[Closed] What’s good in the world of tyres currently?

I love my Michelin Michelin enduros..

So much so I bought another set

Wild Enduro. Love the Magi-X2 on the front. And just moved to a Force AM2 on the rear... All good so far.

Like at what Specialized are available. Grid tyres are excellent. Me and my son both running Eliminator front, Slaughter rear

Hard to see passed DHRII. They are popular for a reason. 2.4 3C MAX terra makes for a brilliant mixed condition tyre

Magic Mary is my go to front tyre in the conditions you describe, the 2.6 sticks like shit to a blanket. Whatever I've got in decent nick goes on the rear, currently a DHF.

Magic Mary front, DHR2 rear is brilliant. Lots of variations within them for more grip, toughness or speed. Unlikely to be cheap!

Specialized Hillbilly is similar to the Magic Mary, can sometimes be found far cheaper and although not as sticky works amazingly well and lasts far longer. Eliminator or Butcher on the back is a good pairing if you can find them much cheaper than a DHR2.

Michelins are cheap, which is about the only positive point for them.

Specialized fit into that camp too.

Assegai/DHR2 is still the go to combo.

Assegai/DHR2 is still the go to combo.

As long as weight isn't a consideration. I've ordered some Continentals as an experiment, as I'm tired of dragging 2kgs of pretty hefty and sticky tyres around with me. Yes they've got grip for miles, but I think (in the summer at least) I'm going to give up some of that in exchange for some speed. See what happens.

OP where you based? I've a 650b MM with plenty wear left on it, free bar postage cost if you want it?.

ping me a DM if you want it, happy to help out a young un.

I love my Michelin Michelin enduros..

So much so I bought another set

So good they named them twice.

I don’t really want to spend £55+ per tyres

So people are recommending the Performance version of Schwalbe tyres? As a tubeless tyre? Interesting.
(especially as they're 1.5KG!)
You really don't neeed to spend out that much OP.

The specialized grid trail butchers are good and not too expensive. You can choose compound t7/t9 or get the older standard gripton ones. Grid trail is worth it over the much thinner grid. My son likes his butcher up front with a dhr2 on the back.

Or wild enduros. I prefer the wild enduros over dhfs. They make a brip,brip,brip,brip noise when you crank them over. Nice 🙂

Just changed my set up to Magic Mary front, DHR2 rear, very pleased with them.

Same, been running MM front DHR2 for a couple of years and see no need to change.

Might be helpful to the OP to link to the version of the Marys being recommended, for reasonable money like.

Bunch of animals on this thread, running different brands front and rear.

I'm only saying about the cost, cos though I agree Magic Marys are the best front tyre out there and easy to blindly recommend - when I was buying tyres for mine and my sons bike and they changed to the higher priced Addix compounds, there was no way I could afford Schwalbe tyres for both bikes. So to keep costs down I went for Spesh - and for one thing they are a billion times easy to set up tubeless, but for the money they are excellent. As long as you go for GRID and tougher and not the standard 2bliss jobs.

Came here to recommend Assegais, as for me they've taken the 'so much grip this has to be cheating' crown from Marys. However, I've just quickly checked the prices, and foooooook, I'm staying with Specialized on my trail bike then!
Butcher/Slaughter/Purgatory on mine(depending on time of year) and they're ok, nothing magical, but at 35 quid for tyres that round here see quite a lot of road, they're a better prospect than north of 100 for the Ass/DHR combo on my Enduro bike!

Tempted to try a Hillbilly or an Eliminator to see if they're better

I like the slaughter on the rear, but grid is just too hard for front tyre use on mank and roots for me.

The black diamond 2.6 butcher was a bit better.

“I like the slaughter on the rear, but grid is just too hard for front tyre use on mank and roots for me.”

The Hillbilly Grid 2.6 is rather weird in that although it’s not that soft a compound, it’s remarkably good at finding grip in wet muddy rooty conditions. I haven’t tried it on wet rock slabs (which tend to demand sticky rubber for grip) but for an all-conditions front tyre which you can also commute on without wearing away the blocks rapidly (I realise my particular usage is quite niche) it’s pretty amazing.

Interesting, sounds pretty appropriate for me! Unfortunately I think my chances of squeezing one into a non boost 2016 Pike are very, very slim, especially with a Proguard on half of the year!

Another +1 for Specialized.

I have gotten on well with Hillbilly front and Butcher rear. I tried Butcher both ends for a while but it was too sketchy when things got wetter.

I also love a Magic Mary on the front but they are Not Cheap.

I got a cheap(ish) Onza Aquila from ChainReaction, well it seemed cheap until I discovered on delivery that
a. It was a wire bead downhill tyre (oops!)
b. It claimed all 3 of my tyre levers during installation which will now need to be replaced
c. Despite my best efforts it's proving rather reluctant to seal around the rim and I'm gonna have to buy more sealant as well in my continuing attempts to keep it inflated.

On Sunday while it remained inflated it seemed to grip ok in the somewhat damp FoD on a mixture of mud, soil, roots and whatever else I ran into or over, certainly better than the liability that was the worn DHR-II I had on previously

Bike one
Magic Mary front 29 X 2.6
Hans dampf rear 29 X 2.4

Bike 2
Magic Mary front 29 X 2.6
Spesh eliminator 27.5 X 2.6

Bike 3
Hillbilly 29 X 2.6
Eliminator 29 X2.6

Close call between hillbilly and Magc Mary.... possibly Mary as all rounder
Eliminator rear.

No one like the spesh butcher seemed middle of the road.

Most of us run MM/HD 2.6s all year round. Or the new Big Betty when it's really sloppy.

But the Spesh tyres in the Grid casing are well liked as well. Esp considering they're often half the price of the Schwable.

I still have a soft spot(!) for Maxxis - Run 2.4 DHRII and 2.4 Dissector when it's not really muddy. As that bike is 27.5 found a few cheap tyres from Merlin etc.

i normally run butchers grids front and rear all year round. apart from 2 months where i put a hillbilly on as its like the somme around our way.

cant ride a hillbilly other than in the slop as its so bloody draggy

i do have an eliminator at present and its alright - using as a rear.

i do feel there are better tyres out there but i cant justify the costs for my ability.

Hi,

I have used Maxxis tires in the past which have been good, however I would recommend Bontrager XR5 2.6 front and 2.3 rear they clear mud well and I think a little fast rolling than the DHR2
FYI follow the links for a review
https://singletrackmag.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/02/review-bontragers-xr5-team-issue-might-just-be-the-ideal-aggro-trail-tyre/
https://www.mbr.co.uk/reviews/tyres/bontrager-xr5
The XR5 retail on the trek web site for under £50.00

Used to be a MinionDHF/DHR2 in the dry, now its Assegai/DHR2. Dont notice a whole lot of difference in rolling speed between the assegai and dhf.

Come winter its going to be Shorty/Minion DHR2, or Assegai*/DHR2
*small side knobs removed for better mud shedding)

Better half is on Magic Mary/High Roller, works year round, have to replace the rears as high rollers lose their braking edge.

What's the fastest rolling grippy rear 2.4 outside of semi slicks, anything significantly faster than dhr2.

“ What’s the fastest rolling grippy rear 2.4 outside of semi slicks, anything significantly faster than dhr2.”

Have heard very good things about the Dissector 2.4 - but if you don’t mind losing a bit of volume then the DHR2 2.3 is a lot quicker than the 2.4 (2.3 has smaller and more closely spaced knobs).

I'd put the DHR2 as a particularly slow tyre, so lots could be quicker. I've got the dissector which I've really enjoyed and does feel fast but it's been so dry I've not had an opportunity to test it in anything soft or muddy.

Did I miss the memo about 2.6 tires?

Would it make a considerable improvement to my 2.4 or 2.5 MM and DHR2 combo for scottish mud

Depends on the tyre, as a lot of 2.6 tyres measure nearer 2.4, but then that's only relevant if your 2.4 was actually 2.4.

MM 2.6 up front is bloody good, but it's just under 2.5 IIRC. I can't fit a 2.6 rear on the Bronson, but it's replacement comes with 2.6's, happy days.

Did I miss the memo about 2.6 tires?

2.6 gives more grip, but definitely at the expense of drag. Not a fan on a non-electric bike for rides with much climbing or length.

I've got 2.4/27.5 versions of the Michelin Enduro on one bike. Really like the front, rear seems poor in certain types of mud (and wears relatively quickly).

Hardtail 29er has a Hillbilly 2.4 and I've haven't found it draggy in harder/dryer conditions (and I was expecting to). I reckon it's a pretty solid all conditions tyre.

Both Michelin and Spec much cheaper than Maxxis but main question at the moment seems to be what you can get hold of at any price. Ended up buying (with difficultly) some 2.5 Maxxis DHFs as were no Michelin in stock anywhere.

“ Did I miss the memo about 2.6 tires?”

Hillbilly 2.6 is a good all-conditions 2.4” front tyre. And the Eliminator 2.3 is a pretty decent most-conditions 2.4” rear tyre.

God knows why tyre companies are so keen to write a different number on the side to how big the tyre actually is! These two are literally the same brand (Specialized), same casing (Grid) and same rubber (Gripton) but the 2.6 in one model is the same size as the 2.3 in another model. WTAF?!!

Both Michelin and Spec much cheaper than Maxxis but main question at the moment seems to be what you can get hold of at any price. Ended up buying (with difficultly) some 2.5 Maxxis DHFs as were no Michelin in stock anywhere.

I think this is the main issue. 3C Maxxis tyres could be regularly had for about £40. Now no one has any stock and they go for full-price.

I paid over £50 for a dual compound DHRII 2.3 to run on the rear.

As much as I wouldn't mind experimenting with other brands Maxxis have always been a piece of piss to set up tubeless, its the main reason I stick with them as I do like to faff around with different tyre combos so being able to get them set up easily makes a difference.

Did I miss the memo about 2.6 tires?

I think folk get too hung up on the size, over things that are more important like casing and rubber compound.

Not sure about 2.6 tyres on the rear myself, unless for a hardtail perhaps.

They can work well on the front but I seem to be settling on 2.4in rear and 2.4 or 2.5in front for the best feel.

It's all relative. The 2.6 Force AM2 comes up the same as a 2.4 Wild Enduro, at least on XM481's.

God knows why tyre companies are so keen to write a different number on the side to how big the tyre actually is!

Strong suspicion it comes down to marketing. Look at the specs, look at the competition - if your 2.4 tyre looks too heavy vs the competition, call it a 2.6 and it looks light relative to other 2.6's. Lots of people read online specs, few measure tyres.

What’s good in the world of tyres currently?

The answer to this is probably "whatever you can find in stock preferably in your garage"

Top tip: look at other brands aside from the big 2.  WTB, Onza, Vittoria, Specialized and Goodyear all make good tyres for most applications.

Most tyres go up easily enough tubeless these days.

I have done 4x Onza and 2x Specialized in the last couple of weeks with no dramas what so ever with just a track pump.