Fitting Bontrager Mud-X's !

steelo

I bought a pair of Bontrager Mud-X's (26x2.0) recently and when I tried to fit them yesterday I spent near enough half an hour trying to seat the final 20cm of bead of each tyre into the rim of the wheel. As far as I am aware they are not the Tubeless versions. It even got to the point where I needed someone to hold a tyre lever in place while I then worked another tyre lever along the rim of the wheel slowly teasing the kevlar bead into the rim.

To make things worse by the time I had driven my bike to a mates house (20 minutes away) for a ride the rear tyre had gone flat - presumably from a pinch flat - then we spent another half an hour replacing the tube and again using tyre levers to work the tyre back onto the rim again.

My only thought now is £50 down the drain as i'll never be able to re-fit the tyres if I get a flat while out on a ride on my own, and i'll be re-fitting my Panaracer Trailrakers before my next ride.

Surely this can't be right? Has anyone else had this trouble with Bontrager Mud-X tyres?

SDK2007

New tyres can be a bit tricky to fit the first time because the rubber is stiff. Mud X's are Folding bead so it shouldn't be too difficult.

You should try fitting some wire bead Dual Ply Maxxis tyres

ccc

As far as I'm aware Mud X only come in a tubeless version. That's what the TLR stands for (pretty certain anyway).

What wheels are you trying to fit them on? I've got some on my mavic xm719s and while not the easiest tyre I've ever fitted, they were probably on par with some of my other non tubeless tyres.

trekhead

Steelo
I used mud-x`s last winter and firstly, I think they`re a fantastic tyre. I swapped my wheels earlier in the year and have decided to build up the bontrager wheels for the coming winter. I fitted the mud-x`s onto the bonti rims on monday. Yeah they`re a little tight getting that last bit on but you shouldn`t have a problem really, and I don`t think you`ll have any troulbe if you need to swap a tube when you`re out. I think I got a puncture virtually everytime I went out last winter - so I`ve had plenty of practise with them :x

Foll Zofalot

I have the tubeless mud x's on Mavic 819 rims, your right they are a piggin nightmare to fit :x but they do loosen up (a little). It put me right off running them tubeless after so much hassle so stuffed tubes in them and have to ram the tire in with the leaver every time. I keep getting punctures about every half a dozen rides or so, so that's me made my mind up I'm going to join the tubeless brigade and see what all the fuss is about

dickydulux

I've got Bontrager Mud X's, when new they were arkward to fit, I could never get them to sit right.
I then tried putting washing up liquid round the wheel rim and a smear on the tyre wall. Using a track pump I blew them up and just when I thought they weren't going to take anymore they would "pop" into place. Then let some air out to the required pressure. Now that they have been on and off a few times, they go on without any problems.

gcwebbyuk

I fitted two pairs to our bikes no problems.

Seemed as tight as the Specialized Fast Trak LKs they replaced.

I had a flat with the spec's on the trail and did panic I wouldnt get them back on, but with some sweat and adrenaline I got them back on with my aching fingers (what a man I am!)

Wonder if its to do with the rim width? The rims we have are DT swiss 4.2 series

steelo

I've fitted them onto Bontrager Rhythm rims, i'll try switching them to a pair od DT 4.2's over the weekend to see if they are easier to roll on and off. I've got some Pedros tyre levers on order and i'm also considering running them tubeless over the winter to save the hassle of refitting them with every puncture!

Oh and yes they are tubeless ready - my bad!

Lester Cat

They're my current fave treds for past year and a bit.
Strong thumbs and swearing and pressing, then leave them on and scrabble up anything.
They're a tight fit, but worth it.Persevere steelo.

gcwebbyuk

Out of interest - how long does the tread last on them?

I am currently only able to ride on the road (due to neck injury ) and am worried about wearing the tread away.

Considering some light semi-slicks, but they cost similar to the Mud-Xs so could just wear em out on the road and buy new ones when I am all fixed.

llamafarmer

Looking at a set of these for the winter, I've heard very good things.

SDK2007

I would get some slick road tyres - I can't imagine the Mud X's rolling well on the road.

gcwebbyuk

Not toooooo fussed about them rolling well.

I was really thinking of getting some semi-slicks, but its just the fact getting decent light ones is the same price as the mud-xs

DunbarKev

Just as dickydulux says, you need to use a decent pump and get the PSI up to 60 or so and they will fit in to place. I posted online a few weeks back with the same problem and spent most of a day trying to sort the bead and get it to sit in the rim properly.

Pump the tires up till they sit properly then let the air out to get to a PSI you are happy with.

steelo

"I can't imagine the Mud X's rolling well on the road" - SDK2007

Funny you should say that! When I was out on my bike on Wednesday I did notice some rapid vibrations coming through the bike when I was on the road - and not the good sort of vibrations either!

I'm now thinking about going back to using Trailrakers.

gcwebbyuk

Well I have to agree with steelo - they are a bugger!

I swapped back to my Spec Fast Traks tonight, and the Mud-xs were a nightmare to get off!

The fasttraks roll much better than the Mud-xs, but are the same weight.

I found myself in top gear most of the time on the road. Can't wait till these are worn out and I can get something lighter (or I may just buy the Schwalbes now :roll: )