[Closed] Nobby nic backwards on the front

have you bought it yet ?  - I can't believe there's not a better tyre for your needs

Not used the newer version but the old one should nevet go on the front no matter which wayyou mount it .

I may be a minority of one here, but I quite like the newer NN on the front 😳 , it's like a slightly smaller and lighter Vigilante.

Not used the newer version but the old one should nevet go on the front no matter which wayyou mount it .

You seem to have used the word ‘front’ instead of ‘bike’. 😁

(I’ve rarely hated any tyre as much as I hated NNs.)

What should i be using instead of Nobby Nic on my trail bike?

WtB trail boss.

The new and old versions are very different - basically the same name, but a different tyre.

New on left, old on right...

The new and old versions are very different – basically the same name, but a different tyre.

And yet they manage to make something so outwardly different just as rubbish.

Never rode the old one, so can't compare.

It might just be that my local conditions suit the NN - well drained, sandy, pebbly, loamy, and not too rocky. I've had no issues with it grip-wise or loss of knobs, etc. I'm sure it will tear to bits on it's next outing now!

Old as in years old or the pacestar trailstar versus addix?

The MK2 Nobby Nic is far and away a better tyre than the mk1s.

Mk1s were built with a light carcass that constantly holed and could only give grip in a straight line. Forget it on wet rocks, roots and off-camber. Way too compromised.

The MK2 has a better carcass which I'd describe as tough enough for trail riding. Grip is pretty good across all conditions, but it doesn't excel at anything in particular, and for it's reasonable grip, it's quite fast.

I run the MK2 on the back of both my bikes because of its speed/grip balance. On the trail hardtail it's running fine, but on the big bike that sees much less use, it's wearing notably quicker, but I'm really pushing it beyond its design envelope for the kind of riding that bike sees.

I'd think carefully before putting it on the front. For my tastes the carcass is a bit too bendy for the low pressures I like to run, and the grip isn't good enough for me.

Mk1s were built with a light carcass that constantly holed and could only give grip in a straight line. Forget it on wet rocks, roots and off-camber. Way too compromised.

This. The ones I had would puncture at the mere sight of a pebble 100m away. They were worse than Mountain Kings, which held my previous record for punctures. And this wasn’t at low pressure. Having double punctured on one ride I put the pressure up to ‘rock-hard’. The tyres had so little grip - and I had so little confidence in them - that I rode Bluescar at Afan slower than a granny on a trike.

I didn’t realise that they’d made a new version.

I used to swear by them for predictable slide but ultimate grip, just goes to show how subjective tyre choice is.

Can any one REALLY tell which way around a tyre is fitted?

Hows about a blind test (fit a bit mud guard around the tyre so the rider can see which way round it is) say 10 runs, 5 one way, 5 with the tyre backwards randomly chosen, and  at the end of each run rider suggests which way round the tyre is and we work out the correlation statistics?

I don't know of any tyre that has opinions so poles apart. I have run a pacestar one on the front which is now 2 yrs old. It is getting a little worn but has done multi-day trips with no problems. Maybe the rocks in Scotland aren't as sharp as elsewhere although they also managed a week in Les Arc. I have just switched to a Mk 2 and will be interested to see how it performs. As a general trail tyre I like it but less so for steep  stuff where it is less confidence inspiring then a Magic Mary. On the other hand a would prefer a NN to a MM for a 50k day out.

The new one is basically a worse Hans Dampf, and it's not like the Hans Dampf is a tyre that can afford to be worse. Just look elsewhere.

Is there really anything that matches it for rolling resistance and weight though?

Im currently running a high roller 2 on the front at the moment which i find much more predictable however im trying to drop some weight from the bike, all the maxis tyres seem heavy!

Not strictly true Northwind. It's better in intermediate conditions than a Hans dampf, and is faster.

Less robust, and not as surefooted in dry tech though.

How about a mountain king 2 in black chilli compound? I put the 2.4 version of that (protection carcass) on my old bike to replace a mk1 Nobby Nic (which I think was in a cheap compound) and it was hugely better.

i had the NN’s on both ends and replaced them with the mk2 on both ends. I don’t think there was any weight penalty and I really liked those mk’s.

Now on a 2.5 minion dhf (3c) front and 2.3 dhr2 (3c) rear on my newer bike and they’re better again - but obviously won’t save you weight over a HR2!

2.8 NN are a great tyre.

Haha - really interesting thread...

Question was about rotational direction, front. That I don't know.

Don't have the Nobby Nic on my bikes but know quite some trail bikers which love the Nobby Nic. Guess they love the wobbly feeling of the tire? And as mentioned above: lots of "Plus" bikers around on Nobby Nics. "Punctures" might be an issue so.

The "rotational direction" thing on front: sorry - no idea.

I've had a basic Performance line 26x2.25 Nic on the back of my 456 for a good six months now and find it ok. Not just bimbling either, it's been down nutcracker on Dartmoor and Grogley woods several times and all the time on my local freeridery trails. I may not be that fast but I do go flat out.

Direction? I know I couldn't tell in a blind test.