Fail on me tire upgrade *success*

Blk06CompIRL

Blk06CompIRL

Active Member
Hey all, so i have a little story to tell. My bike (trek tarpon hard tail) came stock with bontrager LT3 2.00. I really do like this tire until i encounter rocks, roots or climbs that are a little muddy. After some research i decided on the bontrager XR4 exp 2.20, but after talking to the guy at LBS i purchased the 2.35. I mounted up rear wheel and FAIL rear tire side knobs hit front derailleur cage on smallest ring, which i was hoping to not be an issue. I spent some time and cant get the needed clearance. My 2nd issue came to when i went to bring my bike to work to mess with it and FAIL bike tires are to wide for my roof rail mounts (which i did not even think about) unless i drop PSI down to 10-15psi. i have two options as i see it A) see if i can return/exchange for the 2.20 or B) modify derailleur cage for clearance and inflate/ deflate tires every ride to transport.
I am currently thinking A) for making my life easier. The reason the guy at LBS suggested the 2.35 was because i told him i have issues with tire grip on rough terrain (even with dropping psi and weight shifting 5'11" 180lbs) i also wanted to upgrade so i had a tire to handle the rockiest / rootiest terrain i encounter for i will be using the same tire for everything. Personally weight and rolling resistance is not important to me i bike for fun and as a work out so im fine for pedaling harder to go faster. The only reason i would consider keeping 2.35 is if its truly worth it for overall performance on the rougher terrain and as i progress hopefully catch some air time. Sorry if that is wordy but i know details are important. No pictures to post of rubbing but its pretty much last 1/4" inch of derailleur cage pressing into about a 1/4" of side tire knobs, and no im not cutting the tires i rather mod the cage lol and i plan to keep the XR4 model not looking for other tire options as of now just sorting out thoughts and ideas before i over think the situation. THANKS!! final note i plan to ride anywhere my skills allow and adventure takes me so i will hit a wide variety of terrain.
 
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I'd see about getting the 2.2. Not really worth the trouble of so much modification. You may want to check as well if the bike is rated for that size tire. I have an 08 Trek 4500, and that is only good up to 2.3 before the tire starts to rub the frame and remove material.

As for grip I run wtb weirwolf 2.1's tubeless front and back at about 25-30 psi and have plenty of grip. I'm 5'9 220lbs and have only thought about going to a larger volume 2.3 for a little bit of extra squish factor.

Maybe see what pressure you can drop down to with flatting regularly and try it out. I have been able to get away with 30psi tubed on the 26 and 29er. Running low will increase your tread contact patch and should help with grip. Or go tubeless and run even lower pressures.
 
gmb3 said:
i'd say keep the fat tire in the front, go skinnier in the back
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This.

Hey, sometimes you just have to try stuff out and see if it works. No harm done, you might be out a couple bucks but you learned something. I have almost as much fun playing with the bikes and setup as riding. Sounds like you have a sense of humor about it, so keep trying things out until you get the bike where you want it.
 
moray42 said:
I'd see about getting the 2.2. Not really worth the trouble of so much modification. You may want to check as well if the bike is rated for that size tire. I have an 08 Trek 4500, and that is only good up to 2.3 before the tire starts to rub the frame and remove material.
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I tried to search around and found no such information. hmm if your measurements are similar to mine i guess that .05 matters lol and could xplain it lol

gmb3 said:
i'd say keep the fat tire in the front, go skinnier in the back
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I had thought of that briefly but wasnt sure if that was pointless or not. I know that is a lil more common on full rigid to help absorb frontal impact and is a good option if i cant return one of the tires. Then that would allow me to only have mounting issues on one tire for my racks hmm

extremedave said:
This.

Hey, sometimes you just have to try stuff out and see if it works. No harm done, you might be out a couple bucks but you learned something. I have almost as much fun playing with the bikes and setup as riding. Sounds like you have a sense of humor about it, so keep trying things out until you get the bike where you want it.
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HAHA yes but if im out a few bucks but perhaps it'll be considered long term planning for when i wear the front one out... or could put one on Girl friends bike (its the same bike but a 15.5" frame instead of a 21"). I do have sense of humor to much stress in life as it is, this is only a money issue not a life issue so smile and keep riding.. only sad part is trying to fix this will have lost 3 days of riding booo
 
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What rack do you have? You could probaby bend/spread out your rack trays to accomodate fatter tires.
 
gmb3 said:
i'd say keep the fat tire in the front, go skinnier in the back
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I always run the grippier bigger tire in front(ss ht). If the front slips out you are done for, the back won't save you. If the back slips who cares
 
I wider front/narrow rear combo is pretty common on any type of mountain bike, not just rigid setups. Many folks desire the increased cornering grip up front and less rotational weight out back. I would say swapping out the rear for the next size down is your best bet. I would not advice modifying your frame to get it to fit. Even if it clears, you may run into issues down the road with the tire rubbing the stays if your wheel goes out of true or develops some flex. You don't want to damage the frame.

As far as the rack- I have used an assortment of racks of the years and find that even if the tires don't drop in, the bike will fit. Tires flex, just jam them in there. The trays are usually aluminum so they will have some give as well.
 
thanks guys i have the one 2.35 all mounted up in front. will be returning other one to store for the 2.20 and stick that in the rear. my racks are saturn rack rails and cross bars all bought through gm. i tried to spread them a little but they just returned to orig positioning and i rather not crack it lol. i did find if i give the knobs a little squish and agle it so the tire will fit as long as its closer to 30 35 psi. hopefully this will be all set for tonight so i can ride tomorrow after work and be prob have overkil for tires for allaire on sat .
 
I've had some ghetto rack setups before where the tire didn't fit. I just used some bundgie cords creatively to keep the wheel stable, but not actually in the wheel well.
 
Blk06CompIRL said:
as long as its closer to 30 35 psi. hopefully this will be all set for tonight so i can ride tomorrow after work and be prob have overkil for tires for allaire on sat .
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Are you running tubeless? If max grip is your highest concern go tubeless. That alone will provide better grip. Add to that you can set psi mid 20's.
 
Blair said:
put the original bontrager tires back on for allaire
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to much of a hassle less i leave it as it sits now. 2.35 front 2.00 in rear lol getting a lil tired of all the swapping ive done this week lol. i am currently not running tubeless though the tires are tubeless ready. i just have not decided if its needed for me to drop that low and to spend the extra cash vs benefit is something ive been trying to weigh out
 
I have made all final purchases! I officially have the XR4 2.35 in front and in process of swapping LT3 2.00 over to the XR4 2.20. I also bought a floor pump cause i dont need anymore practice with my mini pump lol THANK you all for the insight and showing me that running a little fatter up front is not some n00b thing people do because its cooler lol 🙂 i am happy and now i hope i have the grip i need on all that pesky terrain. Maybe a future purchase will be to go tubeless , then perhaps go clipless hmm...
 
Blk06CompIRL said:
I have made all final purchases! I officially have the XR4 2.35 in front and in process of swapping LT3 2.00 over to the XR4 2.20. I also bought a floor pump cause i dont need anymore practice with my mini pump lol THANK you all for the insight and showing me that running a little fatter up front is not some n00b thing people do because its cooler lol 🙂 i am happy and now i hope i have the grip i need on all that pesky terrain. Maybe a future purchase will be to go tubeless , then perhaps go clipless hmm...
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Cool, glad you found a setup that works for you. And you were doing all that with a mini pump? Forearms of steel must you have, young Skywalker.😀
 
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