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I have been slowly gathering bits for my Solaris Max build. It’s my first 29er and I am coming from a world of little, decent tyre choice to loads!
On my 26 Soul I have Maxxis Ignitor on the front all year round, Mud X on the back in winter/Rocket Ron in summer, still using inner tubes. I found that a good mix of fast rolling and front grip.
I’m going for a reasonably light build with Pike 120’s and Hunt XC wide wheels.
Most of my riding is straight forward muddy/rooty XC/easy trail riding. Some of the rocky chutes in the Surrey hills are a bit flinty and most of my punctures seem to be cuts rather than thorns.
Originally I was going to use tubes again but as the Hunts have come already prepared for tubeless and I am unexpectedly at home for the foreseeable - I might as well try to setup tubeless.
With all the above in mind - I was wondering if the 29er versions of Mud X and Rocket Ron behave the same as their 26 counterparts - and what would work well on the front? (the Ignitor is ‘ok’ but came from lack of choice really). I’m thinking 2.3 max width.
There’s no point me fitting anything too burly for the XC oriented riding I do - what would people recommend?
Thanks in advance.
what would people recommend?
That you swap those tyres round, mudx on the front, ignitor out back, that would be way better for a start.
I used to have ignitor front and rear but
Ignitor on the back feels like riding with the brakes on its so draggy. I find the mud x on the back easy to ride through the worst of the slop we have had this year and fast rolling when on compacted surfaces, so happy with that, while the Ignitor is quite predictable on rockier, chalkier surfaces for the front.
Happy to try mud x front and rear on the 29er if suitable - they are pretty cheap if nothing else.
My hardtail has hunt Xc and a similar fork. It mostly gets used on muddy natural singletrack with the odd visit to slightly rockier trails.
I’ve been using Specalized 2.3 butchers front and 2.3 purgatory’s rear. Initialy as they were on sale at about £20 but now it’s because I like them : )
I’ve moved my full suss onto the same mix but with a 2.6 butcher up front. That get used rockier places.
If it’s really muddy I have a maxis shorty. It’s got amazing grip and rolls significantly slower. It was a real confidence boost after 3 painful crashes in a month in slippery conditions.
There are some silly cheap Geax deals at the moment. My Goma TNT and Saguaro TNT's are the easiest tubeless tyres I've ever used (and we have Specialized, Continental, Schwalbe and Maxxis in the house) plus they do seem to do that 'fast all-round' thing well.
Putting the Saguaro on the rear is like adding a motor, they are that fast.
Probs just going to need a turbo trainer tyre
That sounds like a mad combination - Ignitor looks really rounded with no tread, I don't know how you manage to corner on that if the ground is so soft that you need a Mud Ming out back for traction.
That said, I remember reading that Danny Hart did his crazy Champery run with a mud tyre out back, and a dry tyre at the front, so maybe you're in good company.
Thanks for the ideas so far everyone - a few I hadn't considered there, so I'll go and look at them in more detail.
@honourablegeorge - I'm certainly no Danny Hart. I find that the Mud tyre on the back is enough for control when losing traction going up\along but when I used one on the front too I found it horrible on fast chalk\flint surfaces downhill - could be quite unpredictable. The Ignitor works reasonably well in all conditions, but seemed particularly good on chalk. As above, it was all a bit of a compromise when 26" tyre choice was limited.
Thanks again.
Bontrager XR4 front and back?
Michelin do their excellent Wild Mud tyre in an XC form with less protection than the "enduro" version. I've run the enduro version here on the South Downs for 2/3 years now and really like it
I'm clearing out a selection of lightly used 2.3ish trail tyres: XR4, Shorty, some On Ones and more - in case you're interested in secondhand.
Thanks for the offer @chakaping - but for my first go at tubeless and 29er I want to start with new tyres so I only have myself to blame when they don't stay up!
Love these tyre threads ,everyone recommends something different, all I can add is I've got a Solaris max 29er and I use nobby nic speedgrip on rear and hans damf on front and it runs bloody good . Had michelin wild enduro on but it was sluggish
“That sounds like a mad combination – Ignitor looks really rounded with no tread, I don’t know how you manage to corner on that if the ground is so soft that you need a Mud Ming out back for traction.“
Mud X, not Mud King. Big difference!
I want a Mud Ming now though
chiefgrooveguru
Mud X, not Mud King. Big difference!
Ah - that makes more sense
@concrete24 - the Danny Hart thing is just the best example I know of "what works for me might not work for you" that I know of. Riding up mud and down chalk is as different as you can get from what I ride, so no surprise you have different needs to me.
@mcdonagh2962 - agree everyone has their own view - it's great though - throws up good info like your own experience there.
@honourablegeorge - a friend following me recently (and quite derisively I think) described it as 'watching Bambi on Ice' - if I can now blame it on tyre choice - I am going to grab that opportunity right now!
I've got vittoria gato 2 on my would front and back set up for xc riding. They're a mud specific xc tyre so suit where I ride it. It coped with a wet rivvy well this morning. Not sure if there's any deals on the 29er versions but they're a tenner a pop in 27.5 at the moment.
I’ve got vittoria gato 2 on my would front and back set up for xc riding. They’re a mud specific xc tyre so suit where I ride it. It coped with a wet rivvy well this morning. Not sure if there’s any deals on the 29er versions but they’re a tenner a pop in 27.5 at the moment.
Planet X have got them so cheap that i'm still looking for the catch!
The Specialized are a good price too...
Saguaro TNT is my favourite rear summer tyre… where are they cheap in 29er size?
I'm loving them mate. Go up tubeless easily with a track pump too. And really light tyres.
Loving my Vittoria Gato 2's right now! Mint tyres.