Tire Review - Kenda Nevegal, Kenda Small Block Eight, Forté Tsali

[Vipassana]

Bike: 2011 Giant Anthem X2 (29er)
Terrian: Arizona, Desert Scrub, Dry Dirt, Loose Gravel/Dirt, Dusty Hardpack
Ride Style: XC, Endurance

Front Tire:
Kenda Nevegal Pro
Stan's Tubeless
Size: 29x2.2
Bead: Folding
TPI: 60
PSI: 30-34 psi
Weight: 833g
Cost: ~$50
Comments: Has ~15 months of use, >1500 miles, Still performing well.
Pros:
- Zero issues while riding, ever.
- Stan's conversion was without issue.
- Plenty of grip and predictable enough.
- Seems to measure larger than 2.2 width; comparable to other 2.3+ tires.
Cons:
- High rolling resistance for the riding I do.
- Noisy as hell on the street when I ride with the wife. I can't hear her speak half of the time. Maybe that's a pro?
- Heavy for an XC tire I suppose.

Rear Tire #1:
Kenda Small Block 8
Stan's Tubeless
Size: 29x2.1
Bead: Folding
TPI: 120
PSI: 28-35 psi
Weight: 580g
Cost: ~$50
Comments: This tire lasted ~9 months, >1000 miles before a sidewall tear on a rock.
Pros:
- Light weight! - The side walls are very thin which helps with acceleration. these things are light!
- Tire rolls FAST, but is twitchy on anything but clean hardpack.
- Dual Rubber Compound
Cons:
- Weak sidewall! - The side walls are very thin which makes them weak.
- Specific to dry, hardpack terrain - It's manageable in other terrains, but you need to be careful. Lower pressure helps, but does not cure the sliding. Climbing is a chore when they lose grip. Which is often.
- NOT SUITABLE FOR A FRONT TIRE.
- I had an issue getting these seal with Stan's. The would hold for a day, but not much longer. LBS mechanic said he had the same issues on them.
- They pack with mud and become slicks; dry weather only.

Rear Tire #2:
Kenda Small Block 8
Stan's Tubeless
Size: 29x2.1
Bead: Folding
TPI: 120
PSI: 28-35 psi
Weight: 580g
Cost: ~$50
Comments: This tire lasted ~1 month, <20 miles before a sidewall tear on a rock.
Pros:
- Same as above.
Cons:
- Same as above.

Rear Tire #3:
Forté TsaliStan's Tubeless
Size: 29x2.2
Bead: Folding
TPI: 60
PSI: 28-32 psi
Weight: 656g
Cost: ~$30
Comments: This tire lasted ~2 months, >200 miles and still going strong.
Pros:
- Price! - These are a steal at $30
- Roll fast. - They are comparable in tread design to the Small Block 8's, but the knobs are a bit taller making for a noticeable increase in grip compared to the Small Blocks. These do not seem to lose grip nearly as often as the Small Blocks during standing climbs.
- Robust sidewalls (so far)
- Dual Rubber Compound
- Seal without issue with Stan's kit.
Cons:
- None - Perhaps the weight compared to the Small Blocks? But Sidewall thickness makes up for it.

Pictures of the tread:
Kenda Nevegal:


Kenda Small Block 8:


Forté Tsali



In summary, I think the take away from this is that the "store brand" Forté tire is a clear winner.  I was being a brand snob in the store and almost went with a Continental at $60 after the two disappointing runs with the Kenda Small Blocks, but a buddy convinced me to try the Forté.  I was really pleased with it's performance for half the cost of comparable tires.  I would recommend it to anyone looking for a fast rolling XC rear tire.

[Sitar_Ned]

Thanks for the very informative review.. good to have another cheap tyre to try out. I've been wanting to try the 2.35 Maxxis Ikons every since I decided to build my chiner, ended up going with the Saguaro Geax for about the same price as the Forte. I haven't wanted more yet, but I do want to try some different tyre mainly just to have something to compare my current ones to.

Also... I didn't realize the small block 8s were so frkn light. Under 600 grams a tyre is awesome. Guess that puts them somewhere in line with the Racing Ralphs? Carbon_Dude will know the answer to that, so hopefully he chimes in.

My main question is can you tell that much of a difference when swapping between tyres with different weights?

Also...

- Noisy as hell on the street when I ride with the wife. I can't hear her speak half of the time. Maybe that's a pro?

Lol.

[brmeyer135]

Thanks for doing this.
Would like to see more since we all have tried different things...maybe a separate area for personal reviews?
I will be doing Kenda's Kozmik Lite II next month.
I have attached a picture as a preview.
I liked them because they were lite but more the pattern looks to be good for street but it has decent side lugs for cornering and should overall be a fast rolling tire.
Lastly, the tread looks to be good for going up hill - thinking little slippage.

[tasty.dirt74]

The Small Block 8s are a underrated tyre... I used the 26 x 2.35 for a couple of 100kl events, and when used on the right surface, they are great.. Really high levels of grip. Not too good in mud however !! 

[Carbon_Dude]

Also... I didn't realize the small block 8s were so frkn light. Under 600 grams a tyre is awesome. Guess that puts them somewhere in line with the Racing Ralphs? Carbon_Dude will know the answer to that, so hopefully he chimes in.

I still have a Racing Ralph as a front tire on my FS Chiner, still working fine.  However, as a rear tire, the RR didn't hold up well at all.  At 540g, the RR are extremely light but thin.  They grip well but that would be their best feature.  In my experience, they were expensive, didn't mount tubeless very well (difficult to seal, lots of sidewall pin holes), didn't hold air more than a day or two, weak sidewall, tread wore very quickly.

I won't be buying RR tires in the future but there are lots of people who like them, that don't mind paying $60-$80 for a tire every 4-6 months, and all they care about is the light weight and good grip which is fine if you are racing.

I've only owned one Kenda Nevagal (26"), I liked the tire in wet muddy conditions.  However, it failed prematurely, most likely a result of the Stans sealant weakening the rubber.  The sidewall just blew out when the bike was sitting in the garage.  After that I spoke with some people at Kenda and was told those tires were not compatible with tire sealant.  This was a few years ago but it makes me wonder if the Kenda Nevagal also failed for Vipassana because of the tire sealant weakening the sidewall and then a rock just did it in.

[Vipassana]

Ah, Carbon Dude, I think you misread it.   Both of the Small Block 8's had sidewall failures.  The Nevegal is still going strong!

[Carbon_Dude]

Okay, got it.  However, I still wonder if sealants can have negative effects on some rubber compounds.

[Vipassana]

That is not something I had ever considered...

I wonder if I could test this; I still have the ties sitting in the garage.  And extra sealant on hand.

[brmeyer135]

Reading through the homebrew on MTBR, it sounded like the old formulation of stans had ammonia that would break the bead or something down over time.  Supposedly, stan's new formula is eco friendly(no ammonia)...but some of the home brewers are using ammonia in their concoctions...not sure what to think there.