Advice needed for a mate building up a Sherpa, following advice from here he bought a Minion dhf 3C 29×2.3 for the front and is unsure if he should pair it with a Minion or a High Roller II on the rear.
He will be riding mostly natural trails and the odd trail centre.
Cheers

Why not a DHF for the rear? Unless it’s steep and muddy it’s as good or better than the other two.

Thought they were specific

A Dhf makes an excellent rear tyre. It’s slightly larger volume and has a thicker, tougher casing than the DhrII and rolls faster than the HRII, especially in the 60a single compound.

DHF rolls fastest at the sacrifice of braking compared to the DHRII and HRII, HRII is super grippy particularly in soft stuff and clears well, is really slow mind, DHRII slots between the two (ish), maybe a little closer to the DHF in terms of rolling, closer to the HRII in terms of grip.

Is the HR2 2.3 gripper than the DHR2 2.3? The HR2 2.4 I can believe but the 2.3 has much smaller knobs.

I’ve got a HR2 60a on the back currently but wouldn’t recommend it as a winter tyre, its slips about too much on climbs trying to get traction, and slides out on the descents.

I’ve had a DHF previously which was great, but not the best rolling, which is why I’m about to try a DHR2 3C,

Go for the EXO protection sidewalls if you ride anywhere rocky.

HrII 2.4 3c is a fantastic tyre front and back other than the huge amount of drag it produces on the rear wheel. Climbing is a proper chore! It’s streets ahead of the 2.3 versions though and holds air fine despite not being TR.

I would go DHR 2 almost without fail… but, given the current conditions I would probably opt for the HR2 as its got a little more bite/less prone to clogging in the proper slop we have right now. That said I would bin them both off and go with Shortys anyway.

DHR2 on the back FOR DEFINITE!!!

People traditionally paired a DHF front with another on the rear cos the original DHR was pretty poor. The new DHR2 is basically the best of both worlds combining a DHF and a High Roller, having the edge bite of the DHF but the drive and braking grip of the High Roller (but rolls quite a bit faster too). The HR is a slooooooow tyre on the back, unless all your riding is gravity assisted, I’d steer clear.

Could always go for a lighter, faster rolling rear like an EXO Ardent to pair with the DHF front too…

Does it have to be maxxis? I’m running a spesh purgatory on the back of the solaris (hr2 up front) and really liking it at the moment. It has all the grip of a dhr2 with a lot less drag.

I have a spare Hutchinson Toro 2.35 I will put on the back for him I ran them on the Sherpa that I had and now run them on my Spearfish, I rate them very highly so will see what he thinks. Perhaps not his cup of tea!

DHR2 60a exo.

Yeah other tyres are better at certain things, but I reckon this is the best all-rounder in 29in. It’s a compromise that doesn’t feel much of a compromise, if that makes sense.

Chapaking how draggy is it on climbs, here in Northern Ireland we have a lot of climbs to get to enjoy the downs.

Does it have to be maxxis? I’m running a spesh purgatory on the back of the solaris (hr2 up front) and really liking it at the moment. It has all the grip of a dhr2 with a lot less drag.

I found the opposite… I’m running the normal dual compound DHR2 rather than the 3C (which will be slower) but it’s definitely faster rolling than the Purgatory was, and significantly grippier too.

Yeah other tyres are better at certain things, but I reckon this is the best all-rounder in 29in. It’s a compromise that doesn’t feel much of a compromise, if that makes sense.

Exactly that. In the height of summer you may be inclined to fit something faster rolling such as a Minion SS, or a Rock Razor or the like, and in the depths of winter a Mud X or the like may give more ultimate bite in the mud, but as a fit and forget all rounder for most trail conditions, a DHR2 rear and DHF front combo takes some beating.

Mboy your other half still have the Sherpa? If so how’s clearance on the minions

Chapaking how draggy is it on climbs,

It’s pretty good IMO, low-ish knobs but they still provide good traction.

This thread prompted me to put a little review of it on my blog…
http://unduro.co.uk/mtb/review-maxxis-minion-dhr2-exo-29in/

🙂

Tried HR2 and DHR2 back to back in very similar conditions (on the rear) and the HR2 only lasted a couple of rides before going back to the DHR2.
Grip wasn’t as good as the DHR2 but did roll slightly faster.
Currently running Shorty/DHR2 in the gloop – best combo I’ve found for these conditions..

I’d say DHR II.

I’ve recently fitted a pair to my Switchback and so far really like them – grip wise they seem a step up from my Trail Kings plus the sidewalls seem much more robust and less porous when setting up tubeless. Mine are both none 3C jobbies.

Only downside is that they seem to drag more than the Trail Kings.

On the rear I had the 2.3 DHR II TR EXO for “summer” and it was fine but I’m using a 2.3 DHR II TR EXO 3C since October and the 3C is streets ahead in the muddy slop and a fair bit lighter too. It clears mud extremely well considering it’s not designed for mud and just grips everything better than the standard TR and seems to be just as fast rolling.

I’d change to a Magic Mary TC SS to match the front if I needed more grip on the rear although that’ll only fit on the rear of one of my bikes so I’m stuck with the DHR II 2.3 max width on the other.

I seem to prefer Schwalbe TSC on the front and Maxxis TR or 3C on the rear.

I think the DHF and HR II are both heavier than the DHR II if weight is important but the DHR II’s have been very reliable for me.

I ran a 60a HR II on the rear for summer and the first part of winter, great in summer but found it to be a bit sketchy and wet rock and in muddy corners. switched to the DHR II and have had no complaints. Grippy, and seems to be wearing well.

Having just been out for a very sloppy test ride…. DHR2 FTW.