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11/15/2017
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Just picked up a specialized chisel Fs comp, having never ridden anything but downhill and enduro I’m a bit lost with tyres, the tyres it came with are t5 compound spesh ground control and fast track tyres and they don’t cut it on the wet roots and rocks around home, I know it’s an xc type bike but even the trails I consider xc trails are rocky and rooty. The new forekaster seems to be the tyre for this type of riding but was thinking of trying Specialized purgatory on the front and ground control on the back or would these kill the bike and what its intended for? Maybe just softer t7 ground controls front and rear would be better? I don’t want to over tyre the bike but still want it to be fairly capable on trails.
forekaster was designed for this, wet tyre for XC but good trail tyre for the longer travel bikes.
For me, even T7 is too hard on sloppy rocks and roots unless you enjoy going sideways all the time. I'd do T9 ? /T7 Slaughter combo instead.
This will be an abnormal opinion. But when I rode in pnw on a singlespeed rigid I ended up on continental barons. Great acceleration/deceleration in mucky conditions. Reasonable rolling speed (may not be fast enough for you in drier conditions). Ridiculously good on wet rocks and roots. They are the basis for argotyles so they those in the lightest casing available may be a good option for you as a winter/wet tire.
Many XC world cup athletes have turned to the Wicked Will for when conditions gets slick.
Since you are looking for traction on wet roots, you will definitely want a softer rubber compound up front.
The secret menu item for such conditions is the 29x2.4 Wicked Will Super Race Addix Soft.
It's the only combination that comes in the fast rolling Super Race casing, but with the same rubber compound used on Schwalbe Trail and Enduro tires.
Going for the same tire, but with the more durable and faster rolling Addix SpeedGrip rubber would make for a great rear tire compliment.
Wicked Will soft is a good bet for roots and rocks,but packs up very quickly in sticky mud.
Specialized Purgatory is indeed a good trail tire in similar category as Forekaster or regular EXO/EXO+ Aggressor and Dissector. I would not really call it a true X/C tire since they are heavy, or a true wet tire since they have short, blocky center knobs designed to roll. They shine on hardpack, intermediate desert trails, and packed modern MTB trails. They're amazing at our local X/C trail centers. They lack braking bite in steeps and loose, but roll and corner very nicely. You can get them in softest T9 rubber for the wet.
If you're trying to beef up the tires a bit, but still roll fast and avoid going full enduro with Ass-DHR/F kind of tires, I think they're the right choice for a Chisel. Purgatory front/rear is a fine combo. I have tried the Ground Control in the rear and I don't really trust it for shredding hard, but it rolls a little faster than the Purg.
All that said despite trying all those Spec tires, I'm probably going to buy 2.4 XR4s or whatever they are called now (Gunnison?) again for my Top Fuel when mine wear out. They're predictable jack-of-all-trades tires.
In the winter I switch to Maxxis 2.3 DHF/DHR tires. If you're looking to save a little bit of weight, the 2.4 Dissector is also a suitable option with it's fairly open tread design. I tried the Forekaster, but found it suffered in terrain filled with rocks and roots do to the low surface area of the knobs, and worked best in muddy soil as it cleared quickly.
I second the Spesh Purgs. I've been using them on my little Norco Optic for a few months and have been loving them on anything I can stomach taking the optic down. T9 front, T7 rear.
When people are talking about the Forekaster, it would be good to clarify whether you're discussing V1 (wet weather XC tire) or V2 (all-around light trail tire).
I've tried a few different Maxxis options on my Transition Spur and the Forekaster V2 Maxx Terra / Rekon Maxx Terra hits the sweet spot for fast rolling/not super sketchy.
I was discussing V2. It shines in certain situation but winter riding in the PNW might not be one of those. The Rekon 2.4 is fairly reliable, with the exception that it does pack up if there's much mud.
Maxxis Severe is purpose built XC wet weather racing tire. A bit lighter and faster than the Forekaster.
https://www.maxxis.com/us/tire/severe/
I'm on the 2.4 forekaster v.2/2.4 rekon rear both in maxx terra/exo on my epic evo and to be honest, they're quite narrow for 2.4s and not really grippy in the wet/mud/leaves that we had the last 2-3 months over here in Quebec. I was really surprised at the lack of grip on rocks and roots. In dry terrain, at lower pressures, they're amazing but here it's mostly peanut butter over hardpack and I was definitely underwhelmed by them.
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