great review! thank you for highlighting the strong and the weak points with both tires!! Now i've decided that Forekaster front and rear is probably the best for me :)
Nice. Iv got ardents as standard on my down country bike but i also dont like it on the front. Will try a forkaster on the front and keep the ardents as back tires . Thanks.
I tried the forcaster front and rear last summer on fairly dry, compact single track, with occasional wet spots. Coming from a dhf+aggressor, the forcaster is lighter and much faster. Loved them. This year im going to try disector front and rekon rear, to keep the speed but get a bit more confidence in the turns. But dont get me wrong, the forcasters were grippy enough, im just a big baby who want even more grip than i really need. (205lbs, devinci django, ride mostly xc/trail in Ontario, Canada)
Wow funny I came across this video. I just got a 2016 intense spider and having new carbon wheels built and looking for some good light weight tires. These look good. Oh my stock tires are Nobby Nics ,lol don’t have a lot of time on them but no problems so far. Good info. Oh do you think the Forecaster would work in light to medium sand.
Thanks!! And any Maxxis tire with white lettering is an OEM tire that came stock on a bike. The ardent came stock on my old giant fathom hardtail. If you buy any Maxxis tire aftermarket, it will have yellow lettering.
Great video Michele. I have got a 27.5 and I was thinking to purchase a forekaster as a front tire but the version 2.20 because I don't have a lot of space on the fork, Do you have any experience with the 2.20 version? Thanks
Enrio Ray We don’t get to ride our trails in the mud around here because our soil isn’t good for it and the trails get torn up pretty bad. I have ridden this combo when there was a tiny bit of greasy mud in some corners and it did OK. Not the most confidence inspiring, especially the ardent. Maybe go forekaster front and rear for occasional mud? Or go minion if you ride mud a lot.
Michael Cycles thanks a lot! I dont ride like full mud everytime but most of the time light mud and loose soil. You reckoned forekaster front and rear will be great?
Enrio Ray I think it would be a good setup in loose soil!! It’s not gonna give you crazy grip like a minion or magic Mary, but it’ll be good enough if you’re paying attention. If you’re doing mostly downhill, I’d go minion in the front for sure.
I’d say they wear at the same rate as an Ikon. I think it’s due to their mellow ramped tread in the center. Definitely more durable than the Nobby Nic pacestar I had in the back, and longer lasting.
I am a long time ikon user. But now wanna go with skinwall tyres but without running tubeless set-up. As commuting with hardtail is more assuring with tubes when stopping bigger cuts for a sealant is tough job. On other hand, running tubes on a tubeless tyre isn't a huge problem at the beginning but uninstalling a tubeless tyre for a tube replacement is a capital punishment. In maxxis's lineup skinwall tyres come mostly in tubeless ready version. Only i found ardent skinwall still can be bought in either format with or without tubeless ready. I know other manufacturers has their own skinwall tyres. But i prefer maxxis because of their rubber compound. Their hardpack tyres last so long. Which blows away my initial expectations about the longevity of tyre. As ikon in its stock form has pretty low profile threads. As you have mentioned above, nobby nics are pretty fast wearing tyres. As their high profile knobs are made for grips in mind. But i heard in recent years, schwalbe's addix compound tyre lasts some what better then their previous offerings.
Mikel Jhonson have you considered something like the gravel king sk? They make some skin wall 650b versions, and they’re great on pavement and all dirt except mud. Much faster rolling than mtb tires too.
great review! thank you for highlighting the strong and the weak points with both tires!!
Now i've decided that Forekaster front and rear is probably the best for me :)
Nice review. I am considering the Forekaster as a rear and High Roller 2 up front for my wet weather tires this fall here in the Pacific NorthWest.
Should be a solid setup!
Nice. Iv got ardents as standard on my down country bike but i also dont like it on the front. Will try a forkaster on the front and keep the ardents as back tires . Thanks.
Good choice!
I tried the forcaster front and rear last summer on fairly dry, compact single track, with occasional wet spots. Coming from a dhf+aggressor, the forcaster is lighter and much faster. Loved them. This year im going to try disector front and rekon rear, to keep the speed but get a bit more confidence in the turns. But dont get me wrong, the forcasters were grippy enough, im just a big baby who want even more grip than i really need. (205lbs, devinci django, ride mostly xc/trail in Ontario, Canada)
I feel ya! I weigh the same as you, the little bit of reassurance of beefier tires is nice.
Wow funny I came across this video. I just got a 2016 intense spider and having new carbon wheels built and looking for some good light weight tires. These look good. Oh my stock tires are Nobby Nics ,lol don’t have a lot of time on them but no problems so far. Good info. Oh do you think the Forecaster would work in light to medium sand.
nice review man. random question, where are your getting these tires with the white Maxxis lettering?
Thanks!! And any Maxxis tire with white lettering is an OEM tire that came stock on a bike. The ardent came stock on my old giant fathom hardtail. If you buy any Maxxis tire aftermarket, it will have yellow lettering.
Great video Michele. I have got a 27.5 and I was thinking to purchase a forekaster as a front tire but the version 2.20 because I don't have a lot of space on the fork, Do you have any experience with the 2.20 version? Thanks
Weird question; how does the Forekaster do on roads/bike lanes/pavement? Is it much more sketchy than semi slicks on those kinds of surfaces?
Michael; nice review, what width rims are you running with that setup?
At the time, I was running relatively narrow 22.5mm internal rims. Still worked well.
I’m in central Indiana I run the same tires I also like icon
Great video! What psi are you running? Thanks!
Keith Tressel Tubeless 27psi front, 30psi rear. I weigh 210.
@@Mbtharp1 Thank you sir!
Hey bud, how does the forekaster and ardent combo work in wet weather? A bit of mud as well
Enrio Ray We don’t get to ride our trails in the mud around here because our soil isn’t good for it and the trails get torn up pretty bad. I have ridden this combo when there was a tiny bit of greasy mud in some corners and it did OK. Not the most confidence inspiring, especially the ardent. Maybe go forekaster front and rear for occasional mud? Or go minion if you ride mud a lot.
Michael Cycles thanks a lot! I dont ride like full mud everytime but most of the time light mud and loose soil. You reckoned forekaster front and rear will be great?
Enrio Ray I think it would be a good setup in loose soil!! It’s not gonna give you crazy grip like a minion or magic Mary, but it’ll be good enough if you’re paying attention. If you’re doing mostly downhill, I’d go minion in the front for sure.
Have you tried the Rekon? How about Dissector?
I had my eyes on both of those but never tried them.
Would you please tell us about the longevity of Ardent compared to ikon or similar kind of hard pack dry weather tyre?
I’d say they wear at the same rate as an Ikon. I think it’s due to their mellow ramped tread in the center. Definitely more durable than the Nobby Nic pacestar I had in the back, and longer lasting.
I am a long time ikon user. But now wanna go with skinwall tyres but without running tubeless set-up. As commuting with hardtail is more assuring with tubes when stopping bigger cuts for a sealant is tough job. On other hand, running tubes on a tubeless tyre isn't a huge problem at the beginning but uninstalling a tubeless tyre for a tube replacement is a capital punishment. In maxxis's lineup skinwall tyres come mostly in tubeless ready version. Only i found ardent skinwall still can be bought in either format with or without tubeless ready. I know other manufacturers has their own skinwall tyres. But i prefer maxxis because of their rubber compound. Their hardpack tyres last so long. Which blows away my initial expectations about the longevity of tyre. As ikon in its stock form has pretty low profile threads. As you have mentioned above, nobby nics are pretty fast wearing tyres. As their high profile knobs are made for grips in mind. But i heard in recent years, schwalbe's addix compound tyre lasts some what better then their previous offerings.
Mikel Jhonson Do you ride a lot of dirt on your commute or mostly road?
Gravel Roads, paved roads.. combination of both
Mikel Jhonson have you considered something like the gravel king sk? They make some skin wall 650b versions, and they’re great on pavement and all dirt except mud. Much faster rolling than mtb tires too.
Maxxis forkaster 2.35 would be great if it wasn't a 2.20😂
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