All round/winter tyres

lawman

May seem like an odd question as summer is finally upon us, but seeing as the Hans Dampf on the rear of my Ibis has seen better days and I've got a practically brand new set on the Cotic I'm gonna sling them on the Mojo and thus the Bfe is currently tyre-less. Seeing as it gets used most in winter but the occasional Thursday night summer loop, I need a tyre that's going to be good on a variety of surfaces. Have used Nobby Nics in the past and since going to Hans Dampfs I realised just how unpredictable they are, so not overly keen on going back to those. Local trails get incredibly claggy in winter so huge tyres like the Hans Dampfs aren't ideal. Was looking at 2.2 Trail kings or 2,25 Maxxis Beavers, I'd still like a decent volume tyre so not really keen on anything much smaller than these. Any one have experience of the Trail Kings or Beavers, or indeed any other recommendations? Cost no real issue, but preferably under £30-35 per tyre.

Long_Time_Lurker

Our trails are thick mud and tree roots, rutted and cut-up by MTBers and some horses.
Myself and a friend use Maxxis Beavers. No compliants - good mud clearance and can be run quite soft. Decent cornering too.
Another of our group uses Conti Mud Kings. Only 1.8, and are designed to cut through the mud rather than float on it.
To be fair, they are brilliant. Not so good turning, but once you have got used to the limits of the tyre, you can do anything that you could do on a Beaver.
Have to be run hard though, so not the comfiest ride. But that also means that it rolls fast on tarmac (considering that it's a mud tyre).
They are thinner than you want, but I would take a look at the reviews. I certainly wouldn't have been disappointed if I had bought them.

lostboysaint

If it's properly muddy then you don't want big volume tyres, you want Trailrakers, MudX (or whatever they're called now), Storm Control etc. The grip that you'll get from them is fantastic and you'll soon realise the folly of wanting "big" tyres.

gt-arrowhead

I also would recommend the Maxxis Beavers. They are great in really sloppy/muddy conditions, even at 30-40 PSI when i used them. They also roll really well. I havent tried them on a dry trail though, so cant say anything about that.

The folding / race versions are light too.

Cqc

I ride with trail kings and their great, but go for the black chilli rubber queens instead (identical but half the price and without the unnecessary and weighty Protection carcass), and my friend rides with beavers and he likes them too.

lawman

lostboysaint wrote:

If it's properly muddy then you don't want big volume tyres, you want Trailrakers, MudX (or whatever they're called now), Storm Control etc. The grip that you'll get from them is fantastic and you'll soon realise the folly of wanting "big" tyres.

I'm not all that fussed about out ride winter grip, just need something slightly smaller volume for all year round trail work. Having taken trailrakers to places like Cannock I won't be doing it again! Think I'll go for the trail kings, finally make use of my Conti sponsorship deal!

ej2320

Specialized storm control (I think that's it)

They got a great review as a winter trail tyre

Cqc

lawman wrote:

lostboysaint wrote:

If it's properly muddy then you don't want big volume tyres, you want Trailrakers, MudX (or whatever they're called now), Storm Control etc. The grip that you'll get from them is fantastic and you'll soon realise the folly of wanting "big" tyres.

I'm not all that fussed about out ride winter grip, just need something slightly smaller volume for all year round trail work. Having taken trailrakers to places like Cannock I won't be doing it again! Think I'll go for the trail kings, finally make use of my Conti sponsorship deal!

Your sponsored! Nice! Out of interest how do sponsorships work? Likedo they approach you if you win raves or do you apply, or what

lawman

Cqc wrote:

lawman wrote:

lostboysaint wrote:

If it's properly muddy then you don't want big volume tyres, you want Trailrakers, MudX (or whatever they're called now), Storm Control etc. The grip that you'll get from them is fantastic and you'll soon realise the folly of wanting "big" tyres.

I'm not all that fussed about out ride winter grip, just need something slightly smaller volume for all year round trail work. Having taken trailrakers to places like Cannock I won't be doing it again! Think I'll go for the trail kings, finally make use of my Conti sponsorship deal!

Your sponsored! Nice! Out of interest how do sponsorships work? Likedo they approach you if you win raves or do you apply, or what

Well my university club is sponsored, we're quite close to the UK distributor, Cambrian tyres so we've sorted out a deal through them Been in place years afaik. So while technically not a sponsored "team" rider as such, we get great deals and get to look all factory with conti logos on our jerseys

mcnultycop

I've got the 2" Beavers, and they are superb tyres in all the conditions I've tried them in. I'd have the bigger ones, but fancied trying a smaller tyre on the HT and they do a great job, with a little less cushioning than I'm used to.