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XC Tyres for around the NSW area
Hi Guys, I did a search for this and found a result from 2009, has much changed since then?
I've been out of the MTB scene for a couple years and have also crossed to this side of the ditch as well and gone from a "7 front 6" rear travel bike to 120mm all round and the trails are alot different here.
I've ridden Manly dam, Ourimbah and still exploring other places and wondering what tyres are working well.
I currently have Merida Trail Lite 2.25 on board as thats what came on my Merida One-Twenty.
Cheers for any help
Muzz.
[Mod. moved to NSW as relates to specific area]
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I run a Crossmark on the back and a Rendez on the front, both 2.1.
Seem to work well at both Terry Hills and the Dam.
On the 5" Bike, I run 2.1 Maxxis Crossmark UST's front and rear, and occasionally run a 2.35 Maxxis Igitor UST on the front if its really wet/muddy.
WHY?
Well the Crossmark's came on the bike and they seem to suit me really well and I like the Grippiness of the Igitor (and the extra width) when its gets wet and muddy.
and 2.5 Minion DHF and 2.35 Minion DHR on the 8" DH Bike.
If it's dry - the combo of small block 8 at the back and a Nevagal on the front is hard to beat. Great combo for Manly Dam. The small block 8 rolls really well. I did a run up the Long trail on a small block 8 and had no problems getting up the last hill - this morning I had a Crossmark evo on and got up but spun up a few times
How do you find the rolling resistance of the small block 8 v the crossmark?
First ride on the Crossmark evo (rear) today and it was very good as is small block 8. (week before tried a Schwalbe Rocket Ron and it was hard to keep going) Tried a demo bike a few weeks ago with two X/marks and when on the front didn't like that as much - in terms of grip - X/marks would be better in mixed conditions wet/dry than the small block 8. I use the 8 in Summer only - brilliant for the Dam with hardpack, rock and road but in winter with the boards at the Dam find they have little grip. Keen to try the crossmark for winter
I used to run the Crossmark 2.10 USTs but now run the 2.25s front and rear. Roll well and grip well.
I've ridden Cross marks in the past but never liked them, maybe the surface over here suits them compared to NZ. Whats brand are the small block 8 tyres you keep mentioning?
http://www.kendausa.com/en/home/bicycle/mountain...
Personally think they are the bomb, really fast and they grip like anything. Especially the sand and dusty trails that Ourimbah has for example.
Shwalbe Noby Nic front, and Maxis Larson Rear.
Kenda Nevegal front and Kenda Small Block 8 rear also sounds good.
advantage front and ranchero rear, leaves the rest for dead
Kenda Nevegals F/R
Maxxis Ignitor F
Ignitor 2.35 and Larsen 2.0 have worked well for me as a tubeless combination. Ignitor 2.1 is a little skinny - 2.35 is much better. Quite grippy, tolerant of mud although not a mud tyre. However, when it does let go there's not a lot of warning, and it has given me a fright quite a few times although has never dumped me on the ground.
Larsen is an excellent rear.
I'm currently experimenting with Schwalbe Racing Ralph 2.1 rear and Nobby Nic 2.5 front, also tubeless. I quite like them, they're light and spin well, but have found they are quite sensitive to pressure. Too high and they get skatey. The RR rear climbs really well, probably a little better than the Larsen but not as good on th ebrakes. NN front needs to be around 25psi for me (80kg) - anything over and it's not very confidence inspiring. At 25 it felt quite planted - quite a dramatic difference.
Whisperer reckons that the sweetspot range for a given individual's weight with these Schwalbe is about 3psi wide - might explain why on the really hot ride last weekend the frotn felt a little loose again. I'd set the pressures the night before when it was much cooler.
Edit: That's on a 130mm travel bike
Isn't it interesting - no one ever mentions Specialized tyres on here, I suspect it's because you can't buy them online. I run a pair of Specialized Captain Controls on my Anthem and on my hardtail and they are great for me in the Blue Mountains. You could go to the FastTrak on the rear if you want something that rolls a bit better.
My Anthem runs Nevegel UST up front and Crossmark UST on the back. If you are going to be doing little in flat trail riding and lots of rougher trails, I have found High Rollers are pretty good too.
In my experience, Nevegel is only useful on the front as they are too soft for the rear. They wear badly.
Muzz, make sure you are running UST in Sydney as our trails are so much more rockier than NZ. It is SO easy to pinch flat on these trails. Something else to remember, the rocky trails here wear tyres down quickly. Unless you are racing, go for the harder compound every time.
My two bobs worth, found Maxxis Ardent 2.25 front and rear to work really well on the local tracks. Roll well, grip well especially in sandy conditions. These are a high volume tyre and blow up bigger than a standard 2.35.
Currently running 2.25 Continental Speed Queens, these have good grip, but are a little on the heavy side for a UST.
For our conditions up here (Singleton) I've been using a 2.1 crossmark on the front and a Intense system 3 2.0 semi slick on the rear, used it in the Sydney 6+6 last weekend and only had issues in the sandy paddock, great on the road and climb. Both tyres grip better than anything else I've used here, Ardent 2.25, Intense System 4 2.25's, Hutchinson Barracuda 2.1's. I use the barra's for wet rides now. The trails up here are very hard when dry with a very fine powder of dust on them, great for drifting through corners!
I have been running the 2.25 Savage at Manly for last few months and they have been great - albeit with a few punctures.
Considering the other active tyre thread being discussed right now, I can't believe no one hasn't suggested running a Larsen?
FWIW I run an Ignitior upfront and a Larsen on the rear. Hav had no problems ever with this setup.
Although I have had a Crossmark on the back previously. Prefer the Larsen slightly but would be happy with either. Just make sure that you stay away from the "exception" series. They may seem attractive due to the weight but they are a racing tyre, thin sidewalls + rocky trails = tears.
BTW, hawkeye did mention the same combo above.
I'm reading this on my phone and must've missed your post somehow, my apologies.
glad to hear the shoulder is mending up well. We'll have to get together for a ride soon.
Yeah I'm another Ignitor up front and Larson on the rear. Prefer the Larson over a crossmark.
Use the same arrangement on both geared and SS bikes, one with wider 2.3 and the other 2.1 sets. Have ridden with the arrangement in NSW, ACT and VIC and NZ in dry and wet conditions and though I don't push the tyres to their limit by any stretch, I can't say I have found the limits of them and been let down by my tires.
I'm sure there are better pairings for various conditions but for general riding if you are too lazy to go changing tyres at the drop of a hat, it works really well.
You know you have mountain biking on the mind when:-
You go and see the movie "127 Hours" and identify the tyres on his bike as Nevegal's
Crossmark on the front and Monorail on the back - great combo.
Any recommendations for 29er's? I've had Kenda Small Block 8's on f&r since new and have been surprised about how good they've been (low rolling resistance but still grippy), but the back is getting worn and starting to let go a bit too often on looser climbs. I'll probably swap them round, but need to start thinking about a replacement rear.
My bike had a crossmark front/monrail back as recommended by kiwiboy but I was struggling with rear end traction on climbs. Swapping them around has fixed that issue but I haven't done enough km's to know what the front end traction is like now
as a 100kg rider rear traction isn't often a problem for me
However I will admit the monorails are not crash hot on loose gravelly surface.
I noticed the Rockstar Racing team also all using them at the Mont last year or the year before - good on the conditions there.