DH tyres

[Anna85]

Hi All,
A friend of mine has (permanently) lent me their DH Glory. It needs new tyres. + some rims. Can anyone recommend the type of tyres i should get? I am in adelaide - so most of the tracks are rather rocky and sometimes a little rooty, but im not just a fair weather rider either. Is there anything you would recommend?
cheers

 

[drivebytrucker]

continental der kaiser, or specialized butcher, both very very grippy and great all round dh tyres. they both hold up quite well in the wet too but for full on monsoonal conditions you would need wet spec tyres.

whatch out they are both quite pricey at $100 each ish.

 

[T-Rex]

One of the bike shops which has a tent at the Nats the other weekend (?Maybe Anaconda?) was selling super tacky Minions for $40 each. Not sure if that's their normal price or a special for the Nats, but it's a good price. And the Minions worked well at Eagle, as they do generally in dry Australian conditions. If you want a tyre that clears mud a little better than a Minion, try a High Roller. But really, how much wet riding do you do in Adelaide?

As for your rims, what have you got now and whats wrong with them that you think they need replacing?

 

[SpecialFx]

ill go for maxxis minion DH F+R,, or highroller,,

 

[AshR]

I'm in Vic, so slightly different grounds to run on, but I run a Maxxis Ardent Front 2.60 then a Front Minion on the rear 2.35.

The Ardent has a really good side tread pattern for gripping into dirt etc (is more open than the Minion) and the Minion Front on the rear of the bike has good rolling and corners pretty well too

Best bet is to have a chat to your LBS who stock/ ride dh bikes in the area and they can probably tell you what'll work best on what surfaces.

 

[oldstinky75]

Minions all the way, whether it's a front on the rear or not, they're the business. The only thing you need to consider is the compound and then you're sorted.

 

[burnside97]

i like the minion F on the front and a highroller on the rear. highroller doesnt last as long but they are awsome under brakes

 

[luke240z]

Minion Fronts on front & rear work really well. As stinky said the compound makes a huge difference on traction and longevity. I'm running 40a front & rear now and they stick like glue but I don't see them being round for long. The next set will be a 42a for the front and a 60a for the rear for better rolling resistance. There is a 3C which is a triple compound but they aren't cheap. They have a firmer compound through the centre of the tyre and softer on the edges.

 

[driftking]

Minion dh front on the F+R seem to be the way to go.
I currently run michelin front and highroller rear, but will be jumping on the minion wagon most probably.Another tire I will be highly considering is the new hillbilly from specialized, the tire was desinged with sam hill and is essentially a already cut down mud tire designed for dry conditions. Im not sure what compounds they offer at the current moment or if you can even buy them yet but they sound like a very promising tire.

"Working along side Sam Hill and his mechanic Jacy, Specialized added this new tire to the line up as a dry conditions, spike tire. The reasoning behind this is that a fair amount of World Cup level riders were spending time cutting down mud tires, as a lot of courses feature loose, wet dirt mixed in with mud. The full size spike tires were providing too much rolling resistance, so after some research, development, and designing, Specialized came up with the Hillbilly, a pre-cut down, dry spike tire designed to do one thing, shred loam!"-pinkbike

link:
http://www.pinkbike.com/news/specialized-hillbilly-tires-2010.html

You said you needed new rims, although I dont run tubeless and at times it seems like a effort to set them up, They seem well worth the trouble and the pros out weigh the cons.
I would deffinatly suggest running tubeless. Great set of rims are mavic 823s, last time I checked you could grab a pair of 823's laced to hope pro II for around $500aud from CRC, not sure what it will cost all up if there is import tax but should work out quite cheap. I do encourage buying here in AUS and there are many stores who will try to match the price or get as close as possible. I would rather spend an extra 10-15% and get them here, be less hassel and your supporting aus racing/stores.

 

[chilliscool]

+1 for minions, or otherwise i would recommend the kenda nevegals, ive never had any trouble with those and have ridden plenty of rocky trails