2manyoranges
Senior Retro Guru
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For the South Downs in 1994 it was either onZa Porcupine 2.10s up front and Ground Control 1.95s on the rear, or Yeti IRC FROs both ends. We’d played with many combinations and those seemed to give good grip on slick chalk and the very necessary mud clearing properties. But with narrow rims the pressures we ran were necessarily quite high - upper 20s psi or so - to keep the right level of support, without the tyres collapsing under the rim. We just accepted that washing out on flat corners was a natural hazard to be aware of and to avoid.
Fast forward to 2023 and I am running 36 internal rims and 2.35 or 2.50 tyres. After taking a stern look at the worn Hans Dampf on the front of the mmmBop, I took in the negative comments here and switched to a new 2.35 Magic Mary Soft. The new carcasses are quite heavy - 1235g - which came as a bit of a shock when it arrived. Oh well, on it goes…easy tubeless instal taking 20 mins - and the pressure up to 40 psi to get it into good shape. Two hours later in the car park I start to let out air to get the tyre to the right riding pressure. Bounce bounce squeeze squeeze. As a reluctant final act…more out of ‘I should really find out what pressure this is’…a sort of technical moral duty…I got out the digital pressure gauge and nearly fell over when it said 14 psi. Then I assumed it was wrong. But after three readings and a check on another tyre it was clearly not wrong. And I decided to ride with it at that level, expecting to have to get out the micro pump 15 minutes later. But 45 mins into a tough ride in fast, demanding singletrack, I was getting great traction, good support and a much better sense of security - pushing more and getting faster. At 14psi. That is most likely explained by the higher level of support given by the heavier carcass. At no time on roots and rocks did I bottom out, and at no time did I feel any sense of increased rolling resistance. What I did experience was prodigious grip…which is Nice.
At 14 psi. Gosh.
Fast forward to 2023 and I am running 36 internal rims and 2.35 or 2.50 tyres. After taking a stern look at the worn Hans Dampf on the front of the mmmBop, I took in the negative comments here and switched to a new 2.35 Magic Mary Soft. The new carcasses are quite heavy - 1235g - which came as a bit of a shock when it arrived. Oh well, on it goes…easy tubeless instal taking 20 mins - and the pressure up to 40 psi to get it into good shape. Two hours later in the car park I start to let out air to get the tyre to the right riding pressure. Bounce bounce squeeze squeeze. As a reluctant final act…more out of ‘I should really find out what pressure this is’…a sort of technical moral duty…I got out the digital pressure gauge and nearly fell over when it said 14 psi. Then I assumed it was wrong. But after three readings and a check on another tyre it was clearly not wrong. And I decided to ride with it at that level, expecting to have to get out the micro pump 15 minutes later. But 45 mins into a tough ride in fast, demanding singletrack, I was getting great traction, good support and a much better sense of security - pushing more and getting faster. At 14psi. That is most likely explained by the higher level of support given by the heavier carcass. At no time on roots and rocks did I bottom out, and at no time did I feel any sense of increased rolling resistance. What I did experience was prodigious grip…which is Nice.
At 14 psi. Gosh.
