Tires

[bigjumper820]

Well I have a Trek 4500 that I use for riding around on trails and stuff, and I need a rear tire 2.1 or less that gets maximum traction. I'm also looking at the price, so cheaper is better! I've looked at the Panaracer Fire XC pro, and I know people aren't fond of Panaracer, but it's cheap and brings home a pretty good report on mtbr.com. Thanks for any suggestions!

[Wilson10]

You wont be disappointed with Fire XC's.

I wasnt a believer either till i broke down and bought a set of my own. Theyre a great all around tire.

[Shredder]

The fire xc's are a great value tire. don't let anyone tell ya otherwise. I use conti's a lot but they are $$

[JRogers]

I third the Panaracers. I used them for quite some time on my hardtail XC bike and then also used the Fire DHs on my FS bike for a while. Good quality, maybe a few more flats than some but not bad. I think the Fire XCs are some of the best all-conditions tires out there. They work at least decently well on almost everything

[Will_Jekyll]

I ride Hutchinson Pythons. In the dry conditions we have here they rock.

[ChrisNJ]

Originally posted by Shredder
The fire xc's are a great value tire. don't let anyone tell ya otherwise. I use conti's a lot but they are $$

which ones do you use? i had leader pro's on the front and cross countrys on the rears. Best setup i ever used, hands down.

[SkaredShtles]

My personal favorite, for the Front Range conditions I ride primarily, are the Ritchey Z-max. Great traction, good wear. Usually can find them for <$25 bones online somwhere.

-S.S.-

[Shredder]

which ones do you use? i had leader pro's on the front and cross countrys on the rears. Best setup i ever used, hands down.

Here in the NW its really soupy, so I've been using a Conti Vertical Protection in front and Survival Protection in the rear for trail riding. I'm going to try out a combination of Explorer Supersonic front and Cross Country rear for the muddy races. Twister Supersonics for the dry ones.

[BkrBrit]

Originally posted by Shredder
Here in the NW its really soupy, so I've been using a Conti Vertical Protection in front and Survival Protection in the rear for trail riding. I'm going to try out a combination of Explorer Supersonic front and Cross Country rear for the muddy races. Twister Supersonics for the dry ones.

I've used the Survivor Pro (2.3) - rear and Vert Pro - front, in NW slop for over 2 years now, also used 'em in the summer - cuz I was too cheap to buy more !:D They ROCK ! ! - hook-up on wet roots, hold traction in wet goo and in dry dirt , what can I say ? ? :cool: (Tried a Survivor Pro in front, too much traction for me..)

Only other tires I've ridden in the past two years were the WTB Motoraptors I bought for Moab slickrock.......followed Lee Bridger's advice, they were da bomb...

Other people will swear by different tires - no arguments, no p'ing matches, just my 'tired' story.....:rolleyes:

[evilbob]

I put a set of Fire Pros on about 6 years ago and have not put any other tires on my XC bikes since then. Ok that's not true, my new XC I just built up 3 weeks ago has FireXCPro 2.1s. I love these tires. Here in the PNW they feel consistant in all conditions to me, big confidence builder for me.

[pixelninja]

Personally, I'm a big fan of IRC Mythos.

[Softy]

Originally posted by pixelninja
Personally, I'm a big fan of IRC Mythos.


IRC mythos is really good. But if you need more traction and a full 2.1 size. Then go with WTB Wierwolf which can be flipped to get a "new" set of knobs in the reverse. A really good edge bite to them.

For Panaracers I like the SMOKE. The smoke is still one of the best rear tire ever. Plus can be flipped for dual wear and twice the value.
The only tire ever to slip off the rim while riding has been a XC Pro UST. And I run only Non ust ties tubeless for 2 years on 2 bikes.

[pixelninja]

Originally posted by Softy
For Panaracers I like the SMOKE. The smoke is still one of the best rear tire ever. Boooooo. ;)

The Smoke/Dart combo is one tire combo that I can honestly say I will NEVER go back to. 2 years ago a friend gave me a set to replace my worn out Michelin Comp Lites. In dry, rocky, dusty conditions they don't hook up worth sh*t. Every corner I felt like my front was going to wash out. Back tire was contantly spinning out on steep climbs. Last year I switched to the Mythos and I couldn't be happier.

[derekbob]

I like maxxis mobster 2.1s for xc. They are spendy, but you can usually find them on sale somewhere.

[Softy]

[QUOTE]Originally posted by pixelninja
[B]Boooooo. ;)



Did I mention the Dart ? No I think not.

[pixelninja]

Originally posted by Softy
Did I mention the Dart ? No I think not. Did I mention that the back tire constantly spun out on steep climbs? Yes I think so. ;)

[Softy]

[QUOTE]Originally posted by Softy


For Panaracers I like the SMOKE.



See how I compare the smoke to the other pana designs. I prefer kenda then wtb then maxxis for quality. One IRC mythos rear would not seal the sidewalls with stans. Almost all tires will work though. And I just bought another to try for the next race.
So see how it is agreed that the IRC is much better than any Panaracer offering.

[reflux]

on my hardtail i love a wtb mutanoraptor 2.4 up front and a nanoraptor 2.1 on back. on my ac (soon to be sold) i have front and rear mutanoraptor 2.24s.

[mtnbikej]

Originally posted by reflux
on my hardtail i love a wtb mutanoraptor 2.4 up front and a nanoraptor 2.1 on back. on my ac (soon to be sold) i have front and rear mutanoraptor 2.24s.

I run 2.24 Mutanoraptors on the singlespeed with no problems....especailly here in So. Cal.

Fire Xc's also work really well here in the dry rocky dusty So. Cal. trails. Used them as my race tire last year for the 12hrs at Snow Summit.

mtnbikej

[MtnbikeMike]

The python rolls nice and hooks up well if you stay seated but they lose traction if the dirt is loose.

[pixelninja]

Originally posted by mtnbikej
Fire Xc's also work really well here in the dry rocky dusty So. Cal. trails. I may pick up a set of these this year, just to see how they compare. I hear nothing but good things about them.

[Softy]

Originally posted by pixelninja
I may pick up a set of these this year, just to see how they compare. I hear nothing but good things about them.

The FireXC Pro UST is the only tire EVER to come off the rim while riding. I have had only non-UST tires running tubeless since. NONE of them have come off while riding. I have wore all my tires but one down with out a hitch.

[mtnbikej]

Originally posted by Softy
The FireXC Pro UST is the only tire EVER to come off the rim while riding. I have had only non-UST tires running tubeless since. NONE of them have come off while riding. I have wore all my tires but one down with out a hitch.


Er-go one more reason not to run tubeless. j/k:rolleyes:

mtnbikej

[Softy]

Originally posted by mtnbikej
Er-go one more reason not to run tubeless. j/k:rolleyes:

mtnbikej


Oh contrare. I have run down or switched 10 diffierent nonUST tires since then( mind you these were converted to tubless via stans ) with no problem. Even ran my practice tires with 300 miles on them at a 24hr race , where about every person with a tube flated on lap 1. 1500 witnesses to that.

My DH ride is converted nonUST wheels and tires. No problems yet. After 2 months took out valve stem add more stans then go plow some tumbleweeds cacti or whatever without failure , and at 25lbs pressure and no pinchflats on bigdrops. Too good to be true but it is.