Assegai no grip zone

Damn I consider the Assegai as ann all-lean angles mega gripper, have you ridden a DHF? 

 

I tried an Assegai on my last bike and felt the same way; the cornering grip was a step down from the Minion DHF that I had on before that. I'm still stuck on the DHFs. I like the 3c MaxxGrip ones the best (softest compound).

I've had great luck with the Specialized Cannibal. I know running Specialized tires isn't everyone's cup of tea, but the slightly stiffer carcass means you can drop a psi or two and help with some of the sensation you're talking about (along with a grippy compound). They work great for the summer dirt surfing here in Colorado. Not to mention they're a few dollars cheaper, which never hurts. 

This is wild and speaks to different people’s experiences.

I dislike the DHF because I don’t think it offers any improved cornering grip and the grip that is there is vague and hard to tell when you’re near the limit.

The Assegai on the other hand has better grip overall and I can tell better where I am at relative to its break free point.

The only downfall to me about an Assegai is its rolling speed.

I wouldn't go as far to say that the Assegai has a no grip dead zone as you're leaning it over... I find it pretty agnostic to lean angle when compared to other tires (DHF for example).  That being said, there is a type of loose over hard condition where the assegai is not quite at it's best.  I have a non-engineering or scientific theory that it has to do with a combination of: knob support, overall width, knob arrangement/direction.  

These absolute shit show, golf ball sized gravel loose over hard, or deep loose/powder loose over hard or any loose over hard surfaces with over 1/4" of build up over the trail bed are not the strongest suites of the assegai.  In those situations, the highroller 3, krypto F/R and any tire with a bit stiffer knob support, taller knobs and narrower (situationally depending) will perform a bit better.  

For me, the Assegai is the jack of all trades that does most things better then most (if not all) but it's weak point is extreme loose over hard outlier conditions.

how people can ride the DHF on the front is beyond me lol  - I Had so many near-death experiences on those.
Been a big DHR2 on the front for years but on conti's now.

Yeah I feel like this post is a setup for average dudes to admit they’re afraid of the DHF! 

I am afraid of the DHF.  
 

This is my experience as well the only other negative I have experienced on multiple occasions is in deep trenched chutes it like to grab the edges a bit more than other tires and throw your balance off. 

I have been running the high roller 3 for a couple of months and it works better in the loose over hard conditions by far. I haven’t ran it in all conditions yet but have been really happy so far.

What pressure are you running and how wide are your rims? Have you tried lowering the pressure in this tyre at all?

Same here. I don't run Assegai anymore though due to it doesn't shed mud as well where i live/ride. Michelin DH22 sits between the Assegai and HR3 on that aspect as well as rolling resistance, but is just as grippy and well damped as the Assegai.

I gave up on Maxxis. I think some people use them because they are always on special. I am using Conti Kryptotal soft in DH casing on the DH bike and ones without DH casing on a 150mm e-bike. Much better tyres but a lot more $$. My all time favourite was the Conti- Der Baron Project. 

The difference between the OG 26x2.5 DHF and current day 2.5wt DHF is wild for those old enough to have ridden both.
My enduro Chainsaw came with a DHF and that thing could not be removed fast enough, utterly terrifying experience 

I used to not like DHF style tires but then I got better and prefer them now.  The Assegai's problem isn't a no grip zone, it's that it doesn't communicate to you where you are on the side knobs, and it also has too many knobs leading it to float over loose rather than dig in.  That float is probably what you're feeling as a "no grip zone."  Same thing with a Kryptotal Front for me.  They're great for hardpack and rocks, but really struggle in loose over hard, especially if there's small bits of gravel.

I am a much bigger fan of tires with a gap but wider spaced knobs that tell you what they're doing and punch down into loose over hard.  Thankfully there's several good options now: Argotal, High Roller 3, radial Tacky Chan, etc.

I use to run Assegai's exclusively up front as there seems to be grip regardless of the lean angle, but similar to what others have said, I found that it doesn't have a sharp bite when leaning it over. I'm also afraid of the DHF up front, but the Argotal is my new favorite front tire when it isn't hardpack. I'd like to try the High Roller 3 out, but not too motivated with how long the Super Soft lasts as a front tire!