Pacific Northwest Winter 2015 Tire Comparison Test 2: 2015 Nobby Nic, Mountain King II, Trail King, Vigilante/Trail Boss, Magic Mary & Hans Dampf REVIEWED

1.  Continental Mountain King II 27.5” x 2.2 ProTection, Black Chili compound, Front & Rear

2.  Continental Trail King 27.5” x 2.2 ProTection Apex, Black Chili compound, Front & Rear

3.  WTB Vigilante 2.3 27.5” TCS Light, Fast Rolling Compound: Front
    WTB Trail Boss 2.25 27.5” TCS Light, Fast Rolling Compound: Rear

4.  Schwalbe Magic Mary: 2.35 Trailstar compound, Snakeskin casing: Front
    Schwalbe Hans Dampf:  2.25 Rear, Pacestar compound, Snakeskin casing: Rear

5.  Schwalbe Hans Dampf: 2.25 Pacestar compound, Snakeskin casing: Front
    Schwalbe Nobby Nic:  2.25 Rear, Pacestar compound, Snakeskin casing: Rear

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The cheapest fix to improve your bike's cornering ability and climbing efficiency

After running 9 tires through our recent comparison tests, I have been quite surprised to see how much tires can improve cornering ability and climbing efficiency.

Climbing Efficiency: The best rolling tires made a bike feel several pounds lighter.  Some tires literally would stop rolling without pedaling, while the best rolling tires seemed to continue rolling on their own as if they had an electric motor attached.

Cornering Ability: Finding tires with cornering grip was not a difficult task.  Combining that cornering grip with good steering feel to be able to make the most of that grip was less common.  The best front and rear tires that we found for cornering combined both good levels of cornering traction as well as constant communication of trail conditions and available grip.  Different tires could make the same bike change from handling like a monster truck to feeling like a sports car.

Good tires aren't cheap, but if you've spent good money on your bike, cutting corners on poor tires is penny-wise, pound foolish.  Tires can make more of a difference on how your bike handles than almost any other upgrade you can do to your bike.

What carbon wheels don't do...

There's a lot of hype out there about carbon fiber wheels.  As we do with the other products , we're here to tell you what carbon fiber wheels can do for you and what they won't do.

WHAT WON'T CARBON FIBER WHEELS DO?

1. Improve your climbing/Reduce weight on your bike:  Well, carbon fiber wheels will help you reduce some weight but not nearly as much as you might imagine.  This is a weight comparison between a set of Stans Arch EX wheels and a set of Enve M60 wheels. (Weight of the Stans Arch wheel have been adjusted to factor in the lighter weight of the DT240 hubs & heavier weight of the SLX cassette used on the Enve wheelset)

Stans Arch EX 27.5"/DT350 hubs/Hans Dampf tire (f), Nobby Nic (2015) tire (r), XT cassette:

F: 1860 g  (adjusted weight is 1850g accounting for a 10g lower weight for a DT240 vs a DT 350 hub)

R: 2220g  (adjusted weight is 2190g accounting for a 60g lower weight for a DT240 vs a DT 350 hub, and a 30g higher weight of a SLX cassette vs an XT cassette)

Enve M60 27.5"/DT240 hubs/Hans Dampf tire (f), Nobby Nic (2015) tire (r), SLX cassette

F: 1750g

R: 2130g

Weight Reduction for the Enve wheelset vs the Stans Arch EX wheelset:

Front: 100 grams

Rear: 90 grams

Total: 190 grams (or 0.4 lbs)

0.4 lbs is not insubstantial, but not is a huge difference from a relatively light all-mountain wheelset using the Stans Arch EX

2. Be more comfortable than aluminum rims:  The Enves are stiff!  You'll realize how much compliance a standard aluminum rim provides you after you ride a carbon fiber rim.

WHAT WILL CARBON FIBER WHEELS DO?

Carbon fiber wheels have some specific benefits that may fully justify their price:

1. Carbon fiber wheels improve steering and control:   With the move to thicker head tubes, beefier headsets & stouter fork legs, the wheel has become the weak link in terms of flexibility.  Moving from an aluminum rim such as the Stans Arch EX to the Enves results in a greatly improved sense of control and connection to the tires.  The amount of communication that you are receiving about what your tires are doing is greatly enhanced by the lateral rigidity of a carbon fiber wheel.  For aggressive and/or big riders, carbon fiber wheels can add an additional margin of security and control.

2. Carbon fiber wheels are tougher:  With their stiffness and strength, quality carbon fiber rims can add an degree of indestructability over a aluminum rim.

So, are carbon fiber wheels worth their price?  For aggressive riders, the amount of increased steering control that carbon fiber can provide may be an excellent reason to do a wheel upgrade.  For lighter and less aggressive descenders, the value of carbon fiber wheels is less clear.

Dirt Merchant Bikes can help you make the decision as to whether carbon fiber wheels are right for you.  We currently have a pair of Enve M60 wheels available for demo and are in the process of getting additional brands of carbon fiber wheels to add to our demo fleet to allow comparison of different brands and rim widths.  The cost of wheel demos can be applied to a carbon fiber wheel purchase.  Check out our demo options at:  http://www.dirtmerchantbikes.com/demos/

Tire Cornering Grip: Absolute Traction vs Usable Traction

Dirt Merchant Bikes has recently started our series of tire comparison tests for our Pacific Northwest winter conditions.  One insight that I had from the tests is that Usable Traction (which I will define shortly) is more important than the amount of Absolute Traction that a tire has. I am defining Usable Traction as the amount of traction that is accessible to riders of average skill levels based on how well riders are able to anticipate a tire's traction limits.  One of the tires in the first test has a strong reputation for being a good cornering tire.  However, another tire with perhaps slight lower absolute cornering traction was unaminously preferred by testers for cornering ability.  The key factor driving this perception was how well this tire communicated the limits of its cornering traction and the amount of available traction.  For most riders, I think that how precisely a tire communicates when it is going to break away may be more important than its absolute traction limits.  Your thoughts?

Check out the results of our first tire comparison test at:  http://www.dirtmerchantbikes.com/special-events/2014/11/20/tire-comparison-test-report-2015-nobby-nic-high-roller-ii-neo-moto-hans-dampf

Our upcoming tire comparison test will include the following tire combinations:

1. Hans Dampf 2.25 (front)/Nobby Nic 2.25 (rear) – This combination balances the traction of the Hans Dampf as a front tire with a faster rolling Nobby Nic as the rear tire.
2. Magic Mary 2.35 (front)/Hans Dampf 2.25(rear) – The Magic Mary is the highest traction tire in the Schwalbe lineup short of a full-on downhill tire.
3. WTB Vigilante 2.3 (front)/ WTB Trail Boss 2.3 (rear)
4. Continental Trail King 2.2 Protection Apex - front & rear – The Trail King is similar in concept to the Hans Dampf.
5. Continental Mountain King II 2.2 Protection - front & rear:  The Mountain King is similar in concept to the Nobby Nic.

Like our Facebook page to get notification when our second tire comparison test is published in several weeks:  https://www.facebook.com/dirtmerchantbikes

Pacific Northwest Winter 2015 Tire Comparison Test 1: 2015 Nobby Nic, High Roller II, Neo-Moto & Hans Dampf REVIEWED

Four tire combinations were tested in Seattle winter conditions by product testers riding either a Turner Flux (120mm rear travel) or a Turner Burner (140mm rear travel).  The tires tested were:

  1. Maxxis High Roller 27.5" x 2.3 Front & Rear, 3C compound/EXO - Front & Rear
  2. Panaracer Neo-Moto 27.5" x 2.3 - Front & Rear
  3. Schwalbe Hans Dampf: 27.5" x 2.25 Front & Rear, Pacestar/Snakeskin - Front & Rear
  4. Schwalbe Nobby Nic:  27.5" x 2.35 Front, 2.25 Rear, Pacestar/Snakeskin
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Seeking Feedback on Tire Comparison Test Rating Factors & Weighting of Rating Factors

I am seeking feedback on the following factors that will be used to rate tires in the upcoming Dirt Merchant Bikes winter tire comparison test.  Please add your comments by adding and posting your comments in the Comments field below this blog post.

The draft list of factors that I am proposing to rate & review tires is:

Weight:

Claimed:
Actual:

Tire Ratings & Comments:

Rating Guide
5 stars - Absolutely outstanding
4 stars
3 stars - Solid performance, meets expectations
2 stars
1 star - Misses expectations by a wide margin

Tire Rating (as a Front Tire):
Cornering Grip:  3 stars

Comments

Steering Feel:  3 stars

Comments

Handling:  3 stars

Comments

Braking:  3 stars

Comments

Tire Rating (as a Rear Tire):

Rolling Resistance:  3 stars

Comments

Climbing Traction:  3 stars

Comments

Cornering Grip:  3 stars

Comments

Handling: 3 stars

Comments

Braking:  3 stars

Comments

Overall Rating (as a Front Tire & as a Rear Tire):

Front Tire:   I have two alternative proposals for calculating the summary rating as a front tire

  1. Even weight placed on all 4 front tire rating factors (Cornering Grip, Steering Feel, Handling, Braking)
  2. Emphasis placed on specific factors.  This might look like 35% Cornering Grip, 35% Braking, 20% Steering Feel, 10% Handling)

Rear Tire: I have two alternative proposals for calculating the summary rating as a front tire

  1. Even weight placed on all 4 front tire rating factors (Climbing Traction, Cornering Grip, Handling, Braking)
  2. Emphasis placed on specific factors.  This might look like 50% Climbing Traction, 20% Braking, 20% Cornering Grip, 10% Handling)

 

Any thoughts on the rating system based on your riding style?

Seeking Product Testers for Dirt Merchant Bikes

What're the best tires for PNW trails? Help us  find out!

Dirt Merchant Bikes is seeking Product Testers for our upcoming PNW Winter Tire Test!

Dirt Merchant Bikes is looking to develop standard recommendations for tire combinations for winter riding in the Seattle area. Tire testers will ride our fleet of Turner demo bikes. The tires that we are planning to include in our first comparison test are:

Schwalbe Hans Dampf
Schwalbe Nobby Nic
Panaracer Neo-Moto
Vredestein Bobcat
Maxxis High Roller II

If you are interested in participating in this tire comparison test or future product tests, please sign up for Dirt Merchant's e-mail list at:

http://www.dirtmerchantbikes.com/sign-up-to-be-a-product-tester/

Our first two Turner demo bikes are built up and ready to ride!

We now have a large Burner and a large Flux built up and ready to ride! We will schedule our Free Demo Day once we have all of the demo bikes built and tested.  If you are interested in doing a demo of the large Burner or the large Flux before our Free Demo Day, we can schedule an appointment for a demo.  Please contact us at jeff@dirtmerchantbikes.com to arrange a demo appointment.  You will have more time on the demo bike with an appointment than at the Free Demo Day.  The Demo Cost will be $35. 

Turner Burner in Large (front) & Flux in Large (back)

Turner Burner in Large (front) & Flux in Large (back)

The picture above shows both bikes on our new Scorpion stands.  In addition to being the most unique looking bike stand available, the Scorpion stands hold up your bike's rear wheel allowing it to be used as a portable repair stand.  Get more details on the Scorpion stands at http://scorpionbikestands.com/ and buy one from us at http://www.dirtmerchantbikes.com/other-products/scorpion-bike-stands.

 

Carbon or Aluminum for Full Suspension Bikes

The marketers have already won over many of us that carbon fiber must be the better material for bike frames.  But...how many of you have actually tested this assumption.  The benefits of carbon fiber are undeniable in theory.  Carbon fiber offers the same strength as an aluminum bike at less weight.  Carbon fiber offers, at least in theory, more tunable ride characteristics.

I did a subjective test at the Interbike Dirt Demo of how carbon fiber suspension bike frames feel versus aluminum frames.  I rode several bikes that were similar in intent and suspension travel.  The first test subject was the Specialized Stumpjumper EVO in carbon which honestly did not feel great at either climbing or descending.  I also had a chance to ride both the Devinci Troy in both carbon and aluminum back-to-back.  As I expected, the aluminum Troy felt more sluggish than the carbon Troy.  Case closed, right?  Not so fast.  The last bike of the day was the Transition Patrol in aluminum.  Carbon fiber or no carbon fiber, the aluminum Transition Patrol was one of the best riding and best feeling bikes that I rode at Dirt Demo.

Two lessons learned from this year's Dirt Demo:

1. You can't generalize as to how carbon or aluminum will feel.  Geometry and ride tuning are factors that will likely be more important than frame material in affecting how a bike rides.

2. I need to spend two days at Dirt Demo to answer any questions that come up for me on the first day & answer any questions/requests from all of you! 

Thoughts on carbon vs aluminum?