Maxxis Chronicle 29×3 – £110

On so many levels, surely this does not sit right?

I can see I’ll be waiting for the On-One version at £55. If I’m lucky.

Maxxis tyres are expensive.
Fat tyres are expensive.
No great surprise that it’s expensive.

Why are Chinese Maxxis tyres now as much not more expensive than handmade German ones?

Oh my flipping lordy. I thought £65 was dorrar spendy for 26″ Dirt wizards

Sod that. I’ll be going with something 2.4ish and a sensible price till Knard conditions return.

The smaller the niche the higher the price.
You can get a set of floaters for £60 and even schwalbe are doing their new fats about the £70-90 range each. Still not cheap but fat not as pricey as a few years ago.

I’ve just bought a 120tpi Knard, £53.
That Maxxis must be good at that price.

Depressing news. Have been waiting for this.
Does it still have the horrible massive logo on?

That. Is. Insane.

Really putting me off getting a fatbike.

No need to worry gofaster, 29×3 (or 29+ or whatever) is not fat it’s a whole other niche.

Ooh right- thanks for pointing that out 🙂

And there are other options coming out before too long.

Got a Fatbike (mukluk) and yeah it rides wayyy different than my 29+ (much better!). Think I’m gonna build me a Moonlander when I get cash, I just feel like it 😀 and jeezus that’s ripoff! And I thought the Knards were expensive… they are!

cheers_drive – Member

Why are Chinese Maxxis tyres now as much not more expensive than handmade German ones?

Conti handmades have terrible quality control, if they’d let their far eastern factories handle the black chili compounds they’d almost certainly make a better tyre tbh.

I paid 290 euro shipped for my 2x 120tpi knard from singlespeed.nl when they were about the only place left with them when u had a frame/forks/wheels sat here waiting

Profiteering? Hell yes – but supply and demand is it not?

Maxxis will know approx how many compatible frames are out there – why make 10,000 when there is only demand for 100 – just business

Looks like I’ll be putting 2.4 Ardents on my Rooster until some cheaper options are available!

I saw this at CTBM and had to pick my jaw off the keyboard. I was hoping they would have been cheaper than Knards!
If I’m correct, that’s Knards, Chronicles and……….is there a Vee Rubber?
And where are the Dirt Wizards?!

Was excited about 29+ tyres (and dually rims) too, but after seeing the prices … chunky monkey on flows will be ok for me and my stooge while waiting for the prices to drop.

Ok it’s an expensive tyre but are people really flouncing on an extra £35 (based on Charlie Bikemonger pricing) over a 120TPI Knard ? It’s not like you’ve just spent 10x that on the new Stooge/Rooster etc frame as well as the spangly new dually rims that now adorn the bike.

Rather than trying to actively screw you for as much dollar as possible I suspect Maxxis set the pricing according to forecast sale volumes and whatever their required payback period for a tyre mould is. Tyre mould costs must be fairly standard now but as 29+ is still a tiny minority you end up with a lofty price.

Have you been on one of those marketing/business uni degree thingies? 🙂

Nah, the wife is the brains in our family. Just find it funny how this place reacts when something is released that people desperately want and find out that it’s not going to cost them £6 and half a pack of sweets.

Oh come on you can’t compare the frame to a consumable item like tyres. Please advise me what I should spend in oil or inner tubes?

I simply don’t understand this. It’s maxxis. I was expecting £65 tops rrp. Are you sure that’s not for 2? That’s why it was exciting maxxis were moving in. They would be bringing costs down. Sheesh. Not really feeling the industry get behind 29+

… but there is a difference between expensive and a ripoff.
I fully understand that sometimes being an early adopter is not the most financially sound decision 🙂

theres a lot more rubber, so the price will be higher, there is a £99 version but thats not as headline grabbing as the £110 version 😉

I’m sure it will be discounted a bit more at other outlets

It was more the additional cost of this tyre compared to the total build I was getting at, especially when folk seem to be falling over themselves throwing cash around to get hold of this new wonder frame. And how often do you replace a front tyre on something like a Stooge if you’re not hammering through bike parks every weekend, once a year?

I don’t see why its hard to understand. A company of the size of Maxxis will have to present a business case for the design and release of a new tyre. That will be based on the cost of production plus and the number of units they expect to sell within whatever timeframe they use. You would assume that as it’s Maxxis the cost of production is fairly standardised however how many 29+ tyres are they going to sell? It will be a tiny minority. Add to that the fact there is no competition in this space, assuming the chronicle is decent in the mud. Maxxis is a company, run to make profit, not to keep you enjoying your hobby as cheaply as possible. Whether people buy it will determine whether the price is reasonable. At some point it will be reduced but that will be when Maxxis have reached breakeven or competition forces them to change the model.

Edit:

I’m sure it will be discounted a bit more at other outlets

Yes, when buying bits that Charlie stocks I’ve rarely found him to be the cheapest and as i’m not local to him I have no real ties and so google around. I get a 10% discount at my local bike shop so that immediately brings it below £100….

I think you can get some idea of how Maxxis pricing stacks up by comparing an Ardent EXO with an O-O ‘Ekso’ tyre. Maxxis make great tyres imo but they’re expensive. There’s times when I’m ‘happy’ to pay for them though, some of their tyres are the best options out there by far. If I’d just invested in going 29+ F+F and wheels I’d want good tyres to back it all up, sod the cost for now.

The industry isn’t really fully ‘behind’ 29+ as there’s currently 5 MTB wheel/tyre-rim formats with a fair bit of overlap and while it’s great for creative small brands it’s a PITA for big brands who create the real volume. 29+ is still a couple of years behind where fat bikes have got to and like Giant moving to 650B probably based largely on fitting most of their customers on their bikes, 29+ may end up being the big-guy option as 650B+ becomes more widespread. Maybe. With a ~740mm OD I’d back 650B+ if I was investing in semi-fat bikes, yet I can see 29+ performing better for much of what I’d want a 3″ tyre for. Tricky.

Panaracer and Vee Tyre have 29+ options now so competition will create better value.

how many 29+ tyres are they going to sell?

True, but consider that their 29″ tyre sales are split over more than 250 SKUs (a guess – could be more). 29+ is covered by just 2. Still a niche market but proportionally it balances out a lot faster.

So tempted to buy one of these. Probably worth an extra £10 for the Exo version.

Depending how soft they are they might last two sloppy winter seasons? Giving it’s muddy and wet they shouldn’t wear as quick or at least that’s my experience. So £110 over two ‘years’.. might be able to justify that.

…..£220 you need 2

UnLuckily my Stooge won’t fit a 29+ in the back!

True, but consider that their 29″ tyre sales are split over more than 250 SKUs (a guess – could be more). 29+ is covered by just 2.

Sorry, what’s an SKU? Trying to understand what you’re saying in simpleton terms!

anyone getting on these?

http://www.nextie-bike.com/fat-bike/29-inch-wheels-50mm

SKU? stock keeping unit – i.e. how many different versions there is

Ardent
Adent EXO
Crossmark
Crossmark UST

etc

^^^ Ta

SKU – stock keeping unit, ie a coded product. 1 tyre in 2 sizes and 2 casing levels is 4 SKUs.

they might last two sloppy winter seasons?

Given that the tread looks pretty lame for mud and a 3″ tyre wouldn’t be my choice for the winter anyway, they’d last me many winters : )

they still have no idea regarding the dirt wizard

Video – Sov from Surly Talks 29+ and 5″ Knard!

Wow – the Dirt Wizzard looks incredible, (that 5″ Knard looks HUGE) I’ll wait for that I think, the Chronicle doesn’t have the look of a mud tyre to me . I think there’s a Bontrager tyre coming that looks good for mud.

The Dirt Wizard looks much better as a winter tyre. It’s also significantly cheaper. I’ll wait for them I think.

Don’t you think that’s a pretty lame attitude from that video chap

Yes but I generally find the whole Surly style approach quite irritating. They’re just soooo cool…….albeit their Bud tyre is great 😳