XC Tyres

Archibald

Likes Dirt
anyone know anything about @GEAX?
saw them in a shop the other day - nice blurb on the pack, but then everyone's going to talk themselves up on their own packaging...
 

John U

MTB Precision
Cúl-Báire said:


What I really want to know- is what makes AMB credible? Its reviews are almost as bad as Mountain Bike Action out of the USA. :rolleyes: Very poor, very little information followed up by blatantly obvious, yet contradictory statements. I'v brought my recent copies on the way to Melbourne Airport, and I leave them in the bin or on the plane when I arrive at Launceston; that says a lot. :rolleyes:


Have a look at the Kenda Line up, something will fit and work well. I reckon Blue Groove (front) / Nevegal (rear) combo would go well. They are available in a multitude of sizes from 2.0" to 2.5". :)
Cul,
Not defending the magazine and have to agree about the quality of a lot of the reviews, but I think you'll find Mt Bike Action rated Kenda Nevegal quite close to the top of best all round tyre in both of their last 2 yearly trail bike tyre reviews.

For mud I highly recommend Geax Barrow Mud (used these when it was quite slippery at eildon and they didn't come unstuck, meanwhile everyone else was sliding all over the shop), or Hutchison Scorpions (used these at wildside and they absolutely rocked)

And, Panaracer Fire XC Tubeless, I don't rate them at all. Got a pinch flat, at Manly dam, in a spot where i have never punctured before or since, with tubes, and with out. The hole in the tyre was so big that Stan's would not block it.
Now I am sure this happens occasionally and may possibly be able to be put down to bad luck, but as I said, I have ridden this bit of track millions of times with various tyre combos and it didn't happen before or since, only with the Panaracer Fire XC
 
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Grover

Likes Bikes and Dirt
Another for the Geax Barro Mud 1.7's - they're a secret weapon when it gets really sloppy. The last race I used them was at the Ballan 6Hr down here in Victoria. Over approximately 40 minute laps my fastest lap was 4 seconds slower than a guy I'm usually 2-3 minutes slower than on 30 minute laps. That's gotta say something.

Archibald, the rest of Geax's range is also very good. Mezcal's for dry/hardpack are fantastic, just like a python except with decent and predictable cornering. Argo's and Arrojo's look very promosing aswell but have yet to try them
 

Bodin

GMBC
John U said:
Panaracer Fire XC Tubeless, I don't rate them at all. Got a pinch flat, at Manly dam, in a spot where i have never punctured before or since, with tubes, and with out. The hole in the tyre was so big that Stan's would not block it.
Now I am sure this happens occasionally and may possibly be able to be put down to bad luck, but as I said, I have ridden this bit of track millions of times with various tyre combos and it didn't happen before or since, only with the Panaracer Fire XC
I've never pinched one of these in many miles of rough singletrack at Castlemaine, so I think it was just your bad luck. I think these tyres over promise and under-deliver, though. Don't hold air very well unless you use heaps of sealant and have to run too high a pressure to maintain anything less than a kind of slow, mushy feel. Nice and grippy, though.

Grover said:
Argo's and Arrojo's look very promosing aswell but have yet to try them
Argo UST tyres are my race tyre. Light, grippy in most conditions, hold air, good front or rear. Very nice.
 

Martin.au

Likes Dirt
WTB Exiwolfs 2.2 with DNA tread

Strengths
Roll well
Seem pretty grippy under most conditions
Decent width (50mm across the base, 52 - 54mm across treads)

Weaknesses
Serious sprayage - They have small notches in the treads that picks up and sprays dirt and gravel around.

Weight: approx 720grams I think (DNA + foldable).

Bottom Line: Probably excellent for most Australian trail riding. I'll leave them on till they die. I'll probably switch them for a tire with less spray next time though as a lot of my riding is in gravel, dirt and sand.
Update: It's quite a good tyre for Adelaide trails. I've had it slip out a couple of times, but in a very controlled and minimal way. It is very grippy on rocks because it tends to sink the little lugs into every gap. I did ride some minimal mud with it. It didn't pick any up but it was not goopy in the first place. Subjectively it seems to roll slowly on bitumen, but fast on trails. Id need a lot more extensive testing using my hardtail to verify that (not gonna happen).
 
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Archibald

Likes Dirt
How about the GEAX Barro Mountain? How does that stack up against the other drier weather/allround tyres?


To those who do the FGP dirt crits, is there a tyre that you'd recommend for it?
I've currently got Hutchinson Bulldogs on, which is fine for all the sloppy single track bits, but I feel about as stable as a baby on ice on the fire track - specifically the first downhill part and the following left then right corners before the bridge...
 
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Archibald

Likes Dirt
ash_on_mtb said:
Bulldogs are excellent in the mud, for the seriously sloppiest stuff they would benefit from the centre knob being removed, otherwise they are a great option. Wide spacing, well designed side knobs, large bag and various compounds and styles.

Something else to consider are the new Hutchinson Barracuda tyres, a tyre with widely spaced centre tread to shed mud and extreme side knobs that are exactly what is needed for the soup of FGP dirt crits, mid winter. They are available now in airlight and tubeless light compounds.

And the Piranahas are worth a look also, but more as a summer tyre unless you are super keen!

With tyres, there is always a compromise. I run pythons or scorpions in the mud... Scorpions for the side knobs and clearing ablility, or pythons for speed when its clay-ie and everything cakes up and slides. Let em down to 28-30psi (@80kgs) and rip it up.
which would you recommend for Officer this weekend??
I was up there last weekend and it was wet, muddy and slippery for most of it...
 

alexb618

Likes Dirt
i have just changed out some hutchy pythons for maxxis ignitors for the winter

the difference on loose and wet dirt is amazing, the pythons roll a lot faster though
 

rockydog

Likes Dirt
Cúl-Báire said:
Have a look at the Kenda Line up,.... I reckon Blue Groove (front) / Nevegal (rear) combo would go well.
Have you tried this?
I like the look of the Nevegal (even on the front), but haven't seen any reviews for Australian conditions.


.
 

Archibald

Likes Dirt
angryasian said:
Ahhhhh thanks guys - hopefully this time around there'll be more time spent upright. LoL.

What do people think about tire pressure in sloppy conditions? If i run bulldogs at a low pressure wouldn't they be liable to pack up?
Or are high pressures a bit dodgy?

(I assume higher pressures mean the knobs don't bend over as much and can "dig" harder into whatever lies underneath the slop..)
hard to say.
my bike came with bulldogs (which have worn down a little), and Ash sorted me out at the fgp crits last night to a more "suitable" pressure - ie; much lower than i was running.
not sure if i really did much better than i have before, except i did notice that they felt sluggish on the uphill climb on the fire track.
i still felt a little skatey in parts but that'd probably be more a lack of skill than the tyre.
as for packing up, when i'd finished and was inflating them for the ride home, there really wasn't all that much mud in the tread, with more of it on the sidewall near the side lugs.
 

Fidsey

Likes Dirt
Specialized Tyres

Changed from WTB ExiWolf's to Specialized FastTrak Pro 2.0 and Specialized Adrenline 2.2 (two different wheelsets)
Both really good tyres.

FASTTRAK's for everything - mine are UST so the sidewalls are tougher (ripped both front and back sidewalls on the non-UST ones at Yarramundi... Yarramundi!!!) and have had no troubles since. The UST version is a bit of a taller tyre, so running at about 35-38 is really nice (I weigh 86kg). Have run them as low as 30 and got a bit of the old tyre farts (that might just be my poor Mavic CrossLand Rims). DON'T USE THESE TYRES IN THE WET - the grip is way too tight to shed muck effectively (I was riding "slicks" for the Killingworth 8hr by the middle of the first lap).

ADRENLINE's work well in the wet (even though it doesn't say so on the packaging) - Hit up Sparrow Hill, Kowen, Majura, Yarramundi and Manly Dam in the wet and had no trouble with muck shedding and grip - these work really well on rocky terrain as well - bigger bag tyres so the ride is smooth and grippy. They also corner like a Biatch. No sidewall issues at all.
 

nizai

Likes Dirt
Maxxis Minion DH F/R 2.35 60a Single Ply.

Strengths: Havent taken these out yet, but will update soon as I do.
Weaknesses: A bit of bead difficulty, but nothing out of the ordinary for a wire bead tyre thats derivative of a DH tyre.
Weight: 870g
Bottom Line: I bought these tyres because I really wanted a chunky tyre that I could do everything on. Its an identical tread pattern to the Minion DH casing tyre, but with half the weight. I looked long and hard for an "all mountain" sort of category tyre that had decent depth outer lugs that might help avoid washouts on fast downhill sections. After being let down by the Hutchie Bulldogs that effectively caused my MCL injury :(

These seem to be hard to get a hold of compared to the Minion 2.5 DH casings, but well worth looking at if you have one "do it all" sort of bike.
 

tranceup

Likes Dirt
rockydog said:
Have you tried this?
I like the look of the Nevegal (even on the front), but haven't seen any reviews for Australian conditions.


.
Have been using Nevegal on Front for about 12 months now and will never put another tyre on there. probably a bit to soft for back and doesnt roll as well as others but the best for grip and stability ive ever used.
I couple it with a maxxis Ranchero on the back which grips well and rolls well also. You could probably go lighter tyres but really performance matters to me and these two are exceptionally good at that.
 

pinchy

Squid
IRC Mythos XC 2.1
Used to ride these aaages ago, got a set recently quite cheap. Did the Kowen Pines (ACT) 24hour course on them last week. I ride them on an XC Hardtail.
Pros: Straight grip, the rear is like glue on the track. Will grip in anything, loose gravel, mushy dirt, slippery logs, 20cm deep bog. The front is point and shoot for muddy conditions.
Cons: Front tends to slip in loose gravel in corners, rolling resistance is quite high on both front and rear on the hard pack.
Verdict: If its muddy, then go for it, if XC racing or on dry conditions, I'd go for something else.

 
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pinchy

Squid
Hutchinson Mosquito Gold 1.95
Did the Kowen pines (ACT) forest 24 hour loop with these on, and also Mt Wellington (TAS) in June (cold and wet)
pros: Fast. Very very fast. Bugger all rolling resistance and very fast on the hard pack. Predictable cornering (i.e. you'll know when you start to slip)
cons: These wear out bloody quickly- mine only lasted a week's worth of riding. Not good on slippery logs/rocks (Mt Wellington) or in deep mud. (You'll spin the wheels)
verdict: I would only recommend these if you're cashed up or for racing only, for racing on most NSW and ACT XC courses, these things are awesome.

 
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pinchy

Squid
Ritchey Speedmax Omega 2.1
Used these recently around Garigal/Davidson (NSW) and Cuddle Creek (SA) on a Hardtail XC bike.
pros: Fast. The small tread along the top of the tyre leads to fast on the hard pack. Very little rolling resistance. Reasonable/adequate in very muddy as the ridges and side knobs do a good job. Very good cornering at speed too.
cons: Not very good mud clearance with sticky mud, tends to slip a little on slippery rocks (could have been cos they were wearing out though...)
verdict: One of my favourites. If you can find them, then they're awesome for general XC riding and even racing. Very good on hard pack and loose, adequate on muddy.

 
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pinchy

Squid
Hutchinson Python Gold Elite
I've used these pretty much everywhere, most recently at Majura pines (ACT)
pros: Very fast, low rolling resistance and predictable fast cornering.
cons: Poor in very sticky mud (Think Paton Park TAS) and in very loose. These tyres are best suited to hard pack/gravel (Think Belbins Rd TAS)
verdict: Good low rolling resistance training or racing tyre on hard pack, though the thickness (or rather the thiness) may put some off. I personaly prefer the mosquitos for racing but these last a lot longer.

 
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pinchy

Squid
Maxxis Ignitor UST
These are on my training rims, I've mainly done these around Manly Dam/Garigal/Davidson/Oxford Falls (NSW). Got them with the new bike.
Pros: Good grip on hard pack and in mud. Grips reasonably well on slippery rocks (Oxford Falls)
Cons: Higher rolling resistance than some other tyres (but less than the IRC Mythos).
Verdict: Good training tyre, I haven't raced on these so can't comment. I'd be interested in doing a comparison between these and the Larsons. They appear to be lasting reasonably well too.

 
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[bEn]

Likes Bikes
Maxxis Ignitor 2.35 or 2.1. These are my main off road tyres and damn, they work superbly!

Pros- Suprisenly it rolls well. If theres loose conditions, these tires are ment for it, they corner well and works well in the mud/wet.

Cons- Don't take em on the road or any type of pavement.

Verdict- I use the 26x2.35 version of this tyre. I've had these tires for more then 8 months now, and they are still going strong. I will purchase another set when these have finally died as these tyres are probably the best for the riding i do around my area. I've never tried any other tire that works so well in loose conditions and even smooth dry single track.
 

[bEn]

Likes Bikes
Panaracer Fire XC Pro 2.1 and Hutchinson Scorpion 2.0 (2.2")


Panaracer

Have had the Panaracer as a rear tyre and seems like a good all-round tyre.

Pros- Excellent climbing tyre, probably the best i've used. Works well in loose conditions and harpack.

Cons- Sucks in the mud/wet. Isn't a very good front tyre.

Hutch Scorpion

These came stock on my bike and they work well for what they are designed for.

Pros- Sheds mud pretty good and good on dry singletrack as well as cornering.

Cons- Probably the fastest wearing tyre i've used. Not very good in loose conditions.

Verdict:
Both tyres are great and they do have their pros and cons, though i won't be using these again.
 
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