Intense System 4 Tire

4/5

(13 Reviews)

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MSRP : $35.00

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Product Description

CrossCountryTire forTrail use. Offers excellentTractionin most conditions.Tread design has many square profileknobs for great hook up and low rolling resistance. Folding BeadSingle Ply650 grams

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Reviews 1 - 13 (13 Reviews Total)

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Submitted by GeEkBoY a Cross Country Rider from Calgary, AB

Date Reviewed: October 27, 2010

Strengths:    Great Grip, High Volume, Strong sidewalls for an XC tire

Weaknesses:    due to soft durometer, the tires can be a little squirmy on hard-pack

Bottom Line:

Fantastic tires, I do not ride tubeless and they are listed as not suitable for tubeless so why rate them poorly for something they are not designed for?!?!? I ride with light conti tubes, these are a great AM tire and almost as light as a tubeless conversion. In the Rockies, these tires are fantastic. They do clog in extended mud sections but even when wet, they grip wet rocks and roots better than any tire I have ridden. For this use, I have found nothing as good.

Unless you are a racer or you ride in extreme mud, they are a great tire for multiple conditions.

cheers!

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Favorite Trail:   Jumping Pound/Cox Hill

Duration Product Used:   2 Years

Price Paid:    $30.00

Purchased At:   Jenson

Similar Products Used:   Geax Sturdy, Velociraptors, Panaracers

Bike Setup:   2005 Heckler setup as a trail bike for a Clyde

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Submitted by kellympaw a Weekend Warrior from denver, co, USA

Date Reviewed: June 9, 2008

Strengths:    Good all around tire that rolls very well and is wide enough for tough XC or all mountain riding.
Pretty light for 2.25 width

Weaknesses:    They are soft and the knobs are flexy.
They don't seem like they are going to last very long.

Bottom Line:

I found these tires to be very flexy and soft. They grip well on rocks but on anything loose they spin out or slide. The back tire made my whole bike feel squishey. I took the back tire off and the front tire is working well enough that I'll keep it on there until it shows more wear.
They do roll very well and the weight is reasonable for a 2.25 tire.
I found them to work better with higher PSI especially on the back tire.

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Favorite Trail:   Hogback or Amasa Back

Duration Product Used:   3 months

Purchased At:   Golden Bike Shop. Gr

Similar Products Used:   Maxxis, WTB, Kenda Nevegals, etc.

Bike Setup:   Intense 5.5

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Submitted by Stephen O'Raw a Weekend Warrior from Johannesburg, South Africa

Date Reviewed: February 17, 2008

Strengths:    Good all round tyre - great Traction & cornering grip in slightly damp & loose conditions - excellent grip on wet rocks & roots & even grippy on hard pack dry trails.

Weaknesses:    Weak beads - Tyre blew off rim! First set also leaked along the centre joint - maybe Intense's Quality control ain't so good.

Bottom Line:

I have been way inpressed with these tyres so far - the extra grip has definitely improved my riding.
BUT - don't, don't don't don't run these tyres tubeless! Look up the tyres that Stans recommends you DON'T use with their conversion and Intense is one of them. I am not a weight weenie and as a result of their impressive handling at slightly higher pressures I will probably keep these tyres on for my trail riding days and start using tubes again - despite the weight penalty. I must stress again - these are good tyres but I tried running these tubeless and they blew off the rim just as I was finishing a rocky descent! Others may not be so lucky. The local RSA importer also says that Stans will cause problems with the rubber on these tyres. Used properly (with tubes) these are great tyres for medium loose to hard pack conditions - we don't have enough mud to really test these in sticky conditions. I wouldn't recommend racing XC in them as they are a bit draggy compared to the Crossmarks. I have been way impressed with these tyres so far - once I learnt to use them properly.

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Favorite Trail:   Braamies Spruit

Duration Product Used:   Less than 1 month

Price Paid:    $50.00

Purchased At:   Mikes Bikes

Similar Products Used:   None - was running Maxxis Crossmark UST until now but they are a 2.1 tyre. Used Maxxis Larsen TT's before then but with a change to a longer travel bike I wanted something more trail-oriented

Bike Setup:   Ibis Mojo - Hope hubs with DT Swiss 5.1 rims (converted)

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Submitted by Dubbya B a Cross Country Rider from Aspen CO

Date Reviewed: September 17, 2007

Strengths:    Grippy, light, low rolling resistance.

Weaknesses:    Horrible with Stans No-Tubes. A handfull of the nobs ripped off after two months of riding on both the front and rear tire (maybe 30 rides).

Bottom Line:

Good tire in the beginning but they quickly started tear apart at the seams. Perhaps they would work better with tubes but I prefer to ride without tubes and use Stans No-Tubes.

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Duration Product Used:   3 months

Purchased At:   Came with my 6.6 build from Ute City Cycles

Similar Products Used:   Too many to list.

Bike Setup:   Intense 6.6 with the 2.25 System 4's (but will not replace the System 4's with another intense tire)

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Submitted by pimpbot a Cross Country Rider from oakland, CA

Date Reviewed: August 26, 2007

Strengths:    sticks to loose stuff fairly well.

Weaknesses:    Walks all over the place on hardpack when side loaded. Have to run higher pressures than other tires to keep the tire form squirming, heavy for an XC tire, kinda slow rolling, but not too bad.

Bottom Line:

These tires made my bike feel like I cracked the rear triangle or a bearing failed or something. It made the rear end feel sloppy, vague, and not confident in the turns.

Climbing and braking traction felt pretty good. They also seem to have beefy sidewalls and feel like they would be difficult to pinch flat. Although the sidewalls are obviously a bit stretchy.

These were sold to me by a gal at the Intense booth, and she told me they were about 600g each, and rolled really fast. Well, they turned out to be about 774 grams. My bike now tips the scale at 29 lbs, which is pretty portly for an XC bike. They also roll pretty slowly. My bike felt a bit like dragging a dead body around. I felt a bit like a sucker, but I got them for $40 for the pair, so it was not too much cash lost.

Decent tire, but not great. Probably a better tire for a more loamy area than my dry hardpack trails on a 30 lbs 5-6" travel Nomad or something, but 2.25s are a bit small for that application. I'll probably ride them until they wear out. They aren't so bad that I feel motivated to take them off my bike.

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Favorite Trail:   Pinecrest Peak

Duration Product Used:   3 months

Price Paid:    $20.00

Purchased At:   Sea Otter Intense booth

Similar Products Used:   IRC Mibros, Kenda Karmas, Panaracer Cinders, Hutchinson Scorpions.

Bike Setup:   '03 Specialized Stumpjumper FSR-XC

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Submitted by Bob Burnes a Racer from Salinas, CA

Date Reviewed: July 13, 2007

Strengths:    Man, these can grip the ground on the most of the mountain cross courses I've been on this season!
Grip, weight, and rolling speed are all good.

Weaknesses:    None

Bottom Line:

Most people would assume, and rightly so, that the system 4 is for XC use. It's an awesome option for the mountain crossers out there. Great spinning weight, awesome traction, and awesome rolling speed make the S4 a great tire option on race day.

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Favorite Trail:   Chicksands, UK

Duration Product Used:   6 months

Purchased At:   Sponsored

Similar Products Used:   Intense Zero Lites, 909 Lites

Bike Setup:   2007 Yeti 4X, Marzocchi 4X WC forks, PUSH Fox RP23 shox, Chris King this, Chris King that, LG1 e13 guide and ring, Saint drive train.

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Submitted by ben a Downhiller from Lost Angeles. CA

Date Reviewed: May 19, 2006

Strengths:    VERRRRY rugged tire that looks and feels more like DH rubber. After 4 months of moderate to very heavy abuse - I have yet to change a single inner tube.

Weaknesses:    Cornering on loose-over-hardpack is a little unpredictable compared to the Intense CC 2.25. A little bit heavy but still within reason and not a huge buden on the climbs.

Bottom Line:

This tire is really quite impressive. I have ridden these for about 3 or 4 months now on a HUGE variety of terrain and haven't had any hint of a flat yet. This includes areas where I used to get thorn flats often and on some REALLY sharp gnarly rocky descents.

I may go back to the CC 2.25 because of the fast cornering advantage ( and the weight savings) but it will be very hard to justify leaving the downhill traction and unbelievable ruggedness of these tires behind.

I have noticed some riders have raved about the cornering of this tire so my best advice is to definitely TRY IT. Maybe it's just my fork or something that makes them feel a little "slippery" in fast hard corners. Either way, I guarantee you'll love these tires if you're into more aggressive xc, all mntn, freeride, etc. - for sure.

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Duration Product Used:   3 months

Price Paid:    $35.00

Purchased At:   lbs

Similar Products Used:   Intense 2.25 CC, Specialized various, other

Bike Setup:   02 Enduro Pro, Psylo SL, Mavic F219 DIsc Freeride rims, drillium platform pedals, XTR rrd, LX frd, XT crank, blah blah blah...

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Submitted by Jon LaMoreaux a Cross Country Rider from Moscow,ID

Date Reviewed: January 7, 2006

Strengths:    strong cornering. EXCELLENT cornering on hardpack ,loose over hardpack, gravel, damp loam, and rocks. high quality construction. tough. rolls pretty rast. looks cool...intense.

Weaknesses:    loads up when subjected to sticky clay/mud ..not as bad as nevegal 2.3 .745grams is kinda heavy.

Bottom Line:

this tire rules. if you can live with the weight. rolling ,cornering, braking, and durability are great. summertime tire for my area. for a tire this good i would pay much more. not a race tire (super d mabey) awesome trail tire. almost dh worthy. in my opinion it feels faster than nevegal and better handling than trailbear or nbx ..mabey not as hard cornering as minion. having these tires makes me want to ride!

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Favorite Trail:   any

Duration Product Used:   6 months

Price Paid:    $40.00

Purchased At:   local shop

Similar Products Used:   irc mythos/trailbear2.1-2.25-2.5,nokian nbx2.3 kenda nevegal/bg2.3,maxxis minion/mobster2.3,wtb motoraptor/enduro2.1-2.4,spec adrenaline/enduro 2.1,tioga xc/redpheonix

Bike Setup:   hardtail,fox fork xtr hope.also ss full rigid

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Submitted by isaac stokes a Cross Country Rider from boulder

Date Reviewed: August 24, 2005

Strengths: Well, well... I didn't think I'd ever switch from my beloved Conti Vertical Pros but these have made a believer of me. Actually tried them accidentally when using a wheelset off another bike on my Blur. I'm usually a gram counter (especially rotational weight of course) but I just kept thinking how money these were as a front tire the longer I procrastinated and kept riding them. Then I discovered they weight 775 grams which kin

Bottom Line:

Well, well... I didn't think I'd ever switch from my beloved Conti Vertical Pros but these have made a believer of me. Actually tried them accidentally when using a wheelset off another bike on my Blur. I'm usually a gram counter (especially rotational weight of course) but I just kept thinking how money these are as a front tire the longer I procrastinated and kept riding them. Then I discovered they weight 775 grams which kinda shocked me (Vert Pros are usually 610 grams in kevlar... check out weightweenies.starbike.com for real component weight listings... great site!!) as the volume seems about %50 more than other tires of this nature/weight I have used and checked out.

Anyhow I'm going to give it a solid 4 chillis... even leaning toward 4.5.

If you have the means I highly recommened you pick some up.

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Favorite Trail: Doctors Park

Duration Product Used: 3 months

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Submitted by Rene Hoepelman a Cross Country Rider from Long Beach

Date Reviewed: July 20, 2005

Strengths:    Great all round tire can handle what ever you pedal through, foldable

Weaknesses:    does not last long with stans no tubes.

Bottom Line:

These are the only tires I will buy for both of my xcountry bikes.

If your bike will hold a tire this size (26 x 2.25)you wont be disappoined. They have excellent traction in sand, mud and hard pack with loose stuff on top (If you live in calif you know what I mean) the wider tire also provides a little extra plushness in the ride. I just feel safer riding on them vs a skinnier more unstable tire. These tires last a long time and they look bad ass.

These tires wont hold up for very long with stans no tubes. The tires will buldge and the kevlar will seperate after a week or two. For normal xcountry riding use standard tubes and you should have no problems.

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Favorite Trail:   dirt

Duration Product Used:   1 Year

Price Paid:    $40.00

Purchased At:   LBS

Similar Products Used:   everythang

Bike Setup:   xcountry

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Submitted by Jay a Weekend Warrior from Phoenix, AZ

Date Reviewed: March 10, 2005

Strengths:    Excellent Cornering and traction, the tread seems to last.

Weaknesses:    Weak bead failed when I converted them to Stan's, maybe I need tubless tires?

Bottom Line:

I really liked these tires when I had tubes. When I converted to Stan's no-tubes, they worked great for a couple of rides, then I drove into my garage to find my tire flat with a failed bead. I left them at ~35 psi and the bead simply failed and blew out. I know you're thinking Phoenix heat, but this was in December and the Specialized tire on the back is still there holding air. I was just mounting the next one and the bead popped while it was in my hands. I love the way these things ride, but two failures in the same spot is a little much for me. Don't buy these tires if you go with Stan's no-tubes. I'm going back to the Enduros that came on the bike. 2 value chilis cuz they're about the same as other trail tires and 2 flaming chili overall because the bead is too weak to hold air.

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Favorite Trail:   Go John

Duration Product Used:   6 months

Price Paid:    $40.00

Purchased At:   Supergo

Similar Products Used:   Spec, Enduro Pro

Bike Setup:   Spec Enduro, Stan's No-tubes

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Submitted by mtbr489 a Cross Country Rider from San Diego, CA

Date Reviewed: December 22, 2004

Weaknesses: bad in sticky mud!

Bottom Line:

For riding out west, System 4's earn 5 flamin chilis.

Here's an update to my previous review

I bought a new set of System 4's from Cambria. Both tires are straight (no off-center deviations). Complaint #1 is gone.

Complaint #2: Converting to Stan's is also not a problem. After reading the Stan's How to Guide in Mountain Bike Action (October '04) I've mastered the technique. The key was giving up on my electric tire pump and going back to my trusy floor pump. You need need to seat the beads with a good solid burst of air.

After riding Palm Desert last weekend I'm completely sold on Stan's. I watched in horror as a nasty clump of cholla stuck itself into my new tire. I knocked it after a few revolutions. This would have been a flat for sure if I was running tubes. By the way, the tires stayed seated even though I had pressured down to 15 PSI for climbing up a long sandy wash.

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Duration Product Used:   2 Years

Price Paid:    $37.00

Purchased At:   Cambria Bikes

Bike Setup:   Ellsworth Isis with Mavic 819 UST rims

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Submitted by mtbr489 a Cross Country Rider from San Diego, CA

Date Reviewed: December 3, 2004

Strengths:    Excellent climbing grip and dead reliable cornering.
Extremelty light for a large volume tire. They feel bigger than they are (or they're lighter than they look?)
Good tread life.
Work well at low pressure (I run them at 28-32 Pounds)

Weaknesses:    Manufacturing variablilty. I bought a new set of System 4's to replace my worn out originals. The new tires weren't true - they had one section with about a 1/2" lateral deflection. No matter how I seated the tire it always rubbed against my frame. I had to return them to Supergo.

Hard to convert to Stans
Loads up in sticky mud

Bottom Line:

This is a great tire for the dry, rocky conditions out west. They climb really well as the blcok tread pattern really digs in. The off-camber grip is amazing. ?

I tried moving to Roll-X tubeless tires after reading review in MBA and came back to my worn out System 4's because their cornering grip was so much better.

Despite the problems I've had trying to get a straight set and converting them to Stan's, I'm still buying another set.

System 4's are hard to find but worth the effort. Cambria has them for $36.95. Stock up while you can.

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Favorite Trail:   Kernan @ Lake Morena

Duration Product Used:   1 Year

Price Paid:    $39.00

Purchased At:   Supergo

Similar Products Used:   Velociraptors, Mythos, Roll-X Tubeless

Bike Setup:   Ellsworth Isis

Reviews 1 - 13 (13 Reviews Total)

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Intense System 4 Tire

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