Schwalbe users – which back tyre to go with a Magic Mary?

If I wanted to stick a Magic Mary on the front to try, which rear tyre? I’m happy for it to be a bit more slidy than grippy in the hope it’ll be less draggy that way. Needs to be Schwalbe as I’m not a monster, obvs.

I’ve gone with the MM – hans dampf combo for the last few years. Seems to do the job as a solid all round mix

I had a MM front / Rock Razor rear for a lot of this year, it worked really well for me.

I quite like a Nobby Nic for winter trail riding, the new ones are a good compromise between grip and rolling resistance for me.

If a MM at F then surely a Big Betty at rear.

Otherwise stick to Hans Dampf for both F&R

Big betty for more grip

Nobby Nic if you need to cover more ground

I’ve used Schwalbe MM/Maxxis Minion DHR combo for a few years and love it.

I don’t care that they don’t match.

I currently have a Hans Dampf on the rear, there are better options but  Merlin were selling them cheap. Big Betty is good but is draggier.

Rock Razor is great, but less good in slop and not much availability these days.

Personally I’ll quite happily mix tyres front to back, although I like Schwalbes heavier casing on the rear and whatever suits the front..

I always ran a Magic Mary / Hans Dampf combo and it worked.

I tried a Mary / rock razor bit it wasn’t as durable things have probably changed.

Swerve the Betty if you’re sensitive to draggy tyres.

The new Albert looks promising for a rear, or maybe the Tacky Chan? I’ve not ridden either though.

Might not be what you want if you’re covering distance, but for winch & plumbet Enduro schralps at this time of year, I just run MM front and rear. Purple on the front, orange on the back.

Don’t even find it too draggy tbh, at least for that style of riding

I’m pleased with the Tacky chan on the back pairing with a MM on the front. Plenty of grip and not too draggy.

I’m pleased with the Tacky chan on the back pairing with a MM on the front. Plenty of grip and not too draggy.

I have the same (both are soft/orange) and think the same 🙂

Big Betty fo sho!

Another here with MM front and Tacky Chan on the rear, both in ultra soft, super gravity. Been running them on a hardtail since September. Nice grip and certainly not too draggy. The TC does a decent job of shedding mud as well

+1 for a Nobby Nic on the back for the winter, I find the Hans Dampf doesn’t clear mud so well.

Betty for grip, a good all year tyre imo, rolls slightly slower than a dhr2 but better braking traction.

Hans dampfs are sorta okay, I like them in the drier months for most riding, but they struggle for braking traction on the really steep stuff. Roll really quite fast but do wear quickly if braking alot.

Nobby nics are awful and wouldn’t touch them for a trail/enduro bike.

Haven’t tried a tacky chain but i think they could be a really good rear tyre outside of the deepest depths of winter.

I’m currently liking a specialized butcher on the back, I bought it mostly because it was silly cheap in a sale but its decently grippy and rolls a tad faster than a betty.

But I have to admit my all time favourite rear tyre is a minion dhr2 maxterra doubledown.

DHR2 or Butcher.

Do matching tyre brand people* run matching forks and shock?

*I used to be one too!

I’m running a Big Betty 2.4 (orange) on the back and MM (purple) 2.6 on the front of my big bike at this time of year.

Will probably revert to TC purple (front) and either a TC or NN orange on the back when the trails dry out, or for a slightly faster rolling general trail riding.

chiefgrooveguru

Do matching tyre brand people* run matching forks and shock?

People have mismatched suspension? I think I’m going to be sick

Hans Dampf is crap in the wet and not very fast rolling vs the grip available.

Big Betty is probably the grippiest option.

Personally I’d mix brands and run a Conti Kryptotal rear in enduro / soft to pair with a soft Magic Mary. Or a 2.4 DHR2 in Exo+ / 3c Maxterra

Nobby Nic for me. I’m at the XC end of trail

Some context…? How do you plan to use the bike? eBike or analogue? Is the Mary a new Radial carcass or not? Which compound, carcass strength etc?

It’s hard to recommend a one size fits all solution… Big Betty on the rear with a Mary up front works incredibly well, but if you’re more of an XC/trail centre kind of rider, you might be better suited with a Nobby Nic or Hans Dampf on the rear (or even a Wicked Will if you mostly ride dry/hardpacked trails and really value rolling speed). Or if you’re experimenting with the new radial carcass, then try an Albert Radial on the rear with the Mary up front. And many other answers inbetween…

I’m pleased with the Tacky chan on the back pairing with a MM on the front. Plenty of grip and not too draggy.

For most people this… Though perhaps not on an eBike, as though the Tacky Chan is incredibly fast rolling for the amount of grip it has, it lacks in braking grip compared to a Big Betty or an Albert to be honest.

Managed to get out the other day and finally christen my Radial Mary/Albert combo… ??

MM & BB for me in Super Gravity. Tried a Nobby Nic & Hans Dampf, but just destroyed them on the rocks.

@chiefgrooveguru, Yes. & seat post.

Some context…?

Riding a mountain bike. Otherwise, see the OP,  I’m happy for it to be a bit more slidy than grippy. –  The Schwable tyre that’s rear orientated, that’s not too aggressive. I default to Maxxis and I’m debating a change, I need broad brush names to point me in the right direction is all. The carcass and durometer I can gauge for myself.

Managed to get out the other day and finally christen my Radial Mary/Albert combo… ??

How was the combo mboy?, any ideas on Albert weight too as Schwalbe doesn’t seem to have decided how much it weighs according to their website anyway.

Riding a mountain bike.

Yes… But… As someone who has worked in the bike industry for more than 15yrs in total, and the aforementioned brand now for more than 5… Whether you (or indeed I) like it or not, MTBing is a very different and nuanced activity depending on who you speak to. Before I can make sensible recommendations to anybody, I need to ask a handful of questions…

Hence my previous post.

Any one of Big Betty, Albert, Hans Dampf, Tacky Chan, Nobby Nic, Wicked Will and the now sadly discontinued Rock Razor, will provide a faster rolling and slightly “more slidey” experience than the Mary and be a good pairing with the Mary up front…

Your answers to my questions would help me narrow down my advice a little more concisely…

How was the combo mboy?, any ideas on Albert weight too

Initial impressions are very good. Only one ride so far so won’t wax lyrical, but spent the ride not noticing them basically, didn’t have a single slip/slide and that was with 25psi F and 28psi R compared to the 21/24 I’d usually run in non radial carcass.

Albert Gravity 29×2.5 in Soft compound was 1330g on my pretty accurate but unverified kitchen scales…

analogue

As someone who has worked in the bike industry for more than 15yrs

As a bike industry insider, I implore you to aid the fight against “analogue”! 😉

Just curious though – you work at Schwalbe? What do you do there?

Initial impressions are very good. Only one ride so far so won’t wax lyrical, but spent the ride not noticing them basically, didn’t have a single slip/slide and that was with 25psi F and 28psi R compared to the 21/24 I’d usually run in non radial carcass.

I have seen a couple of reviews saying similar, ie that they can be run at higher pressure and feel the same.

What I haven’t seen is a comparison of both tyre types at the same pressure. Maybe you (reviewers in general) could run their normal tyres 4psi higher and also not notice the difference… A blind test would also be interesting.

Just to complicate matters further, I am running a Maxxis  Forekaster with an insert ( rimpact) on the rear of my Stooge with xr4 on the front. The insert allows me to run at a lower pressure to get more grip from a lighter, easy rolling tyre.

 I need to ask a handful of questions…

I don’t know is the answer to your questions. I can work out Schwalbe’s carcass and durometer – I’ve just as much experience with tyres as you, I just don’t know how Schwalbe’s tread patterns fare in UK conditions. I know how a Forekaster or an Aggressor will go (for instance) but I don’t know what the equivalents are, and TBH, I don’t necessarily want a straight swap Maxxis for Schwalbe – there’s no point in that, as Schwalbe are generally more pricey. So, I want to try a Magic Mary, I’ve never used it, and I want to see what the fuss is all about, I want a rear oriented rear tyre that’s on the faster rolling end of the spectrum to partner it.

If you can’t suggest anything from that, don’t worry it’s cool, no one’s going to die. But also at the same time, I’ll make my own decisions based on folks telling me their experiences, I don’t need to be told “Buy this particular tyre”

OK?

I have MM up front on both my bikes. Nobby Nic out back on one, Rock Razor on the other. Have Dampf’s in stock too but only use them if I’m riding in slop as I find them too draggy at trail centres and on firm ground.

I need a proper read of this thread, got 2.4 MM f+r and there is definite drag…need a new rear tyre that has grip for climbing, braking but less drag than the MM.

IMO this is just about the hardest job for a bike tyre, it’s a really big ask and we make it worse because it’s also a matter of taste. Balance is so important here, there’s just so many tyres that you end up thinking “OK, this is a little faster but it’s much less useful” or “this is really grippy but it doesn’t slide well”, or “I like this except it’s not tough enough”. You need to get 4 different things just right to make a great rear, speed, grip, slideyness (*) and toughness/weight, and not just right but balanced against each other appropriately. Tyres get this wrong way more often than they get it right and it’s damn few that do it really well.

*For me, slidey manners are by far more important than grip or speed. It’s what makes the difference beween adequate and great, it’s what make the Rockrazor and DHR2 shine. Being able to risk sliding and trust you can steer it and recover it means you can use the whole grip rather than having to play safe, you can be braver and push more and basically when you push too far or you screw up, you’re more likely to laugh instead of shitting yourself (or of course crashing or just having to stop), and it lets you ride a tyre far beyond where it’s really happy. Rockrazor in the mud isn’t a <good> idea but I still do it because it’s a laugh, Minion SemiSlick when it’s out of its depth just basically sucked. A DHR2 without it would be average, a Kryptotal endurance with it would be awesome, it’s a gamechanger.

If it’s got to be schwalbe, I’d go Big Betty in Supergravity soft. It’s a really well balanced allround tyre, albeit hefty. The tread and compound are a really good match and it doesn’t have any real foibles. I wouldn’t buy another personally, just because of its Slidey Factor, it’s just that bit too abrupt and confidence-sapping on the edge for me, especially considering how capable it is otherwise, and that left it as just a good competent tyre and I don’t see any reason to settle for competent. (I personally haven’t got on with supertrail as a rear carcass, I find it weak in the middle, ymmv- I shouldn’t need a supergravity but it’s what worked for me) I did quite like the tacky chan too but I don’t think it gets that balance as right as the Betty, I think in the end the Betty is a better choice more of the time

But, I have a Mary ultrasoft radial on the front and a dhr2 on the back and I’m starting to think it’s the best combo I have ever had, and I do not care if a logo I can’t see doesn’t match. We’re mountain bikers, we look like dorks regardless of how matchy matchy we are.

I am coming from an XC background but now moving in a more trail direction.

I currently run a Magic Mary soft in the front with a Nobby Nic Speedgrip in the back both in 2.25.

Bearing in mind local muddy trails and various woods with roots.

People often question the width but due to the clag this time of year and some XC routes the width gives the clearance.

I have been running a Wicked Will Super Race and Nobby Nic Super Race in the summer with XC inserts and 2.4 width for comparison.

Great for trail centres and for dryer XC routes.

Running a ‘Downcountry’ Cotic Flaremax for context! Downcountry being a 120 mm Sid plugged in the front!

Regards,

Max.

But, I have a Mary ultrasoft radial on the front and a dhr2 on the back and I’m starting to think it’s the best combo I have ever had,

Why no radial on the back? Too draggy?

how about running a new MM up front, and a part worn MM at the back? Once the front wears down, move it to the back and get a new MM for the front?! It works for me and I see the drag as extra free fitness training!

I will never understand the love for Hans dampf.

julians
Free Member

Why no radial on the back? Too draggy?

It’s because they cost money and I am tight 🙂 Also I admit, I’m a wee bit worried about drag and put off by reviews saying they’re cloggier than an assegai, because I found that pretty problematic with the assegai, I’m not fast enough! But I do want to try them, the whole “radial” concept just makes a ton of sense to me and it definitely works on the front.

noeffsgiven
Free Member

I will never understand the love for Hans dampf.

Well you didn’t ask for this but… My theory is it’s because when 650b started really taking off, most tyre manufacturers were a bit left behind, there were basically no good 650b #enduro tyres available for love nor money and bikes were coming with whatever the manufacturers could get their hands on regardless of whether it was any good or even appropriate. Lots of long travel bikes came on XC carcasses or with utter shit like conti OEM-spec mountain kings. Schwalbe were the quickest on the 650b boat by far and you could actually find a Hans Dampf in the shops for sensible money. (Like, I went to a kinlochleven enduro at about that time and the shop in fort william sold out their whole stock in a day, I’ve never seen so many practically-new tyres in bins).

Also to be fair the old HD was decent when it was brand new, the big problem really was that it lost so much grip once the super-square knobs rounded off, and also that happened really fast. But first impressions last, and also leads to lots of positive early reviews.

But being the idiots that we are, we get addicted to brands and things we’ve already tried, justifying purchases and all that, and a lot of people hate risking a different purchase and just want to buy the same familiar thing, and so getting your foot in the door is really important and gives you a critical mass. Same reason dhfs still sell by the bucketload in 2024, sure some of that is on merit but mostly it’s becasue they were good in like 2007.

julians
Free Member

Why no radial on the back? Too draggy?

They cost money, mainly! Also I definitely don’t want to be pedalling around 2 radial Marys, and I’m a bit put off by reviews saying the albert’s cloggier than an assegai, because clogginess is entirely why I didn’t like the assegai, I’m not fast enough to clear ’em. But I do want to try them, the whole radial concept just makes a ton of sense to me and it definitely works on the front. I suspect it’s most impactful on the front but I want to see if that’s true. And also I am addicted to novelty and new shinies.