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The smallest doses can have a big effect. Just as the active ingredient sildenafil, better known as Viagra, sweetens the love life of men with weak potency, the perfect tyre formula has a similarly strong effect on the mountain biking experience. In the right composition, raw materials such as rubber, carbon black, silica or chalk merge to create extremely fast or particularly grippy rubber compounds. Coupled with the perfect structuring of the surface, tyres can drastically increase performance. A kind of sexual enhancer for off-road riding.
To find out which of the 18 tyres (nine tyre combinations) has what it takes to take riding fun to the next level, all candidates have to prove themselves in the lab and on the trail. To ensure maximum equality of opportunity, we ordered what we considered to be the best tyres for all-mountain use from all the manufacturers in the test. This limits the range of use to alpine trails or demanding tours in the low mountain ranges. Gondola support uphill is rarely available here. Good rolling behaviour is therefore just as much a part of the successful overall concept as grip and puncture protection. In order to meet these requirements for fullys with 150 to 160 millimetres of suspension travel, all manufacturers send mixed tyres into the race. From generous negative tread to sharp-edged lugs and softer rubber compounds, the companies give their all to give the front wheel better guidance and maximum grip. To keep the sweat to a minimum on long climbs, the rear tyre rolls better than the front on almost all candidates thanks to a lower profile or harder rubber.
Exception Schwalbe: The Reichshofen-based company relies on the same tread design at the rear and front with the Nobby Nic. Only the softer Addix Soft compound provides more traction on the front tyre. Nevertheless, the industry giant takes the lead in terms of rolling resistance. The Nobby Nic with the harder Speedgrip compound consumes just 18 watts on the test bench. The front tyre achieves similarly good values. The double from Onza is just behind with its combination and also builds the lightest tyre in the test with the 823 gram Porcupine. However, although the other participants follow the same approach with mixed tyres, the differences in rolling resistance are surprisingly large. At 49.2 watts, the Kenda Hellkat is the heaviest tyre and rolls more than twice as slowly as the top contenders. Specialized and WTB are also above the 40 watt mark with their front tyres.
And the practical test? The coarse-toothed models from Kenda, Specialized and WTB really puff up on the rims. On the front tyres in particular, high lugs and a lot of negative tread raise high hopes for an impressive grip experience. From a purely visual point of view, we also put the deeply cratered treads of Maxxis and Continental in this league. After numerous laps on our test track, we can say: Kenda and Maxxis deliver what their tread pattern promises. Pure traction and cornering grip at its best. These tyres make all-mountain bikes suitable for enduro use. In addition, the Kenda Hellkat makes up for its extremely high weight with excellent puncture protection. Specialized is close behind in terms of handling. After the initially high expectations of Continental and WTB, however, disillusionment quickly sets in off-road.
Why is that? Open tread, thick lugs, all this actually speaks for grip en masse. But as we have already shown in the first part of the tyre test (BIKE 8/22) have recognised in the down-country models, the rubber compound is the main factor determining the performance of a tyre. The Kryptotal comes with Conti's hardest endurance compound. Despite the strong tread, this only gives it moderate points on hard terrain. On the other hand, the tyre is one of the best in terms of rolling behaviour.
However, the Sildenafil generic for all-mountain bikes is clearly Onza after the practical showdown. Whether in the wet, on deep terrain, under braking or when accelerating
Whether in the wet, on deep terrain, when braking or when accelerating - the pairing of Ibex and Porcupine delivers a consistently high level of grip. Paired with first-class rolling behaviour, the all-round duo brings out the best in every all-mountain.
Conclusion from Max Fuchs, BIKE test editor:
The differences in weight, rolling behaviour and off-road performance are enormous. It is hard to believe that the manufacturers have all designed their tyres for the same area of use. While the bulky models on an all-mountain bike tend to provide enduro flair, the light and easy-rolling tyres equip the same bike for sporty tours. The models from Maxxis and Onza are the best at balancing rolling resistance and first-class riding characteristics.
We tested these 9 tyre combinations:
- Continental Kryptotal FR / Cryptotal RE
- Kenda Hellkat / Pinner
- Maxxis Shorty / Dissector
- Michelin Wild AM2 / Force AM2
- Onza Ibex / Porcupine
- Schwalbe Nobby Nic (front and rear)
- Specialised Butcher / Purgatory
- Vee TireCo. Snap / Crown
- WTB Vigilante / Trail Boss
More articles on the subject of MTB tyres:
Stefan Frey
Editor
