All Mountain Tyres

[tasty.dirt74]

Had anyone tried the Rock Razor yet?
Curious to see how they go, but don't wanna drop the $100 without hearing some real world experience first..

I tested a Trance 650 with the Rock Razor on the rear(as you would expect !). It was set up with a tube:faint2: in it. I ran it at about 30-32psi.

The trails were dry, clay based in Cairns, and dry,loose with a layer of pebble/deco granite(?) maybe..(see flows vid on Atherton to see the trails).

For a tyre with minimal tread in the centre and large side knobs, it rolled well, as to be expected, and gripped quite well once leant over. Imagine a Racing Ralph type grip and rolling resistance(I have used a RR on the rear of my Enduro, and on the front and rear of my hardtail 29er, fyi), with the cornering of a Nobby Nic(used on said Enduro F & R, but only performance compound). Loose, off camber and the R Razor lost grip quickly if upright, but this could be rectified if laid over(committed).

These type of tyres are fine for JRA scenarios, but when riding on the edge, I think they are not really suitable.. A more aggressive combo, to use Schwalbe tyres would be a HD front and a NN rear.. All other brands will have the same type of tyre..Aggressive front and lighter rear..It depends on your interpretation of what Aggressive/Light is! Minion DHF would be a alternative on the front, Larsen rear as a example..Conti Rubber Queen front, and Mountain King Rear could be a option..

Endless possibilities :thumb:

 

[Ev]

I tested a Trance 650 with the Rock Razor on the rear(as you would expect !). It was set up with a tube:faint2: in it. I ran it at about 30-32psi.

The trails were dry, clay based in Cairns, and dry,loose with a layer of pebble/deco granite(?) maybe..(see flows vid on Atherton to see the trails).

For a tyre with minimal tread in the centre and large side knobs, it rolled well, as to be expected, and gripped quite well once leant over. Imagine a Racing Ralph type grip and rolling resistance(I have used a RR on the rear of my Enduro, and on the front and rear of my hardtail 29er, fyi), with the cornering of a Nobby Nic(used on said Enduro F & R, but only performance compound). Loose, off camber and the R Razor lost grip quickly if upright, but this could be rectified if laid over(committed).

These type of tyres are fine for JRA scenarios, but when riding on the edge, I think they are not really suitable.. A more aggressive combo, to use Schwalbe tyres would be a HD front and a NN rear.. All other brands will have the same type of tyre..Aggressive front and lighter rear..It depends on your interpretation of what Aggressive/Light is! Minion DHF would be a alternative on the front, Larsen rear as a example..Conti Rubber Queen front, and Mountain King Rear could be a option..

Endless possibilities :thumb:

Thanks for the run down. Sounds like it might be a goer.
I've used racing Ralph rear for a while now, with both Hans dampf and nobby nic up front. Like the fast rolling nature but would like a little more cornering bite.

Tried nobby nic rear and hated it, felt very vague and really average traction in all conditions.

Strangely, also tried rubber queen front, and found it also had a very vague nature unless the trail was sticky/tacky.

Loving the racing Ralph rear, but as I said would like a larger tyre and better cornering so rock razor sounds like it.

 

[markb84]

Had anyone tried the Rock Razor yet?
Curious to see how they go, but don't wanna drop the $100 without hearing some real world experience first..

I'm using it as a rear with the Magic Mary up front. Love the performance of the tyre, changed from a Hans Dampf for summer, wanted something that rolled better. I have had an incident with it flatting though, fairly large hole caused by burping over a rock garden. Fixable but annoying. Think i'd go for the super gravity instead of snakeskin, I don't care about weight when reliability is in question.

I'd never consider this a front tyre. Pretty sure Schwalbe wouldn't intend it to be used as such either.

Do you have experience with Fat Albert or Hans Dampf and how they compare to Magic Mary? I am planning on putting a Supergravity Magic Mary on the front wheel soon. Cheers.

Not run the Dampf as a front but it's a great rear. Extremely good grip, ver predictable. I think the braking performance of the Magic Mary is better though, probably roll about the same. I virtually never (touch wood) have front wheel issues with burping and flatting compared to rear wheel so I opted for the snakeskin and unlike my rear I feel happy with that choice.

 

[Mywifesirrational]

Had anyone tried the Rock Razor yet?
Curious to see how they go, but don't wanna drop the $100 without hearing some real world experience first..

Just bough a couple from bike discount.de, worked out at $60 delivered and took one week to get here.

Haven't tried them yet, one of the guys I am riding with is loving it on the rear.

 

[F-Bomb]

Not run the Dampf as a front but it's a great rear. Extremely good grip, very predictable. I think the braking performance of the Magic Mary is better though, probably roll about the same. I virtually never (touch wood) have front wheel issues with burping and flatting compared to rear wheel so I opted for the snakeskin and unlike my rear I feel happy with that choice.

Thanks. Good point about Supergravity on the rear but only Snakeskin in the front. Considering my history, I think that would work for me as well.

 

[driftmonkey]

In response to the guys asking about the rock razor as a rear. It dose roll very well and is quite predictable however the life on it is rubbish. I got one on my trance sx and after two months of use, about 300km it is trashed. Set up tubless it won't keep sealant in it for more than 2 weeks, it's always showing signs seeping fluid out of the casing and I can't seem to find the small holes on the inside to patch up. It's a really good tyre just doesn't have any longevity. Going to trye the maxxis ardent race next on the rear.

The HD on the front however, haven't had to look at it since I've had it. Rock solid on the front very minimal signs of wear and no leaking so far. Both the tyres are snake skin and pace star

 

[Nerdbox]

Now running HD Evo Trailstar Front and HD Evo Pacestar Rear.

Got sick of the NN Snakeskin Rear....it's just too lightweight...too fragile / burpy / squirmy.

Happy to carry the extra 200g.

 

[Warp]

Is it too crazy to run a normal Ardent 2.25" and a 2.2" Ardent Race? How is the grip on the normal 60 duro Ardent compared to the Maxxspeed Ardent Race?


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[JoelFitz]

I'm thinking my next combo will just be HD trailstar front and rear.

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[Ezkaton]

Howdy, I guess based on what tyres I'm looking at, this thread seems most suited.

I know Lysterfield isn't AM, but mostly XC... although some of it is pretty rough, I was there on the weekend and it's currently very dusty/sandy over hardpack.

My Nobby Nics were struggling to keep grip on the front end through almost all of the corners at speed, and even caused me to slip over the top of 3 different berms, resulting in crashes.
Thankfully they were the "roll off the bike and into the dirt/grass" type crash, where you can have a laugh, dust yourself off and keep going.

I have been looking at maybe sticking a 2.35 Hans Dampf on the front, as I'm reading a lot of good things about it.
I can't seem to find a 2.25 Hans Dampf for the rear, as I'm not sure a 2.35 will fit my frame too well back there (Giant Trance '12, 26") as I've read the HD blows up quite big.

Anyway, I was thinking maybe keeping a 2.25 Nic on the rear, and putting a 2.35 Dampf on the front.

Has anyone here ran, or are running with this combo currently?
Any experiences with sand over hardpack using a this combo, or even dual Dampf?

All other conditions with my Nics has been fine, but they just don't hold up well when the top surface is loose sand or dirt!

Don't really want to read through 60 pages to find an answer!

 

[DeBloot]

Is it too crazy to run a normal Ardent 2.25" and a 2.2" Ardent Race? How is the grip on the normal 60 duro Ardent compared to the Maxxspeed Ardent Race?

A friend gave me a worn regular Ardent 2.25 and I used it on the rear with a Nevegal up front
i really liked the grip and so I went to buy another (online)

The ardent race was the only one available and as it was tubeless specific - even better
Well, it's good if you like getting loose in the tail, but not so good if you like grip
it's like a kiddies version - all the lugs are shrunk and not as tall
I'm looking at taking it off and selling it

Don't get me wrong - it's a good tyre
if you like light and loose - great
If you like heavier and grippier - go the regular or something else

 

[DJR]

Don't get me wrong - it's a good tyre
if you like light and loose - great
If you like heavier and grippier - go the regular or something else

It's such a different tyre I wonder why they call it Ardent at all - it's more like the Ikon with slightly different profile

I have just taken my Ardent race off the rear as it had a couple of slashes in it that prevented me running tubeless on my new flow ex rims without lots of trial and error.

So I have put a Minion DHR II Exo TR 3C 2.3", running tubeless.

Way more rolling resistance, but I don't care. The rear no longer slips about like the Race did and it just digs in and goes. And it just grips and grips up hills in or out of the saddle. Definitely felt faster and could brake shorter

Might even swap the DHR II to the front and put the highroller II up the back

If you don't mind a bit of rolling resistance it's a good combo!

 

[DJR]

My Nobby Nics were struggling to keep grip on the front end through almost all of the corners at speed, and even caused me to slip over the top of 3 different berms, resulting in crashes.

Has anyone here ran, or are running with this combo currently?
Any experiences with sand over hardpack using a this combo, or even dual Dampf?

All other conditions with my Nics has been fine, but they just don't hold up well when the top surface is loose sand or dirt!

Don't really want to read through 60 pages to find an answer!

I had the same grip limit problem with the NN's that came stock on the Trance. For loose over hardpack and general conditions, and I prefer Maxxis generally plus you get them cheaper, would go an EXO Ardent in 2.2 to 2.4 width, Ignitor or even a Highroller II up the front. I thought the problem with the NN's was the sidewalls, they flex over, the knobs flex, the tyre does nothing.

for the rear keep the NN going and see how you go, can always change that to something else later e.g. ardent, ardent race, crossmark or ikon assuming you don't want a big fat chunky tyre up the back

When you wash out a couple of times it's not something you want to repeat....

also at the risk of snakebites you could try dropping the pressure in your tyres a bit, more contact patch area in sand is a good thing

 

[bell.cameron]

I tried the NN on the front for the first time about a year ago and found them to be terrible. I previously had a commuter tyre on and they were washing out around corners that i had never had a problem with before on a semislick tyre.

 

[g-fish]

How are people loving (dealing with) all this 800g+ heavy 2.35" rubber that they are riding around on with their AM/GE bikes....

Few pages back, but +1

I'm always chasing the lightest tires I can get away with. Anything over 700g and it's got to be pretty damn good.

Running onza ibex/canis skinwall tires at the moment, which have been a great, slightly drifty but very predictable combo. Heavyish though. Skinwalls make it worth it though.

About to throw on 2.1 rocket ron/2.1 thunder Burt for some xc racing. It will be interesting to see the change in rolling resistance vs grip.

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[PhillipJ]

My Nobby Nics were struggling to keep grip on the front end through almost all of the corners at speed, and even caused me to slip over the top of 3 different berms, resulting in crashes.
Thankfully they were the "roll off the bike and into the dirt/grass" type crash, where you can have a laugh, dust yourself off and keep going.

From your avatar pic it looks like you've got a 2012 Trance X3, if that's right then it came with the "performance" Nobby Nics which are single compound rubber and not as good as the "Evo" Pacestar and no where near as sticky as the Trailstar tyres.

I replace the front on my Trance with a Pacestar Hans Dampf, didn't want to go Trailstar because I'd heard bad things about durability of the softer tread. It's holding up very well for Brisbane riding with pretty similar roots/rocks/loose over hard to what you'd find at Lysterfield. Well enough that when I buy another it'll be a Trailstar version.

I was running the OEM Nic on the back but it didn't last that long. I have a 2.25 Ardent on the back now which seems to be holding up better and grips better on loose over hard climbs too.

Even if you could fit a Hans Dampf at the back with adequate mud clearance I wouldn't do it. I've never been short of grip at the back and I wouldn't want to be hauling two tyres that size up any hills.

 

[Mywifesirrational]

Been running a NN on the rear for a year now, been an excellent all round tyre, BUT... it doesn't like to be pushed hard, when it brakes away it doesn't come back as I have found out a few times on fast sweeping corners.

Put on a rockrazor first ride yesterday, it's a freakn awesome tyre, perfect mix between rolling well and cornering hard. It was the SG carcass so it weighs 50% more than the NN, but it didn't squirm, confidence inspiring and now problems with the front tyre are a little more obvious as I am going harder through the corners.

Bike-discount.de around 60au... ordering another one and a magic mary or two.

Ride at youies, perfect rear for there.

 

[markb84]

so, I've now had more time on the new Schwalbe set.

Magic Mary up front; cannot praise it highly enough, fantastic grip, predictable handling, amazing braking.

Rock Razor behind; great rolling, great predictable cornering, reasonable braking. HOWEVER, utter crap tread life, completely useless strength. So far I've had two tubeless flats, the second of which left the sidewall unable to seal up tubeless again. I had to swap over to tubes, now I've had 2 pinch flats since running tubes. Over it, this no longer has a place on my bike, I should have gone for the super gravity version but figured that the snakeskin should hold up to most basic riding. Very disappointed.

 

[johnny]

I recently had a 'tubeless pinch flat' on my Bontrager XR3 team that couldn't be sealed with Stans. Tyre came OEM so I didn't pay $70 for it. Would have been real pissed if I had though. Have a tube in there now and a Minion DHR TR EXO to replace it when the tread runs out.

 

[jackass'd]

Had my first ride on the weekend with Maxxis DHR II exo TR 3C 2.3 (what a mouth full!) on the rear (coming from a Highroller II 2.4) and the difference was night and day for me. The transition from centre knobs to side blocks was so so much smoother and less sketchy. Still running the high roller II 2.4 on the front though