@rolly: This is just my two cents worth based on full time guiding and 80-100 days coaching in the bike park for most summers, since 2008. But when two weeks work means 300 km of trail riding and hitting 50 hr service intervals (suspension) one gets to work out value for money fairly quickly.
Conti Kryptatal, now that they are no longer making the Der Baron Projekt Protection APEX and Der Kaiser Protection APEX. Baron was the best all round trail tyre especially after the 2017/2018 casing revision. Kaiser was a great dry/ loose conditions 'summer' tyre and excellent in the bike park. Strong/ fast riders who square corners/ berms did not like them as the 1050 gr tyre/ casing was not as warp resistant as a 1200-1400 gram DH casing/ tyre.
Xynotal as a replacement for the Der Kaiser Protection APEX - great all conditions all terrain tyre, like running a DHR II MaxxGripp but rolls faster, wears better, is as predictable and provides more stick than a Dh MaxxGripp compound.
For all round trail riding other than the wettest parts of autumn and spring then Conti still make the Trail King II Protection APEX.
Michelin WILD ENDURO Front and Rear - Gum-X for 90% of fast/ strong riders and Magi-X for the 10% who are truly fast (BC Cup/ EWS fast), Gum-X in winter (this is due to the way Michelin use rubber rebound as part of their grip equation). FRONT/ FRONT combo for loose/ steep and autumn/ winter. FRONT/ REAR for schralpers and summer. Cheaper to buy. I got my last batch of Enduro FRONTS for $65 each. They are an 850-950 km tyre.
Specialized Butcher T9 - as good as a MaxxGripp for grip, lower rolling resistance and wears better. Cheaper.
Most common answer to the "why do you run Maxxis?" question in the Sea to Sky is "I've never tried anything else".
Based on $/ day usage the Conti and the Michelin deliver best bang for the buck.
On wear and tear this is my experience (based on Whistler Black trails and Black Bike Park trails):
Schwalbe: 8-12 days, knobs tearing at the base, some side knobs already detached, especially on the rear. Fantastic when new (first 3-5 days).
Maxxis (Maxxgripp DD/ DH only): 18-22 days, knobs very rounded, some knobs torn at base, some side knobs (rear) detached, rear tyre not providing a lot of effective braking. Again fantastic when new (2-5 days) but the 'fresh grip' confidence tails off fairly quickly after that.
Specialized: 25-30 days. Knobs worn. Does not provide the same levels of confidence as Conti-Michelin after 15-18 days. More gradual deterioration taper than the Schwalbe or Maxxis.
WTB: 25-30 days. Due to tough/ light/ hard/ grip mish mash it is hard to get the right tyre in the right compound casing. Trail Boss were good for the bike park. The compound was almost as grippy as DH 3C MaxxGripp, rolls better, wears a lot better, knobs wear out rather than tear off/ detach except Vigilante which has taller knobs which will detach (mainly side knobs on rear). Tread pattens not quite as good as DHR II or ASSguy.
Conti: 30-40 day tyre depending on the time of year and how one rides. Very rarely have detached side knobs. I usually toss mine (donate them to a first year guide or some local ripper grom) at 50% wear, after 30-35 days. Rear tyre usually has seeping through casing wall (Der Baron Projekt) but very few torn side knobs. Front tyre could do another 7-12 days as a rear tyre if I could be bothered to rotate. I generally just replace with fresh sets as I like the new tyre confidence and I don't feel it is okay for the guide to be having flat tyres due to wear and tear rather than the accidental puncture. And I hate punctures on multi-day back country trips.
There are not really any bad tyres any more. There are tyres that don't suit the conditions and one's riding style but some tyres are just better than others and some are just head and shoulders better than others.
Jan. 17, 2023, 7:44 a.m. - AndrewR
@rolly: This is just my two cents worth based on full time guiding and 80-100 days coaching in the bike park for most summers, since 2008. But when two weeks work means 300 km of trail riding and hitting 50 hr service intervals (suspension) one gets to work out value for money fairly quickly. Conti Kryptatal, now that they are no longer making the Der Baron Projekt Protection APEX and Der Kaiser Protection APEX. Baron was the best all round trail tyre especially after the 2017/2018 casing revision. Kaiser was a great dry/ loose conditions 'summer' tyre and excellent in the bike park. Strong/ fast riders who square corners/ berms did not like them as the 1050 gr tyre/ casing was not as warp resistant as a 1200-1400 gram DH casing/ tyre. Xynotal as a replacement for the Der Kaiser Protection APEX - great all conditions all terrain tyre, like running a DHR II MaxxGripp but rolls faster, wears better, is as predictable and provides more stick than a Dh MaxxGripp compound. For all round trail riding other than the wettest parts of autumn and spring then Conti still make the Trail King II Protection APEX. Michelin WILD ENDURO Front and Rear - Gum-X for 90% of fast/ strong riders and Magi-X for the 10% who are truly fast (BC Cup/ EWS fast), Gum-X in winter (this is due to the way Michelin use rubber rebound as part of their grip equation). FRONT/ FRONT combo for loose/ steep and autumn/ winter. FRONT/ REAR for schralpers and summer. Cheaper to buy. I got my last batch of Enduro FRONTS for $65 each. They are an 850-950 km tyre. Specialized Butcher T9 - as good as a MaxxGripp for grip, lower rolling resistance and wears better. Cheaper. Most common answer to the "why do you run Maxxis?" question in the Sea to Sky is "I've never tried anything else". Based on $/ day usage the Conti and the Michelin deliver best bang for the buck. On wear and tear this is my experience (based on Whistler Black trails and Black Bike Park trails): Schwalbe: 8-12 days, knobs tearing at the base, some side knobs already detached, especially on the rear. Fantastic when new (first 3-5 days). Maxxis (Maxxgripp DD/ DH only): 18-22 days, knobs very rounded, some knobs torn at base, some side knobs (rear) detached, rear tyre not providing a lot of effective braking. Again fantastic when new (2-5 days) but the 'fresh grip' confidence tails off fairly quickly after that. Specialized: 25-30 days. Knobs worn. Does not provide the same levels of confidence as Conti-Michelin after 15-18 days. More gradual deterioration taper than the Schwalbe or Maxxis. WTB: 25-30 days. Due to tough/ light/ hard/ grip mish mash it is hard to get the right tyre in the right compound casing. Trail Boss were good for the bike park. The compound was almost as grippy as DH 3C MaxxGripp, rolls better, wears a lot better, knobs wear out rather than tear off/ detach except Vigilante which has taller knobs which will detach (mainly side knobs on rear). Tread pattens not quite as good as DHR II or ASSguy. Conti: 30-40 day tyre depending on the time of year and how one rides. Very rarely have detached side knobs. I usually toss mine (donate them to a first year guide or some local ripper grom) at 50% wear, after 30-35 days. Rear tyre usually has seeping through casing wall (Der Baron Projekt) but very few torn side knobs. Front tyre could do another 7-12 days as a rear tyre if I could be bothered to rotate. I generally just replace with fresh sets as I like the new tyre confidence and I don't feel it is okay for the guide to be having flat tyres due to wear and tear rather than the accidental puncture. And I hate punctures on multi-day back country trips. There are not really any bad tyres any more. There are tyres that don't suit the conditions and one's riding style but some tyres are just better than others and some are just head and shoulders better than others.