I put these on my hardtail recently (Magi X2 front, Gum X rear in 29.2.4) and have two rides on them. First was at Eagle in Port Moody two weeks ago and at Bear in Mission today. Both days it was below 7 degrees out. I think it was around 2 degrees when I rode Eagle and around 4 or 5 degrees at Bear today. Tires are set up on a 30mm internal rim with Tannus tubeless. I played around with pressure a bit but kept them in the range of 18 to 20 psi front and 19 to 22 psi rear.
I found them unnerving and, for a couple of moments, terrifying. Recent comparator setups were Continental Baron Projekt with Tannus and Cushcore Pro and also Maxxgrip Assegai Exo+ front and DHF Maxx Terra Exo+ rear (with Cushcore Pro).
It feels to me like its really hard to find the sweet spot (at least in this weather) for this tire in terms of pressure where it feels compliant enough but not squirmy. With inserts I don’t have that problem with any of the other tires mentioned. I’m thinking I should have paid more attention to the commentary about these (especially the Magi X2) being not great (or worse) in the cold:
“Aggressive riding in dry conditions and rocky terrain suits the Magi-X² front but when it gets cold and damp, the softer Gum-X3D performs better. Warmer (15º C and higher) wet riding with the Magi-X² was great. This adds another cost and involves more time faffing with setups.”
I think I’ll pull these off and try again June 1st...
Feb. 21, 2021, 12:41 p.m. - Bushpilot
I put these on my hardtail recently (Magi X2 front, Gum X rear in 29.2.4) and have two rides on them. First was at Eagle in Port Moody two weeks ago and at Bear in Mission today. Both days it was below 7 degrees out. I think it was around 2 degrees when I rode Eagle and around 4 or 5 degrees at Bear today. Tires are set up on a 30mm internal rim with Tannus tubeless. I played around with pressure a bit but kept them in the range of 18 to 20 psi front and 19 to 22 psi rear. I found them unnerving and, for a couple of moments, terrifying. Recent comparator setups were Continental Baron Projekt with Tannus and Cushcore Pro and also Maxxgrip Assegai Exo+ front and DHF Maxx Terra Exo+ rear (with Cushcore Pro). It feels to me like its really hard to find the sweet spot (at least in this weather) for this tire in terms of pressure where it feels compliant enough but not squirmy. With inserts I don’t have that problem with any of the other tires mentioned. I’m thinking I should have paid more attention to the commentary about these (especially the Magi X2) being not great (or worse) in the cold: “Aggressive riding in dry conditions and rocky terrain suits the Magi-X² front but when it gets cold and damp, the softer Gum-X3D performs better. Warmer (15º C and higher) wet riding with the Magi-X² was great. This adds another cost and involves more time faffing with setups.” I think I’ll pull these off and try again June 1st...