No experience, but ditching 120tpi is a great thing. There's a reason why there's never been a DH casing with 120tpi. I hope they ditch 120 for DD too but that would probably increase weight to the point of being so close to folding DH what's the point?
New Maxxis EXO+ tires? Any experience or hands on yet? Thoughts?
I ride in the Appalachian's and East.
My experience has been that non enduro tires named: Bontrager and Maxxis EXO are similarly fragile.
Trying the EXO+ on front and Double Down rear now.
I am hoping the DD will also provide a good level of rim protection. I did break a Botrager KOVEE XXX Rim.
I do not race downhill and weigh about 172/5 pounds. I think of my self as a old and slow ex cross country racer.
The rocks and pointy things kill the cross country tires.
In my opinion,If you ride below a certain speed and are below a certain weight, you can ride the C.C. Tire and not get side wall tears and punctures.
Just a guess, but maybe rider weight of 150 or so pounds or below and the light weight frail C.C. Tires are ok.
I also see that Maxxis has a redesigned EXO+ now. Any of you have experience or hands on yet? Thoughts?
What say you folks.
My experience has been that non enduro tires named: Bontrager and Maxxis EXO are similarly fragile.
Trying the EXO+ on front and Double Down rear now.
I am hoping the DD will also provide a good level of rim protection. I did break a Botrager KOVEE XXX Rim.
I do not race downhill and weigh about 172/5 pounds. I think of my self as a old and slow ex cross country racer.
The rocks and pointy things kill the cross country tires.
In my opinion,If you ride below a certain speed and are below a certain weight, you can ride the C.C. Tire and not get side wall tears and punctures.
Just a guess, but maybe rider weight of 150 or so pounds or below and the light weight frail C.C. Tires are ok.
I also see that Maxxis has a redesigned EXO+ now. Any of you have experience or hands on yet? Thoughts?
What say you folks.
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So far my experience with EXO casings and east coast rocks has been fine... even at 200 lbs. Maybe I'm too slow... also running 26-30 psi.
Haven't tried it yet but the change makes sense. Riders have had issues with pinch flats at the bead (including me). The Silk shield layer seemed to do nothing. The tougher 60 tpi carcass and butyl insert should improve support and puncture protection.
I would like to A-B the new version with my 120 tpi DHF.
I would like to A-B the new version with my 120 tpi DHF.
Yes I agree a scientific or at least reasonably logical quantifying comparison would be great.
I've had the new EXO+ since Sept last year- Had to check my receipt and I was surprised that they rolled these out so early last year
Ridden it through the winter slop and from what I can tell so far
Its exactly the same as the older one- no flats (knock on wood) and decent support
My riding territory, North Shore and surrounding areas (Rooty, Rocky(not east coast style)
180lbs- 24 to 25psi- no inserts
Ridden it through the winter slop and from what I can tell so far
Its exactly the same as the older one- no flats (knock on wood) and decent support
My riding territory, North Shore and surrounding areas (Rooty, Rocky(not east coast style)
180lbs- 24 to 25psi- no inserts
I have not tried yet (and not really any reason to) but the few reviews I read said it's not significantly different than normal EXO. They said they were doing 'real' DH riding and often the EXO casings could not hold up, they would get a burp, a slash on the casing that weakened it, or a sidewall tear that would doom the tire to the trash can. They tried EXO+ and said a bit lesser problems but still the same ones compared with normal EXO. So they later went back to double-down, MaxxGrip, etc. I guess the moral of the story is, if you are consistently having problems I assume with the rear tire for burps, sidewall tears, and the like, you go to a real downhill casing. EXO+ supposedly will not substitute. Maybe if some dude is 130-145 lbs it could be OK; if it's a big rider on a big bike I'm sure they are going to recommend heavy tires. Look at the e-bike specific tires, they are all about 50-150 grams heavier than their normal bike counterparts for the same tire class. So they can hold up better under more weight.
Personally the only time I've run into serious tire problems it if there are constant irregular-shaped embedded rocks that can slash the casing or at least burp the rear tire (on a hardtail). So I just don't use skinny or real XC tires anymore on those trails. If it's a wider 2.6 or 2.8 XC or a real trail/DH 2.4 then it's fine, no need to use a DH casing if it's wider or the tread itself is thick.
Personally the only time I've run into serious tire problems it if there are constant irregular-shaped embedded rocks that can slash the casing or at least burp the rear tire (on a hardtail). So I just don't use skinny or real XC tires anymore on those trails. If it's a wider 2.6 or 2.8 XC or a real trail/DH 2.4 then it's fine, no need to use a DH casing if it's wider or the tread itself is thick.
Can post links to reviews of the EXO+ version 2?I have not tried yet (and not really any reason to) but the few reviews I read said it's not significantly different than normal EXO. They said they were doing 'real' DH riding and often the EXO casings could not hold up, they would get a burp, a slash on the casing that weakened it, or a sidewall tear that would doom the tire to the trash can. They tried EXO+ and said a bit lesser problems but still the same ones compared with normal EXO. So they later went back to double-down, MaxxGrip, etc. I guess the moral of the story is, if you are consistently having problems I assume with the rear tire for burps, sidewall tears, and the like, you go to a real downhill casing. EXO+ supposedly will not substitute. Maybe if some dude is 130-145 lbs it could be OK; if it's a big rider on a big bike I'm sure they are going to recommend heavy tires. Look at the e-bike specific tires, they are all about 50-150 grams heavier than their normal bike counterparts for the same tire class. So they can hold up better under more weight.
Personally the only time I've run into serious tire problems it if there are constant irregular-shaped embedded rocks that can slash the casing or at least burp the rear tire (on a hardtail). So I just don't use skinny or real XC tires anymore on those trails. If it's a wider 2.6 or 2.8 XC or a real trail/DH 2.4 then it's fine, no need to use a DH casing if it's wider or the tread itself is thick.
I think he’s thinking of reviews for the first version w/120 tpi.Can post links to reviews of the EXO+ version 2?
FWIW, I just picked up a new Rekon EXO+ V2, but haven’t mounted it yet as I’m saving it for a 3-day endurance ride this spring. Came in at 956g so slightly heavier, but not crazy. Does feel nicely beefy on the sidewalls
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Any more reviews trickling in? I’m hoping these are a little more substantial than the 120tpi
Is the tread area thicker? I kept puncturing the reckons center tread.
I’d say the full carcass is thicker than the previous 120-tpi version. But comparing the EXO to new EXO+, only the sidewall to bead area is reinforced. The tread area for both will be the same.
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I looked it up after and I’d guess it is a bit thicker just being 60vs120.I’d say the full carcass is thicker than the previous 120-tpi version. But comparing the EXO to new EXO+, only the sidewall to bead area is reinforced. The tread area for both will be the same.
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Based on the picture above, don't expect much. Any casing in 29x2.4 coming in under 1kg is going to be fairly thin. Until we see a materials breakthrough, there's just noway to build a casing this light and have great durability. With all the advancements over the years, casing durability really hasn't changed. We still need thick layers of good old fashion rubber. All these marketing terms for specialty material layers don't seem to do much. In the end there's still no replacement for displacement.Is the tread area thicker? I kept puncturing the reckons center tread.
Don't get me wrong, I"m sure EXO, silkworm, and other companies specialty layers help fortify rubber layers, I"m just saying without thick rubber we can't count on any speciality layer to turn thin rubber layers into a durable casing. I'll continue to buy EXO like I have since it came out in 09, but I'll never expect any iteration of EXO to offer good durability until we see a materials breakthrough.
Any more cut resistance?
Definitely. I’ve now got ~300 miles on the tire pictured above. About half of which was on the Kokopelli trail through Moab with some portions of the Whole Enchilada and Porcupine Rim. I had hits during that ride that I thought for sure I was going to lose the tire and/or rim, but when I looked down they were holding just fine. The rest of my riding has been mostly at Greer in SoCal where I’ve absolutely shredded an Exo Aggressor. The tire is still all good without any sealant seeps. I’m not a heavy rider at 160lbs, but I am somewhat aggressive and can honestly say EXO+ is all I’ll ever need for everything this side of the bike park..
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Any of you have any more real world usage experience of the difference if any of EXO+ VS EXO and Double Down or other tires?
I’ve got the new EXO tires, the Forekaster 29x2.4 that was released this year. Nowhere near a 2.4 but it holds air without sealant, losing less than 1/2 psi a day. Only a few rides in, but the reliability so far gives me hope. 28/30psi on a 130/140 travel YT Izzo.
I have a new EXO+ Dissector and an older EXO Dissector and EXO+ Assegai. The new EXO+ casing is noticeably stiffer than the old one. Tread wear is just the same and depends on the compound you choose. I think mine is a MaxxTerra and on the rear it’ll likely last about 4-5 days at a bike park, and probably 4x that on the front.
I use EXO+ on my "big" bike for East Coast backcountry rocks, so far so good. That being said I also use EXO and while do have occasional flat with those with the right pressure generous amount of sealant ok most of the time, when do have issue it's generally in the rear on loose rocks and fast descents. Also have had good luck with the Bontrager SE4 as a rear tire its my go to in the winter even on short travel bike because tubing a tire or plugging them really just in the cold. The SE4 also a go to for rear of Hardtail when it is going to see lots of fun.
Now on my Stumpy EVO I will run the EXO+ all the time no need to worry about extra weight and so far the DHR / Assegai combo been just awesome pure traction.
Now on my Stumpy EVO I will run the EXO+ all the time no need to worry about extra weight and so far the DHR / Assegai combo been just awesome pure traction.
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