I'm trying to decide on a set of tires. I will be riding on fire roads, sometimes wet/muddy and sometimes dry/hard. The soil is sort of loamy dirt, not pebbly or sandy, there is some clay. The bike is an old '90s hard tail with 26" rims. I was thinking about trying tubeless but so far have only ever used tubes. I am leaning toward fairly narrow tires, like 2.1" or less. I want them to be quite light. I'm not a serious MTB'er and would like to keep the price reasonable.

So far I am thinking about the Ritchey V-Max WCS, simply because they seem fairly light and the tread seems XC like, and I see them around $50. The bike originally came with Ritcheys, way the heck back when. But I know nothing, really.

Any suggestions? Thanks!

Try checking out MAXXIS Highrollers. I am on my 3rd pair... very satisfied.

I am from the tropics.. go through mud and wet sections all the time.. I've used it on loose gravel roads, shallow river and stream crossings, mud, roots.. so far so good.. I have been using Highrolllers since March 2013.

I have used the 2.1, 2.35 and 2.4 (highroller 2).
So far, the 2.1 is very good for XC use.. 2.4 highroller 2 is very good in loose and mud, but very heavy.
The 2.35 highrollers are probably the best one.. I have yet to try the 2.3 Highroller2 (which is currently out of stock).

Anyway, the casings are low volume.. the 2.1s look like 2.0s, the 2.35s look like 2.2s. and the 2.4 (although wider overall) look like 2.3s..

Below is the Highroller 2 2.4 on mud..



Another tire I am fond is Specialized Purgatory and Ground Control.. good for trails..
Good Luck!

Good 26x2.1 tires:

Maxxis Ignitor
Maxxis Crossmark
Maxxis Advantage
Maxxis Aspen

Do you use different widths on the front vs rear?

Me?

Front and rear is the same size.

Before I went to a 29er, I really liked Specialized Ground Controls. Predictable, climbs fast, corners confidently.

Check out Geax AKA and Saguaro. Both have really good reviews for grip, durability, and ability to use tubeless. I just ordered an AKA for the front and Saguaro for the back. They come in a 2.2 and 2.0, so you can pick what you want size wise. And they're relatively cheap...I paid $65 for the pair in 650B size.

https://www.amazon.com/Geax-Saguaro-T...s=geax+saguaro

https://www.amazon.com/Geax-Aka-2-2-F...words=geax+aka

I'm a big fan of Kenda Nevagals for those conditions, they stick really well and have a relatively open tread to shed gunk.

Cheers

I used to run same F and R but then was persuaded to try a wider one up front (going to a Ground Control 2.3 from a 2.1). I couldn't believe how great it felt--more cush, grip and insane cornering--all without any noticeable rolling resistance. I now run a wider tire up front on all my bikes. I love the security it provides. I ride faster because of it. BTW, it doesn't look weird at all. Of course, the same width F and R is fine too. Keeping a narrower one on back helps keep the bike lighter for rolling ease/climbing.

BTW, check the weight of some of the tires reco'd (no offense but he said he wanted light, and some of those are getting pretty heavy). You can cut some weight with a kevlar bead vs a steel bead but most weight shedding is with smaller knobbed tread designs. That's why I like the GCs--great grip to weight ratio.