Mountain Biking - Need some decent grippy tyres

Im not really too impressed with my Hutchinson Pythons, they're plenty grippy in summer, but saying us irish dont get a summer, they're a bit pointless.

I was thinking Maxxis Wet Scream front, High rollers back. What do you guys think, its for XC, and a bit of road to get from one trail to another. Wet Fast Sloppy Rooty conditions :D XC mainly, need em to be lightish, no kilo Gazzi's ;)

I was out today in the rain practicing a few tricks, and the tyres were giving when i was puttins the power on, in the exit of corners etc. Not too good when you're flying around the park roads at 30mph. :D

Cheers for the help.

Oh, nearly forgot, and whats the deal with Wet Screams? Wiggle says not to use em on the local trail, are they destructive?

Since i am also living in the miserable (in terms of weather and strange laws) UK i would suggest Panaracer FireXC pro or Panaracer FireMUD Pro tires as excellent wet/muddy tires. FireXCs also cope well with the UK summer conditions. Others may give you different opinions but pay attention that the UK soil and environment is very different to USA, or Greece. So if i was living only in Greece without any UK experience...i would be unable to advice you properly. That said, i think West Canada may have similar soil and conditions with the UK

Originally posted by Dazza
Oh, nearly forgot, and whats the deal with Wet Screams? Wiggle says not to use em on the local trail, are they destructive?
what are Wet Screams? Never heard of em.

http://www.maxxis.com/getImage.asp?FileID=400
these, and they're super soft for race use only. probably not the best for everyday use.

You could also use the "SwampThing" by Maxxis. It works very well in muddy conditions. I also like and currently use Nokian NBX tires. They are more of an all around tire then the SwampThings but they do a good job in mud also.

When I ran the SwampThings I used a super tacky up front and a 60 compound in back.


:beer:

Originally posted by Dazza
Oh, nearly forgot, and whats the deal with Wet Screams? Wiggle says not to use em on the local trail, are they destructive?

DO NOT, I repeat DO NOT use a wetscream, it was designed for 1 course and 1 course only, Les Gets, France. That tire is designed to cut through mud, it will cut through trail and damage trails, it has a higher erosion rate.

I'm going to have to do what I always do and recommend the Michelin XLS for the rear and Front S in the front obviously. Works great in the dry conditions, but also excels in the mud. Something about the silicium compound rubber they use sheds mud like crazy.

Originally posted by danka24
DO NOT, I repeat DO NOT use a wetscream, it was designed for 1 course and 1 course only, Les Gets, France. That tire is designed to cut through mud, it will cut through trail and damage trails, it has a higher erosion rate.
you learn something new everyday :cool:

Gonna order some Maxxis Mobsters (Back) and the Swamp things (front) along with a set of Cateye ABS 20's and a cateye LD600 rear LED. I will let you know what they are like once i get them.

Cheers for the help :D

Yo Dazza, since you will be doing a litle riding on the road I would suggest not getting the super tacky Swamp Thing. Getthe 60 compound or higher.

:beer:

Ah dirt! Too late, i ordered the stuff before i went to work. Should arrive tomorrow/Friday. Ill see what they are like, after a while i might jam em on the back and get some harder fronts :)

The only reason I say do not use the ST's is because they will wear faster if you are riding on the road. It will wear faster on the back then the front so I would just leave 'em there.

:beer:

Ok ill keep that in mind dude. The stuff didnt arrive today :( but its here tomorrow for definate :)

Cheers :beer:

i have been using some panaracer trailblaster tires since feb. this year with AWESOME results i keep them about 45psi on trails and 55psi on pavement.i have ridden these on dry, wet, super wet,need a wetsuit wet,mud, snow,clay,sand,any color dirt you can think of, sticks,pine tags,leaves,uphill,downhill,thru creeks,and over rocks and lots of pavement.i dont get many flats like i used to either except for that peice of glass i got in the back one the day after isabell rolled thru here.am getting ready to buy 2 more cuz these are starting to wear from street riding lately.best tire ive ever ridden for all around

You could also use the "SwampThing" by Maxxis. It works very well in muddy conditions. I also like and currently use Nokian NBX tires. They are more of an all around tire then the SwampThings but they do a good job in mud also.

When I ran the SwampThings I used a super tacky up front and a 60 compound in back.


:beer:

I also ride the NBX's. 2.3 Kevlar to be exact. 650g per tire.

Besides a semi-thin sidewall prone to pinchflatting, and a fast wear rate on the pavement (3 weeks and almost bald on the rear), they are pretty good.

When they were new, they were super confidence inspiring in the dry and the wet. Now, I am not a fan of going real fast in the wet unless I am behind someone going as fast as I am. I just don't trust the tires enough in the wet to rip down trails without someone ripping a head of me. If they can hold a turn, I usually can. I will be the lead dog once I get some more sure footed tires (Michelin Comp 32 front and Comp 24.1 rear).

i have been using some panaracer trailblaster tires since feb. this year with AWESOME results i keep them about 45psi on trails and 55psi on pavement.i have ridden these on dry, wet, super wet,need a wetsuit wet,mud, snow,clay,sand,any color dirt you can think of, sticks,pine tags,leaves,uphill,downhill,thru creeks,and over rocks and lots of pavement.i dont get many flats like i used to either except for that peice of glass i got in the back one the day after isabell rolled thru here.am getting ready to buy 2 more cuz these are starting to wear from street riding lately.best tire ive ever ridden for all around Shift key...

Well i have been using the tires for a few weeks now, all different uses, downhill, XC, roads etc, even through wet fields.

MOBSTER
One thing i noticed about the Mobster is the fact that its a lot smaller than its claimed size. (the Pythons were 1.95's and they are much wider than the *2.1* Mobsters) Also I really dislike the tread pattern, the treads are WAY too tightly packed to be in any way grippy, they are worse than the pythons, going uphill is a real struggle, you either lean back to weigh down the rear, or lean forward to stop the constant wheelies. They also have been wearing pretty fast as well, after a few weeks of road/off road use, they are getting squared off.

SWAMP THING
These are the best tyres ever! They actually look beefy *2.3* and the treads are well spaced to give really good grip in the wet, and on dry pavement they are awesome. They really arent wearing much at all, the raised section on each tread is still present, despite mucho thrashio from wheelies, stoppies, and roots/rocks etc. Im well pleased with these, and will definately buy more in the future.