mud 29ers for trek dual sport

steve10

Hi, I'm looking for mud(ish) tyres for my trek dual sport2.
Rims are 622 x 22. Trek advise 2.1 max.

It's for muddy forest tracks + country lanes. 70% on tarmac country lanes, but most critical is grip in the mud & puncture resistance. Extremely leisurely cycling.

I reckon Swalbe rocket rons 29x2.1 There isn't much on the market or actually in stock anywhere. Any other recommendations?

singleton

Rocket Rons are a good all-round tyre but they aren't strictly mud tyres - but you probably don't want full mud tyres if you are 70% on tarmac.

A quick google shows several online stores have stock - cyclesolutions, merlin and wiggle to name a few.

Wiggle also have 29x2.1 Maxxis crossmark for £30 and Halfords have 29x2.1 smart sams for £20 if you want something at a lower price point.

steve_sordy

The Trek advice of 2.1" may be based upon your rim width and 2.1" is certainly the largest "ideal" size of tyre. But as the chart below shows you can certainly go a bit bigger without consequences, especially as you only intend leisurely cycling.

https://www.wtb.com/pages/tire-rim-fit-chart

Page down to the second chart. The internal rim width in mm is across the top and the tyre width is mm down the left. As you will see, 54mm (2.1") is the largest tyre width for "optimal performance". But you could go bigger and move into the "compatible" area of the chart.

There are other reasons why Trek may recommend a 2.1" maximum for your bike and it may have nothing to do with the rim width. How wide are your chain stays and seat stays? A wide tyre may not fit. Even a tyre that fits into the rear triangle when stationary may rub on the stays when cornering. Some makes of tyres of the same width have different overall diameters, so you may find a tyre that fits widthways will not pass under the seat stay brace.

I used to fit Maxxis Medusa 2.1" mud tyres in the wet season because my dry season tyres (Maxxis Ignitor 2.1") were really bad in the mud. A few years later I switched to Continental Trail King 2.2" and discovered that when the wet season came that I didn't need to change them. They were not a proper mud tyre, but they were good enough for sure. The 2.2" would fit your rim width, but be careful about the frame clearance.

steve10

Many thanks for the tips re size. I'll maybe stretch the search envelope a fraction. The main thing is mud grip - the Maxxis cross marks look a bit hybridish. Budget isn't really an issue.

steve10

the main reason mud grip is so important is that on forest trails/bridle ways, if it gets too bad for my wife, then we need to go back and take a longer route...

steve10

plus we don't really have the time to be changing out tyres for summer/winter.

steve10

Pirelli Scorpion 29 2.2?

steve_sordy

Trail Kings do not have a solid centre band.

https://www.bikeinn.com/bike/continental-trail-king-ii-tlr-29-tubeless-foldable-mtb-tyre/137172147/p?utm_source=google_products&utm_medium=merchant&id_producte=8740417&country=uk&gclid=Cj0KCQiAxoiQBhCRARIsAPsvo-yCGqD-wtDx4jL96WvFx7uyNRE5vvwPby-CrkAj1e55oYgQf9YHn9MaAt4OEALw_wcB&gclsrc=aw.ds

steve10

update: I went for the Schwalbe rocket rons 29x2.1 and am very happy. The bikes are totally transformed - we churned through mud that would otherwise would have stopped play. The red band speed version was the only one available, but I'm not qualified or experienced enough to have been able to tell the difference between that and the blue version in any case. Many thanks.