how bout a good ol fashioned tire thread

Posted by: RAHrider

Anyone on here have much experience with the Rekon? I decided to go for a faster rolling setup on one of my bikes. I have 2.6 rekon on the front and 2.5 aggressor on the back, both with cushcore pro. The sidewall is less supportive on the Rekon than I am used to so I run them at about 4psi higher pressure than I would with a Minion DHF for instance. I find with the small knobs I don't trust the tire leaning over as much. I'm running them on FLOW i30 rims so I believe the tire shape is pretty typical. I haven't taken them to the point of washing out and biting it. Do I just need to trust them fully, like I would a minion or do others find that the tire starts to feel nervous when pushed to your max?

I've gone through 3 of them on the short travel 29, in the 2.4WT size though. 

For the speed they are the grippiest tires I've ever run. Easily the best light weight trail tires I've had experience with. Just made the bike come alive. Noticeably faster and less fatigued uphill, and predictable and able to keep up on the downhills. 

I ran the 2.4's at the same psi I've run in my other tires, 23psi front and 29psi rear (I weigh 190lbs).

The all out grip limits were less than Minions etc, but it hit the limits very predictably. Tire shape is predictable and normal too, not too square or round. I leaned the Rekons just as hard as other Maxxis tires when they were new and sharp. Problem is the wear rates are insane with these tires, so the edges don't stay sharp for very long. I actually preferred the tire on the front a bit more, on the rear I felt like I missed the solid grab of paddles like on a DHR2 style tire, and the knobs were just getting destroyed under hard riding.

Tried mixing and matching with other trail tires, probably the best combo I came up with was a 2.3DHR rear and a 2.4WT Rekon front. Right now I've got probably the second place combo of a Dissector front, which is bit slower but DOES have the all out side knob grip, and a Rekon rear. In the future I don't think I'd run anything but a Dual compound Rekon rear though for the longer life.

Those extra 4 psi you're running has gotta be making a huge difference in handling though eh?

Posted by: andy-eunson

Has anyone used the newest Michelin DH tires? Michelin claim that with a steel bead and extra heavy casing you don’t need inserts. The steel bead is less likely to burp. The tires are certainly heavy at around 1500 grams but maybe overall weight is lower if you don’t need a pool noodle?

I'm keen to try them. I started a new thread the other day to ask about this. No answers so far ;(. The 29x2.4 version of the DH22 seems to be sold out everywhere and I've only seen them on a couple of bikes at the bike park. Maybe experience is very limited with them around these parts. At 1500 grams they're about the same weight as (or slightly lighter than) a Double Down Assegai with Cushcore pro so heavy for sure but not necessarily heavier than what it will replace if you're on a double down + cushcore setup.

Posted by: Bushpilot

Posted by: andy-eunson

Has anyone used the newest Michelin DH tires? Michelin claim that with a steel bead and extra heavy casing you don’t need inserts. The steel bead is less likely to burp. The tires are certainly heavy at around 1500 grams but maybe overall weight is lower if you don’t need a pool noodle?

I'm keen to try them. I started a new thread the other day to ask about this. No answers so far ;(. The 29x2.4 version of the DH22 seems to be sold out everywhere and I've only seen them on a couple of bikes at the bike park. Maybe experience is very limited with them around these parts. At 1500 grams they're about the same weight as (or slightly lighter than) a Double Down Assegai with Cushcore pro so heavy for sure but not necessarily heavier than what it will replace if you're on a double down + cushcore setup.

Coastal Culture has a bunch but I did not check sizes as I was seeking out the Wild Enduro which they didn’t have.

Posted by: Hepcat

Posted by: RAHrider

Anyone on here have much experience with the Rekon? I decided to go for a faster rolling setup on one of my bikes. I have 2.6 rekon on the front and 2.5 aggressor on the back, both with cushcore pro. The sidewall is less supportive on the Rekon than I am used to so I run them at about 4psi higher pressure than I would with a Minion DHF for instance. I find with the small knobs I don't trust the tire leaning over as much. I'm running them on FLOW i30 rims so I believe the tire shape is pretty typical. I haven't taken them to the point of washing out and biting it. Do I just need to trust them fully, like I would a minion or do others find that the tire starts to feel nervous when pushed to your max?

I've gone through 3 of them on the short travel 29, in the 2.4WT size though. 

For the speed they are the grippiest tires I've ever run. Easily the best light weight trail tires I've had experience with. Just made the bike come alive. Noticeably faster and less fatigued uphill, and predictable and able to keep up on the downhills. 

I ran the 2.4's at the same psi I've run in my other tires, 23psi front and 29psi rear (I weigh 190lbs).

The all out grip limits were less than Minions etc, but it hit the limits very predictably. Tire shape is predictable and normal too, not too square or round. I leaned the Rekons just as hard as other Maxxis tires when they were new and sharp. Problem is the wear rates are insane with these tires, so the edges don't stay sharp for very long. I actually preferred the tire on the front a bit more, on the rear I felt like I missed the solid grab of paddles like on a DHR2 style tire, and the knobs were just getting destroyed under hard riding.

Tried mixing and matching with other trail tires, probably the best combo I came up with was a 2.3DHR rear and a 2.4WT Rekon front. Right now I've got probably the second place combo of a Dissector front, which is bit slower but DOES have the all out side knob grip, and a Rekon rear. In the future I don't think I'd run anything but a Dual compound Rekon rear though for the longer life.

Those extra 4 psi you're running has gotta be making a huge difference in handling though eh?

Thanks for this. I agree about the lively feel. They are so efficient feeling. I think I'm going to drop the psi and trust the cush core and see if I can lay the bike over more. Pretty grippy tire for the weight and rolling resistance but I do miss that feeling of just throwing my Minions into a corner with the fork loaded.

Digging up this thread again. It seems like Continental now has a full, entirely new lineup of gravity-focused tyres. Threads are remniscent of DHR, Assegai and Dissector, as well as the previous Baron. Casing is supposed to be entirely new, with a 110 dpi layup. If the rubber compound is as good as it was in their previous tyres, they could be winners.

The DH tyres are surprisingly light, might be a good choice for self-pedaling grip-lovers. 

Sadly they dropped the "handmade in Germany" feature. Some models are apparently still made there, but the rest ist made in different plants in asia.

Every time I see this thread resurrected I think some donkey is wanting Smoke and Dart or Velciraptors made with recycled hockey pucks. 

The new Contis do look good though. Shame about the tire names though.

Posted by: andy-eunson

Every time I see this thread resurrected I think some donkey is wanting Smoke and Dart or Velciraptors made with recycled hockey pucks. 

The new Contis do look good though. Shame about the tire names though.

you can get the $$ selling those things on FB if you call them vintage parts

Me  I'm just gona keep running Maxxis

Posted by: andy-eunson

The new Contis do look good though. Shame about the tire names though.

That's the other drawback. They had those teutonic sounding names, quite fitting. And now they let a pharmaceutical salesman chose the names.

Posted by: XXX_er

Me  I'm just gona keep running Maxxis

As long as I can keep getting Maxxis for ~$60-70CAD a pop from ze German online sites I just can't imagine trying anything else. Like many others, loving the Assegai MaxxGrip front and DHR II MaxxTerra rear, in DD casing.

Just pulled off a pair of 29" Vittoria tires. 2.35 Martello and 2.4 Mazza.

Vittoria Martello in Trail casing. Weighed it at 960g slightly worn. Casing same thickness and feel as Maxxis Exo, with an extra strip along bead like the Exo+. Calipered at 2.35 casing, 2.3 tread, 30mm i.d rims.

Ran it for four months, wear was good. Center knobs well sanded down, but side knobs holding up great. Blew a few good holes through the top of the tire, but sidewalls held up fine. 25-26psi, 190lb.

Nice profile, feels great leaned over. Knob layout more on the faster rolling/less braking bite end of the spectrum. Rear only tread design I'd say. If rear side knobs were spaced out a bit further like a DHR it could be lighter.

-------------

Vittoria Mazza, same Trail casing.

Four months of use too, hardly any wear which is impressive. Ran it at 22psi always. 990g. 2.45 casing, 2.38 tread.

This is a great tire. Really nice profile, feels even better to lean lean over than a DHF imo. When running those 2 tires back to back, DHF felt like it had a slight vague spot when leaning it over that the Mazza did not. Seems like the channel between top and side knobs might be narrower on Mazza.

A real contender to the Minion DHF in my experience. Mazza, DHF and the Magic Mary are the only tires I've ever run that I would give a perfect score to.

Posted by: Hepcat

Just pulled off a pair of 29" Vittoria tires. 2.35 Martello and 2.4 Mazza.

Vittoria Martello in Trail casing. Weighed it at 960g slightly worn. Casing same thickness and feel as Maxxis Exo, with an extra strip along bead like the Exo+. Calipered at 2.35 casing, 2.3 tread, 30mm i.d rims.

Ran it for four months, wear was good. Center knobs well sanded down, but side knobs holding up great. Blew a few good holes through the top of the tire, but sidewalls held up fine. 25-26psi, 190lb.

Nice profile, feels great leaned over. Knob layout more on the faster rolling/less braking bite end of the spectrum. Rear only tread design I'd say. If rear side knobs were spaced out a bit further like a DHR it could be lighter.

-------------

Vittoria Mazza, same Trail casing.

Four months of use too, hardly any wear which is impressive. Ran it at 22psi always. 990g. 2.45 casing, 2.38 tread.

This is a great tire. Really nice profile, feels even better to lean lean over than a DHF imo. When running those 2 tires back to back, DHF felt like it had a slight vague spot when leaning it over that the Mazza did not. Seems like the channel between top and side knobs might be narrower on Mazza.

A real contender to the Minion DHF in my experience. Mazza, DHF and the Magic Mary are the only tires I've ever run that I would give a perfect score to.

Sounds pretty good. How are they on wet roots etc.?

Not sure really? Sorry. Just a non-local punter now and never was good at judging root grip beyond soft compound=better grab. Besides Gazzalodi haha, I remember those being slippery.

I had only a couple of weeks of winter riding in Vancouver on these tires, rest of time was tropical winter riding in Hawaii. Wet roots here are completely ridiculous and nothing helps stick to them at all. Whenever I'm back home in Vancouver I'm surprised at how relatively "grippy" the slippery wet roots are lol.

For what it's worth I did a few wet Seymour laps of Dale's/Pingu, etc. on this setup. Front Mazza slipped on the roots same as a DHF 3C would if I recall, rear Martello did some extra sliding on everything but rock.

For the rear I'd rather go with a Maxxis Aggressor for that same low knob design style, or a DHR for better grip/bit more drag everywhere. DHR is probably what I'll replace it with.

For the front I'll probably pick up another Mazza, worth some more time on in different locations.

Posted by: Hepcat

Front Mazza slipped on the roots same as a DHF 3C would if I recall

DHF 3C comes in Maxxterra and Maxxgrip, the latter grips noticeably better on wet roots here on the Shore, so I'd be curious to know which of the two the Mazza resembles most.

On the other hand, from a quick search the internet price for Vittoria tires doesn't seem much lower than Maxxis.

Yeah, no when you poke it with your fingernail the 4C Vittoria compound feels similar to Maxxterra. The four durometers aren't listed anywhere that I've seen, but it's definitely not of the gooey slow rolling variety.

Maybe they'll come up with a softer, tackier, lower rebound compound in the future but this isn't it.