MTB tire recommendations???

[Exonerv]

I've been doing a little research on 26" MTB tires and the process seems about as convoluted as trying to buy a mattress. Reviews are inconsistent to the point of being nearly useless.

I'm currently running a set of Mavic Crossmax SL with 1st gen UST Maxxis High Rollers 2.0 rear and 2.1 front.

I like the idea that I could run this combo with no sealant - just mount and go. However, some things I read says you should always run sealant - even on UST tires. And it's pretty easy to drop $60-70 per tire.

If I'm going to run sealant, it seems it would make more sense to run the less expensive and lighter version of my choosing, but then there's the whole sealant incompatibility obstacle to overcome since some tires don't play well with sealant and it voids any illusion of a warranty.

And all this is before I even start considering tread patterns and their effectiveness for the type of riding I do. Not to mention the various tread compounds from which to choose.

Any insight toward solving this puzzle would be most appreciated. For reference, I'm 155lbs riding a Dean Duke soft tail on local bike trails like Lake Norman State Park. I'm not doing anything particularly demanding at this stage of the game.

Buying road tires is so much simpler.

[Cat3roadracer]

Look for Racing Ralph's on the bay. Love them.

[josephr]

never heard of anybody not running sealant before, but I guess its possible???

racing ralphs are good and light, but I definitely wouldn't run without sealant. I ran RRs for the past couple of years and they were a good all-around tire, although more grip in the turns up front would've been appreciated. I just put on a new pair of Continentnal Trail Kings and hope to get my first ride on them this weekend. I've liked the Kenda Nevegals as well....not a big fan of velociraptors though.

Not sure what type of terrain you're riding...but here in the southeast, we like things with a little the rooty singletrack but still somewhat low tread profile to keep rolling and not get the red clay clogging everything up.

If there's a local mtb chapter in your area, see what they're riding --- not in terms of make/model, but in terms of profile and tread pattern.
Joe

[Anarchist]

MTB tires are so variable and so dependent on the where and when of your riding that any single tire siggestion made here is next to useless.

Find a MTB forum with an active participation from those in your locality and see what people there are using.

MTBR has a number of active regional forums and there may be people here who are local to you.

For me, tire recommendations from one of the guys at my shop would be copmpletely useless as all he rides is rock gardens, I ride in the heavy undergrowth where his tires are without any value at all.

[John H.]

I have Some WTB, Specialized and Schwalbes- all brand new. Sent you a PM.

[vqdriver]

my understanding of the OP was more geared towards the different ways to run tubeless, actual brand/model/size aside. got to figure that out before looking at particular models of tires.

i, too, would be interested in hearing that fleshed out since i've been procrastinating going tubeless

[John H.]

Nothing to it- he has crossmax sl wheels- they are fully sealed.
Just put tubeless compatible tires on and 1.5 scopps of Stans- then go ride.

[djg21]

never heard of anybody not running sealant before, but I guess its possible???

racing ralphs are good and light, but I definitely wouldn't run without sealant. I ran RRs for the past couple of years and they were a good all-around tire, although more grip in the turns up front would've been appreciated. I just put on a new pair of Continentnal Trail Kings and hope to get my first ride on them this weekend. I've liked the Kenda Nevegals as well....not a big fan of velociraptors though.

Not sure what type of terrain you're riding...but here in the southeast, we like things with a little the rooty singletrack but still somewhat low tread profile to keep rolling and not get the red clay clogging everything up.

If there's a local mtb chapter in your area, see what they're riding --- not in terms of make/model, but in terms of profile and tread pattern.
Joe


I use 26" Trail King UST Tires on my MTB. I like that they are available in a 2.4" width. I use a 2.4 on the front, and 2.2 on the rear (the 2.4 proved too tight on my Spec Epic).

The Trail Kings are slightly heavy, but the sidewall is really tough, and the black chili compound feels sticky over roots and wet rock. I run them at roughly 38lbs with Stan's sealant. I really like these tires.

I have an extra slightly used 2.4 (used 2x) I'd sell if you want to go that route. Like I said, the tire was too tight on my Epic.

The sealant really is a no-brainer -- after the tire is installed, I remove the valve core and inject the sealant into the tire using the Stan's injector.

I just swapped tires for the winter, and installed some the 2.35 "tubeless ready" Shwalbe Ice Spiker pro studded tires. I've ridden them twice, and they are great on icy singletrack. They ain't cheap, but you can find them on sale if you look around.

BTW, I came across this ad on Craig's List for a set of 26" studded Nokians. http://glensfalls.craigslist.org/bik/4210188623.html. I wish I had seen these before I paid for the Schwalbes.

[crownjewelwl]

The ust standard (tire and rims) requires no sealant. That means the tire bead seats perfectly in the rim and the tires are not porous. The tradeoff is that ust specific tires are heavy and can ride like bricks. There also aren't many ust tire to choose from. Maxxis makes a few. Mavic owns the standard so anyone who uses it has to pay.

There are a whole bunch of tubeless ready tires out there. Tubeless ready cuz they require sealant like Stans. The casing is more supple therefore more porous. Adding sealant offsets some of the weight difference but supple tires plus sealant ride nicer.

I've had good luck with Schwalbe and wtb. As to specific tires it really depend on conditions. I like racing Ralphs in the rear and nobby nics up front.

Good luck

[Exonerv]

That makes sense....

Note he mounts the UST tire in the video sans sealant:
http://youtu.be/cPszzDpnZQ8

[sales guy]

The ust standard (tire and rims) requires no sealant. That means the tire bead seats perfectly in the rim and the tires are not porous. The tradeoff is that ust specific tires are heavy and can ride like bricks. There also aren't many ust tire to choose from. Maxxis makes a few. Mavic owns the standard so anyone who uses it has to pay.

There are a whole bunch of tubeless ready tires out there. Tubeless ready cuz they require sealant like Stans. The casing is more supple therefore more porous. Adding sealant offsets some of the weight difference but supple tires plus sealant ride nicer.

I've had good luck with Schwalbe and wtb. As to specific tires it really depend on conditions. I like racing Ralphs in the rear and nobby nics up front.

Good luck

Actually, the UST setup was invented by Mavic, Michelin and Hutchison. Not just mavic. Mavic grants a 5 year license of the ust name to the people who want to use the ust label and design.

Also, I have run ust without sealant, they do loose air and rather fast. I recommend using the sealant. Down side of the Stan's sealant is it degrades the rim. Caffe latex doesn't but doesn't seal as well.

I've used ust specific tires from Michelin, Hutchison, kenda, wtb, schwalbe, intense and pretty much everyone out. I get free tires to try on demos so I get to try all sorts of stuff. I've found without sealant, the wtbs don't leak as fast. But depending on the tire, they're heavier.

I like the tread on the wtbs. They work well. Personal preference of course. But the riding style, terrain type and type of bike affect things. I suggest using sealant. But try pumping them up and see how long they last minus the sealant.

[Exonerv]

I ran across a pretty interesting summation:
http://youtu.be/cPszzDpnZQ8

[JWDR]

I run tubeless ready tires with home brewed sealant on both my mountainbikes. I am a huge fan of Bontrager TLR rim strips and valve stems. I use them in both wheel sets to include a set of Sun Ringle Black Flags. Although 29er, my current favorite tires a specialized ground control 2.3s. I have never run UST tires because of the weight of most of them compared to tubeless ready tires.

[sales guy]

Sorry, I should have mentioned I've run both ust and tubeless ready model tires. Again, I have had the true ust tires loose air after a rather quick amount of time. As low as a week.

I know some friends have just used white latex paint as a sealant. It worked for them, I'm not fond of the clean up though so I never did it. Plus I have like 12 32oz bottles of Stan's sealant here.

[oldpotatoe]

The ust standard (tire and rims) requires no sealant. That means the tire bead seats perfectly in the rim and the tires are not porous. The tradeoff is that ust specific tires are heavy and can ride like bricks. There also aren't many ust tire to choose from. Maxxis makes a few. Mavic owns the standard so anyone who uses it has to pay.

There are a whole bunch of tubeless ready tires out there. Tubeless ready cuz they require sealant like Stans. The casing is more supple therefore more porous. Adding sealant offsets some of the weight difference but supple tires plus sealant ride nicer.

I've had good luck with Schwalbe and wtb. As to specific tires it really depend on conditions. I like racing Ralphs in the rear and nobby nics up front.

Good luck

What he said..check out 'Orange Seal', new stuff, really nice valves as well.