wide rims and fat tyres

scottgeniusltd2005

anyone ridden with wide rims, something like snowcats, with 3 inch tyres? my local trails are a mudbath fiasco and i am thinking that 3 inch tyres and fat rims will help to not sink in as far. what do you think, am i right or wroon?

The Northern Monkey

I was under the impressiion that thinner tyres were better in deeper mub. The tyre pushes down into the dirt to find anything solid underneath.

Fat tyres would just sit ontop of the slippy mud.


Thats my theory though, dunno if its correct!

supersonic

Yeah, tha is right for the most. Though mud varies!

Big tyres cxan reduces clearance, clog up more and make what is already heavy extremely heavy.

scottgeniusltd2005

mmm interesting. i had some fast light weight tyres about 1.9 that came on the bike, they were rubbish in the mud, i now run evolution sharks folding bead at 2.25 i think. they grip well enough but i'm up to my axles in way too many places on my local trails and just can't seem to get any momentum going. it can be a bit tedious. i only live 1/2 mile from these trails and they take me up to the mtl and rossendale way. they use to be great but just trashed now. seems to be quad bikes there more often.

anyway,
any tyre recommendations on tyres then. i currently run mavic xc 717 rims.

cheers

chris_sw

bigbenj_08 wrote:

I was under the impressiion that thinner tyres were better in deeper mub. The tyre pushes down into the dirt to find anything solid underneath.

Fat tyres would just sit ontop of the slippy mud.


Thats my theory though, dunno if its correct!

As supersonic said mud varies, the thin tyres theory works well for a thin layer of very wet mud on top of solid ground as the tyre more easily cuts through the thin mud. But if the mud is a bit thicker and there's half a metre of mud to get through before the solid ground then you want to 'float' over the top of it.

Northwind

Basically, mud tyres work well for a muddy trail but they're no good for proper honest to got swamps. Whereas big fat tyres skate around on the top of a muddy trail but float better over really bad stuff.

The real question is usually just should you ride a really muddy trail at all, I guess I'm lucky here that I can pick and choose and not everyone can do that, but I reckon that if a trail's bad enough that it needs mud tyres, I'd rather just leave it alone, better to skip a ride now than to cause damage that'll make the summer rides worse.

scottgeniusltd2005

unfortunately, they never ever dry out...ever. so it's either lee quarry every time which is 7 miles there and back or get muddy. i can only do lee quarry so many times before i get bored. but you are right about the damage. it has completely and utterly wore my bike out.