Hey guys.
I recently fitted a set of Schwalbe X-one CX tyres. 700x33mm. The ‘performance’ (not the EVO) compound version..

I notice that they are wearing down at an surprising rate, more than any other tyre I have used. The rear central knobs have lost all definition and looking real worn after approx 120miles.
Setup tubeless.
A mixture of hardpack, gravel, 1 CX race and a small amount of tarmac.
I only weight 9st and rarely lock the rear up.

Given the current rate, I reckon the rear is going to last 300 miles before resembling a circle of deflated bubblewrap. 😯

Am I expecting too much from a skinny tyre??

Had a similar experience with a rapid rob, completely wore the rear out in next to no time.
Think Schwalbe in general wear quite quickly (although they claim this is much better with the new addix compounds).

Am I expecting too much from a skinny tyre??

No, you’re expecting too much from a mud tyre that’s being used for

hardpack, gravel, 1 CX race and a small amount of tarmac

Schwalbe themselves advertise it as relatively low durability (but very grippy)

I’m not convinced Crazy-Legs.
I understand that hardpack and tarmac will kill an outright race mud tyre, but these arnt.
The are advertised as an ‘allround’ by Schwalbe and these are not the mud specific ‘Bite’ version.

Schwalbe Linky

Im just surprised that they look half worn within 3 months and not many miles, they will need swapping soon.

You want G One speeds for all but cross racing. Fabulous tyres, but even they have a very soft compound. Mine live on the road and the wear of the tiny bumps is pretty rapid on the rear. Not two worried as the carcass is the old Schwalbe One. So that’s what i’ll end up with.

So I think its clear that I need to swap tyres to keep the X-ones healthy.
Thats a big shame as I was hoping to run these tyres over the whole winter for both training and the CX season (albeit only 5-6 races when time permits)
Unfortunately my training circuit is hardpack and gravel, not grass or mud.
Or run a 2nd set of wheels but that gets costly, I’m not that serious.
Balls.

Ultimately CX tyresa re designed for CX racing, hour long thrempo pain excursions on mainly grass, mud and the odd bit of harder stuff; not exactly renowned for wearing tyres out.

Grip on the other hand is paramount.

I have some Schwalbe One road tyres that I bought for some crit races in the summer – one of those (rear) wore out after under 200 miles – awesome grip and rolling speed but not good on longevity – maybe just a Schwalbe trait and, like anything, a bit of a trade-off!?

wore out after under 200 miles

😯

I get grumpy at posh tyres wearing out after 1000-1500 miles on the rear, but 200 miles?! That’s bonkers, a a couple of club runs and a race or two? madness.

awesome grip and rolling speed but not good on longevity – maybe just a Schwalbe trait and, like anything, a bit of a trade-off!?

It’s a performance tyre trade off, not a Schwalbe trait.
I had some Specialized tyres which said “race use only” on the side and they were phenomenal. Super grippy, very light but you’d be lucky to get 1000 miles out of a pair.

Schwalbe compounds are pretty well known as being prone to premature wear though. Just look at all the threads about HDs or MMs.

Other manufacturers seem to get more life out of similarly soft compounds so I don’t think it is as simple as it being a performance tyre trade off.

Schwalbe compounds are pretty well known as being prone to premature wear though. Just look at all the threads about HDs or MMs.

Other manufacturers seem to get more life out of similarly soft compounds so I don’t think it is as simple as it being a performance tyre trade off. Dunno about that, I get plenty of miles out of Ultremo’s which are paper thin race/road tyres.

I think in this case though it is just that CX tyres are designed for an hour of mud once a week and to last a season-ish of that. If they were hard enough to last a few thousand miles, they’d be useless for CX. In the same way MTB tyres don’t last long on commuter bikes.