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What does trail actually mean? If you ask five bikers what they understand by this category, you are guaranteed to get five different answers. Although the term roughly defines the type of trail, it leaves plenty of room for interpretation. We at BIKE define the trail category on the basis of suspension travel: trail bikes have between 120 and 140 millimetres of travel. Below that is the marathon category, above that are the longer travel all-mountain bikes. On the US market, however, the trail category often extends into the enduro sector.
Wide range of applications, huge selection
Our search for the best trail tyre combination also raised various questions from the three leading tyre manufacturers. Maxxis as well as Schwalbe and Continental have a well-stocked, finely subdivided product range. Various profiles in different widths, rubber compounds and carcass constructions are available. It seems as if there is a suitable tyre for every metre of trail, every weather condition and every bike. For our test, we explicitly asked for a trail all-rounder: a wide range of applications, sufficient grip for almost any weather and puncture protection for technical terrain, yet fast enough for long laps under your own steam.
The manufacturers' choice of tyres
We were therefore eagerly awaiting the choice of tyre manufacturer. Maxxis sent the Dissector II into the race - a new edition of the trail and enduro tyre with a completely revised tread pattern. The finely profiled classic Rekon complements the rear wheel and is intended to provide propulsion. Schwalbe has also opted for a combination of a classic and a new edition. While the evergreen Nobby Nic, which has remained unchanged for years, is used at the rear, the new Albert with a radial carcass should impress at the front. Last but not least, Continental is going in a similar direction to Maxxis: On the front wheel, the tyre giant relies on the potent enduro tread of the Kryptotal, while fast rolling is the order of the day at the rear with the new, much tamer-profiled Magnotal. The difference between the two tyres is not only visually huge. There would even be room for another tread pattern to close the gap in the product range.
Weight vs. puncture protection
The Continental Magnotal in the Trail version weighs 858 grams, making it the lightest tyre in the comparison. With 320 grams more on the carcass, the Schwalbe Albert marks the maximum value. A huge difference, but one that is also reflected one-to-one in the puncture protection. The Magnotal has little to offer against punctures, while the Albert shines with the highest level of snakebite protection. Schwalbe's Nobby Nic also delivers the best value on the rear wheel. When it comes to protection against foreign objects such as thorns or sharp stone edges, the lightweight Magnotal is surprisingly resistant and secures the top rating.
With the Continental combination, the difference in grip between the front and rear wheels is huge. The Kryptotal is suitable for enduro riding, while the Magnotal is more suitable for cross-country riding. For trail use, I would still go for exactly this combination because it's fun when the rear tyre reaches its limits. Jan Timmermann, BIKE editor
Grip vs. rolling resistance
Similar to weight and puncture protection, tyre grip and rolling resistance also work in opposite directions. The solution to the dilemma is therefore: a coarse profile with soft rubber on the front wheel and a finer-profiled tyre with a fast rubber compound on the rear. Although our three test candidates deliver fundamentally different profiles on the front and rear wheels, they all use the same rubber compound. As a result, the Maxxis combination rolls similarly well with only 5.2 watts difference between front and rear, followed by Conti with 7.9 watts and Schwalbe with 11.7 watts. Incidentally, the coarsest rear tyre has the lowest rolling resistance: the Schwalbe Nobby Nic. At the front, Schwalbe set the best value with the Albert Radial.
With Conti, Maxxis and Schwalbe, our test field is at the very highest level. Even if the Maxxis tyres perform slightly worse in comparison, the riding experience in the larger comparison is absolutely impressive. Stefan Frey, BIKE editor
The measured values from the laboratory at a glance
Schwalbe's radial carcass: flexibility provides extra grip
Schwalbe sent a tyre with a new radial carcass into the race on the front wheel, which results in particularly supple handling. The tyre adapts more flexibly to the ground at the same air pressure and thus engages more tread. This is also very easy to recognise visually. In our test setup, we loaded all three front tyres with identical weights at a pressure of 1.2 bar. Whilst the radial tyre wrapped around our "laboratory root" and maintained full contact with the ground, Continental and Maxxis briefly lost contact with the ground.
Continental Kryptotal Fr/Magnotal - Info & Prices
| Continental Kryptotal FR | Continental Magnotal | |
| Price | 69,95 Euro >> available here | 68,95 Euro >> available here |
| Rubber compound / TPI | Soft / 180 | Soft / n. A. |
| Carcass / size | Trail / 29 x 2.4 | Trail / 29 x 2.4 |
| Laboratory test | ||
| Weight / rolling resistance | 1061 g / 32.5 watts | 858 g / 24.6 watts |
| Tyre width / tyre height | 60.8 / 59.4 mm | 58.3 / 56.6 mm |
| Carbon copy / Puncture | 320 mm / 125; 591; 393 N | 250 mm / 143; 689; 508 N |
| Practical test | ||
| Cornering behaviour | ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ | ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ □ □ □ |
| Traction | ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ □ □ □ | ■ ■ ■ ■ □ □ □ □ |
| Self-cleaning | ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ □ □ □ | ■ ■ ■ □ □ □ □ □ |
| BIKE grade | 2,47 | 2,47 |
Conclusion: Continental Kryptotal Fr/Magnotal
With a combined weight of 1919 grams, Conti's trail combination ranks in the midfield and, with the Magnotal, is the lightest rear tyre. Both the front and rear tyres come with a soft rubber compound and trail casing. If you want even more speed, you can also order the Magnotal in the faster Grip compound, which reduces rolling resistance by an impressive 6.7 watts (BIKE measured value). While the Cryptotal with its grippy enduro tread on the front wheel provides a very high level of grip and exemplary control, the much more finely profiled Magnotal clearly different. The low lug height and narrow lug spacing already reveal major visual differences. Although the rubber compound offers the best wet grip, it quickly reaches its limits on loose soils and slopes due to the low lugs and moderate self-cleaning properties. Smooth rolling behaviour and puncture protection, but little puncture resistance at the rear.
Maxxis Dissector II/Rekon - Info & Prices
| Maxxis Dissector II | Maxxis Rekon | |
| Price | 74,90 Euro >> available here | 79,90 Euro >> available here |
| Rubber compound / TPI | MaxxTerra / 60 | MaxxTerra / 60 |
| Carcass / size | Exo / 29 x 2.4 | Exo+ / 29 x 2.4 |
| Laboratory test | ||
| Weight / rolling resistance | 951 g / 29.7 watts | 885 g / 24.5 watts |
| Tyre width / tyre height | 58 / 55.9 mm | 57.3 / 55.5 mm |
| Carbon copy / Puncture | 310 mm / 127; 631; 286 N | 280 mm / 123; 566; 336 N |
| Practical test | ||
| Cornering behaviour | ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ □ □ □ | ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ □ □ □ |
| Traction | ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ □ □ □ | ■ ■ ■ □ □ □ □ □ |
| Self-cleaning | ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ □ □ □ | ■ ■ ■ □ □ □ □ □ |
| BIKE grade | 2,91 | 2,91 |
Conclusion: Maxxis Dissector II/Rekon
With the new Dissector II and the Recon Maxxis sends the lightest trail tyre combination with only 1836 grams into this comparison. Both tyres rely on the MaxxTerra medium rubber compound, but differ in their carcass construction. Exo at the front and the slightly more stable Exo+ carcass on the rear wheel. This means that the Dissector II is the fastest rolling tyre by a minimal margin, while puncture protection is in the middle of the field. Compared to the competition, the Dissector II is quite narrow, offers predictable handling at all times, but doesn't quite reach the grip level of Conti and Schwalbe. In steep, slippery sections, both the front and rear tyres reach their limits sooner. Due to the low lug height on the rear wheel, the narrow tread quickly becomes clogged in wet conditions and offers moderate wet grip. In comparison, the carcass feels somewhat stiffer and therefore less comfortable, as our load test also shows.
Schwalbe Albert/Nobby Nic - Info & Prices
| Swallow Albert | Schwalbe Nobby Nic | |
| Price | 73,90 Euro >> available here | 68,90 Euro >> available here |
| Rubber compound / TPI | Soft / 67 | Soft / 67 |
| Carcass / size | Radial / 29 x 2.5 | Super Trail / 29 x 2.4 |
| Laboratory test | ||
| Weight / rolling resistance | 1190 g / 32.9 watts | 966 g / 21.2 watts |
| Tyre width / tyre height | 60.6 / 62.4 mm | 56.4 / 55.5 mm |
| Carbon copy / Puncture | 330 mm / 118; 505; 362 N | 320 mm / 139; 616; 455 N |
| Practical test | ||
| Cornering behaviour | ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ □ | ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ □ □ |
| Traction | ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ □ | ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ □ □ □ |
| Self-cleaning | ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ □ □ □ | ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ □ □ □ |
| BIKE grade | 2,34 | 2,34 |
Conclusion: Schwalbe Albert/Nobby Nic
Schwalbes tyre combination from Albert front and Nobby Nic weighs 2156 grams, over 320 grams more than the Maxxis pairing. This is mainly due to the heavy Albert tyre with a new radial carcass. Compared to the competition, Schwalbe's classic Nobby Nic is a fully-fledged studded tyre with greater tread depth and wider lug spacing. This ensures better interlocking in all situations, especially in loose or wet conditions, as well as an even grip level and better self-cleaning. Schwalbe also delivers top marks for puncture protection. Nevertheless, the Nobby Nic rolls the fastest with 21.2 watts. Only when it comes to wet grip on rocks and roots does the Conti offer more grip. On the front tyre, the radial carcass provides excellent damping, plenty of comfort and good ground contact. Only the puncture resistance of this carcass construction is slightly lower than that of the competition from Conti and Maxxis. Test victory!
Tyre knowledge
Carcass, rubber compound, puncture protection - there is so much to know about mountain bike tyres that we have summarised the most important points here for the next talk among bikers.
Compound
Grippy at the front, fast at the rear is the basic motto for combining control and easy cranking. In this comparison, however, Continental, Maxxis and Schwalbe opt for a standardised compound on the front and rear wheels, preferring to use different tread patterns and carcasses.
Rolling resistance
The test tyres are only 3.4 watts apart at the rear wheel and 3.2 watts apart at the front. This means that all three manufacturers expect roughly the same rolling behaviour from trail bikers. Interesting: Despite the identical rubber compound, the Schwalbe front tyre with a radial carcass rolls a good 10 watts worse than the rear tyre.
Puncture protection
The biggest differences can be found in the rear tyre puncture. The Conti Magnotal tyre runs out of air the quickest, followed by the Maxxis Rekon. The Schwalbe Nobby Nic is significantly more resistant and reaches the level of the Conti Kryptotal front tyre.
Carcass
Hidden under the rubber, neither the number of carcass plies nor the angle (diagonal or radial) of the plies can be recognised from the outside. However, puncture protection and riding characteristics differ significantly. A tyre with more carcass plies generally offers greater puncture protection and more stability. The orientation of the carcass plies strongly influences the flexibility, grip and comfort of the tyre.
The BIKE test in detail
We used three identical e-MTBs with the same setup in order to be able to make an ideal comparison. The tyres were filled with exactly the same air pressure: 1.3 bar at the front and 1.5 bar at the rear. All laboratory values were determined in Ralf Bohle's test laboratory under our supervision.
In the lab
Trail tyres have to be able to do pretty much everything. High grip, good puncture protection and fast rolling behaviour are at the top of the list of requirements. With rolling values of 21.2 to 24.6 watts, the rear tyres are close together in comparison. On the front wheel, the gap between the grippier rubber compounds is not wider either. However, there are significant differences in weight with a difference of over 330 grams. The Schwalbe Albert weighs in at almost 1200 grams, but offers significantly more protection against punctures than the lightweight Continental Magnotal. The only thing the tyre with new radial technology has less to offer against is foreign objects.
In practice
To uncover both large and small differences, we rode the tyres in direct comparison on three identical Canyon Neuron:On AL 8s in wet conditions. On small laps/sections, we were able to compare the tyres perfectly with three test riders. Practical impression and laboratory values each contribute 50 per cent to the final score.
Stefan Frey
Editor
