WTB Ranger 29" X 2.4" Tires: Getting Rolling

The WTB Ranger 29" X 2.4" tire on the back of my On One Inbred

Note- I don't do 29"er reviews on Riding Gravel, so this is where this is going. Back in the day, this would have been a "Twenty Nine Inches" post. 

All righty then- With that out of the way, I will remind you that a few weeks ago I received a set of WTB Ranger 29" X 2.4" tires. The 2.4 inchers are a new width for this model. They existed in narrower 29"er sizes and in "plus" sizes before.

What It Is: The Ranger now sports a new "TriTech" rubber compound which, to simplify things, is essentially a triple compound rubber made with the softer durometer on the edges, the medium softness rubber on top with the harder, stiffer durometer rubber underneath as a supporting mechanism to help prevent knob flex. This helps produce better traction and less drag. The harder rubber actually goes half way into the knobs to really give them support.

The new Ranger also sports "Slash Guard". This is "a protective nylon insert spanning the entire sidewall to provide extra protection without the weight of a dual ply casing." (Quoted from the WTB website there) So, essentially you have a tire for all conditions and general purposes. That's pretty much what WTB says about this Ranger too. It is an "all arounder".

Weights, Widths, And Tubeless Set Up: The Ranger at 2.4" is not an unprecedented width and volume tire. Back in the old 29"er website days, I handled quite a few tires in this size. So, I can say with confidence that the Ranger at 2.4" is a heavy tire. My samples weighed 1030 grams each. In all my time at TNI, (Twenty Nine Inches), I don't think I reviewed but a couple of tires anywhere near that weight. They happened to be WTB dual ply 29"er tires too. Beefy, "All Mountain" types. So, for an "all arounder", this seems a bit much, in my opinion. But......if they are bomber, tough sons a guns, well then.......Maybe that'll be okay with some folks. Me? I think it's a bit too heavy.

The Inbred- Full Monty

Okay, so on to the tubeless set up. The wheels I used here are a unique set up. The front rim is the old Velocity P-35 (35mm outer) and the rear rim is a Velocity Blunt which is a 28mm external width rim. The Blunt, (original, Australian manufactured ones), can be set up tubeless easily with a Bontrager TLR rim strip, which is what I used. The P-35 was set up with standard tubeless tape. Both set up in the expected way with the Rangers. I had a bit of a leak down issue with the front but it eventually resolved. Nothing to do at all with the tire though. Otherwise, these hold air like a champ.

The measurements, as you might expect, are different, but not remarkably so, and not in the way you might think. . The rear measured out at 60.6 mm casing, 61.5mm at the widest point of the knobs. The front measured out at 59.5mm casing and 61.4mm at the widest point of the knobs. Yes, the casing on the narrower rim measured just a tic over 1mm wider. I think this is in part due to how the narrower rim makes the tire more of a "light bulb" shape, in profile than the P-35 does. But whatever the reason, those are the measurements I got. For you metrically challenged folks, that turns out to be about 2.4", or just what WTB claims.

Ride Impressions: With all this high tech, multi-durometer rubber and side shield protection, I wasn't sure what to expect when I rolled out the first time. I didn't feel anything remarkably odd, but I did note that the tire felt well damped and that it rolled smoothly. Actually, for all its tech, width, and knobs, the tire actually rolls better than I would have guessed. Early rides were relegated to my commuting route due to local flooding. I did eventually get out to some dirt though. Throughout this part of the test I used pressures in to 30's from high to low trying different settings. I once rolled these down into the 20's, but I didn't like the feel of the tires at that low a pressure on harder surfaces.

Okay, so WTB says this is an "all arounder", and so far, I have to agree with that. These don't roll too badly on pavement, hard dirt, grass, gravel, or single track. I actually got into mud a few times and the Ranger didn't fail me there either. I wouldn't call it the best mudder, but then again, when we are talking about an "all arounder", we are saying "Jack of all trades, Master of none", aren't we? Yes, we are. 

The bummer about these tires is the weight. You can feel it whenever things start tilting upward. Off road or on, that is something you just have to accept here. A lighter wheel set wouldn't hurt, but you cannot carve out any weight on these tires. They are what they are.

So Far....... Rangers are tough, specially trained military personnel who can handle a variety of roles. The WTB Ranger seems tough, specially built, and can handle a lot of different roles. Okay, so the name makes sense. I could see it as a bike packing tire, a rear tire on a trail rig, or a fat tire for single speed hooliganisms. I will be getting this out on some varied single track before you hear about them again here, so stay tuned.......

Note: WTB sent over the Ranger 2.4"ers at no charge for test/review. I was not bribed nor paid for this review and I strive to give my honest thoughts and opinions throughout.

WTB Ranger 29" X 2.4" Tires: Getting Rolling

The WTB Ranger 29" X 2.4" tire on the back of my On One Inbred

Note- I don't do 29"er reviews on Riding Gravel, so this is where this is going. Back in the day, this would have been a "Twenty Nine Inches" post. 

All righty then- With that out of the way, I will remind you that a few weeks ago I received a set of WTB Ranger 29" X 2.4" tires. The 2.4 inchers are a new width for this model. They existed in narrower 29"er sizes and in "plus" sizes before.

What It Is: The Ranger now sports a new "TriTech" rubber compound which, to simplify things, is essentially a triple compound rubber made with the softer durometer on the edges, the medium softness rubber on top with the harder, stiffer durometer rubber underneath as a supporting mechanism to help prevent knob flex. This helps produce better traction and less drag. The harder rubber actually goes half way into the knobs to really give them support.

The new Ranger also sports "Slash Guard". This is "a protective nylon insert spanning the entire sidewall to provide extra protection without the weight of a dual ply casing." (Quoted from the WTB website there) So, essentially you have a tire for all conditions and general purposes. That's pretty much what WTB says about this Ranger too. It is an "all arounder".

Weights, Widths, And Tubeless Set Up: The Ranger at 2.4" is not an unprecedented width and volume tire. Back in the old 29"er website days, I handled quite a few tires in this size. So, I can say with confidence that the Ranger at 2.4" is a heavy tire. My samples weighed 1030 grams each. In all my time at TNI, (Twenty Nine Inches), I don't think I reviewed but a couple of tires anywhere near that weight. They happened to be WTB dual ply 29"er tires too. Beefy, "All Mountain" types. So, for an "all arounder", this seems a bit much, in my opinion. But......if they are bomber, tough sons a guns, well then.......Maybe that'll be okay with some folks. Me? I think it's a bit too heavy.

The Inbred- Full Monty

Okay, so on to the tubeless set up. The wheels I used here are a unique set up. The front rim is the old Velocity P-35 (35mm outer) and the rear rim is a Velocity Blunt which is a 28mm external width rim. The Blunt, (original, Australian manufactured ones), can be set up tubeless easily with a Bontrager TLR rim strip, which is what I used. The P-35 was set up with standard tubeless tape. Both set up in the expected way with the Rangers. I had a bit of a leak down issue with the front but it eventually resolved. Nothing to do at all with the tire though. Otherwise, these hold air like a champ.

The measurements, as you might expect, are different, but not remarkably so, and not in the way you might think. . The rear measured out at 60.6 mm casing, 61.5mm at the widest point of the knobs. The front measured out at 59.5mm casing and 61.4mm at the widest point of the knobs. Yes, the casing on the narrower rim measured just a tic over 1mm wider. I think this is in part due to how the narrower rim makes the tire more of a "light bulb" shape, in profile than the P-35 does. But whatever the reason, those are the measurements I got. For you metrically challenged folks, that turns out to be about 2.4", or just what WTB claims.

Ride Impressions: With all this high tech, multi-durometer rubber and side shield protection, I wasn't sure what to expect when I rolled out the first time. I didn't feel anything remarkably odd, but I did note that the tire felt well damped and that it rolled smoothly. Actually, for all its tech, width, and knobs, the tire actually rolls better than I would have guessed. Early rides were relegated to my commuting route due to local flooding. I did eventually get out to some dirt though. Throughout this part of the test I used pressures in to 30's from high to low trying different settings. I once rolled these down into the 20's, but I didn't like the feel of the tires at that low a pressure on harder surfaces.

Okay, so WTB says this is an "all arounder", and so far, I have to agree with that. These don't roll too badly on pavement, hard dirt, grass, gravel, or single track. I actually got into mud a few times and the Ranger didn't fail me there either. I wouldn't call it the best mudder, but then again, when we are talking about an "all arounder", we are saying "Jack of all trades, Master of none", aren't we? Yes, we are. 

The bummer about these tires is the weight. You can feel it whenever things start tilting upward. Off road or on, that is something you just have to accept here. A lighter wheel set wouldn't hurt, but you cannot carve out any weight on these tires. They are what they are.

So Far....... Rangers are tough, specially trained military personnel who can handle a variety of roles. The WTB Ranger seems tough, specially built, and can handle a lot of different roles. Okay, so the name makes sense. I could see it as a bike packing tire, a rear tire on a trail rig, or a fat tire for single speed hooliganisms. I will be getting this out on some varied single track before you hear about them again here, so stay tuned.......

Note: WTB sent over the Ranger 2.4"ers at no charge for test/review. I was not bribed nor paid for this review and I strive to give my honest thoughts and opinions throughout.

The Inbred Lives Again

Saturday night it was rideable again.

I mentioned on Friday that I had this old Inbred 29"er frame and that a new set of WTB Ranger 2.4" tires had sparked an interest in building it up again. Well, it didn't take long to get around to it.

Saturday we had massive winds out of the Northwest here. They were 30mph constant with higher gusts here in town for a couple of hours and in the 20's mph for the entire day, pretty much. Out in the country I would imagine it was far worse.

So, going out to the gravel to ride was a fool's errand as it would be in the woods. Not to mention the recent flooding, which has rendered the trails unrideable anyway. Nothing to do but go work on bicycles and write reviews. I spent much of the morning writing and then all afternoon, between doing family things, working on the Inbred. The build wasn't too tough since I had everything at hand to complete it.

A little of the build was from the "Fat Fargo" that I sold earlier in the year. (Or was that last year? I cannot remember)  I had stripped off the controls and stem in one piece which included the brake calipers. So, the entire control layout and levers were intact with wrapped bars to boot. There was one issue with this though, the stem was all wrong. I needed a riser stem and I didn't have a spare laying about which would work. But I had one on another bicycle.

The Pofahl single speed had a white Bontrager high rise stem that I had always meant to replace because it was just not "right" looking on that bike. The white would, however, look perfectly fine on the white Inbred. Swap time! I put a place holder stem on the Pofahl and took the white stem and made a test fit to the Inbred. It looked really good and measured out within reason for me to make it fit.

Final form.........for now.

Then I had a spare wheel set sitting here that was perfect for mounting up the 2.4" WTB Ranger tires. Tubeless, of course. (More on these tires later) Then I had to find the 10 speed XT derailleur that would work with the shifters. Yes- I had one in the bin. The bike came with a front derailleur when it was dropped off to me, so that was done. Now, there was a Thompson 27.2mm non-offset post on the bike but I am not a fan of Thompson posts so I swapped it out for the much better design of the Salsa Shaft post. The saddle I found was a white Bontrager Affiinity one, perfectly suited to this rig. Then I had a set of the Desert Series Mesa MP pedals from Fyxation sitting there which needed to be used. Yeah........they are brown! So what.

The chain was a bit of another touch and go deal. I needed a slightly used 9 speed chain and I found one real quick, but it was two links too short. I dug, and I dug around, and finally I found a 9 speed SRAM chain I'd used on some single speed in the past. A few minutes later I had pieced together a chain to work. Okay, so you may have noted I have a ten speed shifter, rear derailleur, and a 9 speed chain? Yep. That;s because I have a 9 speed cassette here. Don't ask. It worked on the Fat Fargo as well. That said, the plan is at some point to swap to a ten speed cassette and chain.

So, added some cages, a couple of bags, kitted it out......Boom! The Inbred lives. It will see a lot of Winter time commuting duties and if we ever get clear trails, I'll be doing single track on it too. Stay tuned........

The Inbred Lives Again

Saturday night it was rideable again.

I mentioned on Friday that I had this old Inbred 29"er frame and that a new set of WTB Ranger 2.4" tires had sparked an interest in building it up again. Well, it didn't take long to get around to it.

Saturday we had massive winds out of the Northwest here. They were 30mph constant with higher gusts here in town for a couple of hours and in the 20's mph for the entire day, pretty much. Out in the country I would imagine it was far worse.

So, going out to the gravel to ride was a fool's errand as it would be in the woods. Not to mention the recent flooding, which has rendered the trails unrideable anyway. Nothing to do but go work on bicycles and write reviews. I spent much of the morning writing and then all afternoon, between doing family things, working on the Inbred. The build wasn't too tough since I had everything at hand to complete it.

A little of the build was from the "Fat Fargo" that I sold earlier in the year. (Or was that last year? I cannot remember)  I had stripped off the controls and stem in one piece which included the brake calipers. So, the entire control layout and levers were intact with wrapped bars to boot. There was one issue with this though, the stem was all wrong. I needed a riser stem and I didn't have a spare laying about which would work. But I had one on another bicycle.

The Pofahl single speed had a white Bontrager high rise stem that I had always meant to replace because it was just not "right" looking on that bike. The white would, however, look perfectly fine on the white Inbred. Swap time! I put a place holder stem on the Pofahl and took the white stem and made a test fit to the Inbred. It looked really good and measured out within reason for me to make it fit.

Final form.........for now.

Then I had a spare wheel set sitting here that was perfect for mounting up the 2.4" WTB Ranger tires. Tubeless, of course. (More on these tires later) Then I had to find the 10 speed XT derailleur that would work with the shifters. Yes- I had one in the bin. The bike came with a front derailleur when it was dropped off to me, so that was done. Now, there was a Thompson 27.2mm non-offset post on the bike but I am not a fan of Thompson posts so I swapped it out for the much better design of the Salsa Shaft post. The saddle I found was a white Bontrager Affiinity one, perfectly suited to this rig. Then I had a set of the Desert Series Mesa MP pedals from Fyxation sitting there which needed to be used. Yeah........they are brown! So what.

The chain was a bit of another touch and go deal. I needed a slightly used 9 speed chain and I found one real quick, but it was two links too short. I dug, and I dug around, and finally I found a 9 speed SRAM chain I'd used on some single speed in the past. A few minutes later I had pieced together a chain to work. Okay, so you may have noted I have a ten speed shifter, rear derailleur, and a 9 speed chain? Yep. That;s because I have a 9 speed cassette here. Don't ask. It worked on the Fat Fargo as well. That said, the plan is at some point to swap to a ten speed cassette and chain.

So, added some cages, a couple of bags, kitted it out......Boom! The Inbred lives. It will see a lot of Winter time commuting duties and if we ever get clear trails, I'll be doing single track on it too. Stay tuned........

Friday News And Views

Cycling makes me feel great. Now there may be some science to back up the reasons why.

Blinded Me With Science:

I don't know about you, but after I started commuting by bicycle to work, I hated having to drive that commute if the situation warranted it. I never used to be that way. I would just jump into whatever vehicle I had through the years and, ya know......drive to work. No big deal, right? I mean, there were the occasional idiots and near misses, but that's par for the course. I didn't "hate driving to work" then.

But something happened when I started commuting by bicycle. I dreaded driving after a while. Now I never quite understood what it was that switched me around, but I knew I was much more calm, at ease, and mellow after riding to work, and it just felt right. Ya know? I never really had any basis for feeling that way, but now it seems that science has some answers for me regarding this.

It's an older article called "This Is Your Brain On Bikes", and while I cannot verify that any of its claims are based on good science, I can sure find a lot to agree with in that article. Certainly there has to be something about the mood enhancements gained from cycling because I totally identify with that part of the article. Cycling does bring me a good feeling, and it really does help with being depressed. Especially this time of the year when there is little Sun and lots of cold dark time.

So, a plan has been devised..........finally!

Project Inbred:

Two and a half years ago I received my original On One Inbred back. The image today is just how I received it on my bench one day after it had been through two other owners.

Since that time the frame has hung on a hook in my Lab/dungeon/horde and nothing has been done with it. Honestly, I couldn't come up with a good reason to fix it up. I had waaaay too many single speed 29"ers any way, and setting it up geared seemed........wrong. I just wasn't into it and so it hung there.

Meanwhile the original fork also came back to me but it had been thrashed to the point of failure. I couldn't use it. Fortunately I still had the On One Carbon Super Light fork and that's what is on the Inbred now. But other than hanging that fork, I had made zero progress on this.

The mind works in strange ways and sometimes a part or component can spark inspiration. So it was when I received those WTB Ranger 29 X 2.4" tires the other day. They obviously needed to go on a mtb frame, but which one? Since quitting "Twenty Nine Inches" I have thinned the heard of 29"ers and the ones that are left I want to keep the way that they are. But there was that Inbred frame and fork.......just hanging there!  Stay tuned...............

Old Shirey Way (Lower Hartman to you younginz)

 Post Flood Mess:

Yesterday I went down to check on the conditions of the trails near the Cedar River on the South side. The river had fallen below flood stage the day before and with the super-dry air I was wondering how things were going as far as drainage of the backwater was concerned.

Well.......it's a mess.

I feared as much. It isn't going to clear up soon either. With the water table as elevated as it is, that remaining water that didn't/couldn't drain back into the river is just going to sit, and sit, and sit. Obviously it will go away at some point, but by the time it does we will be nigh unto Winter and Fall will be a distant memory here. Brown season will be in full swing and will stay until/if it snows. Who knows when that will be.

In the meantime, I will be gravel riding more and waiting for the Green Belt to clear up. When it does, I'll have to go investigate Marky-Mark- that trail I put in 22 years ago, and see if it needs any touching up. Other than that bit, I'll probably just see how the lay of the land is and determine just what remained and what went down to Louisiana in the flood. Every time it floods the Green Belt changes. You never know what you'll find. Sand in new places, sometimes feet deep. Trail shooting off right into the river where it eroded the banks. Ya gotta take it easy the first time you go in after a flood!

I remember riding back in there years ago after a flood, taking a sweeper at high speed, running through a little wall of tall weeds, only to see nothing but air in front of me. Fortunately the cantilever brakes and 26 inch tires brought me to a halt mere inches from sailing off the new cut bank into the creek several feet below. Exciting, but nearly disastrous.

Now days I usually opt for the fat bike, usually the Blackborow DS, and just slow crawl the entire Green Belt. It helps with the sand and whatever mud I might find. Plus it keeps me safer. I figure on getting back in there in at least a couple of weeks from now. But like I said, for now it will all be gravel travel.

Have a great weekend and keep the rubber side down!

 

Friday News And Views

Cycling makes me feel great. Now there may be some science to back up the reasons why.

Blinded Me With Science:

I don't know about you, but after I started commuting by bicycle to work, I hated having to drive that commute if the situation warranted it. I never used to be that way. I would just jump into whatever vehicle I had through the years and, ya know......drive to work. No big deal, right? I mean, there were the occasional idiots and near misses, but that's par for the course. I didn't "hate driving to work" then.

But something happened when I started commuting by bicycle. I dreaded driving after a while. Now I never quite understood what it was that switched me around, but I knew I was much more calm, at ease, and mellow after riding to work, and it just felt right. Ya know? I never really had any basis for feeling that way, but now it seems that science has some answers for me regarding this.

It's an older article called "This Is Your Brain On Bikes", and while I cannot verify that any of its claims are based on good science, I can sure find a lot to agree with in that article. Certainly there has to be something about the mood enhancements gained from cycling because I totally identify with that part of the article. Cycling does bring me a good feeling, and it really does help with being depressed. Especially this time of the year when there is little Sun and lots of cold dark time.

So, a plan has been devised..........finally!

Project Inbred:

Two and a half years ago I received my original On One Inbred back. The image today is just how I received it on my bench one day after it had been through two other owners.

Since that time the frame has hung on a hook in my Lab/dungeon/horde and nothing has been done with it. Honestly, I couldn't come up with a good reason to fix it up. I had waaaay too many single speed 29"ers any way, and setting it up geared seemed........wrong. I just wasn't into it and so it hung there.

Meanwhile the original fork also came back to me but it had been thrashed to the point of failure. I couldn't use it. Fortunately I still had the On One Carbon Super Light fork and that's what is on the Inbred now. But other than hanging that fork, I had made zero progress on this.

The mind works in strange ways and sometimes a part or component can spark inspiration. So it was when I received those WTB Ranger 29 X 2.4" tires the other day. They obviously needed to go on a mtb frame, but which one? Since quitting "Twenty Nine Inches" I have thinned the heard of 29"ers and the ones that are left I want to keep the way that they are. But there was that Inbred frame and fork.......just hanging there!  Stay tuned...............

Old Shirey Way (Lower Hartman to you younginz)

 Post Flood Mess:

Yesterday I went down to check on the conditions of the trails near the Cedar River on the South side. The river had fallen below flood stage the day before and with the super-dry air I was wondering how things were going as far as drainage of the backwater was concerned.

Well.......it's a mess.

I feared as much. It isn't going to clear up soon either. With the water table as elevated as it is, that remaining water that didn't/couldn't drain back into the river is just going to sit, and sit, and sit. Obviously it will go away at some point, but by the time it does we will be nigh unto Winter and Fall will be a distant memory here. Brown season will be in full swing and will stay until/if it snows. Who knows when that will be.

In the meantime, I will be gravel riding more and waiting for the Green Belt to clear up. When it does, I'll have to go investigate Marky-Mark- that trail I put in 22 years ago, and see if it needs any touching up. Other than that bit, I'll probably just see how the lay of the land is and determine just what remained and what went down to Louisiana in the flood. Every time it floods the Green Belt changes. You never know what you'll find. Sand in new places, sometimes feet deep. Trail shooting off right into the river where it eroded the banks. Ya gotta take it easy the first time you go in after a flood!

I remember riding back in there years ago after a flood, taking a sweeper at high speed, running through a little wall of tall weeds, only to see nothing but air in front of me. Fortunately the cantilever brakes and 26 inch tires brought me to a halt mere inches from sailing off the new cut bank into the creek several feet below. Exciting, but nearly disastrous.

Now days I usually opt for the fat bike, usually the Blackborow DS, and just slow crawl the entire Green Belt. It helps with the sand and whatever mud I might find. Plus it keeps me safer. I figure on getting back in there in at least a couple of weeks from now. But like I said, for now it will all be gravel travel.

Have a great weekend and keep the rubber side down!

 

It Has Been A While Since I've Done This

Big, beefy, and with some fancy new tech.

I've reviewed a lot of tires in the last thirteen years or so. My first set of tires that I ever reviewed were a pair of WTB Wolverines, 29"ers, of course. That was when I learned a lot about reviewing stuff from the guy that used to run the now defunct website called "The Biking Hub".

Anyway, I reviewed a LOT of 29"er tires  subsequently for "Twenty Nine Inches". Then when I got out of that gig and into RidingGravel.com, the 29"er tire reviews were over. Or at least I thought so.....

Of course, I still review a lot of tires, they are just gravel/all-road treads now. So, when WTB sent over their newest treads to be reviewed for "Riding Gravel", they sent a pair of mountain bike tires as well to see what I thought about them. It's been a while since I've paid any attention to what is going on in that corner of the tire world with anything other than a cursory look. I mean, I only have a few mtb rigs and their tires are fine for now.

I'll be honest- WTB mtb tires have been hit or miss in my experience. I love Nanoraptors, (don't they just call them "Nano" these days?) I really didn't like the Bronsons, they were scary to corner on! The Ninelines were fantastic for what they are designed to do. The Trailblazer 27.5+ tires were fantastic. The old Wolverines were dead and heavy feeling compared to newer stuff. And on..... However; since those days WTB has made some changes in tech. Big changes....

So, in the meantime, I have to find a bike to put these on and get to riding. While WTB isn't expecting a review of these, I probably will be chiming in on these here as I get along on them. I'll also be mentioning the Sendero 650B tires I'll be testing for RidingGravel.com as well.

More soon........

NOTE- WTB sent over the Sendero and Ranger 2.4" tires for test and review at no charge. I have not been paid nor bribed for this content and I strive to give my honest thoughts and opinions throughout.

It Has Been A While Since I've Done This

Big, beefy, and with some fancy new tech.

I've reviewed a lot of tires in the last thirteen years or so. My first set of tires that I ever reviewed were a pair of WTB Wolverines, 29"ers, of course. That was when I learned a lot about reviewing stuff from the guy that used to run the now defunct website called "The Biking Hub".

Anyway, I reviewed a LOT of 29"er tires  subsequently for "Twenty Nine Inches". Then when I got out of that gig and into RidingGravel.com, the 29"er tire reviews were over. Or at least I thought so.....

Of course, I still review a lot of tires, they are just gravel/all-road treads now. So, when WTB sent over their newest treads to be reviewed for "Riding Gravel", they sent a pair of mountain bike tires as well to see what I thought about them. It's been a while since I've paid any attention to what is going on in that corner of the tire world with anything other than a cursory look. I mean, I only have a few mtb rigs and their tires are fine for now.

I'll be honest- WTB mtb tires have been hit or miss in my experience. I love Nanoraptors, (don't they just call them "Nano" these days?) I really didn't like the Bronsons, they were scary to corner on! The Ninelines were fantastic for what they are designed to do. The Trailblazer 27.5+ tires were fantastic. The old Wolverines were dead and heavy feeling compared to newer stuff. And on..... However; since those days WTB has made some changes in tech. Big changes....

So, in the meantime, I have to find a bike to put these on and get to riding. While WTB isn't expecting a review of these, I probably will be chiming in on these here as I get along on them. I'll also be mentioning the Sendero 650B tires I'll be testing for RidingGravel.com as well.

More soon........

NOTE- WTB sent over the Sendero and Ranger 2.4" tires for test and review at no charge. I have not been paid nor bribed for this content and I strive to give my honest thoughts and opinions throughout.