Tyres for a singlespeed all-round trail bike?

[floody]

What tyres do you people run on your SS's , those who actually use them off road?
I'm finishing mine off and having a hard time deciding what to run. I want something around 2.1" (actually I'll go up to 2.3 on the front) that grips fairly well, and has a bit of sshock absorbtion, but is still actually not a big hindrance to pedaling. Originally I was planning a Factory DH 2.1 combo or even a DH 2.3/2.1 combo, but I'm now thinking that will be unreasonably heavy. I'm running rigid forks so a bit of bag size in the front to take up some buzz and slacken a touch off the head angle is good... I think my biggest problem is finding something to go in the back with a bit of shock absorbtion, that isn't huge and heavy. Full knobby's are a must, and no super soft crap - I'll be riding it to uni as well.
Plus I'm a big, strong bloke, so I test tyres a bit in terms of cornering and accelleration.... Super light, skinny XC stuff is useless to me.
So my list of possibles right now is...
-Lopes Bling Bling maxxis dual slalom combo, figured that they'll roll quick and still descend well
-2.3/2.1 or dual 2.1 factory DH's.
-New Yellow Kirin Tiogas, they come in at 685g for the 2.1 which seems reasonable
-Smoke/Dart classic 2.1 , if they are still available???
-IRC Mythos 2.1's
-IRC Trailbear 2.35's if they are still available (IRC casing sizes tend to overstate, so they're more like a 2.25).

Whaddya reckon?

[Mr Pants]

Conti Vertical Protection 2.3" is all you need. They're light enough to race big enough to give you cush and grip like buggery. The Protection version has very tough yet supple sidewalls.

Run them with No-Tubes and you can run really low pressures too. It's all good.

Pants.

[dunk]

I'll second the vote for Conti Vertical Pro, I've run them on my singlespeed for a year or so, and on my tracer for about 5 years now. I run them with No-Tubes and the feel and grip is outstanding. I've run these tyres down around 22psi at times and the grip is amazing.

The only problem I've had is that there appears to be some variation with how well they seem to hold air with No Tubes. Most tyres have sealed easily, but one or two have had sealant spew through holes in the sidewalls.

[floody]

Alright I'll check them out. Failing that the trailbear is looking like the next best bet..

[Rexy]

for some shock absorbtion get the thickest tube you can get and run it a bit flat

[luckyphil]

thick tubes are heavy.
heavy on ss?
sore legs.
go tubeless.

[floody]

Tubeless? yeah no worries I'll just buy two new rims :roll: so I can get some new tyres...
I looked at the contis, to be honest they don't look like the kind of thing I'm after and I'm not paying to find out, where as the trailbears are like a lighter, black version of a missile - and I know they're good.

[Arran]

I run Specialized Enduro tyres on my SS. You can get them in 2.0 (for the rear) and 2.2 (for the front if you wish). They're not tubeless tyres but I run them without tubes anyway and they hold pressure fine. They grip like a bastard and wear well. They come in the steel beaded Sport version and the kevlar (very light for a tyre of it's size) Pro version.

[Grover]

get conti explorers or maxxis larsens and run them with stans no tubes.

[Rik]

Tubeless? yeah no worries I'll just buy two new rims :roll:
DIY tubeless isn't rim-specific.

[floody]

I realise there is the stan's no tubes etc, but I don't want to!! I'm planning on using tubes until I can neither a) buy them or b) buy rims to suit them.

[luckyphil]

why? tubes are shit.
whats so good about them>?
just get a kit and DIY.
what are you? the owner of some tube company?

[mtb_man]

Why keep tubes?

well the price for the diy kit is still around $100 (correct me if i'm wrong)
that sorta change buys a LOT of patch kits...
on the other hand, i'd change to no-tubes if i had the cash and didn't need to buy other stuff, i get a fair few flats because i like to ride rocky stuff a bit too fast :)

as for the tires, i'd say the conti vertical pro's or my prefered choice would be a WTB motoraptor in a 2.4 size. The moto's aren't the greatest tire in the world but they have a large bag and grip enough for what you need. And they're cheap too, which shouldn't be overlooked.

[Squidly Didly]

Have you checked out the Maxxis Larsen TT's yet? They make a 2.35" version. Lightweight and rolls fast. Not as fast as a Python, but much grippier and more forgiving. Not sure how they run on the front as i've only run them on the rear, but Hughie Flower Power (24hr single speed freak) ran them during the Mont last year and pulled off 16 laps with them!

[MrCove]

Maxxis Revolver and Ranchero, v light
Schalbe Racing Ralphs in 2.2, REALLY NICE!!! may set them up as tubeless on my xc bike

[CHEWY]

A Factory DH 2.3 isnt all that heavy, I weighed one ages ago and they were less than 800g's. They have a fair bit of pinch resistance, and I havnt gotten a flat on the front for the whole time I've had it.
I used to have Tioga 2.1's and hated them. The sidewalls were paper thin and I always got pinch-flats, almost every ride. They used to fold over too in certain circumstances..

[MrCove]

wierd how the Tioga XC 1.95's are great but the 2.1 DH are shite!!! good tread but puncture as soon as you look at them
not tried the 2.3's