I'm trying to decide on some tyres to cope with the claggy conditions that are now upon us.
I'm looking for a rear tyre to go on a 45mm wtb scraper, any recommendations of tyres that'll cope with the sticky clay over chalk we get here in east yorks would be greatly appreciated.

My research has brought up these, any opinions?:
Maxxis Beaver 27.5 X 2.00 https://www.bikeinn.com/bike/-maxxis-be ... 35926640/p
Continental Mountain King 27.5 X 2.20 II http://www.chainreactioncycles.com/cont ... -prod83001
Schwalbe Nobby Nic 27.5 X 2.35 https://www.merlincycles.com/schwalbe-n ... 81511.html

But none of those listed are plus

Bearbonesnorm wrote:But none of those listed are plus

no, yeah, um, good point........
what I should've stated is that My 2.8" tyres pick up so much clay that the chain ends up scraping it off, so it's a 27.5" tyre that'll work on a 45mm rim and cope with claggy clay that I'm really after.

NOT chronicles.
maxxis wet scream 2.5 is a big volume tyre.

I was looking at an online review same thing yesterday but now cant find it.
The best rated winter tyre was eThirteen TRS Race at an eye watering £71.95 each.
Second was Maxxis HR2.

I get to ride in really heavy clay, go as skinny as you can on the tyres to maximise clearance. I find Nics and Ardents good for general use but the tread doesn't make much difference as it's pretty much a slick after it's clogged with mud.

The answer for me has been a rigid singlespeed. I do a lot of riding with wifey who refuses to buy a second bike, so lots of waiting around while she pokes mud out from around the fork brace and gears. I just keep rolling. At the moment I've got 2.2 Nics but a 2.0 would be better (a 1.5 would be ideal unless there's big stuff like rocks to bump into). I'm riding a SIR9 I picked up on Ebay a few years ago and really couldn't care less about the paint, it's heavily worn around the chain and seat stays where the clay rubs. There's always Charge Cookers and Cannondales for sensible money on Ebay.

Pirahna wrote:I get to ride in really heavy clay, go as skinny as you can on the tyres to maximise clearance. I find Nics and Ardents good for general use but the tread doesn't make much difference as it's pretty much a slick after it's clogged with mud.

The answer for me has been a rigid singlespeed. I do a lot of riding with wifey who refuses to buy a second bike, so lots of waiting around while she pokes mud out from around the fork brace and gears. I just keep rolling. At the moment I've got 2.2 Nics but a 2.0 would be better (a 1.5 would be ideal unless there's big stuff like rocks to bump into). I'm riding a SIR9 I picked up on Ebay a few years ago and really couldn't care less about the paint, it's heavily worn around the chain and seat stays where the clay rubs. There's always Charge Cookers and Cannondales for sensible money on Ebay.

thanks, found this while looking for 2.0 nics, look good: https://www.merlincycles.com/schwalbe-d ... 07168.html
although not sure how a 2" will shape up on a wide rim like mine?

although not sure how a 2" will shape up on a wide rim like mine?

It'll pretty much be pulled flat / square.

Bearbonesnorm wrote:It'll pretty much be pulled flat / square.

Might try it, how bad can it be!

Try a Spesh Butcher or Purgatory 2.3-2.35. I find them pretty handy for winter in the Chilterns, not up to Storm Control standards in the slop or clay/chalk clag but good as a wet conditions tyre. This is on 30mm rims - 45s will flatten them off but not so far as making them useless. A 2" will end up a bit more flat but the only way to find out is to try it.

My tyres for local pootles on my rigid SS Salsa El Mariachi are Spesh Butcher and Spesh Purgatory

It's quite muddy and claggy (and full of clay) locally and these tyres have actually been quite decent. There is one section of path that I avoid in the winter though, it is particularly horrific and nothing with wheels will get through there

Thanks for the input everyone, looks like I'll choose between a spesh butcher / storm control or a nobby nic on payday.
Ta

You may want to have a look at intermediate or regular mud tyres. The knobs should be spaced to make it more difficult for mud to stick.

For intermediate to soft grounds I really love the Schwalbe Magic Mary. It's a grip monster but still rolls comparably well.
Bontrager makes a good semi mud tyre with the G Mud. Goes quite well on harder terrain, but can't hold the amazing balance of the Magic Mary.

Proper mud tyres;
Schwalbe Dirty Dan is an amazing mud tyre.
More of a soft ground (absolutely) only specialist is the Maxxis Wet Scream. It comes narrow at 2.5 and I would not want to ride it on hard ground especially with the rims width your running. The Dirty Dan may be the better choice.

Shame the Maxxis Medusa comes in 26 only and Maxxis Swampthing is discontinued. They would've been perfect! Goor ol' times, ey

On a more tame note the Conti Mountain King (Protection, Black Chili Compound) could fit the bill just fine. Very good allround tyre and better balanced than Schwalbe when it comes to wet grip and longetivity. I feel Mountain King is a better wet weather tyre than Nobby Nic which only comes in Speedgrip compound afaik. If you hardly ride wet rocks and roots it might not make a big difference but Mountain King self cleans better. Yet, different league to Magic Mary. Roll faster though.

Tyres similar to Maxxis Minions like Bontrager G4 or Butchers did not self clean that well in my experience. I won't go into those as the wet grip isn't quite as good and they fare way worse in the muck compared to the magic lady.

Tyres are our only contact to the ground, well worth trying some. Go try what your mate ride. Always eye opener....


Ahhh f@ck all this.
Magic Mary in Addix Soft.
Best advice I can give.

Alpinum wrote:You may want to have a look at intermediate or regular mud tyres. The knobs should be spaced to make it more difficult for mud to stick.

For intermediate to soft grounds I really love the Schwalbe Magic Mary. It's a grip monster but still rolls comparably well.
Bontrager makes a good semi mud tyre with the G Mud. Goes quite well on harder terrain, but can't hold the amazing balance of the Magic Mary.

Proper mud tyres;
Schwalbe Dirty Dan is an amazing mud tyre.
More of a soft ground (absolutely) only specialist is the Maxxis Wet Scream. It comes narrow at 2.5 and I would not want to ride it on hard ground especially with the rims width your running. The Dirty Dan may be the better choice.

Shame the Maxxis Medusa comes in 26 only and Maxxis Swampthing is discontinued. They would've been perfect! Goor ol' times, ey

On a more tame note the Conti Mountain King (Protection, Black Chili Compound) could fit the bill just fine. Very good allround tyre and better balanced than Schwalbe when it comes to wet grip and longetivity. I feel Mountain King is a better wet weather tyre than Nobby Nic which only comes in Speedgrip compound afaik. If you hardly ride wet rocks and roots it might not make a big difference but Mountain King self cleans better. Yet, different league to Magic Mary. Roll faster though.

Tyres similar to Maxxis Minions like Bontrager G4 or Butchers did not self clean that well in my experience. I won't go into those as the wet grip isn't quite as good and they fare way worse in the muck compared to the magic lady.

Tyres are our only contact to the ground, well worth trying some. Go try what your mate ride. Always eye opener....


Ahhh f@ck all this.
Magic Mary in Addix Soft.
Best advice I can give.

Thanks Gian, I had been looking at a basic version of the mountain King II looks like a good open tread and the terrain local to me is not rocky at all so that might be a good option.
The magic Mary has also been recommended by my brother.
Lots to think about, thanks again for a considered response.

In your original post you mentioned 'sticky clay over chalk'.
I have had two memorable offs over the last year one on damp chalk and one on yellow clay.
The common factor was MKII no grip going up even less coming down - nothing to do with the rider of course.

Mariner wrote:In your original post you mentioned 'sticky clay over chalk'.
I have had two memorable offs over the last year one on damp chalk and one on yellow clay.
The common factor was MKII no grip going up even less coming down - nothing to do with the rider of course.

Haha! Thanks for the tip off

Alpinum wrote:Ahhh f@ck all this.
Magic Mary in Addix Soft.
Best advice I can give.

Got a magic Mary heading my way, will see how it goes.
Ta.