High Rollers in the wet!

JayKingFunk

Not sure where to post this but...

I have High Rollers front and back on my HT. Both 2.35, front is a 42a super tacky, rear is a 60a.

So far this year they've been excellent in the dry, I mean really stick like glue on fast corners and berms...in the wet however not so good!

Do you guys think it would give me a lot more grip if I reduce the PSI or should I just MTFU and buy a set of decent, narrower wet weather tyres??!

Thanks in advance, J

bomberesque

what PSI are you running?

I find the 60a HR an awesome rear tyre and while I only have teh 42a on the front of my DH bike, that is awesome aswell (if slow rolling)

I haven't found a problem, particularly, with them in the wet, I usually have them at about 30psi.

fwiw my front tyre choice on my XC bike is 2.4 nobby Nic, which I find complements the HR out back quite nicely. I have the 2.1 versions on my SS, which are surprisingly good aswell (they're both a *lot* narrower in 2.1 v 2.35/2.4, more than the difference in the numbers makes them sound)

JayKingFunk

Are you running a tubeless set up then? 30psi sounds really low to me, I run mine at about 50!!

Do you find that theres a lot more rolling resistance at 30??

Its mainly the width I was concerned about, I thought a narrower tyre would be better in the wet but I'll try them at lower pressures first!!

Anonymous

50PSI? holy crap. They must be like concrete. I'm a bit of a heavy fugger at 15 and a half stone, and run my tyres at about 30-35 PSI max. Almost never get pinch flats, even on very rocky trails, large drops and the like - this applies to both my tubeless bike, and my inner-tubed one.

dave_hill

JayKingFunk wrote:

I run mine at about 50!!

There's your answer then...

bomberesque

50 is really quite high

I do run them tubeless (ghetto'd) but was running them with tubes before. It's true that I got pinch flats (hence the change to tubeless) but it wasn't unworkable.

the relationship between tyre pressure and rolling resistance is a contentious point, as it happens. Some German guy did some testing a while back and found that, off road, rolling resistance can actually decrease with decreasing tyre pressure, but tbh the report wasn't really impressive (seems like maybe he did it for an A-level or 1st year uni experiment type of thing) and was clearly sponsored by Schwalbe (or he had access *only* to schwalbe tyres, I don't recall exactly)

try 30-35 lbs. worst case; you hate it and pump the tyres back up again after 20minutes

passout

30-40 psi for me.

grumsta

High Rollers are very good in the wet imo - but they won't be at 50 PSI

Thewaylander

not suprised you have no grip high rollers are great in the wet in rooty rocky areas like where i live..

But 50psi is basicly 20psi way to high mate

scotto

bomberesque wrote:

50 is really quite high



the relationship between tyre pressure and rolling resistance is a contentious point, as it happens. Some German guy did some testing a while back and found that, off road, rolling resistance can actually decrease with decreasing tyre pressure, but tbh the report wasn't really impressive

seems obvious that decreasing the air will make the tyre slower on any terrain other than soft mud?

Thewaylander

not true this point has been brough up on threads before, simply go try it lol

wordnumb

scotto wrote:

bomberesque wrote:

50 is really quite high



the relationship between tyre pressure and rolling resistance is a contentious point, as it happens. Some German guy did some testing a while back and found that, off road, rolling resistance can actually decrease with decreasing tyre pressure, but tbh the report wasn't really impressive

seems obvious that decreasing the air will make the tyre slower on any terrain other than soft mud?

Nope. What works for roadies does not necessarily apply off road where you're constantly hitting lumps.

50 psi lol. As above, 15-25 more than you want.

JayKingFunk

Thanks for your advice peeps.

My tyres are usually quite hard at 50 but they run fast as hell on dry at that!!

I'm wondering if my pressure gauge is off, I basically go by the one thats fitted to my track pump which is a Joe Blow 2. The pump works very well though and I haven't had it long or used it loads either!!

I'll give it a go at 30ish and see!!

J

scotto

wordnumb wrote:

scotto wrote:

bomberesque wrote:

50 is really quite high



the relationship between tyre pressure and rolling resistance is a contentious point, as it happens. Some German guy did some testing a while back and found that, off road, rolling resistance can actually decrease with decreasing tyre pressure, but tbh the report wasn't really impressive

seems obvious that decreasing the air will make the tyre slower on any terrain other than soft mud?

Nope. What works for roadies does not necessarily apply off road where you're constantly hitting lumps.

50 psi lol. As above, 15-25 more than you want.

yes I ride a 35, but when I ran 50 on hardpack areas it was quicker, i am sure of it :-)

grumsta

yes I ride a 35, but when I ran 50 on hardpack areas it was quicker, i am sure of it

Yeah running 23c tyres at 100 PSI on a road is faster too, what's your point?

Thewaylander

scotto wrote:

wordnumb wrote:

scotto wrote:

bomberesque wrote:

50 is really quite high



the relationship between tyre pressure and rolling resistance is a contentious point, as it happens. Some German guy did some testing a while back and found that, off road, rolling resistance can actually decrease with decreasing tyre pressure, but tbh the report wasn't really impressive

seems obvious that decreasing the air will make the tyre slower on any terrain other than soft mud?

Nope. What works for roadies does not necessarily apply off road where you're constantly hitting lumps.

50 psi lol. As above, 15-25 more than you want.

yes I ride a 35, but when I ran 50 on hardpack areas it was quicker, i am sure of it :-)

I have little hardpack trail where i ride, mostly its rocks and roots and more rocks, as most Welshies know, in this case 50psi is slow cos your crashe most of the day 30psi is fast as i haven't crashed

DVV

I would suggest trying 35psi first to see how it feels. I run 35 front and 40 back, but that's partly because the terrain near me isn't that exciting. For more 'technical' riding I would drop another 5psi off both front and back.

Also, I personally wouldn't decide whether you are slower or not on the basis of fireroads. The tires might feel slower on fireroads/roads, but faster on rough terrain for example.

For me the whole point of the ride is to enjoy the off road stuff, so I don't tune my bike set up to the boring road bits in between.

fletch8928

I took a load of pressure out of my tyres yesterday, bumbling aliong a well known route first large hump slab of rock and the front washed out (Nobby Nic). Swore and hit the valve, no problems after that except the filthly gloop that ground me to a halt. I was running at 42/3 psi got home and was down at 34. I have my new pressure for the winter

The Spiderman

I went out the other night without checking my tyres.Whilst out I noticed that my bike had a lovely,supple feel and I wasn`t being pummelled as much as normal,though the back did get a bit squrelly on tight truns

Got back to discover I`d been running my tyres at 20psi!

Lower pressure is the answer,try it.

Normally run mine at 35,ish.

Anonymous

I really miss my old IRC Kujos, they were built like a tank, so you could run them with virtually no air at all in them. I used to tear up the quarreis with around 15-20PSI, and never pinch flatted.

Splasher

yeehaamcgee wrote:

I really miss my old IRC Kujos, they were built like a tank, so you could run them with virtually no air at all in them. I used to tear up the quarreis with around 15-20PSI, and never pinch flatted.

Have you tried Maxxis dual plys? Similarly tough, similarly heavy though.

Anonymous

I've tried high roller dual ply. Not quite as tough, and much, MUCH heavier than my old Kujos.

lesz42

at llandegla, running nevegal 2.1, at 30 psi it can get to the first berm in 24 min, at 60 psi (max) its about 20 sec faster?


rest of the trail at 60 psi on a HT, is scary and only a little faster

Anonymous

riiight. :roll:

Hercule Q

i usually run about 25psi lovely and fast