In this article I’m going to discuss my top picks for the very best XC tires currently available.
With so many tires available you can get quickly overwhelmed with all the different tread patterns, compounds, technology, and even different options for front and rear wheels.
On this list you’ll find the best tires that combine weight, grip, and puncture protection. Choosing tires is always a tradeoff between something. Weight, rolling resistance or speed, grip and cornering confidence, durability, feel, braking power and traction. It’s like a video game where you get skill points you have to assign to your character: you can max one bar, but it means you can’t max another. With good tires there are more skill points to assign so to speak.
True XC tires are much lighter than your average trail or enduro tires. They also have a shallower tread pattern with smaller knobbies densely spaced. Such a tread pattern ensures a smooth even ride, at the cost of digging less deep into the road and sacrificing some grip.
One way to maintain a good amount of grip is with a wider tire. But a wider tire adds weight, and increases rolling resistance. Added weight is not necessarily a bad thing because it also means it rolls more easily across rougher terrain because of increased momentum. But you could go for a grippier, wider tire up front and a less wide tire in the back if you occasionally veer into the direction of trail riding.
Now with that all ouf of the way, let’s take a look at the contenders for best 650b XC tires.
Continental Cross King ProTection
The Continental Cross King ProTection is the newer version of a magnificent, lightweight cross-country racer.
ProTection replaces the RaceSport moniker. It’s a three- and four ply system underneath respectively the tread and sidewall, ensuring maximum puncture protection and shieldwall tearing.
This doesn’t take away from the fact that this tire is still one of the lightest in its category. A true racer.
- Maximum puncture protection in a lightweight cross-country racing tire.
- None
Continental Race King ProTection
The Continental Race King ProTection is an extremely light tire. In the weight department it means it outshines every comparable tire from every other brand by far. And it’s also the best XC tire in the rolling-resistance department.
I cannot stress enough that with respect to speed and acceleration, a light tire makes all the difference. And tires are also the most cost-effective way to reduce the overall weight of the bike.
Try reducing a couple of hundred grams of any other bike component and be ready to spend in the hundreds of dollars. Not so the case with tires. And on top of that the tire has the advanced ProTection puncture protection, with a composite breaker and a bead to bead sidewall protection polyamide fabric.
All that speed comes at a price, because traction is not this tire’s strength when compared to other mountain bike tires. And it’s the reason this tire performs best in dry conditions.
But when riding in those conditions getting up to speed and keeping it is like nothing you’ve ever experienced before. It rightly deserves its name.
- One of the lightest mountain bike tire on the market, with excellent puncture protection. Geared towards speed in every way.
- None
Maxxis Ardent Race
The Maxxis Ardent Race is a great option to mount as a very grippy dual XC setup, an aggressive XC front tire, or a lightweight, fast-rolling trail tire.
The triple compound provides a fast-rolling center with softer and grippier side knobs for added traction and cornering confidence.
In dry conditions the traction will prove to be outstanding. In wet conditions the small close-knit knobs can get packed with mud. So you’ll need to resort to a different tire if you want to ride year round without swapping tires.
- A highly versatile grippy XC, or aggressive, lightweight trail tire.
- None
Maxxis Crossmark II
The Maxxis Crossmark II is fast-rolling, dry condition, XC or gravel tire with the shallow center knobs and minimal side knobs.
It’s designed for speed on dry hardpack when going in a straight line, with the most minimal tread pattern you can find within this mountain bike category.
The hard-wearing 60 TPI dual casing and EXO reinforced sidewalls make it an excellent companion for long gravel and/or touring rides as well. Especially if you want to have the flexibility to veer off the beaten path yet still ride with confidence.
- Fast-rolling, and versatile tire, Maxxis' build quality with EXO protection.
- None
Maxxis Ikon
The absolute cross-country king in Maxxis’ lineup. The Maxxis Ikon has near perfect all-round tire characteristics, which makes it an excellent option for diverse road and trail conditions. Though it’s categorized obviously as an XC tire, it’ll also perform superior for bikepackers and gravel riders.
That being said, this is a racing tire, which means it’s light. But the reliable EXO compound, also used for harsher enduro racing, also means you’ll enjoy this tire for many miles.
As with any tire with this type of tread, it’ll perform well in dry conditions. The 26 inch version has both a 2.35 and 2.2 inch width option. You can run this tire both front and back, and might opt for the wider version in the front for some added grip. Especially if you expect some portions of your ride to be particularly rough.
It’s undeniable that the top-of-the-line products of Maxxis are superior to many if not all of their competitors. And the Maxxis Ikon shows it, with a perfect blend of weight, speed, grip, and protection.
- The cross-country king. Highly versatile tire which excels in XC, bikepacking, and gravel, lightweight. Can be used front and rear. Pair with Ardent Race in the front for ultra-fast yet grippy XC setup. Tan options available
- None
Schwalbe Racing Ralph
Schwalbe’s lineup consists of a number of highly specialized cross-country tires. The Schwalbe Racing Ralph being one of them.
As stated on the website, the Racing Ralph was designed for the rear. That’s because it has the shallowest center tread pattern, making it perfect for riding as fast as possible in dry conditions.
Although it’s meant for a combo setup with a grippier tire in the front, you could actually use it as a dual setup when bikepacking or gravel riding instead of pure XC racing.
If you want to ride as fast as possible, and maintain that speed when cornering, I suggest pairing it with a grippier front tire. You can opt for the Racing Ray, Rocket Ron, or Nobby Nic. With the Racing Ray offering the least amount of grip and the Nobby Nic the most. The Rocket Ron sits in between the three.
- Fantastic rear XC tire. Low weight, and super fast. Combine with Racking Ray, Rocket Ron, or Nobby Nic for a grippier setup.
- None
Schwalbe Racing Ray
Where the Schwalbe Racing Ralph was designed as a rear tire, the Schwalbe Racing Ray is meant for the front. It also means that one of the most obvious choices for a Schwalbe cross country setup would be the combination of the two.
And it seems that the combination works for a lot of people better than ever. with great braking power and traction in the back and great traction and grip in the front, even for wet conditions.
- Extremely fast front XC tire, super fast setup with the Schwalbe Racing Ralph
- none
Schwalbe Rocket Ron
Both the weight and tread pattern puts the Schwalbe Rocket Ron squarely into XC territory. The evenly spaced knobs mean you always hold contact with the ground ensuring a low rolling resistance.
They are small as well, which means you need to look for the Nobby Nic if you want a more allround and grippy trail tire. But if you want a bit more speed the 640 gr. for a 2.35 inch version you can run two of these.
You should be able to confidently do light trail riding in loose and wet conditions with these tires, and the XC-oriented tread pattern combined with either the Super Ground or Super Race compound will provide you with the speed you need.
It’s worthy to note that the Schwalbe Rocket Ron performs really well in the rolling resistance department, as do all Schwalbe tires. So it’s both light and fast.
- great allround XC tire, perfect for gravel and bikepacking, very fast tire
- - None
650B Tires Weight Rating
Tires are one of the easiest and cost-effective places on your bike to save weight. Rubber is simply much less expensive than, say, carbon or titanium.
The weight ratings in the following table are ot absolute numbers. You can find those numbers in the specifications table at the end of the article. The number you see here is a weighted ratio of weight related to tire width.
The number provides an indicator to quickly compare different tires against each other and have to be taken with a grain of salt. Mountain bike tires, which are also featured here, come in a huge number of different sizes, widths, and compounds. To obtain the best ratings I compare the lightest version of tires against each other.
650B Tires Puncture Protection Rating
How well a tire is protected against punctures is not the same as the amount of rubber compound is slapped onto the tire casing.
The puncture protection rating you see in the following table is the additional level of protection a tire has in the form of sidewall protection, and puncture resistant breakers or belts sitting underneath the center tread.
It means a heavy mountain bike tire can have a lower puncture protection rating than a gravel tire with an added puncture resistant layer.
Specifications 650b XC tires
Name | Size | ETRTO | Weight (gr) | Tread color | Sidewall color | Compound | Puncture protection | Tire bead | TPI | Buy at Amazon |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Continental Cross King Racesport | 27.5×2.30 | 58-584 | 635 | Black | Black | BlackChili | RaceSport casing | tlr | ||
Continental Cross King Racesport | 27.5×2.20 | 55-584 | 520 | Black | Black | BlackChili | RaceSport casing | tlr | ||
Continental Race King Racesport | 27.5×2.20 | 55-584 | 490 | Black | Black | BlackChili | RaceSport casing | tubular | 3/180 | |
Kenda Regolith Pro | 27.5×2.60 | 66-584 | 849 | Black | Black | Dual | SCT | tlr | 120 | |
Kenda Regolith Pro | 27.5×2.80 | 70-584 | 829 | Black | Black | Dual | TR | tlr | 120 | |
Maxxis Ardent Race | 27.5×2.20 | 56-584 | 714 | Black | Black | 3C MaxxSpeed | tlr | 120 | ||
Maxxis Ardent Race | 27.5×2.35 | 60-584 | 730 | Black | Black | 3C MaxxSpeed | tlr | 60 | ||
Maxxis Ardent Race | 27.5×2.60 | 66-584 | 878 | Black | Black | Dual | tlr | |||
Maxxis Crossmark II | 27.5×2.25 | 57-584 | 735 | Black | Black | Dual | tlr | 60 | ||
Maxxis Ikon | 27.5×2.20 | 56-584 | 590 | Black | Light Tan | Dual | EXO | tlr | ||
Maxxis Ikon | 27.5×2.20 | 56-584 | 668 | Black | Tan | Dual | EXO | tlr | ||
Maxxis Ikon | 27.5×2.20 | 56-584 | 630 | Black | Black | 3C MaxxSpeed | EXO | tlr | ||
Maxxis Ikon | 27.5×2.35 | 60-584 | 700 | Black | Black | 3C MaxxSpeed | EXO | tlr | ||
Schwalbe Racing Ralph | 27.5×2.25 | 57-584 | 605 | Black | Black | ADDIX Speed | Super Ground | tlr | ||
Schwalbe Racing Ralph | 27.5×2.25 | 57-584 | 680 | Black | Black | ADDIX | Super Ground | tlr | ||
Schwalbe Racing Ray | 27.5×2.25 | 57-584 | 605 | Black | Black | ADDIX Speed | Super Ground | tlr | ||
Schwalbe Racing Ray | 27.5×2.25 | 57-584 | 680 | Black | Black | ADDIX | tlr | |||
Schwalbe Rocket Ron | 27.5×2.25 | 57-584 | 600 | Black | Black | ADDIX Speed | Super Race | tlr | ||
Schwalbe Rocket Ron | 27.5×2.25 | 57-584 | 600 | Black | Black | ADDIX SpeedGrip | Super Ground | tlr |
Johan van Seijen
FoundeR Restoration.bike
Johan van Seijen is the founder of restoration.bike. His passion for cycling in general, and restoring older bikes turned into a website to share his knowledge with a broader audience. Starting out on his father’s road bike and riding classics as the Amstel Gold Race and Liege Bastogne Liege he has shifted his attention to trail, XC, and gravel riding since. No matter how much he loves writing about everything related to cycling, nothing beats actually using his ever-expanding bicycle collection.
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