need tires: east coast wet & technical

moonraker said:

I am looking to get more traction on the wet rocks and roots. It's been a wet year in eastern PA and my current tires aren't doing so well. The rear tire is my biggest concern right now. Something with a sticky rubber compound that has slightly heavier sidewall than the lightweight racing tires....I ride lots of rocks.

I am considering the WTB 2.5 weirwolf
or Tioga factory DH 2.3

Trying not to spend over $25 but....

any suggestions?

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How 'bout the Kenda Kinetics Stick-E 2.35?

Nm

asdff

Those two you mentioned are terrible in the rear for wet, rooty, especially the Weirwolf. The Weirwolf I use in the front for all around conds.Pgh PA and surrounding areas Kinetics in sticky rubber if you only have $25

For $25 you could have the Kenda Blue Groove or Nevegal in either 2.1 or 2.35 in stick-E rubber from Mtn High Cyclery. I'm using a BG 2.35 up front & Nev 2.1 in the rear and they stick like glue. But they do wear relatively quickly.
The Hutch gator is a good suggestion but hard to find. It's essentially been replaced by the Spider.
Schwalbe Big Jims do well in mud but aren't as sticky as the Kendas.

alligator rocks

I run a conti survival in front and alligator in back, in the rocky techinical crap out here in the east coast. The alligator is a fantastic tire, measuring around 2.2 (estimate) that grips on everything if you run pressure low enough. good stuff, and its on sale at greenfish:
http://www.greenfishsports.com/index.asp?PageAction=VIEWCATS&Category=227

I imagine the 2.25 would be huge, since the 2.0 is around a 2.2 (shiggy could probably verify the actual size.)

Hmmm..

moonraker said:

I am looking to get more traction on the wet rocks and roots. It's been a wet year in eastern PA and my current tires aren't doing so well. The rear tire is my biggest concern right now. Something with a sticky rubber compound that has slightly heavier sidewall than the lightweight racing tires....I ride lots of rocks.

I am considering the WTB 2.5 weirwolf
or Tioga factory DH 2.3

Trying not to spend over $25 but....

any suggestions?

Click to expand...

Price aside..

I don't know much about the kinetics, but it sounds like the aligators would be too light for what you want. The sidewall isn't that impressive -but it's a good gripping tire in the wet.

In the front I've had good luck with the weirwolf, but I like the Intense DH 2.35 tires more (w/ 60 duro). For the rear I've been running conti survival protection 2.3's and love 'em. I try all kinds of different tires, but come back to these contis.

I'm in MA and I can't imagine conditions being too too different than PA (when it's wet anyway).

The Wierwolf's not been the best on wet roots/rocks for me either. I like the BG/Nevegal in those conditions - isn't someone selling those for $25ea? (but I've been using 2.5s though), and a riding buddy of mine is really liking a Kinetics 2.35 on the rear too. The NBX 2.3 might be an option too depending on cost, I'm using one on the front of my XC/trailbike and it seems to grip well on almost anything, seems like a very supple casing.

Hey,

I'm in eastern PA also. I have the WTB Weirwolf 2.5's on both front & back. I think they work fairly well, but they would be better if they had a softer (and more sticky) compound. I also found that running them at low air preasure (30psi) makes them worse when it's wet. At 37-38ish PSI they seem to bite better. I'm not totally sure why, but they appear more rounded at higher preasure.

I had the Tioga DH 2.3, but got rid of them because they didn't work well on wet roots. The best tires that I found for wet roots & rocks are the Continental Explorer Pro 2.3, however, they are usually much more than $25 (maybe the wire bead is less $'s). Also, they do not have the most durable sidewalls, unless you get the pro-tection version, which is more $'s!

IMHO tires with smaller knobbies seem to work best on the rocks and roots, that's why I like the Conti's and WTB's

Where in PA are you?

moonraker said:

I am looking to get more traction on the wet rocks and roots. It's been a wet year in eastern PA and my current tires aren't doing so well. The rear tire is my biggest concern right now. Something with a sticky rubber compound that has slightly heavier sidewall than the lightweight racing tires....I ride lots of rocks.

I am considering the WTB 2.5 weirwolf
or Tioga factory DH 2.3

Trying not to spend over $25 but....

any suggestions?

Click to expand...

Blue groove on the front and rear, unless it is not only wet but muddy then Nevegal for the rear.

Michelin Front-S & XL-S (Green Compound is GREAT)

Panaracer Dart & Smoke (Added Bonus for MAGIC compound version)

Tioga Farmer John & Psycho

Tioga Farmer John & Specialized Storm Control

menachite said:

Michelin Front-S & XL-S (Green Compound is GREAT)

Panaracer Dart & Smoke (Added Bonus for UMMA GUMMA version)

Tioga Farmer John & Psycho

Tioga Farmer John & Specialized Storm Control

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Dang! When was the last time you shopped for tires?

I agree with the Michelins. The Front is discontinued.

Umma Gumma was Specialized's soft grey rubber, not Panaracer's

Farmer Johns and Psychos? Long gone and for good reason.

Storm Control: Love the 1.8. Not great on wet roots/rocks. Very hard to find. Hs not been made for at least 6 years.

shiggy��� said:

Dang! When was the last time you shopped for tires?

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Today....now that the Michelin Front S is discontinued I think I might snap a few of the closeouts up....

shiggy��� said:

Umma Gumma was Specialized's soft grey rubber, not Panaracer's

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Edited my last post to reflect the proper compund for those tires.

shiggy��� said:

Farmer Johns and Psychos? Long gone and for good reason.

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What reason is that tire geek?

shiggy��� said:

Storm Control: Love the 1.8. Not great on wet roots/rocks. Very hard to find. Hs not been made for at least 6 years.

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Most of the ones I have found used around here are full of wood screws and were used as studded snows in the winter.

menachite said:

Today....now that the Michelin Front S is discontinued I think I might snap a few of the closeouts up....

Click to expand...

They were dropped about two years ago but I have seen plenty around.

menachite said:

What reason is that tire geek?

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The Farmer John was heavy with marginal cornering traction. The Pyschos were just marginal tires in all regards - at least around here. I know of no one that liked them. Sketchy cornering, poor braking, so-so drive traction.

I'll Second Kinetics...

I ride on the Wet Cost of Canada (Vancouver Area), wet and slippery is the norm around here! (except this year...weird weather!). Before I switched to Kinetics 2.35's, I would be crashing almost every wet ride due to tire traction loss...it was getting painful! I have now been riding Kinetics exclusively for three years, and I don't remember the last time I crashed due to loss of traction.

If wet weather traction is your top priority, sticky Kinetics (available is several sizes) are a good way to go.

sh0rty

Cinders

I am using Panaracer Cinders and am very pleased with them. the weather here in Va. has been wet too and they have done more than handle everything I have put them thru. they are available @ beyondbikes.com for $31.99 and are worth the extra moolah IMO other than the price I believe they will be Exactly what you are looking for. Ive been a Trailblaster user for the last couple of years and these are my new favorites. dont let the extra weight over a racing tire fool you. they ride like a lighter tire and roll F A S T!. the only time you will notice the exta weight is when you load or unload your bike from your vehicle(about a pound per pair) Ive improved my avg. speed on my favorite trail by 1.4 mph since switching to these. its due to the confidence I get from the extra traction in the tough stuff like roots, rock,sand,mud,or a combination of all due to the excess rain

i ride with weirwolf's here in vermont...hasn't stopped raining all year it seems i find that traction with them is great only if you reverse the recomended tread pattern on the rear..i run a 2.3 rear and 2.5 front 35 and 30 lbs respectivly and have way easier time than any of my riding buddies on the wet...dunno i think its riding style as much as tires folks

shiggy��� said:

The Farmer John was heavy with marginal cornering traction.

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OK...OK...no need to kick a dead horse....they were good tires for their time when it came to all around traction in slop though.

Thanks for the feedback

thanks for the feedback everyone

I actually found something at my LBS last night....an old specialized pro control "umma gumma" kevlar bead tire for $10. It's a gay gray color with brown gumwall sides, but the tread looks descent and the price was right
and I have on order a pair of kenda kinetics with stick-e rubber.
and it looks like rain again....around chocolate town