I see Rutland have both of these half price ATM , worth getting a pair for future use if so which to go for ? The Control casing is a bit flimsy isn’t it ? I’ve got a GC with that casing on my HT which doesn’t get such a hard life as my FS which is the bike I’d be buying them for .

Purgatories for me were terrible, draggy and not that grippy (given how draggy they felt). I’d pass on them and look elsewhere.

I really liked the ground control grids – had them on the anthem for a year and didn’t get a single puncture, loads of riding (at 100kg +) and events round the Peak.
I like the purgatorys as well – in fact I’m running them now because the GC’s were out of stock a while back, but I wouldn’t rate them for anything serious on a FS, at least on the front. They’re fine for general riding but aren’t that grippy, confidence-inspiring front tyre you need for difficult stuff.

So the GC Grid will work fine F & R ?

Purgs are ok as a front tyre, nothing special. Good in the dry, less capable in the wet. They have to be leant over hard when cornering and have a tendency to let go without warning. On the rear they feel like pedalling through treacle though.

A Specialized Butcher makes a much better front for sheer grip without that much of a penalty on rolling resistance IMO.

Ground Controls are a decent choice for all round use on the rear, as well as being quite grippy in the dry up front.

For trail centres I like to run a GC 2.1 on the rear and a 2.3 Butcher up front. For XC / winter road and bridleway mile munching the GC goes on the front and I put a 2.0 Fast Trak on the rear.

The Grid casing makes setting up tubeless a bit easier and I’d recommend for anyone riding rocky / flinty trails. Otherwise the Control casings are fine.

Purgatories for me were terrible, draggy and not that grippy (given how draggy they felt).

I’m glad I’m not the only one that thinks that, most people look at you like you’re mental if you say anything bad about them!

I replaced mine with a minion dhr 2, didn’t really notice any extra drag and is better at everything else.

Nah, in control casing the ground control is proper awful, purgatorys not so bad, but better as a rear tyre I think. Got a P on the front and GC on the rear of my Levo (27.5×3). Will change when I get around to it. That said, they might be better in summer, but the casing is still dirge.

Run Purgatorys on the rear on all our bikes, a mixture of grid and control. Butchers on the front. Never had a problem with grip. Run them at 22psi