whats everyones opinions on these i have choice of any aftermarket kenda tyres and need abit more meat up front 😯
currentey on a 26er rigid ss iv seen allot of posts about running a 2.5 up front and 2.1/2.35 rear for comfort just wondering how they cope in all conditions.
thanks.

2.5 Nevs are quite a big tyre, 2.35 is the size I have mainly used good allround tyre, a stickE compund on the front and a DTC on the back, roll abit slow, I find the Maxxis Advantage to be faster rolling and a bit better in the mud. I had some 2.5 Nevs on my old Nomad they were very grippy but a bit of a slog on the hills.

There a good all round tyre imho,some riders say the sidewalls rip easy but I have had no problems,yet!(2.3 is my preference)

The Bluegroove on the front is exellent on rock, but wont last on the rear.

I run DTC Nev’s at the back on both my SS(2.35) & FS(2.1). The 2.1’s roll a bit faster, but no complaints about either to be honest. Some folk run a Nev on the front, but I run Blue Grooves up front. IMO they steer better. I’d avoid the stickee version on the rear. Probably ok on the front but too draggy on the rear. I quickly swapped out the 2.35 Stickee rear I had. Was awful. Comfort wise, the 2.35’s are great on my SS. Can highly recomend SmallBlock8’s for when the trails dry out. Simply excellent.

Blue Grooves on the front
Nevegals on the rear

But then again I find changing tires tyresome.

They’re OK- normal ones pinch flat very easily and I fear they wear out too fast, but the DH casing is good and I like the 2.5 ones a lot. They’re VERY big though, too big for XC.

Only used a 2.1 on the rear but got 2 pinch flats from 2 rides and haven’t used it since.

Jeffus – Member

“2.5 Nevs are quite a big tyre”

Weirdly enough, 2.5 inches across

I like Nevegals, they’re my standard tyre choice for an allrounder. 2.35 stick-es on the front and 2.1 DTCs on the rear. The 2.35 stick-e is pretty slow but grips like mad. Never managed to damage a sidewall or anything like that and they work well tubeless. I don’t like the DTC as a front tyre at all, and the stick-e’s excessively slow as a rear IMO.

I do use a 2.5 DTC on the front of my rigid, but it’s a weird one and doesn’t seem to be available to buy- single ply, 650 grams. Lovely. But if it weren’t for that I’d get a black chili Rubber Queen 2.4 for it.

I switched from Blue Groove to Nevagal 2.3 and really like them. I ride in a mix that includes a lot of rocky terrain and have never damaged the sidewall (but take into account that I have reached the age of reason and probably don’t ride as hard as I did when I thought I was going to live forever). I usually keep them inflated to 35 lbs.

Kenda surprise! “Nevagrips” Used to be standard kit on our Santa Cruz demo bikes.
We sold hardly any brand new Nomads until we tried some “new” Maxxis tyres on the demo bikes. Then they sold realy well.
Nevegals aren’t good for most at Afan.
But I’ve got a friend that swears by them and runs nothing else.
Tyre brands are like bike shops. You only use the ones you trust.

Were those the OEM-spec ones? They’re horrible them, like lumps of plastic.

Yes they were. But I’ve used the aftermarket stick E compound, and found them slow compared to minions(42a) or big bettys(tri c) for the same level of grip.

Mmm. The OEM ones are diabolical, that’s a fact, but I’ve never found the trail-sized Minions to give the same grip on anything but hardpack. And they’re a lot heavier like for like (bearing in mind that the Minion 2.3 is the same size as a Nevegal 2.1) But ymmv of course. I reckon the Minions corner better though.

I guess it’s down to riding style. I get my braking done early then run flat out round the corner and lean on the tyre.

My friend comes in hot, grabs a fistful of brake, then cranks out of the corner.

I’m faster in open bends and he’s faster in tight bends. But I’m faster overall.
So I guess the ability to carry speed is the overriding factor in our little battles.
It may play out differently for you guys, but it’s fun anyway.

I had a pair of DTC 2.1″ folders for a fair while
I could get the rear to pinchflat a little more easily than some, but just pumped the rear up a touch more, I was after reducing the rolling resistance slightly as their not the fastest (though not slow either)
To corner well I found I needed to run a little softer in the front than I might normally, I put it down to the rounded shape, but once set I thought they cornered pretty well
Although a touch small volumewise I was more than happy to ride rocky stuff (like borrowdale/walna scar/jacobs ladder/cut gate/etc) as fast as I could before the eyes shaking got the better of my vision
Mud performance wasn’t that horrendous either, the rear needs to be backwards to have any hope of not spinning out

tbh it was shaping up to be my favourite tyre, predictable in loads of conditions/terrain, not overly pricey meant the middling weight for size was forgivable, I even thought they looked pretty good on the bike
Ideally a kenda 2.2″ would exist, but I could try the 2.35″?

Then the rear sidewall/bead gave way, around 10 miles from the car. I tried a tyre boot, inner tube patches and plenty of tape on the inside, but the buldge was still noticable when riding.
Got back to the car (was on backroads from Cli-machX to Dollgellau so all tarmac), but haven’t used one on the rear since
I’ve since found out a couple of other friends have had exactly the same problem with them

i have a tomac dtc 2.35 nevegal on the back and the same blue groove on the front on my blue pig. not tried them in the uk in anger yet but used the same tyres for a year on my full sus in italy.

I found them to grip really well, give some good big tyre confidence and not wear too badly. wear is more even over the tyre probably due to the dtc.

They did knock atleast 5kph off my road speed over a 15km road loop i did in the evenings. ended up putting a slick on the rear.

I thought about maxxis but not sure if i crank the bike over in the turns enough to make them work.

I liked my Nevegals but ripped a sidewall wide open at Innerleithen.
OK I was hammering it but I was so upset cos I missed out on riding the rest of the way down!

They were ghetto tubeless at the time too and I had no inner tube with me 🙁

2.1 Nevegal UST’s F&R….. pretty good all year round tyres. Actually size up a proper 2.1 unlike a lot of tyres (eg. Panaracer).

….. but for some reason they do seem to be a bit Marmite for a lot of peeps

2.3 DTC Blue groove on the front and 2.35 DTC Nevegal on the rear on my Orange 5, ran them ghetto tubeless for 12 months, worked well in all conditions, have tried high rollers and currently running rampages, will be going back to the Kendas when the rampages wear out.

Basically, good all-round tyres. Some tyres might be lighter, faster, more robust, more grippy or better in mud, but not all at once. A good tyre to leave on the bike for most of the year.

i have choice of any aftermarket kenda tyres

If I were you I’d take a punt on the El Moco in 2.35 instead, DTC rear and Stick-E front.

Only used them on a demo ride but was very impressed, fast rolling and lots of grip.

I like Nevegals though, they’re probably my favourite “all-rounder” and work OK in mud, rocks, snow, dirt – whatever.

I run the SWS 2.35 Nev’s and they are great the SWS (side wall something) ofers extra protection for the sidewalls and seems to work well. I run the same tyre in a 2.1 on rear and they rock as a combo

Ive Stopped reading Tyre reviews because you only need two tyres not a shed full.
Nevegal 2,35 back Blue Groove 2.35 front ….
Had them on for 4 months now and have been GREAT.
Not many of peeps on here ride at a PRO level so I doubt it really makes that much difference what tyres you have. 😆

doh I have 2.35 aDvantages on the HT love them aswell btw

I really wanted to like my Nevs (2.1s) and they were pretty grippy but for me no matter what I did with tubes and pressures they would pinchflat every time I nailed a rocky section, normally I would get some air and then wait for the landing woosh as they pinched, hated them with a vengence.. was on a HT though..went back to verticals which do everything a 2.1 nev does but rolls faster and lets go slower…and they never pinch

some riders say the sidewalls rip easy

they were pretty grippy but for me no matter what I did with tubes and pressures they would pinchflat every time I nailed a rocky section, normally I would get some air and then wait for the landing woosh as they pinched

This was my experience, was at Inner’s last year and ripped the sidewalls on front and rear and pinch flatted about 5 times before I got sick of it especially after landing a jump, the front blew out sending me about 15ft down the hill. Replaced them with Rubber Queens which have been awesome.

Wouldn’t touch them again with a billion foot barge pole.