Conti Rubber Queen / Trail King 2.2

[Duffman]

I can confirm the change, shop in philly area has the 2.2 made in Germany black chili compound tires. I picked up a set to try instead of my Nevegal 2.35 DTCs. I like the nevs a lot, but they are slow as hell, so we will see how these do.


Edit: didnt see that you guys were talking about the UST 2.2 not being black chili/made in germany. I guess the non 2.2 UST version has been available with black chili for a while. anyway, anybody have any luck in setting the non-UST tires up tubeless?

[squirrelmurphy]

Just mounted up 2.4 and 2.2 non-ust Trail Kings (apex, black chili, made in germany) on Sun Charger rims (essentially a stans flow) and they sealed right up with no sealant. Bead is tight as shit, took me forever to get it on the wheel. Hopefully they work, will be adding sealant in the AM and hopefully riding tomorrow afternoon.

[willmtbike4food]

3 plies is the number of times the casing overlaps under the tread. It gives the tire a higher tpi. The casing remains the same regardless of whether the sidewall is Apex or not. The Apex simply is added compound in the sidewall to add some stiffness and prevent pinch flats. I dig Apex in general. The 3 plies and tpi is different depending on if the RQ is a wire bead, folding or UST.

I'm assuming you're a Conti rep? Ours (Peter, midwest) said the same thing to us last summer - we were a bit confused/thrown off by this, though. Is the TPI not the threads per inch in an inch of a single ply of casing? The threads in a Conti tire that is, say, a 3 ply 60tpi tire would be comparable then to a competitor's 2 ply 40tpi tire then? Can you offer any insight here?

Just got a set of Rubber Queens for my 6" bike (2.4 f, 2.2 r, non-UST), am looking forward to abusing them tonight...

[marshalolson]

maxxis 2 ply tires are refered to as 120tpi, with each layer being 60tpi

conti 3ply is 180 total tpi, 60tpi per.

[willmtbike4food]

Right, but is it misleading to infer that a higher tpi -because there are more plies, not because in each of the plies there are actually more threads per inch?

We were splitting hairs over road tires, with a 2-ply Vittoria vs a 3-ply Conti, concerning which should be more supple, based solely upon tpi... In a single ply, the Vittoria had a higher thread count, but when it's 2 plies vs 3 plies, the Conti had more total threads... Wish I remembered more of the specifics. Or, even better, wish the occurence wasn't stuck in my memory at all...

Rubber Queens tonight... Nasty. 5 stars.

[squirrelmurphy]

Epic dirt this evening in CB, RQs did not disappoint. Excellent corner hold, fast, front tire did very well on wet roots and rocks, rear tire did well but not quite as well. I had to put them at 55psi with 3-4 oz of stans to get some pinholes in the sidewalls to fill in, but they're holding air beautifully now.

[Duffman]

First ride observation of the 2.2 Trail King non-UST

These are replacing Nevegal DTC 2.35s mounted on the stock narrow mavic 117 rim on my cannondale rush. While the casing height is very similar to the Nevs, they are definitely not as wide. Sidewalls are firmer than the single ply nevs also. Mounted with tubes at 28psi (i like low pressure with tubes, havent had any pinching problems with the nevs at similar psi)

First of all, I guess I was so used to it, I forgot just how frikken slow the nevs are. bike felt like a road bike in comparison on flat hardpacked fire road compared to the nevegals. Riding in SE PA at wisshickon (think short but decently steep techy climbs and decents with lots of rocks and roots) tires hooked up well and turned well, but didn't feel nearly as cushy as the nevs in the rock gardens. Fast techy decents were fun, but definitely got bounced around more with the Trail Kings. I will have to see if lowering the psi to 25 or so makes a bit of a difference.

[Duffman]

Epic dirt this evening in CB, RQs did not disappoint. Excellent corner hold, fast, front tire did very well on wet roots and rocks, rear tire did well but not quite as well. I had to put them at 55psi with 3-4 oz of stans to get some pinholes in the sidewalls to fill in, but they're holding air beautifully now.

Any updates here? I love the Black chili 2.2 tires, so I don't want the UST version without it, but I am now tempted to try and run these tubeless on a Mavic crosstrail rim (similar bead to an 819.) Are these still working semi ghetto with stans on a ust rim?

[squirrelmurphy]

Still working, have definitely had some issues. I tore through the tread on the first ride, and through the sidewall of the front tire on the third ride. Definitely rider error though, and both patched up nicely. I dented a rim and have been having some trouble getting the rear tire to hold air, but I think any of that would be an issue even with a tubeless tire, and that I should probably learn a little finesse .

They ride soooo nice at low pressure though, i'm gonna have to have serious issues before I'll give up on running them tubeless...

[bendtheski]

I had a set of last years 2.4 Mountain Kings running with tubes last year. Both had casing defects and rep gave credit towards 2.2 Trial King Rubber Queen UST. The 2.2 TK is BIG! I think it's just about as big as the MK 2.4. Traction seems better especially on dry loose and loamy which is about 90% of my riding. Actually rode them wet yesterday and didn't find them wanting. Running on a 5.5" Stumpy FSR with between 18-22lbs tubeless 2.2 front and rear XTR wheels with Stans. Went on easy and bead set without having to use a compressor. No casing flaws that I can see and weight/rolling is about what you'd expect from a tire this size and with this much traction=pretty good. They seem to wear pretty well too. Also considered the Specialized Purgatory 2.2 grid, but couldn't pass up the credit from the Conti rep. The weights are comparable but hopefully it'll be a while before I have to consider a replacement.

[robnow]

Reviving thread!

Gonehuckin...

When are the new 2.2 UST Trail Kings WITH Black Chili expected to be available in NA?

[robnow]

Trail Kings are decent, but I'd wait for the new Mt. King II with the Race Sport casing...

Where did you hear that about the Trail King changes? Website is showing 2.2 USTs w/ BC. Although I would be happy with what you describe as long as the sidewalls aren't as porous as people say...although Squirrel seems to be having good luck.

And in regards to the MKII, it looks to be similar but a little mellower in tread pattern compared to the TK?

[131crew]

Where did you hear that about the Trail King changes? Website is showing 2.2 USTs w/ BC. Although I would be happy with what you describe as long as the sidewalls aren't as porous as people say...although Squirrel seems to be having good luck.

And in regards to the MKII, it looks to be similar but a little mellower in tread pattern compared to the TK?

I got my info from a friend at Highway Two. They distribute Conti tires here in the U.S., uncertain about Canada. I could for sure be wrong and/or mistaking. I do remember the Continental website has been a little confusing the last couple seasons as to the origin and compound of 2.2 RQ/TK's.

The new Race Sport casing is supposed to be beefier than the old Supersonic's, which isn't hard to believe as the Supersonic sidewalls would literally weep Stans. I'll have new Mtn King II's in the Race Sports to try soon and I can report back. I think the new tread looks good, and the side lugs look a lot more organized than on the RQ/TK. Knowing my history, I'll probably love them for a week, then think they're alright for a week, then pull them off my bike in favor of yet another pair of fresh High Rollers...

[donkeykong]

when will the new MKIIs be available in the US?

[donkeykong]

anyone been running the MK II's or TKs lately? do they run true to size and roll fast?

[131crew]

I was mistaking in some earlier posts from a couple months ago. We just got a shipment of UST 2.2 Trail Kings. They are in fact made in Germany and feature Black Chili. Good change. So, to my knowledge the only two UST tires that Conti produces in Germany with BC are the 2.4 and 2.2 Trail Kings (Rubber Queens).

The new Mountain King II has a tread pattern that looks pretty good, but it is lower volume than the TK, ie. the 2.2 is a total pizza cutter. Also, I have yet to see a UST MKII and there seems to have been some serious delays with their new "tubeless ready" Race Sport tires. The Protection versions of the tire are easy to find however and are made in Germany w/ BC.

[donkeykong]

i know the new MK II 2.4's are a true 2.4, i.e. they look pretty beefy compared to the old MK 2.4, which actually looks more like a 2.3...i like the old MK tread pattern so just wondering what's so special about the new design.

[131crew]

I'm not sure there's anything special about the MKII, I haven't ridden one. It's just a new tread pattern but it looks more appealing to me than the MK. I haven't measured one inflated, but I really think the volume of the new tire is the same as the original MK. For sure not marketed as an "oversized casing" like a Trail King is...

[donkeykong]

I've had a fair amount of time on the new MKII's 2.4 Protection. I agree with the sidewall feeling very stiff, compared to the old MK's it felt like i was bouncing/sliding off many of the slick rocks. Just didn't feel as grippy. I prefer the original MK's.