Pedro S

My MTB sees equal mileage between pavement and single track. The Kenda Nevals I presently ride do great on the trail but are a rolling resistant nightmare on paved bike paths. Thus I'm looking for a tire which rolls faster and smother on pavement yet can still be used off road so I'm looking for recommendations. I know this will cause a sacrifice in traction but I'm willing to do that to an extent. My normal trail conditions range from damp and soft to hard and dusty clay hard pack with roots with an occasional rock or three. Tires I'm looking at are the Bontrager LT3 or XR2 and Specialized Fast Trak LK.

I would like to hear your opinions on these tires and any others I should be considering.

Someday I'll get a road bike and won't have this need for an all purpose tire, but not yet....

Pedro S

Anyone? Anyone? Bueller?

Nobody has any suggestions for a tire that rolls fast and easy on pavement but still singletrack capable?

Paul01

Sounds like you two sets of wheels with street and dirt tires.

craigcraigcraig

I have Bontrager JonesXR and they roll much faster on the pavement to the trails than my previous Parancer fire's (similar in beefyness to nevegals). I have yet to wash out on the trail also. They are a little smaller but haven't found that it hurts me any.

ghettocruiser

A file tread or very small block tire will do both fairly well (but not mud), however they wear out faster... if that's an issue

Daspydyr 

My Bontrager Jones ACs roll on pavement and dirt better than Raptors and Nevegals. I face the same dilemma as I ride 50/50 pavement and dirt. Jones AC are smooth on pavement and good traction on hard pack and sand.

lunchbox1972

I've always looked at the small block 8's and thought those would be great on the road.. I've seen somebody riding them on the trail and they loved them..

victim

I've been riding on the road lately more than I care to admit. Even though it would be nice to run some sort of hybrid tire i still run a full on MTB tire ( Big Betty, and Da Minions) cause as soon as get on a trail those wimpy tires really show their face. So yes, I'm slow as hell with my MTB on the road but I guess I don't care. It makes me stronger due to the added resistance and if I need the speed I take out the road bike and really have a crap ride. Moral of the story: stay on the trails as much as possible.

XCSKIBUM

These are what I put on my MTB.

They wear great, are not prone to flats, have little rolling resistance on the road @ 65psi & are off road capable on all but the roughest or muddy conditions.


https://www.bicycletires.com/pkepol/k...95_tire/pp.htm



I've put over 3,000 miles on the set & the rear was barely starting to show slight signs of wear. I rotated them just recently.

02Pilot

I just put a set of the Kenda Kross Pluses on my Cannondale. I've found myself doing more pavement riding lately (and more riding in general), so I figured I'd try them out. Might be a little dubious for wet trails or serious climbs on loose surfaces, but otherwise I think they'll be a reasonable compromise. You can find them for $10/ea. online.

pablosnazzy

kenda small block 8's would be good if you are riding hard pack dirt and it's not too loose or sandy

XCSKIBUM

I've been using my bike for access while bear hunting in the Adirondacks.






The only time I've had issues is in the black greasy mud that remains after a puddle has started to dry up, mainly on abandoned RR grades.

Of course its sandy up here so mud is not all that common.

They do OK in loose gravel, but are helpless in loose sand.

lolitsJeff

I bought some Specialized Crossroads about a month ago for my cyclocross bike that I ride on some pretty bumpy fire roads. Seems to do the job well and I haven't crashed...yet! Kevlar reinforced.

You get the continuous center track and the outside knobs. Pretty dense pattern though, probably not as good for muddy conditions but I haven't tested that yet. Also not the lightest, especially because of the Kevlar.

rankin116

Quoted for general badass-ness.

What's the story on the Caddy-branded bike?

cryptid01

All you need to know

XCSKIBUM

Great bike & very capable.

The stock Gila forks & Kindshock were just adequate & had to be cranked up pretty stiff to avoid "bobbing. It made the ride pretty harsh off road.

Once I e-bayed it out W/the Rockshox 351 Recon "U-turn 85/135 fork W/"Pop-Lock" lock-out & Fox RP23 rear shock W/"Pro-Pedal" lock-out, this rig is plush on the trails yet I can lock it out to stiffen her up for serious climbing or road work.

All, of the other components are pretty good stuff & I haven't had any serious problems. 2 broken spokes & I replaced the pedas after too many trips through deep water W/O any preventative maintenance took it's toll.


It will go where I can't. I have about $1K in it total, $389.99 delivered for the bike, about $600 for the upgrades.

It has held up over 3K miles better than my new Specialized Crosstrail Sport has over 400 miles.

Pedro S

Thanks for the recommendations. Still trying to figure out which way I want to go. Thinking a little more about Kenda small block 8's. I've thought about a second set of rims but wonder if I would run into derailleur and brake adjustment issues switching between wheels. I might just have to live with swapping tires often.

Thanks.

cryptid01

You shouldn't run into wheel compatibility problems if you have disc brakes and the same number of cogs on your cassettes. Or it'd be okay with V brakes with the same width rims.

I'd recommend the WTB Vulpine over the SB8

ghettocruiser

I just had to tweak the front rotor position on one wheelset with a thin spacer between the rotor and the hub.

Now it's switch and go.

Dannihilator

+1 to cryptid.

I would have to say go with the Vulpine over the SB8, love my SB8's, but the Vulpines look to be a much better tire for dual use.

Wanderer

I've bought them for as little as $4 at nashbar - no kidding.

rankin116

Wow, you weren't kidding. That' a thread with some very long posts.

ed 

I've never used the Vulpine, but I also rec the Smallblock 8's. They are a pretty incredible tire...as long as it's dry. They get hella grip on dry rocks, dirt, roots, pavement...and they roll like a madd fool. Enter any moisture...and they are a bit squirrely.

The Kenda Slant Six is another interesting option. I can't vouch for it yet, but I'm probably gonna try them out.

cobba

Continental Traffic might suit the job, there's two versions so one's probably an old model.

https://www.conti-tyres.co.uk/conticycle/ti%20traffic.shtml

https://www.conti-online.com/generator/www/de/en/continental/bicycle/themes/tires/hidden/traffic/traffic_en.html

02Pilot

Haven't had them off-road yet, but today was the first pavement ride with the Kenda Kross Pluses on my MTB, and I have to say I'm fairly impressed. I saw about +1-1.5mph over a section I ride frequently (compared to the CST Caballeros that were on the bike before). Decent enough ride at 65psi, predictable handling. I felt quite confident in the grip on pavement; off-road may be another story, but so far, so good.