… and if so, what?

Building up a 29er steel 140/150mm HT (Ragley BigWig). This will do local stuff (techy XC), nearby enduro-lite trails, plus occasional forays into the Peaks, Wales, Lakes. Decided that a modern, steel (ie with a bit of give) 29er with big tyres would avoid me needing to scratch the FS itch.

So, what is to be gained by going 2.6, and what are the drawbacks?

And what tyre to recommend as a good, general purpose tyre?

Most of them are 2.4 to 2.5, once you realise that, then you know they dont have the characteristics of plus tyres, crack on.

I really like butcher and magic marys up front in 2.6, both very confidence inspiring.

15psi on the front.

How 2.4 is a 2.6 Magic Mary? Schwalbe recommend 30mm internal rims for them…

A 2.5 WT Maxxis is similar to a 2.6 Specialized, I’m a convert and much prefer them to narrower tyres. Worth checking for deals on the Specialized website so you can try 2.6 for a bargain price. Butcher on the front is a great all rounder.

FWIW butcher I have is black diamond, I thought the old grid was a bit hard compoundwise and skittish.

I’m running 2.4 wtbs on a Scandal. Using it for longer rides which involve some tarmac to join stuff up so think I’m gonna stick with them.

How 2.4 is a 2.6 Magic Mary?

A touch over 2.5in actual on a 30mm internal rim.

In response to the OP – you don’t need them but they’ll be very nice.

Choose the rear carefully, could be draggy.

Probably a bit lightbulby on a 27mm rim then?

I am building up a new steel 29er and have a Kenda Hellkat 2.6 coming for the front tomorrow. Went 2.4 on rear

I always remember feeling the most confident when I had a 2.4 chunky monkey on the front years ago and that was quite big.

30mm rims for what it’s worth

Not a bad price on probikekit

Honourablegeorge it’ll be fine, I use the Mary on i29, a mm either side will make bugger all difference.

Well, I’ve just ordered a Butcher Grid 29×2.6 from Sigma Sports for £25, thought that was worth a punt.

Going on a DT Swiss 30mm ID rim.

Magic Mary up front. Hans Dampf at the back. Job done

I’m running 2.6 Rekons front and rear on a Fortus 30 wheelset 29er HT.
This set up has been giving me good traction on extreme climbs where other people are spinning out, pretty good low rolling resistance on the flat and adequate grip and confidence on the downs.

I wouldn’t advise against this setup particularly, although the rear hasn’t much life left and i’m struggling to decide what to get next…

2.6 Bontrager SE4 on a 30mm rim on a Soul – love them for any serious off road, they add a bit of confidence and squidge over the rougher bits of the peaks. They are a bit draggy on roads/canal paths but I usually swap wheels to something a bit smaller if I’m going local

Recently put a 2.6 Ikon on the rigid 29er on 29mm rims. Not too big. Fast and just right on a rigid fork.

How come the MM 2.6 comes up as 2.5 when the 2.35 I have on mine comes up close to 2.4????

I thought most manufacturers either came up small or large across the range. I’m obviously wrong though…

I’d imagine they wanted to call it 2.6 to look like it’s a leap in terms of tyre size, when in reality a 2.5 is what they did, and no one really notices. Much like folk who rave about how much bigger their 29ers are, and the amazing benefits they give, when in reality it’s bugger all.

How come the MM 2.6 comes up as 2.5 when the 2.35 I have on mine comes up close to 2.4????

I thought most manufacturers either came up small or large across the range. I’m obviously wrong though…

So I think Schwalbe have “reset” their tyre sizes a bit and some of the newer 2.35s are truer to size, which now means they are disappointingly small.

Anyway, the 2.6 MM is a wonderful tyre, buy it and believe.

Anyway, the 2.6 MM is a wonderful tyre, buy it and believe.

This, awesome tyre.

chakaping

So I think Schwalbe have “reset” their tyre sizes a bit and some of the newer 2.35s are truer to size, which now means they are disappointingly small.

Definitely, my 29er 2.35 is tiny compared to what they used to be.

I had some 2.6 Specialized tyres. Nice and comfy for pootling around on. I loved the extra cushion effect over rough ground but on bikeparky, DH style stuff I found them a bit vague and wobbly. Sidewalls are crap as well.

I don’t know how people get away with running 15psi in them. If I go under 25 I’m just rimming out in the rocks.

I’d probably buy them again if I had a hardtail for regular pedally stuff.

If you want to run proper 2.6 tires, you should consider 35mm inner width rims if you ride aggressively. The wider rim will support the tire better. The tire carcus material also matters.

I had Hope 35mm internal rims when I had my 2.6 tyres. The shape and profile was mint. I just found that under hard cornering and on berms they felt really squirmy. It’s hard to describe but it’s a big tyre and when you squash it and it rebounds there’s a lot of movement there and it made the bike feel like it was firing sideways under load.

None of this was a problem until I went to the Alps and rode ‘proper’ downhill trails. I’ve switched to 30mm rims and 2.4 tyres with much tougher sidewalls and prefer the more direct handling and reduced squirm.

If I had 2 bikes (i.e. something a bit mellower than my gnarpoon for days out on regular trails) I’d buy Spesh 2.6’s again.

None of this was a problem until I went to the Alps and rode ‘proper’ downhill trails

So, as long as we stay in the UK, we’re cool? ideal! 😉

2.6 Mary on ‘proper dh’ at Fort William is brilliant, on a 29mm rim.

The tire carcus material also matters.

Yep, dual ply with insert for the rear on a hardtail, if you really want to avoid flats whilst running properly low tyre pressures.

I’m ging to stick with 2.4 Wild Enduros for the going downhill as fast as possible on the local loose stuff and bike parks. (29er hardtail) But I’ve got some 2.6 XR2s for long XC rides and bike packing.

Not fitted them yet, maybe I’ll have my head turned and want to try some aggro 2.6 tyres too.

So, as long as we stay in the UK, we’re cool? ideal! 😉

I’m just saying that the first time I rode them in anger was in Aosta, Pila then Morzine after pedalling around the Peak and Hamsterley
where I really liked them. I’m sure they’d have the same effect on UK DH tracks and uplift days.

I’ve switched to the the Wild Enduro as mentioned above and found them much stiffer and more direct at the expense of comfort on choppy terrain.

Everything is relative though. They’re all a vast improvement over what we used to ride years ago.

Everything is relative though. They’re all a vast improvement over what we used to ride years ago.

Agreed!

I had 2.35 maxxis on my rigid bike on old school narrow 29er rims.

Moved to 2.6 nobby nics on stans flow ex 29mm internal rims. Came out at 2.52 wide.

When you compare the two they do look a lot bigger.

I’ve found it’s made the bike faster over rough ground and not made much difference on the roads.

I’m tempted to put a stans baron or wider on the front and try a fatter tyre as it makes such a difference on a rigid fork.

I don’t think I’d buy a smaller tyre for this bike now, I’m convinced.

I’ve just changed from a Shan with 2.3” purgatorys to a Vendetta with 2.6 purgatorys. I measured my purgatorys (with my new amazon callipers) and they‘re exactly 2.6”. But my rims are 40mm Smoking Gun from American Classic. I hear from friends that the 2.6 purgs come up as somewhere around 2.5 on a smaller rim.

I tend to run about 15psi on my local trails. But a hard hit will definitely touch the rim. If I want to ride harder or on lesser known trails, or rockier trails, then I have to go back to somewhere around 20psi. At harder pressures, my vendetta feels pretty much just like a good hardtail. But it’s lovely to be able to drop the pressures a little – that’s why I changed bike, so I could get a little more cushioning from the 2.6s. Mine certainly do that.

Plus the grip from the larger tyres is absolutely awesome!

My experience over the years told me some things:
– sizing, specially on these “upper” dimensions is highly inconsistent between brands and even within their ranges
– even between a 2.4 and a 2.6, in practical terms the size difference is not that huge
– the very largest tyres are either paper thin or, if any meaningful protection is present, weight a metric ton

So, as of now, I simply check what’s available between 2.4-2.6 and choose based on thread, protection and up to what weight I’m willing to pedal around.

Right now I’m 2 weeks (6 rides) into a set of Michelin Wild Enduros 2.4. very close in actual size to the 2.5 Maxxis I used to run. They have that damped, muted DH tyre feel I like, even more so than doubledowns. The front one is bonkers, so good, better than a DHF at everything it seems. The rear one climbs and brakes better than a DHR II but I’m still coming to terms with it at corners, sometimes does some weird stuff

I went from a 2.6 Nobby Nic up front to a 2.6 Vittoria Barzo.

The Nobby Nic felt a lot more trustworthy to me.

No chance I’d go back to 2.4.

“How come the MM 2.6 comes up as 2.5 when the 2.35 I have on mine comes up close to 2.4????

I thought most manufacturers either came up small or large across the range. I’m obviously wrong though…”

The Specialized Eliminator 2.3 measures almost 2.4” and the Eliminator 2.6 measures barely 2.5”

I doubt they’re alone in that!

Disappointing to hear and read that Schwalbe have reduced the 2.35 Mary in size, presumably to have a bigger jump to the 2.6

I’ve heard mixed reports about the 2.6 in 27.5, so was just about to buy a 2.35 Ultrasoft SG

Is there any way of telling which models are the ‘older’, larger 2.35 size?