Michelin Wild Grip'r 2 Advanced Reinforced 2.35 Review

[djjohnr]

I just posted this as a reply on MTBR, and thought some folks on here might be interested.

I've been meaning to write a full review, but I have no time. So a quick summary for the 2.35 Advanced Reinforced.

- About bike/rider: I have these mounted on an 07 Giant Reign X. I climb because I have to in order to get to the descents, but I really only care about how fast I can get down the trail. I like my trail bikes to ride like my DH bike.

- These are much beefier then the non reinforced versions: bigger/thicker knobs and a much thicker casing.

- Mount up tubeless just fine with a floor pump on Flows. They held air with just soapy water overnight. No burps in two months using 1.5 scoops of Stans.

- I usually run DHF 2.5 EXOs when it's dry. This winter I also ran Dirty Dans F/R as well as Dirty Dan F/Muddy Mary R.

- The 2.35 Grip'r 2 has the most predictable drift characteristics I've come across in the dry, previously this was the DHF for me. Absolute cornering grip is a little less, but I'm noticeably faster in corners because I completely trust throwing the bike into a drift at higher speeds. This may be due to the side knob design - if you take a look at them, the have a crease (not really sure if you can call it a sipe) part way down the outside edge that appears would cause the knob to have progressive "give" characteristics. Other tires do this by having two different types of sideknobs, but the effect is similar.

- It corners well in the wet and loam as well (better then the DHF or Mary), likely due to the height of the side knobs. Thankfully those side knobs are also nice and thick.

- The only place I've lost control in the past two months is grass covered mud.

- Braking is about the same as a DHF, nothing to write home about.

- There are no extended root sections or rock slabs around me, so I don't know how these do on wet roots/rocks.

The best description of the Grip'r2s I can give is that they feel surfy when cornering, like slashing a pow turns on a snowboard, but on hard pack. I love these tires. They've replaced my DHFs in all but slop conditions where the Dirty Dan is still my choice. The sidewalls are thick enough that I'll be tempted to throw them on my DH bike if a situation comes along where I know I'll be doing a ton of pedaling.

[dump]

Cool, thanks for the review. Where did you pick them up?

[djjohnr]

Alfred E Bike

[Sandwich]

Cool, thanks for the review. Where did you pick them up?

I agree.

I love minions for their all out grip but sometimes I want something a little driftier. I actually enjoyed DHRs for that reason. They were just super predictable for me.

[Tomasis]

680 gram, it seems ok! comparable to Hans dampf gravity?

been fan of Michelin tires, maybe they are back in the game?

the tube look fun!

http://www.pinkbike.com/news/Micheli...bike-2011.html

[dump]

Also, is it a real 2.35" or sized more like maxxis?

[Jeremy R]

Yep, good review man. I think these are the grippiest tires that Michelin has ever made. My first experience with them was at a really muddy night DH race back in January. I realized right away, I did not have to worry about traction, and was jumping into wet root sections on my second run. In the wet, they grip like a comp 16 or a Muddy Mary, but they clear mud better, and they grip great in the dry without any problems with the knobs folding over. These tires are great, but they are basically 2.35 DH tires with a kevlar bead. They weigh 950 grams and have a bombproof casing with big grippy blocky knobs.
And Tomasis, that 680 gram 2.25 tire is totally different then the 2.35 reinforced tire. The 2.25 tire is a big volume fast rolling trail tire. It is actually what I have on my bike right now, but it is no where near as grippy as the 2.35. I am saving those for small bike DH races.
Here they are in action:

[djjohnr]

680 gram, it seems ok! comparable to Hans dampf gravity?

been fan of Michelin tires, maybe they are back in the game?

the tube look fun!

http://www.pinkbike.com/news/Micheli...bike-2011.html

As Jeremy pointed out, this is a different tire. Mine came in at 998 grams when I weighed it. It wouldn't be my first choice for 3-5 hour rides with tons of vert, but for anything less it's fine.

[djjohnr]

Also, is it a real 2.35" or sized more like maxxis?

~ Maxxis 2.5. 58mm at the knobs, 52mm at the casing *(measured with a ruler, not calipers)

2.35 Grip'r II on Flow



2.35 DHF on Flow, 2.4 HRII on 721, 2.7 DHF on 325, 2.4 Ardent on Rhyno XL

[sbabuser]

How do they wear?

[Sandwich]

Enduro!

[djjohnr]

How do they wear?

Too early to tell. I'll know more once it's consistently dry for a long period of time.

[Jeremy R]

One more just for fun.

[yd35]

One more just for fun.

Nice calf. You work out?

[Jeremy R]

Nice calf. You work out?

Yes, every time I read something stupid on here, I do 50 calf raises.
By spring I should be able to challenge Jared Graves.