New Fat Tires ?

one piece crank said:
Finally got some trail time with the JJ’s. First comparison is eyeball-sizing them. The JJ’s mounted on 80mm Jackalope rims sit wider in the rear of my frame than a Bud on 80mm Specialized BAD’s. However the Bud’s are visibly ~0.50” taller(?). Frame clearance is fine, the JJ is just much closer to the chain, in the lowest gear, than the Bud.

On the trail, they do roll lighter. I wasn’t sure how much they would squish, so I ran them at 7psi. I’m big, 6’4”/230 and they still felt a little firm at that pressure and would rebound a little too much, but no real chance of rim strikes. They did fine traction-wise, but any tire probably would have. I’ll have to play with pressure a little, but today was fun and I bombed down a few rooty sections a little faster than I normally would have (at softer pressure) for fear of rim strikes.
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Love those JJ's, only tire I run fat...
 
Dual JJ's are certainly nowhere near the traction I'm used to from Bud/Bud. The JJ's seem to bump steer more, like deflecting off a root rather than climbing over it, and side-slopes are sketchy too. In these dry, Summer conditions that's all acceptable as I'm mostly experiencing these traits with the dropper post lowered. More time in the saddle required...
 
one piece crank said:
Dual JJ's are certainly nowhere near the traction I'm used to from Bud/Bud. The JJ's seem to bump steer more, like deflecting off a root rather than climbing over it, and side-slopes are sketchy too. In these dry, Summer conditions that's all acceptable as I'm mostly experiencing these traits with the dropper post lowered. More time in the saddle required...
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I've had similar experiences.
My preference is a tire with a center chevron/rectangle knob, like the lou, or the double rectangle knobs barbengazi.

I'm looking at the minions, and they have some beefy knobs!
 
I have always leaned toward the chevron/paddle-rear pattern. I took a gamble with dual Buds, that so far has paid off. I'm still amazed how well the Bud's roll and they've never been short on traction. I'll run these JJ's until first freeze.
 
The 4.8 Jumbo Jim's really roll! They are big, soft & compliant, and offer good traction. They do have a little front-self-steer and a little bump-steer. I set them between 6-7psi with a low-psi gauge but have not gone lower due to roots/rocks in dry conditions. My next trail run I'll drop down to 5psi and see how they feel. Front-self-steer is most evident on pavement, bump-steer is evident on the trail. When pushed, the front JJ will break loose much sooner than a Bud, so I've adjusted my Summer riding style :). I'm pretty happy with them overall, but will definitely switch back to Buds when the ground freezes.
 
I'll revive this post instead of starting a new one since its close... I just picked up 4.8JJ's to replace the stock FBF/FBR 26x4's that came with my bike.. I'm wondering the pros and cons of running the 4" FBF on the front with a 4.8" JJ on the back?

I'm looking at this combo for a summer/single track setup. I rode Chimney Rock yesterday and the climbing with the JJ's was stellar, but coming downhill (Yellow luge) I just didn't have the same control/feel up front - I felt like I was taking all of the sharper turns wider than I should be. I had grip all around, but just up front it felt a bit too tight/grippy, and I'm wondering if the narrower wheel would change that. (Ironically, when I'm on my FS with 27.5x2.4 I sometimes feel like I need wider and I'm too lose all around...)

If I didn't have the 4's in the garage I wouldn't think about switching anything up, overall I really liked the ride on the JJs, just wondering if that slight tweak would work in my favor or be counter productive. I just don't know the pros/cons of that type of setup.
 
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