I’ve sort of narrowed it don to the above 3 but feel free to offer up other suggestions.

wanted for Local bridalways woods etc. Afan, Cwm Carn, Penmachno, Snowdon, Antur Stiniog, FOD etc.
on a steel hardtail with 150mm forks

I’ve seen the Schwalbe Hans Dampf evo snakeskin in trail and Pace star format for around the £50 the pair. Cheapest on the Rampage SC is £35 each and the Conti baron £45 each

and want to set up tubeless.

I’ve been a real fan (like many) of Maxxis Minions, Highrollers and Swampthings.

Changed over to Baron’s and really rate them, would recommend if your ride in crap weather, and want a good grippy tyre.

Quite cheap here:

http://www.hibike.de/shop/product/p8ff3acc4e6f766d1c03f92683544caa1/Continental-the-Baron-folding-tire-57-559-26×2-30-black-3-180tpi-Apex-Black.html

A riding buddy has just got some Barons and thinks they’re mint, fill him with confidence in all conditions. Not tried them myself so can’t comment, I do like and use Nevegals though, seem to suit me all yr and all places, although I used to run Rampage and liked them except in the muddiest conditions.

Tires seem to be quite personal and location specific to most

Prob not what your after but like I said, to most its personal

Carl

You really can’t go wrong with the Hans Dampfs for the riding you describe. I’ve used loads of decent tyres over the years but Hans Dampfs are by far the best balance of grip vs rolling resistance I’ve come across and importantly for me the grip is very predictable (especially when leaning, unlike something like a High Roller which is a bit on/off when it comes to grip).
Spesh Purgatory should also be on your short list if for some reason you don’t go for the Hans Dampf.

Interestingly I run hans dampf on the front and a baron on the rear. I really rate it. Plenty of grip on the front plus a nice round profile, rear is more of a square shape and climbs really well. I’ve got rampages but they only come out once things dry out.

I know people will tut and roll their eyes, but I’ve been using Mountain King folders for years and never had any problems. Great all round tyre, if a little soft.

Where you getting the HDs for £50 a pair ?

I really like Rampage SC’s. They don’t do a UST version in a decent size or I would still be running them. Just a nice solid all-round tyre

http://www.bike-discount.de they work out just over £50 if you don’t factor in the postage

Hans Dampfs are insanely good – the trailstar feels closeish to a Supertacky Maxxis. Something a bit quicker on the rear might be an idea for the man made stuff, but if it’s rooty and a bit muddy, they’re awesome front and rear…

They’re big so be wary of frame clearance. They’re ok in a Fox Float fork though.

Anyone who has the barons running them tubeless? Tempted to try mine with my stans wheels but recall a few horror stories of tyres buckling permanently after a burp and leaky sidewalls.

I understand that the newer protection models are essentially tubeless ready and they’ve started selling their own sealant.

Heard loads of horror stories about running barons tubeless too. I was rather pleased when mine went up first time,i used two scoops of stans and wiped the insides with IPA before fitting.They have held air just as well as the ust rubber queens on the back.

Spesh Eskars can be had for ~£50/pair too, I like mine, lasting better and grippier than maxxpro high rollers (which I liked, but do require a degree of comitment, go into something 50/50 and there’s nothing) .

Conti X Kings might be worth a look. Come up pretty big, reasonably light and quick rolling. Not mega knobby, but no semi slick either. Might be just the ticket. Sounds like you’ve got more rock than mud on those routes?

noidea/GaryLake – cheers for the info, may well give mine a go then, worst case I can always put the tubes back in.

I’ve been an avid Maxxis Minion/High Roller fan for a few years now but the gloop got me thinking as the HRII I was running was just that bit too big for mud squirm! Still running the Minion up front but went for a Baron BC on the rear and have been well impressed. Grips like a beast under braking, cornering and climbing and no sudden washouts to date. Local stuff I ride is natural woodsy trails with plenty of rocks and roots. Can handle techy downs with confidence but air volume compared to HRII is noticeable on the comform side which is a fair trade in my book for being able to keep rolling. At £50 it was a bit of an ask being a poor northerner but payback has been great so far.

I get on really well my pair of hans dampf, bought from same shop you mention. reminds me to buy more while they’re still around at that price.
tubeless is a easy, they’re light, fat and pretty damn grippy. Not sure if they’re on high roller level grip but high rollers do hook up mighty hard in some corners.

Have you considered the On-One Chunky Monkeys? Right width and great price!

Pillbug – next time you need a baron check out bike-discount.de – http://www.bike-discount.de/shop/k371/a73988/der-baron-23-black-chili.html they confusingly title it the same as the dh tyre der baron but they are definately just black chilli barons as the der barons only come in 2.5
I get all my conti tyres from there.

TR Bontrager XR4s, just a no-nonsense, cracking, all-round tyre. And a lot cheaper than the – how much? – Hans Dampf things.

Top man stevede! The quality of the Barons are really nice so at the moment will be tempted to keep-on with them especially if I can shave a bit off the price. Cheers again for the link.

I’d been running Rampages on my 160mm bike over the summer and Autumn, with an SC up front. In they dry they were really good, the soft compound front gave the bike much needed bite. However, it all came unglued over the last couple of extremely wet rides, when the front just filled with sticky mud and the rear caught a few gouges from rogue flints. The gouges were deep enough to compromise the linen weave, so the next time I inflated the tyre, a 2″ x 3″ chunk of it was blasted across the kitchen, taking a slime filled tube with it.

The Baron clears mud very well, but I’ve only tried the plasticky £17 version. I’ve swapped to a Black Chilli Rubber Queen up front, which is nice and grippy, paired with a folding Mountain King at the back. Despite being billed as a 2.2″ wide tyre, the RQ is absolutely mahoosive, so don’t be tempted by a 2.4″ unless you really need the extra width.

Baron is a fantastic wet conditions tyre, mine was a bit of a pain to seal up as tubeless (it’s not a UST one, just standard) but it did go eventually.

Unhelpfully, another one for your list- the Specialized Butcher Control is bloody good, and tubeless ready. It’s a better Minion, no more, no less. The 2.3’s as wide as a Maxxis 2.5, but lighter, and they don’t seem to lack durability. Quite draggy mind as you’d expect for a tyre like that.

Northwind – that’s good to hear on the Butcher front, i’ve just ordered one to replace the Clutch sx on the front of my Camber (running a purgatory control on the rear), looked very Minion like and i don’t need the weight/sturdiness of the sx casing on my Camber, should be a good combo.

I quite liked the Clutches but so far I reckon the Butcher’s been better, probably going to switch the big bike to them too. Haven’t done that much dry riding to be fair!

I have run high roller LUST’s for the last few years as they have always suited my riding and i’ve never felt confident on anything else. Took a punt on some schwalbe hans dampfs 2.35, trailstar front and pacestar rear, i’ve been blown away by them and wont be going back, they really dampen the bumps and grip like crazy, they are also taller so stop the rim dings i was getting with the high rollers (running 25-26psi). At just over £60 a pair from Germany delivered you can’t go wrong!

Who’s tried the Chunky Monkey’s?