New Season, New Tires, New Thread

[jm2e]

The really light tires I’ve ridden handle like shit. I notice it almost as much as I notice riding with a tube. Probably just me and my inferior skillz though.

[Cocximus]

The really light tires I’ve ridden handle like shit. I notice it almost as much as I notice riding with a tube. Probably just me and my inferior skillz though.

I found they do great with higher pressure. Makes sense.

[One (+) Sentence]

Anyone stretch a tire sidewall? I noticed my mountain king has a woble, but no visible damage. I wonder if it was a manufacturing issue or I fucked it up. Minions next.

That is the fashion in which Continental tires most commonly fail. They would likely warranty it if you can find a receipt.

[stuckathuntermtn]

Are Conti and Schwalbe made in the same factory? Because wtf is up with German tires? They are awesome for about half a mile or less. After few wheel rotations on a dirt path they start to fall apart.

[MrMan]

Are Conti and Schwalbe made in the same factory? Because wtf is up with German tires? They are awesome for about half a mile or less. After few wheel rotations on a dirt path they start to fall apart.

My experience as well.

[gravitylover]

And for so many years they were the gold standard. I went 20 years with nothing but good experiences with Conti tires but that sure doesn't seem to be the case anymore. I still have a couple of bikes in the quiver with Conti tires and have a few new ones from 4 or 5 years ago still in the packaging. I'd trust any of them but not sure I'd go for the new stuff other than maybe the GP 4 Seasons.

[Cocximus]

Wow so they are that bad. It was a racesport so probably even more prone to damage. I got it from CRC.
So the rock razor in the back is next...?

[MrMan]

Support your local (good) bike shop. Walked into my local Spesh dealer looking for a GC 2.3 for the rear to replace the stock fast trax 2.2. They only had the GC 2.3 in the grid version which has the wicked tough sidewall but is over 800 grams. Not what I wanted. The sales guy asked me what I was looking for and scratched his head and told me he'd be right back. He goes upstairs and walks down with the tire I was looking for out of the package brand new with a tag that had $55.00 marker'd on it which is what it retails for. I told him that would work and he gave it to me for $25.00 since it had no package and may have been a take off of a brand new bike. Works for me!!! So then I bought a replacement 11 speed chain, some stanz, and a CO2 cartridge while I was there. Shops usually have some gems out back or in storage, so if you're looking for a deal on something....

Mounted up perfect and easy with 1oz of stanz using my $29.00 basic Park floor pump.

[skaredshtles]

Fuck Specialized.

[MrMan]

Fuck Specialized.

Enjoy that trip of yours.

[toast2266]

And for so many years they were the gold standard. I went 20 years with nothing but good experiences with Conti tires but that sure doesn't seem to be the case anymore. I still have a couple of bikes in the quiver with Conti tires and have a few new ones from 4 or 5 years ago still in the packaging. I'd trust any of them but not sure I'd go for the new stuff other than maybe the GP 4 Seasons.

I'm not sure the tires are any different - my theory is just that they don't work well tubeless. Most of the Conti tires are super high thread count, which means super tiny threads. With a tube in, there's support from the tube on the inside of the tire wall. But set up tubeless, that support isn't there, and it seems the sidewalls can't take the stress. But Conti's built their whole tire brand around being high thread count, so they've kinda backed themselves into a corner on fixing it.

[radam]

Support your local (good) bike shop. Walked into my local Spesh dealer looking for a GC 2.3 for the rear to replace the stock fast trax 2.2. They only had the GC 2.3 in the grid version which has the wicked tough sidewall but is over 800 grams. Not what I wanted. The sales guy asked me what I was looking for and scratched his head and told me he'd be right back. He goes upstairs and walks down with the tire I was looking for out of the package brand new with a tag that had $55.00 marker'd on it which is what it retails for. I told him that would work and he gave it to me for $25.00 since it had no package and may have been a take off of a brand new bike. Works for me!!! So then I bought a replacement 11 speed chain, some stanz, and a CO2 cartridge while I was there. Shops usually have some gems out back or in storage, so if you're looking for a deal on something....

Mounted up perfect and easy with 1oz of stanz using my $29.00 basic Park floor pump.

Yeah! Support your LBS! One time I walked into all three of the shops in my area looking for a chainring bolt because one had managed to work its way loose and disappear on my wife's bike and I wanted to get her back riding that weekend. None of the shops had a standard, run of the mill chainring bolt. So I bought some triathalon gear, an ugly jersey at full msrp and stocked up on some disgusting GUs and was on my way.... back home to harvest a chainring bolt from another bike and then onto the computer to order a chainring bolt from ebay for like 80 cents or some nonsense.

[muted]

Yeah! Support your LBS! One time I walked into all three of the shops in my area looking for a chainring bolt because one had managed to work its way loose and disappear on my wife's bike and I wanted to get her back riding that weekend. None of the shops had a standard, run of the mill chainring bolt. So I bought some triathalon gear, an ugly jersey at full msrp and stocked up on some disgusting GUs and was on my way.... back home to harvest a chainring bolt from another bike and then onto the computer to order a chainring bolt from ebay for like 80 cents or some nonsense.

Ha! Some times I have experiences like this and realize shitty managing is bringing down the LBS, not the internet. But of course the LBS will always be valuable for other things. For example, I'm sure MR Man enjoys talking to someone in person how great he is and not just online.

[creaky fossil]

Schwalbe tires have a weird, plastic-like feel, which I guess comes from their "German engineering" in the rubber compounds. Germans do like their chemistry. They've been at the front of organic chemistry forever.

It seems their tires are designed for natural earth, and more loamy/uncompressed soils. Ride them on pavement or hardpack or any compressed/firm/rough surface and they shred apart easily. And maybe Germans like tires that last one ride only.

toast -- re Contis, bullseye on the casing! I am sure there are euros who love supple tires more than stout tires, and through that group plus established road bike/motorcycle/auto tires made already, Conti got a loyal following. Instead of re-engineering their tires for tubeless fluid sealing, they probably painted a wee bit of extra rubber on that fibernet that is the casing. And when doing so, used a tiny amount to retain suppleness. Too much & suppleness disappears. Now imagine how long that thin film will last on a very supple casing run at low PSI. Hence, leaks.

I think some riders like "casing wrap" as a riding experience, whereas others like "stout casing, knobs claw into and tear apart the earth!" experience. Tires that suit each group will not satisfy the opposite.

Also, think I've said this before, but I wouldn't be too quick to assume the supple, casing-wrapping tire lovers are all slow, or just dirt roadies. I know some fast bastards who ride what I consider jokes of a tire. What they have in common is they barely strike the trail, hovercraft riders are what I'd call them.

Ha! Some times I have experiences like this and realize shitty managing is bringing down the LBS, not the internet. But of course the LBS will always be valuable for other things. For example, I'm sure MR Man enjoys talking to someone in person how great he is and not just online.

Bike shops tend to be either bike lovers who just want an easy-ish (comes naturally, needs no degree, etc) job and they love wrenching on & being around bikes, OR a smarmy wannabe who doesn't know jack but sees a great economic opportunity and knows how to sell and how to manage an inventory, who hires people that know more than he does to do the wrenching, but since he doesn't know bikes really, they don't know much really, OR, rarely, a person who is BOTH categories (business-savvy plus loves & knows bikes & wrenching).

I feel no compulsion of any kind to support that middle category.

[Cocximus]

So CRC gave me a full refund without having to send the tire back.

The mountain king was great but I looks like it's too prone to damage to get another. Guess a minion dhf it is...

[Cocximus]

Would minion single ply get beaten like a recesport mountain king? They are out of EXOs.

[Cocximus]

Whats the take on maxxis aggressors for front tire?

[stuckathuntermtn]

My Nobby Nick that evaporated had a tube in it. Fucking rip-offs are what Schwalbes are.
rog needs too fuck off. You are just trolling. No way is a GC better at anything than a DHF. He may just be on too much meth.

[joetron]

Whats the take on maxxis aggressors for front tire?

Funny, I thought about this for a brief moment yesterday as I looked at the 2 Aggressors hanging in my garage. I stocked up when they came back into stock late this summer because its my new favorite rear tire.

I think they'd be an ok 'aggressive' XC front tire paired with something really fast rolling in back - but for an everyday trail/am tire I think you'd be better served with something like DHF/DHR2/Butcher/SE5/Magic Mary/Etc....

[joetron]

For some further tire nerdery, I've heard that Conti's high thread counts aren't super legit. They get their high TPI number from layering, whereas Vittoria and others are counting TPI in a single layer.

[creaky fossil]

...something I wouldn't know from experience, because I never ride...

Seriously, how does someone who rides 5x/season come to conclusions about anything?

joetron, don't be making fun of Conti's bias ply strategy, it was standard on most car tires until the mid-late 70s.

[SJG]

In 3 years I have gone from Schwalbe (Magic Mary, Nobby Nic, Rock Razor)), to Continental (X-king, Mountain King, Trail King), to Maxxis (DHF, DHR2, Aggressor).

My experience is that Maxxis are legit and hold up, where the other 2 wore out in 1/3 the time, IF they didn't pinch flat or hole a sidewall before then. Actually wearing out a Schwalbe or Conti is rare, something else has failed before they had a chance to wear out.

[toast2266]

Whats the take on maxxis aggressors for front tire?

I wasn't a fan. Doesn't have the cornering bite or the braking of a dhf, and doesn't roll fast enough to make the sacrifice worthwhile. It likes to gradually release into a drift, which is great on the rear for a bit of oversteer, but not so great on the front.

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[Cocximus]

Oke dhf it is. I don't really care that much about rolling resistance but on my trails there's a lot of pedaling up and down all time.

[TahoeJ]

I wasn't a fan. Doesn't have the cornering bite or the braking of a dhf, and doesn't roll fast enough to make the sacrifice worthwhile. It likes to gradually release into a drift, which is great on the rear for a bit of oversteer, but not so great on the front.

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Thoughts on the aggressor on the rear vs DHR 2 or HR 2? Sometimes I wish the latter two would be a bit more drifty at speed but it’s a very fine line. I’m all about the DHF up front.