Maxxis, make this now in a 2.4, or 2.5 and I will buy it. All the good of the Muddy Mary without to stupid angle on the side nobs.
Complete Guide to Downhill Rubber
- Thread starter zdubyadubya
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More like a Magic Mary...
I did not see any Maxxis Ardents, and I have been shredding on them since there inception. Awesome tires for DH/FR/AM/Trail. Here is a awesome Pro Review...
Maxxis Ardent 2.4 MTB Tire Review
Maxxis is a name in MTB tires that needs no introduction. The company has been around for over 40 years producing high quality tires for almost everything that rolls, especially mountain bikes. This time around I tested the Maxxis Ardent 2.4 (MSRP about $50) which is one of the newer, large volume tires for the freerider / trail rider.
The Ardent is categorized for aggressive trails and medium to wet conditions with an emphasis on cornering control. If you look carefully at the photo below you can see two rows of very sharp and aggressive side knobs which will really grab and hold your line through the corners. Featuring a 60 TPI casing and 60a rubber compound, these tires will take rocky abuse and should last a long time.
Installing the Ardents along with a set of the Maxxis Freeride tubes (26x 2.20- 2.50, 1.2mm thick) on my Mavic Crossmax SX rims (removing the tubeless valve stems), took very little time at all. In fact I spent more time gathering the talcum powder and necessary tools to remove the valve stem than actually installing the tires and I didn't even need a tire iron. The job took about 5 minutes per tire to dust up the tubes with powder and slip the Ardents on the rim (minding direction). Inflated the tires to 40psi and I was off.
I decided to take the tires to the 3-stages trail which is right next door to two great spots - Blue Mountain and Kolapore. 3-stages features a run that's about 1km of just winding downhill with tight and twisty turns, lots of rooted sections and rock gardens plus tight singletrack which provides a great cardio workout. Basically 3-stages is the perfect place to put these tires through their paces!
Climbing with the Ardent tires was pretty awesome, especially considering this is meant to be an all-purpose tire. The aggressive multifaceted center tread really keeps this tire going in almost any type of terrain, grappling at everything and propelling the rider forward. Even getting caught up on rooted sections going up or down didn't sway this tire's progress. Likewise, the stable casing and tread really kept this tire pointing in the desired direction without any hints of wandering. The tough casing also helped absorb the abuse of step descents without a hint of trouble even when barreling through rock gardens and rooted terrain. This tire is like a laser with exacting tire placement on demand.
The Ardents really made me feel comfortable in the corners and I quickly learned to trust them when hitting the turns hard. With tons of grip and absolutely no squirm, I never even felt the tire roll when I was threading my way through tough rock gardens.
While the Ardent tires will run comfortably on nearly any trail surface, they really shine on terrain that is slightly on the softer side of things. I found that the great traction the Ardents offer drops off a bit when hitting dry hardpack or dust over hardpack. The tire basically seems to push more when it encounters hardpack and in these conditions it gets just good traction - not great. Hitting rivers and muddy spots was a no-brainer as these tires shed the gunk and kept moving along, ready for more.
Overall I gotta say the Ardent is one of my favorite tires in this size category. They are not uber-expensive, they wear well, they're super stable, and most of all they offer tons of traction. These tires are like the stability control system on a Porsche Turbo: they make anyone look like they are as good as an F1 driver. I wouldn't hesitate in recommending these to anyone who loves to ride.
My overall impressions:
9 out of 10 for climbing
9 out of 10 for rolling and efficiency
9 out of 10 for loose conditions
9 out of 10 for cornering
9 out of 10 for stopping in a straight line
Specs from Maxxis:
Durometer 60a rubber compound
Usage: All Mountain / Freeride
Conditions: medium to wet
Size: 26 x 2.4
Weight: 855 grams
thanks to this wonderful thread, i now look at tires differently.
cheers!
cheers!
^ an EXO won't stand up to DH use where I am. Maybe you don't have rocks or pinchflats.
As a light tyre I find Schalbe Muddy Mary in freeride casing to be closer to being dh worthy than Maxxis exo stuff. Still a pinch flat risk with a tube, but I've never had any issues running them tubeless until my rims got too many dents. They'd still finish the day, but would stop holding air and I'd be pumping them up at the bottom of every run.
i was gonna buy some at a crappy LBS that has em in.. but 2.4 isnt wide enough for me.
glad to see they got good reviews though, i will keep that in mind
the schwalbe DD is the way to go if you not search the sec. !!
trust them and it works best in all conditions!
trust them and it works best in all conditions!
No one tire could ever possibly work best in all conditions.
He said All Conditions!!!!!!
I would ride it in the front in all conditions but the vert star compound will leave you after a few days of riding on rocks and hardpack so the tire will quickly become unsuitable for its intended use.
@vital: muddy mary was never a mud tyre not even a good intermediate
If you live where eater does, what he says is reasonably true - the Schwalbe DD blows away anything Maxxis makes (or made anyway) on the better European tracks.
Most good tracks there have fairly loamy soil and mud and wet roots are very common. In either of those situations the DD has tremendous grip, and unlike Maxxis mud tyres, they aren't a folding squirmy mess when they encounter dry spots.
Udi -
Please clear your Inbox! Message for you.
Please clear your Inbox! Message for you.
What about moon dust?
He said all conditions!!
Most tires work really well anything south of straight gloppy mud. You kinda gotta go out your way to design one that doesn't. In truly loamy stuff, all you really need is a tire that doesn't have wide blocky knobs (which all of maxxis do) and some sharp little guys to bite in. It ain't rocket surgery.
DHR2 anyone? Woo?
Looks pretty good to me...
Also as a front tire?
Edit: Me saw Minnaar with the DHR2 even on the front wheel. O it's obviously faster...
Looks pretty good to me...
Also as a front tire?
Edit: Me saw Minnaar with the DHR2 even on the front wheel. O it's obviously faster...
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It doesn't work that well on hardpack as a minion which should be logical.
Try it. Ive been on dhr 2s front and rear since spring. I love this tire. Even in the slop it works really well.
try the bonty g5, better than the dhr2. i thought the dhr2 was gods gift, then i realized that rock Jesus gave us the g5.
ITS Edge in 2.35, cheap, wears really well, has edge grip to spare, drifts very predictable and rolls pretty good. Have been exteremly suprised by these tires, was a all out f/r ST minion guy before but I have now found a new holy grail. Pretty crazy tire imo, not the best in mud but atleast sheds mud well so you can get some traction even in the sloppiest conditions. No way near a proper spike/cut spike/ or a dedicated mud thread but for us lazy peps you can ride it without too much problem.
Compound is a nice compromise at 50a, no knobs flying left and right after a few days riding. Personally I cant fault it one bit. Two sets have survived more than 65 hard days in Are bike park.
For doubters I can only say they are cheap enough to give a try.
Compound is a nice compromise at 50a, no knobs flying left and right after a few days riding. Personally I cant fault it one bit. Two sets have survived more than 65 hard days in Are bike park.
For doubters I can only say they are cheap enough to give a try.
hey, im still a little confused about some of their compounds.. i cant seem to get a decent answer on their site.. so can anyone tell me how soft the gooey gluey compound is? i imagine by the name that they are soft as hell.. anyone confirm?
gooey gluey is outdated for over a year I think and I wouldn't buy a tire with it. New compounds are something along the lines of pacestar, trailstar and vertstar if I'm not mistaken.
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the DD is like a MX tire wide and bite joyfully...
Spock agrees.
How joyfully?
Like popyocherry joy, or just many happy success joy?
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bite...
you guys have no word for "bissfreudig"... DE-EN
you guys have no word for "bissfreudig"... DE-EN
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Damn, I wish we did.
Sounds pretty awesome.
Sounds pretty awesome.
So after having been on maxxis for years i'm considering trying out some schwalbes for a bit. My regular combo is a 2.5 minion dhf on the front and either the same or a 2.4 high roller 2 on the rear. As for riding conditions i'd say i mostly ride conditions similar to whistler in summer, so hard pack and then some dusty trails.
So whats a good schwalbe combo? I'm thinking dirty dan or a magic mary up front? Not really sure on what to run on the rear. Also do 2.35 schwalbes come to about the same as 2.5 maxxis?
So whats a good schwalbe combo? I'm thinking dirty dan or a magic mary up front? Not really sure on what to run on the rear. Also do 2.35 schwalbes come to about the same as 2.5 maxxis?
already on the bike. the knobs seem real soft.. cant even believe what these would feel like new. theyve already got a lotta grip. oh well, i didnt pay a whole lot for em.
for dry and semi wet i give this tire a tray:
Front 3C rear 60a
Front 3C rear 60a
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i have 2.5 wicked wills on my bike, and they're freakin huge. i was told the 2.5 is actually more of a 2.7.. ive also been told that maxxis tires are the exact opposite, in terms of measurements. but ive never ran one, so i cannot verify.
ive always been told that maxxis has ran their sizing a little off (as in smaller than really advertised), although i remember reading somewhere a couple of days ago that they have now fixed this.. can anyone verify?
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thanks for that! ill have to check it out later...
right after i learn german
right after i learn german
im not sure if this is the tire you guys were getting b0ners over, but vital reivewed a bontragger tire and only gave it 4/5 stars..
http://www.vitalmtb.com/product/guide/Tires,48/Bontrager/G2,12983#product-reviews/1438
http://www.vitalmtb.com/product/guide/Tires,48/Bontrager/G2,12983#product-reviews/1438
g5 tire, not the g2
ohhh gotacha. i knew that tire size was a little small!
i looked back a few pages and remembered it being there, but couldnt find anything =/
i looked back a few pages and remembered it being there, but couldnt find anything =/
after a weekend with the DHR2 front and rear i was not so happy.. feel not happy on the bike in front..
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