Schwalbe dirty dans vs nobby nics

Alston251

Hi, I'm considering getting new general all year tyres but want them to still be capable on wet muddy days.

I know Dirty Dans are on sale on On-one at the moment. Are they any good for all round tires? But Nobby Nics seem quite poplar on here too. So which ones are better?
Also, what width tires should i get?

Thanks

njee20

They're different. Dans will work better in the mud, and worse everywhere else, Nics will be worse in the mud (far worse IMO, they're generally crap) and better everywhere else.

Up to you which you prefer really, a 'bad' tyre is more evident in mud than anywhere else IMO, the Dans will be alright anywhere, whilst a Nic really could spoil a very muddy ride. Depends on your mud too.

The Dan is the lighter carcass, the same as the Rocket Ron and Furious Fred, not that used on the Ralph/Nic, so it's lighter and less durable, if that's a factor.

Can you really not have 2 sets of tyres, and just change in the spring? 10 minues a year? Doesn't seem unreasonable!

miss notax

I personally don't like Nics - I have tried them (with Racing Ralphs on the back) but they don't do it for me. The grip doesn't seem very good and I was sliding all over the place, plus I have never had so many punctures!

I am sure for summer fast-rolling riding they are great, but i'm swapping mine again at the weekend (and going back to minion / high roller) :?

rockmonkeysc

Muddy Mary's are pretty good in most conditions but the smallest size is 2.35" which could be too wide on some bikes, I couldn't use them in my Giant Trance X but on my Reign they are spot on.

Alston251

Thanks for the quick replies. As for the mud it's Wiltshire clay

I'm actually more concerned about tires slipping more than anything so I think I should be looking for a stickier compound? By the way i currently use Michelin All Terrain XC tires.
What about Conti mountain kings?[/code]

widge34

njee20 wrote:

Can you really not have 2 sets of tyres, and just change in the spring? 10 minues a year? Doesn't seem unreasonable!

Thats exactly what i have just done. The High Rollers are off and the Panaracer Trailrakers are on.

kagefisk

I've tried both the Michelin All Terrain XC you have right now and Schwalbe Nobby Nics. The NN are far far better. The NN is a very capable all-round tire. Using it right now! I haven't tried them in a extremely muddy situation yet though.

Northwind

NN's a good dryish-conditions tyre but it's not much good at mud. Too wide to cut easily, and not really knobbly enough to paddle. Also, I found the tread blocks lose their square edges very quickly and once that's happened they lose more bite.

Haven't used the XC Dans though.

For most of the year, unless you're getting into serious slop a sensible knobbly allrounder makes sense- your Minions, Highrollers, Eskars, Nevegals, Rampages etc. None of those is bad and they'll all cope well with all but really bad mud, without being horrible in the dry.

Haven't used the new Mountain King but the old one, urgh. Not fast enough to excuse the lack of grip, or, not grippy enough to excuse the lack of fast. Not cheap either. A lot like a Nobby Nic only worse. New one might be ace. Conti Baron looks like a good contender though.

Pudseyp

As above, but I also like Panaracer Fire XC...

widge34

High Rollers are no good in tacky mud. The treads just fill up and it does not shed it well. You just end up with a slick tyre. The problem is they are square edged, but they are not classed as a mud tyre anyway.

For the winter/mud. Panaracer Trailraker or Bontrager Mud x both around £25 each.

An all rounder. Maxxis Minion, WTB Bronson.

Northwind

widge34 wrote:

High Rollers are no good in tacky mud. The treads just fill up and it does not shed it well. You just end up with a slick tyre. The problem is they are square edged, but they are not classed as a mud tyre anyway.

But that's OK, because he's not shopping for a mud tyre :? 2.35 Highroller doens't clog any worse than a minion in my experience, but it does brake and push better in sloppy mud than a minion. So it's horses for courses.

Personally, I'd recommend a Nevegal. And if it's cloggy mud that it has to deal with, cut off every 2nd transition knob so that it can clear. But not everyone likes Nevegals.

386ka

Northwind wrote:

widge34 wrote:

High Rollers are no good in tacky mud. The treads just fill up and it does not shed it well. You just end up with a slick tyre. The problem is they are square edged, but they are not classed as a mud tyre anyway.

But that's OK, because he's not shopping for a mud tyre :? 2.35 Highroller doens't clog any worse than a minion in my experience, but it does brake and push better in sloppy mud than a minion. So it's horses for courses.

Personally, I'd recommend a Nevegal. And if it's cloggy mud that it has to deal with, cut off every 2nd transition knob so that it can clear. But not everyone likes Nevegals.

I like the Kenda Nevegal, I have it in folding version. I would recommend it too, provides good sticion on wet too. It clears mud well. But I have not ridden many other tyres, so there might be something better...

Alston251

The Nevegal seems quite popular then.
I'm assuming i want the StickE version. What about Panaracer Fire XC or Trailraker?
I'm only considering them since i can get them cheaper off Merlin.

Cheers

Northwind

Trailraker is an epic mud tyre really, bloody good at its job but it's like riding with the brakes on.

For Nevegals, the normal approach is stick-e on the front and DTC on the back. DTC is still grippy but always feels very "pingy" to me, like it's inflated too hard. Stick-e is (can't believe I'm saying this) sticky but it's also a slower rebounding tyre so much more stable. I use the 2.35 on the front but do be aware it's fairly slow. 2.1 is still pretty good but gets a wee bit out of its depth if ridden hard, likes to push in corners and breaks away a bit too hard and sudden.

They're very round tyres, so they tend not to suit very aggressive riders- edge grip is down on a Highroller. But middle-of-lean is much better IMO, you roll into corners instead of falling into them.

rockmonkeysc

I ride in Wiltshire on the awefull wiltshire clay/chalk. Nevagal Stick-E's don't work when it gets muddy, they just clog up & won't clear. You need a more open tread pattern. Maxxis Swamp things work really well but are heavy. Bontrager XR4's worked very well for me last winter but can be a bit prone to punctures. This winter I'm trying Muddy Mary's, nice open tread with good size soft spikes which should clear nicely.

Northwind

De-knobbling Nevegals makes them deal far better with sticky mud btw, and no apparent downside that I can feel. But is obviously a hassle.

Mojo_666

Nobby Nics worked well for me over the summer but not so much in the wet/mud so far tbh.

I am in need of a new tyre anyway but it won't be nics, I have no idea what it will be so am watching this thread with interest.

Stevo_666

I have Nics on my Anthem at present and am pretty happy with them, but will change to the Dirty Dans that I bought recently once my regular venue (Bedgebury) turns into swampville as it does at some point soon around this time of year. When I do, I'll let you know what I reckon...

JonoStevens

Bought a Ghost AMR last week, which came fitted with Nobby Nics. First and second rides were on dusty, dry trails (no rain here for weeks) and they rolled very fast.

Had more rain dumped on us this week than we've had in months and trails are now very wet and slippy, especially on the dropped leaves and roots. Went out yesterday and the Nics were all over the place. Kind of ruined the ride. Wouldn't fancy doing some of the rooty stuff in my local woods on them again.

Going to Afan in December, so watching thread with interest as will want something grippier by then...