Mud tyres

PIKEO

Hi there peeps, not been on in a while, just been up Hamsterly today, and it was real muddy, just the way I like it lol. Thinking of buying some mud tyres tho as it was a struggle (I hate getting off my bike to push it) and lost loads of energy. I run with Schwalbe Nobby Nic, just wondering what the Schwalbe Muddy Mary tyre would be like? (anyone had any experience with them), would like to stay with Schwalbe unless you can suggest a better option for me, thanks for taking the time to read this, take care Pikeo

PIKEO

Seen the Schwalbe Dirty Dan tyre too, looks like monster tyre for muddy grip

IBISMojoHDamon

PIKEO wrote:

thanks for taking the time to read this, take care Pikeo

So polite... are you sure you have the right forum?... :0)

PIKEO

lol, yeah, just like to be polite haha, have you got any views on which tyre to get? cheers

Northwind

Muddy Mary isn't actually a mud tyre, silly name, it's an intermediate.

There's lots of different flavours of mud and different tyres to suit tbh. Continental Baron is the best allround mud tyre I've used, personally- it's great in mud but also still works really well on harder stuff. Not too skinny, not too draggy. But for pure XC use it'd be mental overkill.

TBH I've never found an XC mud tyre that I thought really worked. Mud X is great on the back but far too unpredictable on the front and I found it useless on muddy rocks- I'd rather use a standard knobbly and struggle a bit more in mud, for something that works the rest of the time.

Swampthing was a popular one but tbh I think Der Baron made it obsolete. Too slow, and much worse on hardpack.

PIKEO

thanks for your opinion :-)

ilovedirt

What are you riding? Downhill or XC? If downhill, I'd probably say go for a maxxis swampthing or wet scream. If XC, don't bother, they're gonna be terrible everywhere other than muddy sections.

Northwind

Oh, I meant to add... Specialized's Hillbilly's a much better option as a dh mud tyre than the old dh supertacky. It's basically a factory cut spike, very good indeed, far more bite than a swampdonkey.

PIKEO

downhill and xc, sorry I did not mention it at the beginning lol, thanx

ilovedirt

I guess some sort of cut down spike then? like northwind suggested. Bear in mind, with a mud tyre, it's not going to be particularly good on anything other than mud, so hardpack, wet root/rocks etc and will be pretty un-fun to pedal. I find minion fronts to be a good all-round tyre for a bit of everything if the trail is going to be a bit mixed, not so much fun pedalling around though in their dual ply, super tacky form. I found them pretty good up at a fairly muddy Foel Gasnach the other day until right at the very end when the track was getting SUPER muddy and cut-up.

Northwind

There's not a tyre in the world that can do DH and XC and not be a bit compromised at either or both tbh... Do you mean full-on dh like at fort william, innerleithen, etc or do you mean general trailbikey descending?

I suppose the closest I've found to that is the Baron <edit- Baron not Der Baron>. Bit flimsy for DH, for most people, and a bit draggy and heavy for any distance of XC but I could get on with them for both I reckon. Not ideal though.

ellaspop

Muddy Mary is a fine DH mud tyre, especially in the vertstar compound (albeit they wear very quickly).
Dirty Dan is the full-on schwalbe spike and is overkill for all but the muddiest courses, but the MM is definitely a cracking general DH mud tyre.
Their growing popularity at DH race series around the country is testamount to that, innerleithen last weekend as one good example.

Leigh Rough Riders

Northwind wrote:

I suppose the closest I've found to that is the Baron <edit- Baron not Der Baron>. Bit flimsy for DH, for most people, and a bit draggy and heavy for any distance of XC but I could get on with them for both I reckon. Not ideal though.

Do you run little Baron front and back?
Is 800g - 850g a heavy tyre?
I some times do 50+ mile XC. Plus another ride 50+ miles on roads. :?

Northwind

50% of all internet traffic is now you asking about Barons on different forums and threads

I've only used it on the front of a trailbike and on the back of a dh bike- only got one. The weight is OK for what it is, but it's not light... I wouldn't want to use it (or any other similiarly draggy tyre) for such long distance but then, I'm not all that fit

It's in the same sort of drag level as a supertacky highroller or a stick-e 2.35 nevegal, if that's any use to you- a little slower but not by much. But quite a lot less draggy than a supertacky swampthing.

njee20

Dirty Dan is the full-on schwalbe spike and is overkill for all but the muddiest courses, but the MM is definitely a cracking general DH mud tyre.

The 2.1" Pace Star ones (dunno if they're actually the same, I'd certainly not call them spikes, and IIRC they're more 'tame' than the DH tyre) are very good winter all rounders IMO. I don't ride rocks much, but for rooty, loamy, muddy stuff find them great. Ditto the Mud-X, but they're heavier.

Is 800g - 850g a heavy tyre?

Certainly wouldn't be my choice for a 50 mile XC ride. For reference a 2.25" Rocket Ron is 465g, and a Racing Ralph slightly heavier.

bennett_346

I've just used a normal tyre on the rear and a supertacky swampthing on the front pretty much all year. the weather is so changeable i just leave it on. it isnt too draggy, just gotta mtfu

Leigh Rough Riders

50% of all internet traffic is now you asking about Barons on different forums and threads

So it is all the same people on different forums?
One thread states a good tyre then the next, or even next person disagrees. :$

Certainly wouldn't be my choice for a 50 mile XC ride. For reference a 2.25" Rocket Ron is 465g, and a Racing Ralph slightly heavier.

I presently run Kendas and they have been generally good except for numerous thorn punctures. But I got a big spike through one and it is ruined, so now need to change for better.
I looked at Schwalbe but opinions state they are great performance but fall to bits in weeks, that Kenda are really slow and suck, plus many others. Only some Continental, Maxxis and Bontrager had consistently good reviews, but I am not taken by the off road Maxxis treads.

More weight means a more substantial tyre. My mate’s Rocket Rons do puncture easily and look fragile, the reviews for Nobby Nics state they fall to bits in weeks. I was tempted by 2.35 Hans Dampfs until bad write-ups.
Tyres in the U.K. need to be able to handle mixed terrain in variable weather. I don’t have a shed or time to change tyres, so have to manage with the tyres on the bike. So I want an all year all rounder tyre.
I did like the Bontrager XR4 2.35 (720g), but was warned it might be too wide and will not fit or would rub, so I dropped to the 2.2. But the XR4 is classed as a summer tyre.
The 2.3 Baron is 120tpi black chilli, so being stronger has to be expected to be heavier. But can I manage all year in all conditions riding on the XR4, which is 120g lighter, or run with the Baron. This is the 4th wet summer, so winter terrain can last all year in the U.K. However 1 ride might be 70 miles on roads, with another 35 miles off road then 40 miles on roads, with another the next week 50 miles over track and trail and XC. Most rides are shorter but still a mixture of terrain and conditions.
I thought with the Baron being a stronger tyre I wouldn’t get as many punctures and it could take a beating, and grip. But I don’t want to be slowed down too much, or be left behind.
Another equation you can help me with is rim width. I think my rims are about 25mm wide. How will this affect any tyres?
Thanks!

Leigh Rough Riders

bennett_346 wrote:

I've just used a normal tyre on the rear and a supertacky swampthing on the front pretty much all year. the weather is so changeable

Location: Gateshead
Try the Swampthingy on the front and a Pool tyre on the rear.

bennett_346

Leigh Rough Riders wrote:

bennett_346 wrote:

I've just used a normal tyre on the rear and a supertacky swampthing on the front pretty much all year. the weather is so changeable

Location: Gateshead
Try the Swampthingy on the front and a Pool tyre on the rear.

Anything rubbery enough not to transmit electricity should be safe enough to ride the lightning out

Leigh Rough Riders

Another equation you can help me with is rim width. I think my rims are about 25mm wide. How will this affect any tyres?
Thanks!

559 20
Whatever that means. I suspect width and height. My rims are normal simple rims for V-Brakes.
Possibly the rim width can affect the tyre height, but just guessing.

njee20

I'm confused... you're quoting yourself and answering your own question? :?

You really are over analyising. Tyres are perrsonal. If you like what you have on, just ride the damn bike! Don't spend hours reading reviews, or even forums, it's meaningless!

Unless I'm racing I just ride what I have fitted at the time.

cooldad

This ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
I've given up faffing and find my Ignitors work well enough on anything dry or wet, including normal mud. For axle deep stuff, you might as well just slosh around and have fun.
But generally racing is the last thing on my mind.

Leigh Rough Riders

njee20 wrote:

I'm confused... you're quoting yourself and answering your own question? :?

We are both confused then. :? I was trying to give additional information, and then I guessed at the answer. Are my rims '559 20' a standard size and will take most or all none tubeless tyres? I still use V-brakes if that matters.

njee20

They are 26" rims, they will take 26" tyres. The v-brake part is irrelevant. I'd avoid tyres >2.4" as they'll come up a bit strangely on your reasonably narrow rims, otherwise yes, go nuts!

Leigh Rough Riders

njee20 wrote:

They are 26" rims, they will take 26" tyres. The v-brake part is irrelevant. I'd avoid tyres >2.4" as they'll come up a bit strangely on your reasonably narrow rims, otherwise yes, go nuts!

Cheers, thanks for that. I have so far bought 1 Continental Baron 3 ply 180tpi folding. It is a 2.3 tyre that is reported not to be big. But as I am clueless and wouldn't know if it was big or not. When it arrives I am going to try it on the front, but still wondering what to put on the back.
Some riders use them both front and rear, but others have suggested something faster on the back, but I don't know what to match it with.

So what is a standard 26" Rim size?
I am hoping to replace my bike, once I know what I want and have seen a few different models.

nicklouse

Leigh Rough Riders wrote:

So what is a standard 26" Rim size?
I am hoping to replace my bike, once I know what I want and have seen a few different models.

it is "a" standard.

Leigh Rough Riders

nicklouse wrote:

it is "a" standard.

But what size? The measurement.
Thanks.

nicklouse

read Sheldon Browns pages.

as what you are asking could be answerd in a few pages of text as it is such a wide question.

What are you wanting to know?

njee20

Just a buy a damn tyre and ride your bike! There is a no holy grail, you can do all the analysis you want but it'll make sod all difference. Get another Baron, or a Smorgasboard or whatever. Don't go bigger than the Baron, if nowt else you'll have clearance issues on your brake. If you don't like it, try something else.

Look for MTB tyres that are '26x2.something' it's a pretty safe assumption they'll fit. Anything that's "27.5x" or "29x" won't.

ilovedirt

I agree with njee20, tyres are very personal. It also depends very much on the mud in the place you're riding.
I can get away with minions for pretty much the wettest weather in north wales, but out in the alps last week, they just didn't work. I had to stick a swampthing on. Lots of people don't like them, but it worked perfectly for me for most of the mud around there. There were also trails where it didn't work at all. You're never going to find the tyre that works well for everything for everyone.

benpinnick

I like the baron as an all rounder. It's a bit Larry for xc, but rolls well, and is tough as old boots, so copes ok on DH too. I've sessions a filthy cwncarn. O probs on the baron. Okay not extreme DH, but DH none the less. Also good on a budget, as the basic one is only £13 and seems to have most of the grip of a black chilli. Bitch to get on and off though!