My Orbea Rise came with a Maxxis Dissector up front and a Rekon out back . So far I haven’t had an issue but haven’t really rode it in the current slop as yet . I’ve got a nearly new Specialized Butcher going spare , I’m thinking of putting that on the front and the Dissector at the back , does that sound like a plan ? The Dissector is a WT version to fit the 30mm width Race Face rim just wondering if that will be an issue with the Butcher or am I overthinking as usual 🙄
I might just give it a few rides as is for now see how it goes , as long as the tyres don’t try and kill me like a Vittoria did once 🙄🙄🙄🙄
It's a plan, but a bad one. The Butcher on the front, in the slop, will kill you.
MaxxGrip Shorty and a DHRII.
Chuck the Dissector on the back, that’ll definitely be an improvement. Butcher will also be an improvement over what you have, but you’ll really want something a bit more aggressive (Shorty etc) for sloppy stuff
The butcher is like a dhf. Not brilliant in the slop but better than a dissector on the front.
Or spend £100+ on the optimum combo right now.
Yak , so what’s your optimum ?
MaxxGrip Shorty and a DHRII.
This ^^^^^
You could stick the butcher on the back and get a Specialized hillbilly for the front if you like matching brands. The hillbilly is bloody ace in the slop - *I’ve run the 27.5” and 29” version of the hillbilly and the 29er one is a better all rounder - it quite similar to a magic Mary - but cheaper. The 29er version have is the T7 2.6” one.
If it’s a blank canvas and you want matching brands I’d either go magic Mary / big Betty or maxxis shorty / dhr2 probably. Although the Wild Enduro front is good for slop - the back not so good.
MaxxGrip Shorty and a DHRII
Came here to say this too, got there by trial and error but good to see others reaching same conclusion.
In order of wetness:
Dry: DHR II front and rear.
Damp and greasy: DHR II front and rear.
Wet: DHR II front and rear.
Mega-Slop: DHR II front and rear.
Penmachno: DHR II front and rear.
Optimum for me is wild enduros. But the rear is a bit slidy. Sometimes run a butcher t9 on the rear.
Probably depends on your slop... Mine's sandy slop.
Bontrager Muds. R.I.P
They could call them Gravel Mud and they would be bang on trend.
The Magic Mary and the old Hillbilly are both great over the winter. However, I’ve just got one of the new Hillbilly T9 which is a much stickier compound and has bigger side knobs to handle drier corners without folding/flexing too much - mounted it a few days ago and have yet to try it. But it looks and feels like it’s going to be amazing - like the old Baron 26 but scaled up to a true 2.4” with massive knobs and really slow rebound rubber.
DHR II out back and Shorty up front serves me pretty well.
Shorty or Hillbilly front, DHR or Butcher rear.
A new tyre with wide spacing will generally feel great in thick/soft mud. Riding style and bike setup will also go a long way.
Dissector has poor traction in slop, it won't dig in and will just spin out. Keep it for summer.
I run a Conti Der Baron Projekt front, Maxxis DHR2 rear. Former is now superseded by the Argotal. My next combo will probably be that and a Conti Kryptotal Re.
2.4" Magic Mary Ulta Soft up front
2.4" Magic Mary Soft out back.
Could swap the rear Magic Mary for a Big Betty if your trails aren't crazy soft all the time and you want a little more drive/braking grip at the expense of a tiny amount of cornering predictability...
If it's really filthy then swap the front Mary out for a Dirty Dan... But it's got to be pretty much biblical conditions and chairlift assisted riding only for a Dirty Dan to come into its own!
Another vote for the Shorty/DHR2 Combe here.
I used to be a MM fanboi (and it does have a wider use window than the Shorty), but when it gets proper sloppy the Shorty is , IMHO, superior.
The rise is an ebike isn’t it? If it is then get the spikyist things you can, either wet screams or dirty dans
Magic mary soft on the front maxxis shorty on the rear 👍🏻
My mate has got a hardly used Magic Mary I can have for £20 Butcher out back happy days 😎
Winner winner - give that a go and see how you find it. Will definitely have a lot more grip than your current setup.
Just fitted a Magic Mary soft super trail front and Big Betty soft super gravity rear before the weekend, rode forestry downhills yesterday, couldn't beleave the difference , first time gone for a "Winter" set up, loved it
Think the OP has some tyres now, but I have the Dissesctor on the rear of my bike and its not great now its wet and greasy, its being replaced with a DHR2 since the front tyre is Maxxis, got to match brands!
My preferred combo would be Magic Mary and Big Betty, but would also try a Hill Billy paired with a Cannibal on the back
I'm an all year round user of a front Magic Mary, but my new bike came fitted with Spesch Butcher T9 and though I have a MM sat waiting to be fitted, I've yet to see a reason to replace it. The rear Elimator T7 has been very good too, though it was definitely helped by adding a cushcore to stiffen up the sidewalls. The butcher definitely isn't as deep a tread as the MM or Shorty but seems like a solid option to me.
Related question... who has Shorty's and DHR's in stock for a price that doesn't cause full involuntary exhalation?
I run Conti Der Baron and Der Kaiser on my Rise. All year round and in all but the bioggest bog fests I have traction where most others dont.
I also run the newer Conti's on my hardtail and again, traction where most dont. They're not too draggy that they're horrible to pedal into summer either. I'm not one of those change tyres at the drop of a hat. When theyre on and sealing they stay on till they need replaceing so always go for a good enough all rounder.
It’s a plan, but a bad one. The Butcher on the front, in the slop, will kill you.
Had to laugh.
Stick the Butcher on the back OP, and I'd suggest a WTB Verdict high grip for the front.
Or a Shorty if you prefer a rounder profile tyre.
Related question… who has Shorty’s and DHR’s in stock for a price that doesn’t cause full involuntary exhalation?
Nowhere! Maxxis tax is definitely a thing compared to other tyres IMO
Thanks for all the suggestions folks , riding the Quantocks Thursday will make a decision after that . As I say up to now stock set up has been fine , willing to try MM but as it's only a half fat bike I'm conscious of the drag effect 🤔
willing to try MM but as it’s only a half fat bike I’m conscious of the drag effect 🤔
All 5'2" of mrsBeanZ copes fine with the MM on her levo SL .
Magic Mary is fine pedalling on a normal bike. If you have a motor then it’s really not an issue.
Shorty and DHR2 is superb. There'll be other combos about as good, maybe even better but this one definitely works.
(stickiest widest shorty you can find on the front- the extra width and stick is basically what takes it away from being a "mud" tyre and makes it so brilliant in mixed conditions)
Definitely worth looking at the new contis if you want something different, I've not tried mine yet though. Or if you're happy to lose some of the bad-conditions performance and gain some allrounderness then the magic mary is also fantastic, it just doesn't work quite as well when things get orrible.
Is 2.4" the optimum width?
Even for a hardtail?
I like my 2.6 butchers until it's really sloppy.
Then a shorty. 2.3 for less drag, 2.4 for unbelievable grip and drrrrrrrraaaaaaaaaagggggy days out.
It has to be really nasty before I'm prepared to pedal them about
and I’d suggest a WTB Verdict high grip for the front.
came her to say the same. I run a WTB Verdict Wet on my winter slop hardtail. Mucho Knobblio
How many millimetres of difference is there between a 2.3 and a 2.4 inch tyre? 2 or 3? I doubt that one is fast and sprightly and the other is a dragfest.
I’m reminded that I’m so old ( forum name gives it away 😬 ) the go to tyre was Tioga Factory XC at a tenner a pop ! Then the consensus was this time of year get them knobbly gurt buggers off and find something sub 2” wide to cut through the mud ! 😂😂😂
If I ever decided to off myself and wanted to do it doing something I enjoy, I'd stick some OEM Butchers on front and back, then ride a gnarly trail that you needed at least a little bit of grip to survive. Hateful pieces of s***
The Magic Mary and the old Hillbilly are both great over the winter. However, I’ve just got one of the new Hillbilly T9 which is a much stickier compound and has bigger side knobs to handle drier corners without folding/flexing too much – mounted it a few days ago and have yet to try it. But it looks and feels like it’s going to be amazing – like the old Baron 26 but scaled up to a true 2.4” with massive knobs and really slow rebound rubber.
Can you hurry up and ride it then report back! I've been considering fitting a used Hillybilly from the shelf to the front of my Levo SL but was putting it off as they feel quite slow on hardpack trails and I intend on visiting some trail centres over christmas, which the current Butcher will do better at. Really interested how the new sticky Hillbilly compares.
Views on the Butcher seem quite polarised here, I find it fine, seems like a decent all rounder.
Do people really fit these monster treaded tyres for trail centres?
I fancy getting some bigger treaded tyres for my Dave to try out but the cost alone is enough to put me off yet alone the weight and how slow they would roll.
This time of year I tend to ride 38mm Vittoria Terrano Wet tyres on my cross bike. I think I might doing it all wrong though. 😊
sharkattack
Full MemberHow many millimetres of difference is there between a 2.3 and a 2.4 inch tyre? 2 or 3? I doubt that one is fast and sprightly and the other is a dragfest.
It does depend a bit- like, the dhr2 2.3 and 2.4 are actually pretty different tyres. Likewise the shorty 2.3 and 2.5, you'd think it'd be "just .2 more" but when you actually ride them it's genuinely the sort of difference you'd expect from 2 different brands. I reckon the 2.3 Shorty maxxterra is more like the 2.35 magic mary soft than it is like the 2.5 shorty maxxgrip
Do people really fit these monster treaded tyres for trail centres?
Well that was my point and reason for not fitting a Hillbilly.. but my local trails do get claggy hence the interest for something that works better on hardpack aswell as clag.
sharkattack
Full MemberHow many millimetres of difference is there between a 2.3 and a 2.4 inch tyre? 2 or 3? I doubt that one is fast and sprightly and the other is a dragfest.
It's not always just the width though (nominal as they may be hence absolute differences might be larger than suggested at times)... It's often differences in the rubber compound, carcass construction, tread depth and the extra weight of the tyre can contribute to drag more than you'd think...
On the Hillbilly the older 650b version with gripton compound is epic in slippery off piste conditions but on hardpack it wobbles a bit when pushed hard in corners.
I’ve got the newer 29er version with T7 compound and it does a much better job on hardpack. I ran it from December last year through to maybe April ish when I stuck a Butcher T9 on. Didn’t like the butcher - it seemed to grip to a point then just give up. So I swapped that for a dhf for the summer.
The hillbilly isn’t back on yet as I’ve got a wild enduro on there right now which is doing a great job whilst rolling quicker than the hillbilly on hardpack.
Tyres above are
Hillbilly 2.6” gripton / grid 650b
Hillbilly 2.6” T7 / Grid Trail 29er
Butcher 2.3” T9 / Grid Trail 29er
DHF 2.5” 3c Maxx Terra / Exo 29er
Wild Enduro 2.4” Magi-X / 29er
