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That’s what I’ve done, Plastic then from AliExpress 6mm od x 5mm id

Correct analysis, likely the best looking mountain bike of all time. OG Evil Wreckoning 2nd.

It's a cut Dan - that's the only one with the weird dew claw knobs outside the regular knobs.

The Specialized take on radial seems more like what I want, except that the 2 current tread patterns don't appeal to me, and the casing is really freaking heavy. Cannibal / Hillbilly would be intriguing.

Got a few weeks on Butcher/ Eliminator Radial setup. Was on Conti Kryptotal DH SuperSoft F/ Soft Rear for a few years, then more recently on Magic Mary UltraSoft/Albert Soft in radial on an enduro bike. The specialized seem like a solid combination of the two, slightly slower rolling on climbs than the conti, but more sidewall support than the schwalbes. Heaps of traction in loose-over hard and off cambers, and survived a few solid rim strikes so far at 22/25 psi. Impressive in their traction on natural terrain. can't imagine the rear will have the longevity of the conti...

It looks great but $381 for a chain tensioner is crazy. It's more that the Madrone Jab

$381? This is for blinglespeeds, not singlespeeds.

Looks like this newcomer will be here soon

I have a few rides on the Specialized tires, Butcher Front / Eliminator rear on my 170mm bike from blown out dry to hero dirt in the backcountry (not purpose built or bike park). I also have a tacky chan + roamy in trail casing on my 130mm bike so have experience with radial. Main takeaways so far Improved grip over Conti DH (SS front, S rear) - Better braking right away was noticable, its like I added 15% braking power. It does not feel noticeably slower climbing on dirt than conti, although I haven't gone back to do a...

The rider currently leading the Men’s elite Overall EDR is on a Belt driven high pivot gearbox bike. Interesting times we are in.

All the Pivot and Evil guys reading this

I was under the impression the only thing they don't make in China now is DH casing. The DH soft I bought yesterday in the western US is still made in Germany (though they did fix the yellow hue). Only seen enduro supersofts from China. Nice free tire trick though, all of the China factory contis I've seen are like that but it never occurred to me to try and warranty it

I would just like to call out the fact that 100% of the 6 mens elite world cups so far have been won on 148 rear ends.

+1, My jab makes everything from Sram, Shimano & TRP feel cheap and poorly made. Waiting on the silver cage DH version to drop so I can nab one for the big bike. I'm at the point where an XO or XT rear mech would be pretty well worked over from rock strikes and general wear and tear and start losing that crisp shifting yet the jab is just as slop free as the day I mounted it on the first bike despite having been slammed into rocks with little regard for its durability. It's been over a year and...

i know, that's exactly what i run, XX1 shifter and T-Type Madrone, it's awesome

They do. They even make a cam that makes a Shimano shifter compatible with an Eagle cassette for example. You can mix and match a bunch of stuff with the cams they offer. Props to them on that front.

I don’t think anything’s changed tbh, Finn took most of last year off to properly recover and spent the whole winter riding and on good health, Jordan having Nico there as a coach is obviously going to help. If anything if Loic wasn’t injured it would mean just more Specialized team riders in the top 5

The Madrone Jab with whatever shifter you want solves that issue. I've been on all the latest drivetrains from SRAM and Shimano, and the Jab blows them all out of the water in pretty much every aspect - price being the only outlier there.