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So back when I was looking at treating myself to some new tyres last year people seemed to recommend the Conti rubber Queen BCs very highly. Is this still the case? Is there anything better out?
This will be for trail centre/Surrey hills riding so something that is grippy in the dirt as well as being able to handle wet slippy roots and rocks would be great (went to Coed y Brenin last year and had a horrid time on 'Lurch' as my tyres just had no grip on the flat rocks).
I like these, and not to expensive
http://www.specialized.com/gb/gb/ftb/mtb-tires/all-mountain-tires/butcher-control
http://www.specialized.com/gb/gb/ftb/mtb-tires/all-mountain-tires/purgatory-grid-2bliss-ready
Black Chilli is great in my experience; I've had Mtn. Kings, Rubber Queens and X-Kings with Black Chilli and most other Conti tyres without - the Black Chilli is worth paying for, but it isn't cheap.
The Specs mentioned about are very good too. The Butcher is probably my favourite front tyre of all time - it is genuinely awesome - and the Purg is fast on the rear and corners brilliantly. My main issue with this set-up is the Purg doesn't like braking in a straight line on anything loose! Fortunately the Butcher counters this to a degree, and as long as you're aware of this you can work with it - it's the pay off for a light, quick and fast-rolling rear tyre.
Something I'm currently deliberating over at the minute too!
The Panaracer Fire XC Pro seems to get good reviews, but then someone's also told me that I shouldn't get anything with a tread pattern that's too blocky, as they can be lethal on wet tarmac and rocks.
Therefore Maxxis Ignitor is looking in my eyes, cheap-ish and decent enough reports. Any thoughts on these? Or other recommendations?
Cheers!
Rocket Rons as a Surrey Hills tyre. May want something tougher for rocks though.
I quite liked the rubber queens, decent tyres, but expensive. Not too good at mud, don't know your local riding.
At the moment, if in doubt I fire a Specialized Butcher on the front and a Purgatory on the back, they're not fast but they'll do anything I ask them to, which isn't true of many tyres. And good value too.
But it's easier to pick a good tyre than a bad these days.
The Panaracer Fire XC Pro seems to get good reviews, but then someone's also told me that I shouldn't get anything with a tread pattern that's too blocky, as they can be lethal on wet tarmac and rocks.Therefore Maxxis Ignitor is looking in my eyes, cheap-ish and decent enough reports. Any thoughts on these? Or other recommendations?
i've got a pair of Panaracer Fire FR 2.4 and they are a bit draggy on smooth trails especially tarmac but the grip is really good on all terrain types
i've also got the Ignitors and these are quite fast rolling and offer good grip...they can get a bit sketchy in the wet but nothing too unpredictable
I'm quite keen on the Kenda Small block 8s. I've been using 2.35" folding over the summer and winter and they've been great apart from in seriously claggy mud up on the Mendips.
I use Specialized Purgatory (xc/trail centre) and Clutch SX (dh/everything else). Love them. Gonna go tubeless on the lighter set of wheels (purgatory) when I can afford it as well.
I thought (for the price) I may as well try an On-One Chunky-Monkey/Smorgasboard combo. Very good so far in a mix of conditions. Really, really good on woodsey/loamy stuff. Noticeably draggier than my old High Roller/Crossmark combo on trail centre stuff but now I know that, I'll just swap back if I'm heading to an armoured trail.