Ritchey WCS Shield 27.5 tires. REVIEW

[dhbomber]

Hey so finally got some dirt shoes for my whippet conversion! I will be testing these out tomorrow! See how they grip, etc. They are very light weight at - claimed - 533g. for each tire. Mounted up nicely, running tubes because I don't have the tubeless stems for stans rims! But they are tubeless ready. They fit the whippet like a champ, with ample space left in the back, and obviously the front; wishing they offered a slightly bigger shield tire. Heres the info from their webpage: Ritchey Logic - Mountain - Tires - Shield

I'll hit the dirt tomorrow and post what I think about the tires!

Heres a pic of the bike!

[Mud&Rox]

curious to see what ya think about these....I had em in my cart but decided to wait and see a review first

[jetboy23]

Wtf... What kind of review has no riding impressions? The whole reason i opened this thread was to see how they grip for climbs and cornering as well as wear. Sidewall durability? Worth the coin?

Trickster. You got me...

[dhbomber]

hahaha I clearly said I was going to right the review after I tried them sorry!

Going out today! I promise I'll write later in the day!

[dhbomber]

Ok, before I go riding, and in the purpose of having a well done review of this specific tire, I want it to be as complete as possible...So I'm posting the "before and after" pics of the tread, to somehow calculate how good, or bad this tire wears out.

So, heres the new tread, nice and sharp!

[dhbomber]

Alright, so here is the first part of the review:

Because it's their first use, they did have that stickiness that picks up every little pebble and throws it all around! The first thing I noticed is that they roll fast! As fast as my Randonneur Panasonics which are slicks, this is on hardpacked dirt on the way to the trails, they feel great on hardpack, pavement and little soft patches of dirt.

On the trails:
First of all, the trails are a mix of hardpack, because of the dryness of my area, and some soft muddy patches of dirt left from rain a week ago, sooo...Overall, the tires are very grippy, I think because of the sharp lugs it has, and not as ramped as some other tires (think kenda or maxxis). And speaking of Kenda, they seem more grippy and as fast rolling as my Slant six tires, which I really like! So that said, I really like these tires as well. If you grind off the saddle in a loose over hardpack, you'll probably slip a couple of times, but I managed to control the bike while it slipped a little bit on a steep uphill. The dirt slinging went on like crazy! Seems like these have a softer compound, but they seemed to held up to braking and carving.

Corners:
I tried to push hard on some of the corners on my trails, the ones I felt familiar with, and it turns on a dime, man the shoulder knobs are great! I like the roundness of the tire, buy they seem to wash out compared to a more squared profile, but these are something else, ritchey really did their homework! I would REALLY want a 2.3 Shield tire up front for even more bite, but so far these seem to be the ticket.

Sidewalls:
Because I'm running tubes, I'm running more pressure than usual, to avoid pinch flats, as I don't carry anything with me. They seem stiff, but not in a bad way, like supportive stiff, not like the flimsy sidewalls kendas have. Even after pushing hard on a corner they don't seem to roll. This has to be proven with a tubeless setup, to check hows the burping on these. If they don't burp I will buy another pair once these wear out.

On the downhills the braking is nice. I like my brakes to be very touchy, and skidding on these was very controlable. They don't wash out while you skid...with skidding I mean, an easy, normal, skid...not a moto skid.

The front tire tracks very good, and doesn't go all over the place when things get rough!

And well, this is one ride. I need more rides on it. Set it up tubeless and run lower pressure to see if it really shines!

I would loooove to have a pair of Racing Ralphs to do a comparison, but they are very pricey so...no comparison are to be made.

So far...I like em'! They are very grippy, work like champs on the hardpack and they are light!

Heres the thread (rear tire) after the ride.


Still sharp!

[bholwell]

Can't get past the fact that they (Ritchey) blatantly ripped off the center tread pattern of the Conti Race King.

[shiggy]

Can't get past the fact that they (Ritchey) blatantly ripped off the center tread pattern of the Conti Race King.

Pretty dang close, isn't it?

When I saw the first Shield, "Race King" popped into my head. Not many name-brand tires reference another so directly.

[bholwell]

Pretty dang close, isn't it?

When I saw the first Shield, "Race King" popped into my head. Not many name-brand tires reference another so directly.

A little bit closer than 'close'. This type of thing happens quite a bit in the ATV tire world, but not usually with bike tires.

[dhbomber]

Haha daaang! It is the same triangle pattern!

A 650b Continental tire would be sweet! But so far this tire is a good one.

[doralswheels]

I ordered a pair tonight and will write a review as soon as i get them mounted.

[Mud&Rox]

a little side by side....

[dhbomber]

Dang! They are the same pattern basically. A little more refined on the shield.

[jetboy23]

A lot of ppl really like the Race King. Tried and true performing tread. Although, the RK does not come in 650b. For that, we have Shield.

If the price was $50 or less, i would order. Till then, i'm currently liking my Crossmarks.

[dhbomber]

Yes...they are pretty pricey. A little less than Racing Ralphs, but pretty close!
I went for another ride today, very wet, muddy spots here and there, and they just work great! I love how well these corner! They looove to stick to dirt! I did pack it with mud pretty good once since the knobs are pretty close together, but traction wasn't affected that much. I like these tires! I give them 9/10 just because I don't have anything right now to compare them.

[docbraunson]

thanks for the write up!

[Mud&Rox]

amazon has em for 56.74 thru greenville custom bikes....just ordered 2.....a little more weight then my EXC crossmarks but worth a try....I LOVED my race kings

[labraja]

Can't get past the fact that they (Ritchey) blatantly ripped off the center tread pattern of the Conti Race King.

Is that Ritchey was using a more aggressive version of that during mid nineties. The tire was called the Omegabite. So one way of looking at it is that they have refined a design that they developed almost 20 years ago.

BikePro.com / Buyer's Guide / Ritchey Bite Tires - Bicycle Parts at discount prices / the Buyer's Guide / Bicycle Parts at their finest! / Professional Bicycle Source / Bike Pro

[bholwell]

Is that Ritchey was using a more aggressive version of that during mid nineties. The tire was called the Omegabite. So one way of looking at it is that they have refined a design that they developed almost 20 years ago.

Sorry man, but that tire looks nothing like the Race King / Shield. No dice.

[labraja]

Sorry man, but that tire looks nothing like the Race King / Shield. No dice.

I'm viewing it from the Omegabite lug design, which the Shield shares but in a much lower profile. Obviously the Omegabite and Shield are entirely different tires, but there are similarities which are trademark Ritchey designs that both tires share.

Like I said, its all how you look at it.

[bholwell]

I'm viewing it from the Omegabite lug design, which the Shield shares but in a much lower profile. Obviously the Omegabite and Shield are entirely different tires, but there are similarities which are trademark Ritchey designs that both tires share.

Like I said, its all how you look at it.

I think you're reaching. But what do I know?

[reformed roadie]

I think you're reaching. But what do I know?

Like "based on a true story" vs. "inspired by real events"...or something like that.

Well, at least they copied a really well regarded design.

I haven't had a ritchey tire since the OEMs on my 1987 Bridgestone MB-3.

I am a big believer that a how a tire works is a synergy of tread design, compound, casing (and subsequent pressure), etc. While it looks the same, it may or may not perform the same. I do know that the Black Chili is good stuff, so the bar is high. The OP makes them sound promising.