Tyre Advice

Bruce0286

Firstly I'd like to say hello! I've just joined as recently taken back up cycling after passing my driving test 14 years ago and not riding since!

I'm after a bit of Tyre advice so I'll tell you a bit about my bike and my rides.

I bought a Carrera Sulcata 2017 on one of Halfords "offers" I know many people aren't a fan of the Carrera bikes but as I wasn't sure how much I'd use it I didn't want to break the bank on it. To be honest I've found it quite a decent bike for the £253 it cost! Spec wise, like for like was looking at £350-£400 elsewhere.

Since buying it I've replaced the standard grips with Lizard Skin Peaty's which if anyone is looking at grips I've found brilliant!

I also replaced the standard Tektro Novella mechanical disc brakes with Shimano SLX M-7000 front and rear Hydros with RT-66 rotors. 180mm F/160mm R.

These two changes literally transformed the bike and it now feels completely different to ride! I now feel my weak point is the standard Kenda K-1080 Slant Six tyres which came on the bike. They just don't seem grippy enough to instill confidence when riding. Not sure if this is because they're OEM tyres?

Anyway I've spent some time looking at forums/ reviews of tyres and was thinking of the below combo:

Front: 29" Maxxis Minion DHR II (I know this is sold as a rear but I've heard good things about it being used as a front).
Rear: 29" Maxxis Ardent Race

My rides are usually a very small amount of road to get to the trails but mostly made up of trail gravel, packed dirt and the odd bit of mud here and there occasionally (But not a lot!).

My questions are:

Does anyone have any experience or opinion on the above combo?

Would this last me all year or would I need to swap to something like a Forkaster on the rear for the winter?

Would this be a decent rolling set of tyres. From my reading online I read that the DHR II has great grip but not too much rolling resistance compared to similar tyres? I don't mind sacrificing a bit of speed for better grip but I'm also not at the peak of fitness so don't want anything too heavy!

Sorry, I know it's a long one. Thanks in advance .

The Rookie

Sounds like a good basis.

yes OE tyres at this price point have a very hard and not very grippy tread, they also weigh a lot more than quality tyres.

For that sort of use I think you'll be overtyred with a Minion, I'd suggest something like Ardents both ends or an Ardent front and Ikon rear, folding bead and a decent compound.

slc123

I've run a set of Ardents for the past couple of seasons on my XC bike and I feel they've been really good. I ride a mixture of trails, bike parks and some pretty muddy areas. They are a good general tyre I feel, although not the best on the road as they are quite grippy.

I am changing on my new bike to the Minion DHF on the front and HRII on the back, but only because I'm building a more capable trail bike. I would agree that the Minion is probably a bit over spec'd for what you are saying you ride!

swod1

even some schwalbe rocket ron front and racing ralph rear would be a good choice on them conditions.

The Rookie

Agreed, and what my old bike was running for drier conditions (its very wet here right now).

swod1

Ardent are good tyres but i didn't get a long with one on the front but for general xc use it will be a good option.

mattyfez

As above, the Kenda OEM tyres are not up to much, unless your spenting a lot on a bike, they keep cost down with budget tyres... any of the above will be a good improvement.

Bruce0286

Thanks everyone for your advice. I’ll get pricing up :-).

Was looking at running them tubeless, (more questions coming).

My rims aren’t tubeless ready, is it worth going to the extra cost of a brand new wheel set or is it reliable enough to run “Ghetto” tubeless with something like Schwalbe rim tape or Gorrilla tape to seal the rim then some tubeless valves and sealant? Does this work well or do you end up constantly re inflating tyres?

Thanks again.

Uber_Pod

Tubeless every time for me. My bike was a similar price to yours - the wheels don't even appear to be branded, let alone tubeless ready. I had to check and top up the pressures the first few times out. After that, it's been absolutely fine.

Bruce0286

Uber_Pod wrote:

Tubeless every time for me. My bike was a similar price to yours - the wheels don't even appear to be branded, let alone tubeless ready. I had to check and top up the pressures the first few times out. After that, it's been absolutely fine.

Brill, what tape did you use to seal your rim?

Uber_Pod

No idea - I got my local bike shop to do them.