Maxxis Ardent – what we all think?

I’m considering a pair of Ardents….this is purely based on the fact that I’m a massive tart and want some tan walls on the bike for a change!
How do people get on with them? thinking about 29×2.25 rear and a 29×2.4 front
cheers

Like mine, Ardent 2.4 front, prefer Ardent Race 2.2 to normal Ardent at the rear, both tubeless on the original flow rims.

Fast rolling, slidey in the corners, slippy on the rocks.

Tried one one the rear.

Positives: low rolling resistance,light weight.

Negatives: not much grip when braking,not tough at all. Lasted 3 weeks before they wwre destroyed,not worn out,just ripped.

I’ve had some on my hardtail for years. Get on well with them personally. Others seem to suggest they’re unpredictable but I find them ok. They have a definite edge that you have to commit past to bite into the grip imo.

Great on the back of the bike. Wouldn’t use one on the front though, prefer something more agressive (Minion DHF normally)

I run Ardents on the 29er, though I’ve recently swapped to a Crossmark for the rear. As a decent, general-purpose tyre they are fine. I’m sure there are grippier but you’ll be paying for it in rolling resistance. Would likely depend on the sort of riding you are doing. Mine is mainly bikepacking, XC stuff.

Hairyscary has it: plus crap in mud. In 29×2.25 flavour that is. Mine have lasted okay running over Glen Tanar which isn’t too kind on lightweight tyres. Last time in Tanar was limited by traction around corners, thought I was coming off on most of them! Hoping my HR II on the front will help…

Fine in the dry.

Defo grippier in 29 vs 26 or 650b, just seem to work better on waggon wheels

Good trail centre tyre, no good in mud n wet in more natural stuff

I like them as a rear tyre, roll at a good speed, find them pretty good on wet roots and camber, brake ok apart from on slimey hardpack.

Had one on the rear of the HT for about five months, didn’t get on with it for whatever reason so swapped it for a Bontrager XR3 which I’ve had on for nearly 18 months now.

They have a definite edge that you have to commit past to bite into the grip imo.

I’d call it a bald strip, but yeah, that – quite hard to ride “gently” on slippy stuff

I run them in 2.4 on a Solaris (29ner), my fav alround tyre.

cheers for the input, I guess most of my riding is either managed trail (Afan) or winter commutes which are 70% paved 30% natural off-road stuff. None of which is done very quickly or proficiently.

I run an ardent on the rear in the summer, love it, very easy to get rolling, a bit slidey but very predictable. I do cringe when I see someone with one on the front in the wet though!

maybe more of a summer option, it will stop raining one day yeah?

My favourite summer tyre, rolls fast, grips well in the dry. Not great if its wet!

Never really got on with a 26″ exo one on the back of my hardtail, could never find the right pressure where it gripped when braking but didn’t go all wobbly through corners. Was fast though – I put on a SG rock razor which was awesome in the corners but really slow in comparison.

Ardent 650b (2.35 I think) on front, Ardent Race 650b (2.3?) on rear.

Seem a bit sketchy to me in loose stuff. Don’t seem to like quick changes of direction on dusty or gravelly stuff. They seem quite large on the rims (mine are 29.5 outer width) and I could probably drop the pressure a fair bit more which might help. They don’t feel a particularly tough tyre either. As a combo it seems to be well liked but I’ll be going the Butcher/Slaughter path when I do upgrade.

Run them a lot, got the races on my XC bike.

I dropped away as I’m running more technical/bigger hit trails and I wanted the bigger volume and aggression of the Minion/HRII combo.
Ran them on the trail bike front and back, great on hardpack where your not going to get a bite from big side knobs, fast on the rear too. Used it last winter in the UK and had no real issues on a big mix of natural despite many predictions of death.

Great tyre for rear for dry summer only, use with HR up front. Great combo

edit: Couldn’t remember exactly which I had. Then remembered my bike is here at the office with me. Durr…

2.4″ Exo on the front. 2.2″ Race Max Speed TR rear.

Great tyre for rear for dry summer only

Depending on how you ride there is nothing wrong with it on the back in a wet winter, you accept it might break out at times but that’s just winter riding anyway (or summer riding down here in the dust)
For me so long as the front knows where it’s going you can deal with the back 90% of the time

Depending on how you ride there is nothing wrong with it on the back in a wet winter

how I ride? Not much use for climbing or much else in the Forest of Dean in winter

I run low pressures and tubeless. A HR on the rear is flat out better in the mud. You tried climbing anything muddy with an Ardent?

Not sure where your riding but conditions here need tread. Unless you just ride trail centres

Rocks, roots and hardpack were all fine, it’s no a mud tyre though but definitely not just a summer only tyre. Got me round the Slop of eastridge, snowy peaks, wet lakes and a bit more.

Its ok but i wouldnt bother with it, front or rear. when it is totally dry the rock razor comes out! (shorty front, all the time, natch)

I used to run them front and rear (2.25), but wanted to push harder.
I still use one out back.
One bike has HRII on front, the other a Minion DHF

It definitely has it’s limits in mud, but in the rocky peaks I use it all year round.

I seem to be a little unusual among fellow riders, in that I like a slippier cornering rear tyre than front. Perhaps it means I don’t put enough of my weight over the front. Who knows.

[edit] I bought a a Minion Semi Slick to try after April.

2.4 width with EXO sidewalls is my preferred “all-round” tyre on the back of my Trail 29er, with a 2.5 Minion DHF.

Occasionally run them on the front paired with something even faster rolling if conditions/plans dictate.

Like a lot of Maxxis tyres they do a Grip-Drift-Grip thing that you either like or you don’t.

had some on the front of my hardtail for summer all round use but did not really get on with them. Thought they were a bit slidey. Was a 26 x 2.25 folding

Much prefer the WTB Bronson – tons of grip and super fast rolling

Forest of Dean in winter

Do you get sticky mud?

Ardent is fine in wet non-claggy mud.

a zippy rear tyre for when the trails are hard and dusty. really don’t get on with them in anything other than that. ill only use if its a settled dry spell in the summer, and living in scotland, that means I’ll get years out of mine.

One thing to note – the 2.4 is not just a bigger version of the 2.25. the tread on the 2.4 is about twice as deep for some reason! which really makes it an altogether different tyre in terms of grip. Maybe the unpredictable experiences are from people running the 2.25?

I used to run 2.4 on the front and 2.25 on the back as is the fashion. But recently thought why I am I making myself suffer with no grip on the back, higher tyre pressures and more pinch flats? So now its 2.4 all round and I think its ace….the 2.4s are really massive 🙂

Yes, I’ve always looked at the Ardent 2.4 and decided the HRii looks like it would do the same job better. There would be room in the market for a 2.4 Ardent with the same tread depth as the 2.25 imo.

One thing to note – the 2.4 is not just a bigger version of the 2.25. the tread on the 2.4 is about twice as deep for some reason! which really makes it an altogether different tyre in terms of grip. Maybe the unpredictable experiences are from people running the 2.25?

+1

I’ve found the 2.4 to make a good, toothy-isa front tyres, though I still prefer a 2.5 Minion DHF, while the shallower-treaded 2.25 is a good Peak rear tyre, but slightly rubbish in sloppy stuff – not a confidence-inspiring front tyre unless it’s dry. I prefer the Ardent Race as a rear option, though it would be nicer if it were available as a 2.3 instead of a 2.2.

2.25 for me, the 2.4 comes up too big for the rolling and as others say at that size I’m going for something a bit more aggressive

I had one on the back and was really getting on with it until it ripped internally and ended up looking like it had a huge buckle in the wheel. Go a High roller 2 on now until I replace it and it doesn’t feel as good.

it letting go skip to around 1 minute 30 seconds

and a quick clip of the aftermath
aftermath

I had very mixed experiences with Ardents. A few years back the magazines were touting them as being the holy grail of fast rolling, grippy tyres for Summer riding. On my bike, with my riding style and my local trails, they were rubbish up front and traction at the back was patchy. I had a couple of them blow off the rim when set up ghetto tubeless too, rendering them practically useless.

For the few tinder dry days we have in Summer they’re a reasonable rear tyre, best paired with a High Roller or Minion up front.

29 x 2.25″ Exo version seems to work really well as a rear tyre for Peaks, Lakes, Dales stuff. Needs to run tubeless to get the most out it though. Seemed to have as much grip as anyone elses tyre options on a snowy and slippy trip to the Dales the other weekend.

Works OK for a bit of tarmac bashing too with some extra air in it.

Prefer something with a bit more grip up front though – Maxxis HR2 3C seems to be working quite well at the mo.

Both run out of steam in claggy mud but we don’t seem to get too much around our way – more like gritty slop than sticky mud.

The ardent race uses a different exo carcass to the normal ardent.

As I found to my peril putting 4 holes in mine at the dyfi winter warm up.

Fast tyre, rewards commitment but a bit weak for hooning down rock and slate.

I seem to be a little unusual among fellow riders, in that I like a slippier cornering rear tyre than front.

Same here…I want the front to stick, but in certain circumstances, be able to get the back to break away. I’ve found I can’t do that with aggressively treaded tyres without losing too much speed.