kenda small block 8

big_barker

hi iam thinking of buying the kenda small block 8 now my question is can these run through winter in trial centres where there is not lots of mud. thanks

Anonymous

fine for doing trails where there isn't much mud. Bot the best, but still manageable.
Most trail centres are pretty well drained so you should be fine.
As it happens, the best grip I ever remember getting on wet rock was on a set of Continental double-fighters years and years ago.

diy

They are currently rather expensive for what they are. Last year you could get a pair of 2.1 for under 45 quid. This year most places are looking at close to 60.

I recently bought a pair of Specialized Fast Trak LK Controls for doing some long distance enduro riding. 65 miles off road + I fully intended to switch back to my Nevegals after thinking that the Spesh tyres wouldn't be up to harder conditions.

I have so far found them fine even in moderately muddy conditions.

The great thing is they only cost 38 quid a pair.

even at 23 quid each they are worth a look compared to silly prices for kendas.

Gazlar

I love my sb8's, though mine have got sketchy in the mud at trail centres, I prefer the Nevegals as an all rounder, ok they are harder work uphill but i think they still roll pretty well

ellsbells1973

a good mix is a nevegal upfront with an sb8 rear which seem to quite popular, also a high roller front n larrsen rear or mountain king front and race king rear

Gazlar

ellsbells1973 wrote:

a good mix is a nevegal upfront with an sb8 rear which seem to quite popular, also a high roller front n larrsen rear or mountain king front and race king rear

yeah I've run that too when I cant be bothered to change both my tyres lol, it works well

williambowland

I reckon Small Block 8s are a lot grippier than they look. In the dry, I like to run one on the front and a Maxxis Crossmark on the rear. SM8s are a lot more grippy than Crossmark which are suicidal in damp conditions.

I reckon SM8 would be OK for most trail centres even in winter. To be safe, a more heavily treaded number on the front (Nevegal / High Roller / Rampage / whatever) would see you though most trail centre conditions I have seen (only Afan / Glynncorrwg / Coed Y Brenin) all year no trouble IMO (like ellsbells1973 says).

That ain't gonna cut it in the horrible mud you come across out in the wilds... but that wasn't your question, eh!

Bike Bloke

I run SB8 on the rear of both my HT and FS, matched to a Nevegal at the front - year round! Awesome setup. Cant comment on the price, got them cheap but they still look new, so definite value for money on them, no punctures/flats either.

Great grip & FAST!!!, no complaints in gloopy winter mud, maybe a little slidey but with the nevegal on the front it was just fun :twisted:

Definitely recommended. Get a few wierd looks from people who think its a BMX tyre though. Pic in sig shows what they look like on the bike.

stubs

A mate had a test ride on a Mongoose Canaan at Llandegla a couple of years back in bucketing rain. It had small block 8s front and back he didnt have any problems apart from one section which is under the trees and is a bit boggy even in a drought. Even then it was just a small twitch sideways nothing major. So should be fine at trail centres.

Stu 74

Small Bloc 8s are very grippy on hard surfaces, wet or dry! The only thing they are a bit dodgy on is sticky mud where they may slide sideways but this is more of a gradual drift rather than a sudden wash out. Should be fine for trail centres all year round. They are super fast!!!

Stu

Northwind

Yeah, they're better in mud than they should be but they're not a mud tyre. If you compare them with equivalently fast tyres like Crossmarks they're impressive in the mud but tbh if you plan to ride on the wet stuff you should probably get a tyre designed for that. Mine kept me lapping at 10 Under the Ben after most people had given up on riding some of the natural sections as they'd turned into slippery death for race tyres.

You could use one as a rear all year round at fully surfaced trail centres like Glentress etc, but I tried that in January and my mates said "Great, let's go and do the off-piste trails", which are made entirely of mud and mouldy wood

I love 'em but they'll be coming off at the end of August most likely.

thisischris

Good experience with them personally! Great on the dry stuff and good in the wet. Like others have said its the heavy mud that they struggle with. In the depths of a forest with thick sticky mud youll definatly need something more hardcore.

Ronocco111

I have these front and back in 2.1 and they are really great, grippy and fast rolling. However, they are heavy tyres - 800 grammes each for 2.1. So avoid them if you're a weight weenie.

Northwind

Ronocco111 wrote:

I have these front and back in 2.1 and they are really great, grippy and fast rolling. However, they are heavy tyres - 800 grammes each for 2.1. So avoid them if you're a weight weenie.

Have you got UST ones or something? Mine are sub 600g for 2.1s.

darren555

diy wrote:

They are currently rather expensive for what they are. Last year you could get a pair of 2.1 for under 45 quid. This year most places are looking at close to 60.

I recently bought a pair of Specialized Fast Trak LK Controls for doing some long distance enduro riding. 65 miles off road + I fully intended to switch back to my Nevegals after thinking that the Spesh tyres wouldn't be up to harder conditions.

I have so far found them fine even in moderately muddy conditions.

The great thing is they only cost 38 quid a pair.

even at 23 quid each they are worth a look compared to silly prices for kendas.

I very recently got some Small Block 8 2.1s to replace my worn Fast Trak LK Controls.
£50 for the pair. Impressions so far are that they are lighter and noticably grippier than the Fast Traks but the sidewalls do feel more fragile. Time will tell on this I guess.

Bike Bloke wrote:

I run SB8 on the rear of both my HT and FS, matched to a Nevegal at the front - year round! Awesome setup.

Yeah a Nevegal 2.1 DTC on the front works great for me too