MTB Tyres for X-Country

tangoman99

Hi,

I'm fairly new to MTBing. Got my first one last september, but only used it a handful of times until July when I started training for the London 2 Brighton Offroad which I did 2 days back.

I noticed that although on roads I was as quick as anybody - as soon as I hit the dirt trails, I slowed considerably while some other riders hardly seemed to lose pace at all - this was especially true where it was muddy.
The other thing I've noticed, is that that they're awful at corners - any leaning of the bike and they completely lose their grip.

I have a Voodoo Hoodoo with the original Maxxis Ardent 26 x 2.25 tyres. I've read some reviews which suggest other riders have had the same experience, although lots of people rate them highly.

So should I replace them, and what with??

I'm guessing the Downhill tyres are for people who like to do short difficult courses involving fast and difficult downhill sections and need maximum grip? While the X-Country are for those who are doing long rides and won't necessarily be pushing for speed on tricky descents? Right?

Any advice gratefully received.

The Rookie

One Maxxis Ardent is not necessarily like another, I doubt a £500 bike has £80 of tyres on it, yours are probably wire bead and a much harder compound than the ones that get the good reviews which are probably Kevlar bead (folding) with a softer grippier compound.

That said of course technique (and confidence) play a big part as well.

tangoman99

Yeah - reading around I'm also running them at way too high a pressure (70psi), which is what I used to use on my old bike (not MTB). Like I said I'm new to this.

Going to drop the pressure and see if that improves handling.

Reviews also do point out that they're rubbish in mud.

The Rookie

Yes 70Psi is going to do nothing for grip offroad at all, you need to be at about 30psi as a starting point, they will then also roll faster offroad.

russyh

Ouch 70 psi!!! like rookie says try running allot lower, dependant on your weight. i run around 30-35psi dependant on conditions.

The Rookie

The sidewalls probably say something like 30-45psi as well!

tangoman99

Cheers, sidewalls say 35-65psi - I've dropped them to 45 psi and will go and experiment going lower.

The Rookie

The Rookie wrote:

Yes 70Psi is going to do nothing for grip offroad at all, you need to be at about 30psi as a starting point, they will then also roll faster offroad.