant. The casing is stiff, leads me to believe that continental uses more fiber and less rubber in the casing than other UST tires. Aired to 35psi it gives a supple ride without squirm. Traction is good. Mud shedding is excellent, best I have ridden in that respect. No complaints so far. It does drift a bit easier since there isn't an aggressive edge profile, but it is predictable when it drifts so not a big deal.
Mounted as a front tire I find that this tire drifts a fair amount and is easily deflected off course by rocks and wet roots. Not what I would call ideal. The drift can be avoided by cornering harder and leaning the bike more. Once the edge knobs engage it stops drifting and hooks up. Not really sure why it bounces off the rocks and roots so much. Maybe it does better with more weight on it or lower pressure. But there are better front tires IME.
My impressions of this tire are that it is a good all around tire. It has good volume for a UST tire. It is a true ust (requires no sealant). Traction is good, but it is not a downhill tire. When speeds pick up and conditions are loose expect some hair raising moments.
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. | Continental | Rubber Queen UST | 2.2 | | y | Kevlar | 805 | Doug | Mounted on the rear, XM819 to 35psi, 60-100g of stans sealant. True 2.2in width, maybe even a touch wider after it stretches. This tire performs very well out back. Great dry conditions climbing. Decent wet traction, but not as good as a softer compound. About the only complaint I have is that it does slip off edges and off-camber wet rocks. Not sure if anything would do better in those conditions. This tire rolls well and has a fairly open pattern that sheds mud better than average. | | |
. | Kenda | Nevegal | 2.35 | DTC | n | Kevlar | 650 | Doug | Good all around front tire, dual compound is working well on slick rocks and roots, true to advertised size. Not overly confident in loose over hard pack, it gives a predictable drift in that condition though. Very light for the volume, in some cases that is bad since thorns puncture and it can pinch flat easier. >>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>Update 8/26/2009: Modified intermediate knobs on tire. Trimmed knobs into 1/2 wedges to create a deeper groove at side knobs. Noticed immediate improvement in cornering grip. Less drift on loose terrain. | | |
. | Kenda | Nevegal UST | 2.35 | DTC | Y | Kevlar | 1030 | Doug | Big, a bit sluggish, and kind of slow pedaling. But confidence inspiring on the downhills and gives surefootedness in the rocks. Lots of grip. True 2.35 size. Mounted up easily on xm819 rim. Unlike the 2.1 size this 2.35 doesn't squirm or wiggle at lower pressure. I ran it between 32-35lb, but could run less if desired. | | |
. | Kenda | Nevegal | 2.1 | Stick e | n | Kevlar | | Clay | I went the other side of the fence from Clay and mounted it up as a front tire. I ran it with a tube on a 30mm wide rim. Pressure at 32-35psi. Seated easily. Pumped up to about 2.2in wide across the knobs. Trails have been dry and dusty as of late. In the front it gave great traction, without the feeling of slow rolling. I would recommend this as a good tire for dry conditions, but can't comment on the wet performance (should be good though from Clay's observations) | Superb traction on wet rocks and roots. Very slow roller. Great for wet trails, too slow for anything else. I ran it on the rear, did not try it on the front. Mounted ghetto tubeless, bead popped on easy, took a long time to stop seeping sealant, a lot of stan's shaking required. Ran it as a rear tire between 28-34psi. | |
. | Kenda | Nevegal UST | 2.1 | | y | Kevlar | 790 | Doug | A nice thick UST sidewall. Tire tends to squirm if under 38psi when mounted to a mavic XM819 rim. Traction is good, but the smaller knobs don't offer as much climbing traction as the bigger 2.35 size. Wet traction is nothing impressive, but not horrible either. This isn't a DTC compound, I think newer versions will be DTC which has the softer side knobs which would help in the traction. Overall I think it is a solid UST tire in a very predictable tread design. | | |
. | Kenda | Blue Groove | 2.5 | Stick e | n | Kevlar | | Sean | Big tire. Mounted on a Sun SOS, 28mm rim. Pumped to a true 2.4ish across the knobs. Surprisingly good rolling tire for the volume and the tread pattern. Never felt wanting for more traction or better rolling resistance. Again, probably a good wet tire, but I didn't get much water while riding it. Great in all conditions. Never slipped out or gave more than a small drift even in very loose conditions. Bigger knobs seem to give more positive grip in loose conditions than the nevegal tires. | | |
. | Maxxis | Ardent | 2.25 | MaxxPro 60a | n | Kevlar | 625 | Clay | Large volume, fast rolling, low profile knobs, very good climbing traction, I like it as a rear, haven't tried it in the front | Worked great as a back tire, didn't try it up front. Excellent traction wet or dry, pretty fast rollin, I thought this was my new favorite rear tire, but it turns out the thin sidewalls don't hold up to Monte Sano rocks. Once the threads start to show through on the sidewall, it's only a matter of time until the sidewall tears. I tan it tubeless with a stan's strip at about 30-32psi, seated and sealed instantly, no shaking required.
Update: Tire was short lived. Great traction, volume, and performance. Unfortunately sidewalls are too thin for the rocks around Huntsville. Multiple sidewall punctures and tears forced early retirement of this tire.
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. | Maxxis | Ardent | 2.4 | MaxxPro 60a | n | Kevlar | 825 | Doug | Large volume, big knobs, good rubber compound, didn't fit well in my RS Revelation fork, mounted up tubeless just fine | | |
. | Maxxis | Larsen TT | 2.35 | MaxxPro 60a | n | Steel | | Sean | Tried this one out as a rear tire, not really much faith in it as a front. Aired up to about 2.2in wide on a 28mm sun SOS rim. Traction is decent in straight line and even climbing loose terrain. It is fairly good at cornering, but unpredictable when it loses traction and drifts. Surprisingly not a fast roller despite the tightly packed knobs. Overall I would rate it as a jack of all, master of none type of tire. | | |
. | Maxxis | Aspen | 2.25 | MaxxPro 60a | n | Kevlar | | Sean | | | |
. | Maxxis | High Roller | 2.35 | MaxxPro 60a | y | Kevlar | 895 | Doug | Mounted up as a front on a 30mm wide rim. Aired up to about a 2.1 width. I used a tube. It is a surprisingly fast rolling tire for how grippy it is. Very powerful braking traction with good feedback. Big side knobs and no transitional knobs make this tire run like it's on rails. Once you set the corner knobs the tire just doesn't give up traction. Good dry performer. I only had some light water testing with it, but it didn't seem to mind wet rocks and roots. Close to 900g, with a real sidewall, I would say this is a true ust tire not a tubeless ready. Only complaint I have on it is that the tire had quite a bit of wobble/runout on the wheel despite the bead being seated correctly. So when you spin the wheel the tire appears to wander all over (looks like the wheel is out of true). My other ust HR don't have this issue, so it is likely an isolated incedent (might be some wanky prototype from Sean)
I have mounted it up tubeless now on the rear. Measured 2.2 wide across the knobs, 2.16 across the casing on a 30mm wide rim. Good climbing traction. Cornering is still very confident, the side knobs just dig in and don't like to let go. In the wet it does slip a bit if not going straight up something. I haven't seen anything that performed better yet when it gets greasy on the trails. Many perform worse. Only tackier/softer rubber compounds excel on the wet rocks and roots.
| (non-tubeless version) Update:
Mounted tubless on rear. Stan’s strip/sealant. Mounted up and sealed very easy. Running 35 -38 psi.
Rolls well. Good traction in dry conditions, so-so in wet. Traction wise, Ardent outperforms this one in wet conditions. Sizing seems right (didn’t actualy measure, though)
Overall, I give this one 4 out of 5 stars. Seems like it is wearing pretty quickly.
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. | Maxxis | High Roller | 2.35 | Super Tacky | y | Kevlar | | Doug | Although no longer in production I did manage to track down a set of these tires. Mounted up front, it performs similar to the 60A rubber, but on wet rocks and slick trails it continues to grip where the harder compound would slide out. Far better tracking over rocks and rough terrain as the softer rubber rebounds slower. I think for wet weather this will be my go-to tire.
Update: This tire tread and this compound is fantastic for the off and on wet trail conditions we have had recently. I am running it front and rear. Only down-side is that it does roll slower. Only time I notice it is on the road though. On the trail it is a non-issue.
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. | Maxxis | CrossMark | 2.25 | MaxxPro 60a | y | Kevlar | | Sean | | | |
. | Maxxis | Minion DHR | 2.5 | MaxxPro 60a | n | Kevlar | ~900 | Clay | | Sidewalk and fireroad - lost some rolling ability as compared to how the Ardent rolled. This is to be expected as the Minion is about 250 grams heavier. Also, it is bigger than the 2.25 Ardent, but not by much. In this category I would put it half way between the Ardent and the Stick-E Nevegal.
Climbing traction - really good in these dry conditions. About 7/8ths of the Ardent
Cornering ??? hard to tell at the Arsenal trails. This is what it is made for though, so it should excel here. Family trail will be a good test.
In the rocks, very confidence inspiring. Good grip and sure footed.
Overall trail riding - Felt good, not quite as fast as the Ardent, but it is OK.
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. | Maxxis | Minion DHF | 2.5 | MaxxPro 60a | n | Kevlar | ~900 | Clay | | Maxxis Minion DHF 2.5 single ply
Mounted on front. I went tubeless with Stan’s strip/sealant. Mounted very easily and sealed up with no issues.
Small for a 2.5, about the same as a Nev 2.35
Run at 32-35 psi. Sure grip in all but the wettest conditions. Predictable cornering. Wearing very well. Holds up good to rocky terrain. 5 out of 5 stars for this tire.
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. | Schwalbe | Big Betty | 2.4 | | n | Kevlar | | Sean | | | |