Trail Centre tyres.

Assegai front. Dhr or dhf on the back.

My lad runs mm and Hans on his 141.

To be honest, they're all equally good these days. I'm not convinced most of us can tell the differ between compounds in terms of grip, only rolling speed. I'd love to scientifically test that but I bet on a set of 3 corners most people would be the exact same speed mid corner on both/all

Cheers mate. Seems the days of it being a lottery maybe over? I've got a pair of virtually unused Continentals in the garage that I got years ago because they reviewed well, Black Chilli, etc. They scared me to death with the lack of grip!

Magic Mary front is still decent. Assegai is a bit better on trail centre hardpack up front but worse if it’s muddy as it can clog. I’ve got both.

On the rear the hand dampf is a bit underwhelming but on most trail centres it’ll be fine.

On the rear I’d run a dh2 as an all rounder either with the Assegai or magic Mary up front. I’m not fussy on mixing tyre brands. Dissector is a faster running rear tyre than the dhr2 but less good at mud.

If you want to try continental then Kryptotal front and rear would do a job but probably are a bit slower rolling than any of the above combinations.

semi slick outback with something like an ardent or aggressor up front.

Magic Mary front
DHR rear

Does everything and well - perfect all rounder combo for me.

Or if I really want to feel a bit zippier I'll bung a 'whatever fast rolling' tyre I can find on offer onto the rear for summer. Rock Razor SS / Rekon / Dissector / Racing Ralph. They're all good.

semi slick outback with something like an ardent or aggressor up front

This. Most trail centres are hard wearing man made surfaces. Big aggressive treads on tyres like a Mary will be worse than say an Ardent, Ikon, Rock Razor, etc.

Thanks all. Seeing as I like my current combo and they still seem to be ball park I might stick with them unless I find some mega bargain Maxxis.

Or maybe go Nobby Nick or Rocket Ron on the back......

Ran a Minion SS last week at sherwood pines, was OK actually, despite being a little slippy underfoot.

Probably not very fashionable, but I've always found a Specialized Purgatory on the front and Ground Control on the rear to be a good combo.
I know over the years people have complained about them being a bit weak and/or not holding air tubeless, but I haven't experienced any of those problems.

I’m not convinced most of us can tell the differ between compounds in terms of grip, only rolling speed. I’d love to scientifically test that but I bet on a set of 3 corners most people would be the exact same speed mid corner on both/all

this is an interesting idea, though there is more to using a soft tyre than cornering speed.

i’ve never tried the same tyre back to back with different compounds. i also think they offer a more secure feeling on steep loose trails under braking, though is this placebo?

that said, soft tyres are definitely less slippery on wet rock and roots, either in a straight line or while cornering.

as for trail centre tyres, use what you have, would be my suggestion

Probably not very fashionable, but I’ve always found a Specialized Purgatory on the front and Ground Control on the rear to be a good combo.

Used to use the same but found the MM/HD combo another level.

as for trail centre tyres, use what you have, would be my suggestion

What I have is a Hans Dampf that's past it's best and a pair of Continental's that scare the life out of my on anything other than dry, smooth canal paths!

don’t use those!

sorry, was really pondering the question on soft tyres actually being faster for normal riders.

MM front and a nobby nick on the back in the “trail” compound would probably be good for summer trail centres

Probably not very fashionable, but I’ve always found a Specialized Purgatory on the front and Ground Control on the rear to be a good combo.

For current versions of these I would put GC front and Purg rear.

MM front and a nobby nick on the back in the “trail” compound would probably be good for summer trail centres

I tend to fit and forget so HD on back, like I have now? I have this combo on a hardtail I'm building due to the very cheap tyres Merlin had a few months back and looking at the (27.5, 2.6) HD it looks quite a bit more aggressive than the HD on my full suss (29, 2.4) which was a previous gen Trailstar Evo job.

for year round the HD would be the better bet.

i only have experience of 29x2.4, but wouldn’t be suprised if the 29x2.6 had more aggressive tread, too.

Butcher T9 front and Eliminator T7 rear, both in Grid Trail, would do me for trail centres.

As I’m on natural trails 99% of the time I prefer something spikier up front and something with more pedalling/braking traction out the back (both my hardtail and Levo are Hillbilly front, Butcher rear).

T7 compound is great as a front tyre most of the time but T9 is a lot stickier on wet roots and rocks.

Sounds like your current tyres are overkill for trail centre hard packed trail. Unless you ride the off piste trails.

I'm currently using Nobby Nics in 2 4" F and 2.3" R. I like them and find them to roll well and have enough grip to ride quickly. Had Racing Ralph and Racing Ray combo before and liked them. I got a deal on the Nobby Nics so worth a punt

Magic Mary is a fantastic tyre but it's not at its best on harder surfaces- it can do it, that's basically why it's such a great allrounder, it can do anything- best one-tyre-for-all out there maybe? But it only really shines when it can dig in a bit. For trailcentre stuff with well built trails, something like a dhr2 is almost always better, you get a bit more grip on the hard, and less rolling resistance, the only tradeoff comes when it's softer. DHR2 in maxxterra or maxxgrip front, and something faster on the rear, works fantastic- I really like the rockrazor, ymmv, some people can't get used to the straightline braking.

I mean, it's not like trailcentres are all super hard, there's slippier less hard surfaced stuff at bpw of course and lots of centres have offpistes and options but even on main trails you can sometimes find a bit of squish. It depends a lot on what you're into.

Don't rate the hans dampf at all tbh, it works OK til the knobs wear but that happens really fast and it loses so much grip when the square edges are gone. Cloggy in mud, too. At their very best, when they're new and working 100%, on the right trail for them, they can be about as good as a dhr2. But that barely ever happens. I keep meaning to try a Big Betty on the front, see if it works any better but I've heard it's a bit abrupt?

weeksy
Full Member

To be honest, they’re all equally good these days. I’m not convinced most of us can tell the differ between compounds in terms of grip, only rolling speed. I’d love to scientifically test that but I bet on a set of 3 corners most people would be the exact same speed mid corner on both/all

On typical trailcentre corners, I reckon you're right, they tend to be more about weight and positioning and skill than they are about tyres (if I run out of grip, it's not because the tyre lacked grip, it's because I've ****ed it up!) On wet rocks with a bit of mud dragged on it? I think most riders who're working the front at all would would notice tbf, tread goes out the window there and rubber takes over. But it can even make a difference on really solid, polished trailcentre blue groove in the wet, where there's so little texture

I've a feeling that it maybe makes morethe most difference on less clever tyres? Like, I love the dhr2, best allround front I've ever had... But it's not doing anything really clever, it's just a decent shape and really good rubber, which is probably why they keep working even once they're completely shagged with the knobs crumbled off. Whereas others do wonders with the tread shape (and then it's really obvious once the shape fades)

Magic Mary is a fantastic tyre but it’s not at its best on harder surfaces- it can do it, that’s basically why it’s such a great allrounder, it can do anything– best one-tyre-for-all out there maybe? But it only really shines when it can dig in a bit.

I find it a bit less all-rounder TBH... scares me silly on hardpack or anything it can't dig into but half of that is the sound as the sideknobs make as the "scrabble" but then it tends to washout all at once after that.

Stick them on lovely loam or some mud and they grip like mad....

Butcher front Purgatory rear
Or
Assegai front Dissector rear

I like a fast rear.

stevextc
Free Member

I find it a bit less all-rounder TBH… scares me silly on hardpack or anything it can’t dig into but half of that is the sound as the sideknobs make as the “scrabble” but then it tends to washout all at once after that.

I suppose allrounder is a bad word really. I'd say the Mary is a great allrounder because it can do everything, adequately. Hardly anything that's as good in mud as a mary is any good at all at hard stuff. But you could say a Minion's an allrounder because it does better than the Mary most of the time... But it's nothing like as good in mud. Thing is that most riders never actually go and do steep handcut offpiste stupidity, so their idea of allround just doesn't include that. And lots of riders that do, often really want to be using shorties or whatever.

It depends on what your idea of allround actually is, is I suppose what I mean 🙂 They're piss-all use as road tyres. I kind of settle on "whatever I want to do on a mountain bike, it can do"- you can do half of glentress black then go actually, I want to do b side in january, and it'll handle it all. You'd be better on a minion for the trail centre, and better on a shorty on the offpiste, but right inbetween is the mary.

All year round on all surfaces combo for me is WTB Vigilante front and Trail Boss rear.
Currently have 2 bikes running these 29" and 27.5" with 2.8 front and 2.6 rear.

They've been good for natural Devon stuff, BPW, Afan, Dartmoor, Quantocks...all year round.
Defo my favourite combo.

Probably very unfashionable now, but I'd opt for a highroller 2 up front in soft rubber, and whatever was knocking about and fast rolling on the back.

I suppose allrounder is a bad word really. I’d say the Mary is a great allrounder because it can do everything, adequately.

^^^^Yup that's it in a nutshell and it's not a fast rolling tyre by any means. If I was a hardpack fiend (I'm not localish riding is slippy as **** in anything other than bluebird conditions) I would probably run DHF and XR4 type treads because they roll faster and can handle a smattering of slop.

I’m mainly riding trail centres this last year and have been using a Minion DHF and SS almost exclusively. Seems to work on my HT.

I find compound is more important on hatrdpack surfaces than tread - in fact too deep a tread flexes rather unnervingly....

WTB Vigilante front and Trail Boss rear.

Good tyres, just pray you never get a puncture.

I do mainly trail centre riding and my favourite combo was bontranger XR4 front/ XR2 rear. I got on well with nobby nic Front / rock razor rear. Currently running minion front / minion ss rear but not a fan of the ss. Thinking on going minion front and rock razor rear but not sure my OCD could cope with mixed tyre brands on a bike! I think your wheels explode if you mix brands!

Year round for me, soft Magic Mary on the front and a “blue stripe” Rock Razor on the back. Fast when it’s dry and does seem to hook up quite a lot of grip even when things get a bit claggy. Never had any issues at deggars etc with this combo. Semi slick on the back can be quite fun too, to keep your eye in for the drifting and managing braking an the downs.

Thanks again all, some stuff to ponder. I perhaps over sold the trail centre thing as I ride natural just as much but The Dales and NYM don't tend to challenge tyres that much, but can defo be soft!

Out of interest, how do Maxxis size up against Schwalbe width wise at the same 'official' width?

Good tyres, just pray you never get a puncture

Why, tightness on the rim?
I've heard this about WTB tyres, but on my two bikes, one on Stans Flow Mk3s and the other on RaceFace Arcs they go on and off with very little hassle.

Why, tightness on the rim?

The perfect storm seems to involve WTB tyres on WTB rims. I had never had to fight with tyres before my 2 boys bikes came with that exact tyre/rim combo. On both of them I had to resort to propping the wheel horizontally and standing on the tyre wall just to break the bead. That was with, or without, tubes. My fingers and thumbs are aching at the memory. I'm sure someone god-like will be along shortly to tell me how I did it all wrong - in fact, that wouldn't be a bad thing and much appreciated as Fazzini-jnr-jnr's bike still has this combo 🤣

After a ride round Cwmcarn at the weekend (Cafell red trail loop with the optional DH run then up the tarmac road to the top of the Twrch red loop and down Conda - which js a steep ish off piste tech trail) I’m increasingly impressed with the Assegai I stuck on the front. It’s more confidence inspiring than the equivalent casing / compound / size dhf and just locks in through loose gravelly stuff / hardpack etc. it’s a 2.5” exo / 3c maxxterra one I got cheap as an oem take off on eBay.

Running a quite worn dhr2 / 2.3” / exo / maxxterra on the back. Just waiting for the weather to dry uk a bit more before the 2.6” rekon goes on there (think it’s 2.6” / exo+ / maxx terra).

Out of interest, how do Maxxis size up against Schwalbe width wise at the same ‘official’ width?

I'm sure someone will be along with actual measurements, but the short and sweet answer is that Maxxis tend to come up smaller ime, Schwalbe are pretty much true to size. A 2.6 Schwalbe Rock Razor is just a smidgeon narrower than a 2.8 Rekon for example, same with smaller tyres I've compared. For some reason the Ardent 2.4 is actually pretty much a 2.4, but the exception rather than the rule.

The perfect storm seems to involve WTB tyres on WTB rims. I had never had to fight with tyres before my 2 boys bikes came with that exact tyre/rim combo. On both of them I had to resort to propping the wheel horizontally and standing on the tyre wall just to break the bead.

WTB Scraper rims are horrific for this. Removing a 2.8 Rekon from one involves choosing shoes with the hardest compound, sharpest edge soles I can find, then standing on the bead with both feet, even then it's reluctant to come away. It would make a suitable event for one of those World's Strongest Man comps. Very irritating.

Maxxis tend to come up smaller ime

I think the newer tyres are pretty close. Schwalbe's big tyres of old are not really a thing anymore. Both now use the standard of 50(?) PSI before measuring, and when you do that both come up pretty close.

Ardent 2.4 is actually pretty much a 2.4, but the exception rather than the rule.

I suspect it was designed pre-standardisation.

I’m sure someone will be along with actual measurements, but the short and sweet answer is that Maxxis tend to come up smaller ime, Schwalbe are pretty much true to size. A 2.6 Schwalbe Rock Razor is just a smidgeon narrower than a 2.8 Rekon for example, same with smaller tyres I’ve compared.

Thanks for that. The 2.4 MM + HD on my 29er full suss, which are to be replaced are an older design where as the same combo on my 27.5 in 2.6 hard tail are current and huge! Happy with the 2.4's but most of the cheaper tyres are 2.25 or 2.3 which would be fine if sized as my current 2.4's but not if they come up smaller, if that makes sense?

May have to stop being tight and just shell out for the right tyres rather than right price!!

Trail centre tyres?

If I only rode trail centres I would have something very fast rolling on the back and something grippy-ish but not spikey up front.

Surely most of the time anything bar a proper mud spike is fine.

Specialized Eliminator 2.3 T7 and Butcher 2.6 T9 in Grid Trail casing worked well at Dalby last week in the drier conditions Friday and soggy conditions on Saturday, which is a good allrounder combo for me.

Maxxis - can we have a 2.5 WT 29er Max Terra Exo+ please and thank you?

I have a few wheelsets with different tyres on, so I can pick according to conditions and type of ride.

For a trail centre ride, I'd probably put my Minion DHF Maxxterra on the front and something fast-ish rolling on the rear (like a Hans Dampf maybe).

But from your OP, it seems you might be after something to do those rides and some more natural trails?

In which case, I'd say stick with what you know.

I perhaps over sold the trail centre bit as I ride plenty of natural stuff but due to living in the Dales the trail centres probably offer the biggest challenge. All round tyre is more accurate, for all conditions.

Having ridden Maxxis, Continental, Specialized, WTB and others in the past I bought my current 29er wheels second hand a few years ago with MM and HD fitted and thought they were the best combo I'd ever had, hence why I was just going to get the same but I don't really swap tyres often and wondered what else might suit. Think the answer for me is probably another Mary up front then something faster rolling out back.

Cheers Chaka, reckon you're right, especially on the front as that's where other tyres have scared me where as the Mary just seems to grip and grip. I wouldn't know if it was poor in the dry as it never is around here!

Only looking as the HD is a bit tired and I'm heading to BPW for the annual trip in a few weeks so thought I better change it to avoid potential blow outs and wasted trail time. Side walls are cracking a bit.