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Advantage 2.4 for the front?????

844 views 18 replies 11 participants last post by  Err 
#1 ·
I have stumbled apon an interesting tyre combo but now I need to bring in a few tyres for the next couple o years and I was wondering how the Maxxis Advantage 2.4" works as a front tyre. When I moved to Korea I brought a set of Holy Rollers as I was expecting to do mostly street and a bit of dirt if I got lucky. Well I got a huge surprise when I got here to find groomed vertical runs everywhere. During summer it was mostly hardpack and the Holys were great for everything. Then a layer started to develope as there are only walkers around these parts. I started to wash out and luckily my container arrived with my 2.35 and 2.5 Minion fronts. I stuck the 2.35 up front and left the Holy out back as I still need to ride a bit o tarmac and I remember how my High roller got shredded in the UK from tarmac. My front is holding perfect and I still dont slip out in the rear, I actulay like it a little loose in the rear so I can get the ass around these tight trails. In fact I havent found a reason to take the Holy Roller off. I am investing in a second wheel set to run Minion FR and Back for purely dh runs but I would still like a a wheelset with a Holy Roller in the rear for DJ, Street and for some longer rides on tarmac to hit some trails. I dont have much choice here other than some Kendas and I am about to ship in some parts. I was considering the 2.4 advantage for better rolling resistance and the 2.35 minion is a little smaller than the 2.4 Holy. How does the Advantage work as a front tyre and any other maxxis recomendations for my needs?:thumbsup:
 
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#2 ·
Haven't tried the Advantage but I've been running the Ardent for several months with good results. It tends to favor a more aggressive cornering style and rolling resistance is very good. Might be a bit heavier than you want but it's a great tire.
 
#3 ·
I had Spec Resolutions on my Enduro and hated them. I really don't know a lot about tires, other than what I had wasn't very grippy. I went to my LBS and had the ADvantage recommended as front tire and a High Roller as a rear. I love the combo. I'm about 20lbs over weight, so I'm not too concerned with a few extra grams on the bike. The tires make the bike climb really well and descend even better, and I'll take that confidence boost any day of the week.
 
#4 ·
I have ridden the 2.4 Advantage on a mavic crossline wheel, and it was awesome. Especially on groomed trails since it's light, and you don't need a tough sidewall, and the tread isn't ridiculously tall. Might ok for street, and it has nice padded feel, but maybe a little soft and flexy, especially on a skinny rim: it would have tremendous roll-over due to the huge volume. Even the low-treaded 2.25 Advantage is as big as the 2.35 Minion!

I have moved to the 2.4 Ardent for my trail use because it has a heavier, tougher sidewall, has more aggressive knobs, and it was a compromise on the size/volume of the 2.4 Advantage and the 2.35 Minion. It also has a kind of center-strip-of-knobs thing going on which pleases me on hardpack, although I can feel that the center-strip is a little squishy.

Interesting combo indeed, and you're a rad MTB story. Representing in Korea!
 
#5 ·
yup, Korea is revealing some awesome riding. Went out yesterday with a long term resident for a scouting walk and he showed me a rediculous DH line. All my tyres have been single ply and I havent had any issues yet. I used to run high roller rear/minion front and it is a wicked combo but the tarmac destroys the high roller. I was thinking about the ardent and may buy one as I plan to invest in 3-4 mixed tyres. I want to have a Holy Roller set for pure street if I need it and then some minions and whatever I decided for tarmac/dirt mix up front.
Wondering what an advantage rear/minion front or ardent rear/minion front will be like?
Just to clear things up a bit. I dont run Holy Roller rear and Minion front for street. If I have that combo on at the time its for riding tarmac to run some trails and then home again to clock 20 odd km. After my last dump with the Holy up front I have lost confidence in pushing the Holy too far. If I hit some street then its just a few drops etc. The minion squirms bad cornering on tarmac and its not that I worry about my health but that of my tyre.
 
#6 ·
I rode advantages at Diablo for most of last season. If your runs are groomed it'll be fine for you, but I got a lot of flats over the course of a few months. I like rocky trails though, so that should be no surprise. As far as grip and handling went, I never had a problem with them, but the sidewalls are pretty weak, and I finally had to retire them after tearing a hole in my sidewall that was big enough that the tube was bulging through it, haha.

Luckily I got a DH bike with DH tires on it around the same time. Haven't flatted since.
 
#7 ·
mmmm
never had issues with my minion single ply or high rollers and I have read this issue with the advantage. strange as its marketed as a FR tyre
i will look online at the ardent and some other options. how does the advantage roll compared to the minion? if its not worth changing then maybe its better to stick with what i know and trust eh!
 
#8 ·
Well, I really think it's all dependent on how rocky your runs are. Also, running DH tubes seemed to help a little bit, but not much.

As far as how well they roll, I couldn't really tell, and I've actually never ridden minions so I wouldn't be able to give you any useful opinion anyway, haha.
 
#9 ·
id say the advantages roll better than the minions. ive run 2.4 advantages and 2.35 minions on 5.1's and like em both but both have their pros and cons as covered above. if yer not in pinch flat hell, surrounded by sharp rocks and dont mind a few extra grams, try the advantages. excellent cornering charactoristics, big n comfy, awsome all day roller.
 
#10 ·
I've been riding 2.4 ADvantages for a long time now. Used to have them on my SX-Trail now on my Nomad. I've taken them to Mammoth and Northstar a few times and they held up. They aren't very thick so lots of rock gardens would probably destroy them but I don't really deal with many of those in Santa Cruz. They're pretty decent. I want to try 2.35" Minion Single Ply's too, those look amazing.
 
#11 ·
I ran the Minion 2.35 rear and advantage front for a long time. This year i switched to front and rear advantage with awesome results.

i would highly recommend it.

If they made them in 2 ply it would be on my DH bike too. as mentioned it is an aggressive cornerer. you have to lean it a little bit but i love how they feel.

now this is coming from a guy who rides mostly hard pack to loose dust on a regular basis here in utah.
 
#13 ·
I can't comment with respect to your terrain as I'm in the NE US but,

I've been running Ardents for a while and love their cornering. They roll as well as the High Rollers they replaced. (My previous fav tire) I decided to try the Advantage on the back and a crossmark up front. I really didn't like the Advent as much as the Ardent. The Ards corner much better (as said above more agressively) and have better straight traction (climbing and such)

The XM up front rolls nicely and corners okay on my terrain but not nearly as well as the Ards. Perhaps on your groomed hardpack that's all you need but my trails are a mix of choppy rocky, rooty loamy hardpack with mixed moisture, so something that can dig into soft as well as hold on to hard sufaces seems to work well for me. That seems to be the Ardents strength.

I will be trying some minions this spring though.

G'luck!
 
#14 ·
You wont be dissapointed with minions, amazing tyre. I was just thinking about better rolling resistance but still good cornering ability. I ran cross marks but I find they pinch flat super eezy even without going too low on the pressure. I was running them on my hardtail so I needed a bit of cushion. I went back to Holy roller as they seem to have a little more squish. I dont know if I wood trust the cross mark on the front for the down hill trails I plan to ride and dont get me wrong, I am looking for a tyre that can do 3-4km to the trail then a mixed uphill of tarmac and gravel fire road 3-4km and then a sweet run down the mountain, finally 3-4km tarmac home. With this setup I wood hold back a bit and wait till I do the weekend push or drive up with the minions fitted. I really loved the High Roller on the back and when looking at the centre tread was suprised at the traction when climbing, they just wear too quick. I may have to pick up an ardent and advantage, mmmmm.
 
#19 ·
Rocked 2.4 ADvantages for about 2.5 seasons now, almost always tubeless on 5.1 rims, front and rear. Maintained a couple of bikes this way with excellent results. Any time I have tubes in them, I just end up pinch flatting 10' later, I think my riding style has just adapted to much to tubeless and no worries of flats any more. Though, I know a few peeps that run them with tubes and seem to have better luck than me. The sidewalls are soft and in general they require more PSI than a similar 2.4 to keep from rolling over but they still maintain good traction at higher pressures when run tubeless. I've ripped a few sidewalls but that was riding in really unforgiving terrain where I should have been using a dual-ply. For the weight, it's hard to beat the traction. The only tires that I've found in that weight range that I like is much are the Intense DC EX lite 909 and DH in a 2.35. The Intense tires (esp if using 909's) roll a little slower but have more grip at the limit and a little more beef in the sidewall. I run these tubeless as well on 5.1's (2.35) and 823's (2.5) with excellent results.
 
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