recommendation for tyres?

Hi all,

Does anyone have any recommendations for a good all-round tyre for a mtb or
is there no such thing?

My first idea was to get one of those that are "slick" in the middle and
knobbly at the edges but I've been to Sheldon Brown's web page on tyres
(http://www.sheldonbrown.com/tires.html) and he doesn't recommend
"combination treads".

Currently I have:
1. A pair of knobblies (26 x 1.85) that came with my '00 rockhopper.
Unfortunately they're quite worn now.
2. A pair of Maxxis High Rollers (26 x 2.5) which I used for a while over
the winter. They were very comfy because of the extra cushioning but oh-so-
heavy and almost impossible through thick mud! Also the rear is too wide
for my bike frame and has caused some of the paint to come off.

Basically I'd like a tyre that is more comfortable (for my sensitive
behind) than my 1.85's, wears fairly well, is hopefully fairly puncture
resistant, has good traction and low rolling resistance. Low weight would
also be a bonus.

If you could also help answer some other questions I have on tyres:
1. I've also looked into "greentyres" (for puncture resistance) but one
review I read said that they weren't very good. Has anyone had any
experience on them?
2. I've also been looking into Maxxis Hookworms for riding on
pavement/tarmac. Are they any good? What recommendations here?

A big problem for me is that I usually need to cycle (quite a bit) on
pavement before I get offroad. What does everyone else do?

Sorry for a lot of questions.
Any help appreciated,
Thanks!

--
....meandering mule...

"mule" wrote in message
...
Hi all,

Does anyone have any recommendations for a good all-round tyre for a mtb
or
is there no such thing?

My first idea was to get one of those that are "slick" in the middle and
knobbly at the edges but I've been to Sheldon Brown's web page on tyres
(http://www.sheldonbrown.com/tires.html) and he doesn't recommend
"combination treads".

Currently I have:
1. A pair of knobblies (26 x 1.85) that came with my '00 rockhopper.
Unfortunately they're quite worn now.
2. A pair of Maxxis High Rollers (26 x 2.5) which I used for a while over
the winter. They were very comfy because of the extra cushioning but
oh-so-
heavy and almost impossible through thick mud! Also the rear is too wide
for my bike frame and has caused some of the paint to come off.

Basically I'd like a tyre that is more comfortable (for my sensitive
behind) than my 1.85's, wears fairly well, is hopefully fairly puncture
resistant, has good traction and low rolling resistance. Low weight would
also be a bonus.

I recommend IRC Mythos 2.1". They're in between your 1.85 and 2.5" tires,
and are spec'd on lots of bikes because they are excellent all-around tires.
They're very light, with good snakebite protection. Should last a long time,
and not expensive (on sale for $15 here in the States at
www.performancebike.com). That's what I chose for my XC rig. I run
Specialized Dirt Baldys for street and light trail use. Very fast tires,
super light and tough; but alas, discontinued.

The only other one that comes to mind is the Panaracer Fire XC Pro 2.1",
which is also an excellent choice, and not expensive. If you like colorful
tires, get the Panaracers with a yellow, red or blue sidewall (they also
come in blackwall, of course). Fire XC Pros are some of the best all-around
XC tires on the market.

Barry

mule said...

Hi all,

Does anyone have any recommendations for a good all-round tyre for a mtb or
is there no such thing?

If you find a tire that does everything, please let me know. My riding
sounds a lot like yours. I use my mtb for a little bit of everything.
Sheldon is right about the combo treads in a way--they aren't perfect
for on or off road, but what he forgets to say is that if you want a
tire that does both tolerably well, you don't have much choice. Besides,
the kind of tire he talks about with one ridge in the center aren't very
common, at least I haven't seen many. I have an old one on my backup
bike and I think it does pretty well.

I have tried a variety of do it all tires:

Michelin Jet S: my current favorite. 2.0 width. Light (500g). Fast
rolling and supple ride. High thread count. Very expensive. Does best on
hard packed dirt, which is what you find the most on trails around here.
Good on the road, but you get into the knobby part going around corners.
Obviously, it won't be as good as a knobby in mud.

Michelin Wildgripper Rock: 1.75 width. Cheap at $20 MSRP. At 700g, it is
hefty for a narrow tire. Smooth on the road, but the narrow size, very
low thread count and thick rubber give it a much harsher ride than the
Jet S. As the name suggests, it is designed for hard surfaces.

Performance Topo Fast Trac: Looks like it was designed to be a cheaper
alternative to expensive, name brand XC specific tires like the Jet S. I
got a pair for $15 each on sale. You can only get them from Performance
Bike. 1.9 width, light ( 500g), high thread count. They are only 0.1"
smaller than the Jet S, but they look a lot smaller. The tread design is
obviously a lot less sophisticated than the Jet S. Rolling resistance
seems high compared to the Jet S, but that's kind of hard to prove.

The Maxxis Hookworms that I have seen described on the Web are huge and
weigh a ton. They have almost no tread and look like they would be very
slippery off road. The Maxxis Wormdrive looks similar to the Jet S and
the Fast Trac. They are on sale for cheap ($17) right now direct from
Maxxis.

I second the IRC Mythos vote...

mule wrote:
Hi All,
The Mythos, Fire XC Pro and Jet S (expensive here in UK!) all do sound
quite reasonable but I still can't decide. I've seen photos of the Mythos
and Panaracers but I wonder how they would cope on tarmac - which I have to
ride a bit. I have to admit that I find riding on cement tough going on
knobblies - but I've also never had experience on anything other than
knobbly tyres.

Again help much appreciated,

=o]


I think that you will always have some trade off between off-road
capability and nice rolling on tarmac. I recently went back to the
Mythos after removing the Hutch. Pythons. The Pythons were nice in hard
pack and the road, but I didn't think they had enough grip on loose
trails, rocks and roots. Once they broke loose on a turn, there was no
getting them back, not the case with the Mythos, I can control them if I
get into a little trouble and usually get back on track.
FWIW, the Mythos are satisfactory on the road.
--
Craig Brossman, Durango Colorado
(remove ".nospam" to reply)

Hi Pete (and all),

Thanks for all of your replies again!
I'm off to visit a few cycle shops tomorrow to see what they have.

After having read reviews I hope to find either IRC Mythos or Serac.
If I'm feeling adventurous I might try a pair of semi-slicks too, to find
out how they ride.

One of my worst days riding was just as Pete describes. Deep, thawing mud.
There were 3 of us, almost knee deep in really sticky stuff. It clogged our
wheels every 10yards. My tyres became about 4 inches in thickness and
weighed about 3kg apiece! One reason perhaps to try disc brakes since they
wouldn't be affected by the mud like our v's.

Anyway, will let you know what I buy, if I can find them.

Thanks,

P.S. Any advice on WTB Weirwolf 2.3/2.1s? They're at a discount right now.

--
....meandering mule...



"(Pete Cresswell)" wrote in
:

RE/
My first idea was to get one of those that are "slick" in the middle
and knobbly at the edges but I've been to Sheldon Brown's web page on
tyres (http://www.sheldonbrown.com/tires.html) and he doesn't
recommend "combination treads".

One thing that's missing from that analysis is the prospect of going
"splat" when landing sideways on an embankment or getting sucked into
an erosion gulley. The lugs on the sides will prevent that.

I've used Heng Shin semislicks for road-biased riding and they worked
pretty well. No buzzing on pavement, enough meat so you can run them
at, say, 40-45 psi without pinching, but when you forget and do
something dirt-ish they'll keep you from doing a face plant. OTOH,
they're several steps below useless on that quarter-to-half inch of
mud that forms when frozen ground has just thawed a little bit.
"Below" because I tend to fixate on the side lugs and forget that
there's zero mud traction on the smooth center portion....


A big problem for me is that I usually need to cycle (quite a bit) on
pavement before I get offroad. What does everyone else do?

Having said all that, I ride WTB Mutano Raptors most of the time now.
I'm on my second set of the big ones - but am sort of intrigued by
the smallest size they offer - apparently the same tread pattern -
maybe I'll try a set as "semi-road" tires.
-----------------------
PeteCresswell

Shaun Rimmer wrote in message
...

I have this tyre on the rear of my FrankenBeater commuter now - bought it
about 3 or 4 years ago as a rear tyre for my MTB, and _hated_ it. I found
off road traction was next to useless in most conditions, although it was
much better as a front tyre (very rounded profile) than a rear, it saw
hardly any service before I removed it altogether and threw it in the
emergency pile.


Shaun aRe - but they wear well, heheheheheh...........

It isn't the Mutano Raptor I have, rather the Primal Raptor. And yes, it
sucks! My mistake.


Shaun aRe - But for all I know, the Mutano may well be **** too,
heheheh.......