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Only had a brief look, but can’t find a huge amount of 29” 2.6 tyres for the 2019 Levo. Ideally a stiffer sidewall.
I'm currently running the original Maxxis Rekon+ the bike came with. I'm guessing as they aren't on the site they are now an obsolete tyre.take a look at this page from Maxxis' website. it lists their hardpack tyres
a hardpack tyre is designed to roll faster and grip well in dry conditions but often isn't designed to clear/shed mud or dig into soft conditions
Mountain Bike Tyres | Cycle Tyres | Maxxis Tyres UK
All of these tyres in dula compound will be faster rolling than your DHFs
But look at the treads and decide what you most need/want.
at one end of the spectrum you have the Pace, from the tread patern it's plain to see it'll roll fast and corner well on roads but it's not going to work well in damp wet off road mud
at the other end of the spectrum you have tyres that are more all rounderers with a low but open tread paterns and a decent cornering edge like the Ardent and Aspen
I'd put the crossmark/larsen in the middle ground with the crossmark having better wet/mud characteristics
The minion SS is a great cornering tyre all conditions (due to the DHF side knobs) but rolls eficiently in a straight line and grips well everywhere except steep peanut butter mud/wet grass. (it'll still hook up leant over in those conditions though).
One other thing to think about is your rear tyre creates most drag so running something super fast rear and something with a little more grip (tread not compound) up front can be a good combination.
Schwalbe Eddy Currents, with a Super Gravity casing ?Only had a brief look, but can’t find a huge amount of 29” 2.6 tyres for the 2019 Levo. Ideally a stiffer sidewall.
How's the grip compared to the plus tyres?I am going to say.... I hate plus size/ big tyres! My merida 160 came with maxis 2.8 on 27.5. I've swapped them to magic mary 2.35s and it's a weapon! Run about 20 - 24psi depending on where I'm riding. They roll well, which aids speed and range. And give way more feedback than big tyres. Far more predictable ride!
Yes narrower tyres dont cope as well with smaller stones and gravel. But I don't find it enough of a disadvantage to not use the narrower tyres. The advantages far outweigh the disadvantages in my eyes.How's the grip compared to the plus tyres?
My local trial has a lot of gravel which I have found deadly in the past on fast sections (on narrower tyres)
Yes narrower tyres dont cope as well with smaller stones and gravel. But I don't find it enough of a disadvantage to not use the narrower tyres. The advantages far outweigh the disadvantages in my eyes.
Bear in mind this is on a 170mm front /160mm rear travel bike.
I would say that on a 140mm bike that 2.35 might be a tad small. There's enough travel on a 160mm bike to compensate for the smaller tyre.
I personally love them, as there's no other mid point option on the market. If they made a magic mary in 2.5 orange compound I think that would be the sweet spot.
The only decent 2.6 tyres out at the moment are magic mary but they only do them in the ultra soft compound which is way too soft and heavy tyres. (I've got them on my levo at rhe moment). Or the specialized butcher grids. But I'm not sure on those.140/150mm travel for me and yes I think a 2.5/2.6 tyre would be ideal.... maybe I will try these out come replacement time.
Folk say weight and rolling resistance doesn't matter so much on an Ebike. I disagree. I think it actually matters even more.
I agree 100% I had 2.35s on my 29er levo. Then swapped back to 2.6 magic mary dh super tacky on 650b. This was the worst decision! They are awful in more ways than they are good. Rolling resistance massively affected battery life and the way the bike rode between flatter sections. And they are heavy! I'm going to swap to 2.35s and shorter crank armsI agree.
Right, now that everyone has recovered...
Wheels are the worst place to have excess weight, apart from the rider.
They are unsprung mass, effecting suspension.
They are rotating mass, effecting handling.
They are accelerated mass, effecting power usage.
I’m at the wrong end of the rider weight scale to be running super light wheels but if I wasn’t it would be the first place I looked to reduce weight.
Yesterday I rode with an emtb rider (Paul from here) for the first time. We rode the same route exactly, riding all the flat and climbs at the same pace and I used half the battery he did. (down to me not using the assist at all on the flat (off) and only really using eco on the climbs with a tiny 10sec of trail for one steeper rockstrewn section of the climb. And also due to me running much faster rolling higher durometer tyres. Later on after our ride I had a quick car park go on his bike and with the motor off it felt like pedalling through treacle. his bike also felt considerably heavier then mine (horrible to bunny hop). The main difference being our tyres.
Later the same day I took my bike to Glentress and rode 2 laps with my Emtb switched off for the entire time. (I was riding with non-ebikes). There's no way I could or would have wanted to do that with a DH racing compound or a thick heavy DH casing.
Folk say weight and rolling resistance doesn't matter so much on an Ebike. I disagree. I think it actually matters even more.
Dude, believe or not, you have answered my questions. As Like I said, I just wanted a starting point and you have done just that. Cheers ?Dude. After I left Paul I rode all afternoon at Glentress with my Ebike switched off (the battery still had the 3 bars when I switched it off) spent a good half an hour just jumping and climbed to the top twice. I don't really care about battery range, and certainly don't have battery anxiety. when the lights go out it doesn't mean the party's over
I'll try to answer your questions but I can't really offer you the specific advice you're asking for.
The tread design depends on what you can cope with and what your local terrain is. I'll happily ride my go to dry weather set-up (2.5 DHF exo DC front and 2.3 SS exo DC silkworm rear) in the wetest slippiest conditions down some of the hardest steepest trails in the country. Most people won't. I actually enjoy being a little more on the edge (not 100% in control) at times.
Most people where I ride will be scrabbling to fit shortys or Magic Marys right around this time of year. I won't. I never do.
What I run is irrelivant to you. but basically I run a DHF or DHRII up front, Semi slicks or DHFs rear.
2.5 DH casings on my DH bikes, 2.5/2.3 Exo on enduro/Eeb and 2.35/2.35 single ply on hardtails and Slopestyle bikes.
A DHRII upfront when ridden properly corners almost exactly the same as a DHF but offers massively more braking performance. They are both soe of the most predictable tyre tread designs ever created.
You almost certainly don't need a full DH casing unless you are absolutely smashing very rough/rocky DH tracks. a lighter intermediate casing and appropriate presures should suffice.
A clumsy rider can dish out more abuse. as can a heavy rider. But the solution is not to go to full DH casings. It's to ride within your limits, choose better lines and stop smashing into square edges.
There's absolutely no point in me telling you a starting point for tyre pressure as I know nothing about you, how you ride, where you ride, what you weigh, your riding style, cornering preference etc. etc.
What I can tell you is you need a sidewall to support the tread, so the thinner/lighter the casing the more pressure you need to run to support it. You're looking for a tyre pressure somewhere high enough where it will never fold or squirm and low enough it gives you the grip and comfort you're looking for. it's always a compromise and also down to personal preference. I'm not looking for ultimate grip and I'm certainly not looking for maximum comfort. Support is far more important to me.
To try and explain something to you I'll use the Minion SS semi slick as an example.
If you run a minion SS too soft in the rear looking for more straight line traction it will conform (squirm) too much and simply won't dig in properly (consistently) when you lean it over properly. ie. When you REALLY need the grip! it won't hold you! Straight line grip really isn't that important to me at all. cornering grip is.
No worries. Glad to have helped.
If we rode together it'd be easier to help out properly
Magic Marys come in 27.5 x 2.6 addix soft (orange). I know as I have oneThe only decent 2.6 tyres out at the moment are magic mary but they only do them in the ultra soft compound which is way too soft and heavy tyres. (I've got them on my levo at rhe moment). Or the specialized butcher grids. But I'm not sure on those.
The 2.35s are on my merida e160 800 which has a higher bottom bkt than the levo so I can swap to smaller tyres without having pedal strike problems.
Wish schwalbe would be 2.5s! ?
No problem But I aint payingMe too. Should we get a room?
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