Ardent

I've had the 2.25" tubeless ready version for about a month and half now. I have little to compare against, but comparing to my previous tubed 1.8" Kenda Slant Six, and before that to the stock, tubed 2.1" Maxxis Crossmark, I have to say that running these tires, and running tubeless, is like night and day.

The grip with the lower pressure is amazing. The improvement in cornering and confidence is also hard to credit. The one thing these tires do NOT do well is handle mud.

I rode the FLoop the other day and the mud was ubiquitous, thick, and slimy. While I never had to put a foot down, the tires did not shed much of it and I was, in the words of an infamous tune, "slip-sliding away."

Other than that, I'm impressed. I like them. I'll keep them and probably buy them again, but maybe in a 2.0" version.

 

They are not great in the mud....but since we get so much of that here, I'll look past it.

The 2.25 is the way to go.

 

I just slapped a 2.4 Ardent in the front of my Enduro 29er. Only have one ride on it but I plan to push it hard tomorrow. It's paired up with a Specialized Slaughter in the rear, going for the fast rolling tire combo. Will report back...

 

Drew Doughty emoji!

 

I have been using the 2.4 Ardent up front for a couple of weeks now. Pretty impressed with it so far. It definitely rolls faster than the Hans Dampf 2.35 it replaced. But it is actually smaller and it doesn't have the velcro grip of the German rubber. Still grips well and is reasonably light at 780 grams, claimed.
Beaded up easily using my 3 liter bottle. Doesn't weep sealant, yet.

 

I've been using the Ardent 2.25 as a rear tire for years, first on a 29er and now my current rig, a 650b Heckler. Its a great tire, as it rolls fast and climbs decently well in techy or loose conditions, but only in the rear. It is a terrible, terrible tire in the front, it's cornering traction is garbage up front, and will dump you no matter how hard you lean it, in the loose to medium conditions. It is a mud magnet that will not shed unless you can somehow accelerate back up to 20+ mph, after collecting a couple pounds of the stuff. The 2.4 version on the other hand has larger intermediate and cornering knobs and has a decent volume, making it a great tire up front.

Its funny that this thread just appeared today, cause I just moved away from the Ardent last week and have started riding the new Maxxis Tomahawk: http://www.maxxis.com/catalog/tire-498-tomahawk. It weighs a bit more at 810g, but its offered in 2.3, a touch more volume and has almost Minion quality cornering abilites but rolls just as fast or faster than the Ardent, but doesnt give up any climbing ability. Durability is still to be decided as I have only a week plus on it, the interweb reviews are all over the place in that department with regards to longevity.

 

Which begs the question, why not just put a Minion on there? I hear they have Minion-like cornering abilities!

 

Because it rolls faster? Not everything has to revolve around cornering grip.

Plus the Minion looks like too much tire for a lot of conditions. The Tomahawk looks like a nice 'tweener tire from Ardent to Minion.

 

I hope y'all don't mind if I added some graphics and specs up top...

My comment on the Maxxis Minion thing: Must admit, the cornering of the Minion DHR II has been phenomenal, but I gotta tell yah, it's wearing me out on the climbs with as little ride time I have been getting as of late.
Now that it's DST, I will be getting weekday rides in. In fact, I get to stare at my bike all day today as I have it sitting in my office at work for a ride after work... Whoo Hoo!

But I certainly would not mind a little less rolling weight. I'm not the young'stah I used to be.... (dahmeet!)

 

Ardent out in the rear, High Roller II in the front. I love this combo for Colorado/Utah riding... but it's a terrible mud setup for sure.

I may put a 2.4 on the back for Koko this year, or just stay with what worked last year. I need to check out that Tomahawk.

 

As I said earlier, I am running the Ardent 2.4 up front and the Minion SS 2.3 in the rear. Fast rolling, decent cornering, lots of letters on the sidewall-EXO-TR-WTF?
Probably my setup for Kokopelli...

 

I was running the Ardent 2.4 F/R then threw on a 2.5 Minion DHF for a trip to Big Bear. After that I threw a 2.3 DHF on the rear. I like the Ardent but like the Minions better. That being said I have a couple of 2.4 Ardents for sale.

 

I've been running a 2.4 Ardent EXO TR on the back of my bike for several months (that's how I know I haven't been riding enough) and really like it. I usually prefer a looser, faster rolling rear tire like a Specialized Capt'n Control or a Maxxis Ignitor, but had to step up to a more substantial tire that provided a bit more sidewall protection as I'm not kind to rear tires. Long story short, I'm enjoying the better cornering traction, braking and protection the Ardent provides, and it rolls pretty well too! I went 2.4 because at the time of purchase I kept hearing mumbles from peeps I trust that Maxxis tires were running narrow. My 2.4 maybe be a tiny undersized, but if I got to go back in time I would be running a 2.25. Oh and I'm still rolling on 26" wheels if that's of any interest. Final comment, I would buy 'em again...but as tires are wear items, especially rear tires, I typically like to try something new.

 

Ok so today's ride proved too much for the Ardent TR. Climbed up to Mt Lukens via Haines Cyn. Only made it down about one mile before tearing a hole on the sidewall. They may be tubeless ready but not high speed rocky-ass trail ready. I really thought mounting it on the front would work for the non EXO version.

Have not given up yet though. Taking that Ardent off and mounting the Ardent EXO TR model on the front (29er 2.4).

 

Ardent/Argent... either way @Luis ... Hold your head up.

 

@Mikie
Well played sir

 

It's totally freaky how they can run the tire on a wheel with no spokes in that spec screenshot that Mikie added...must be some newfangled technology like a magnetic bottle, or maybe the old sci-fi standby: Dilithium Crystals.

 

Tried the 650b ardent 2.2 front and rear on Whiting yesterday. I was understeering and sliding all over the place. The tires roll well, but lack grip on dusty berms. Maybe I had the PSI too high? I had tubes in them with 32 psi.

 

I don't know what you weigh, but I'm around 205 right now, and I never go over 28 on any tire... And usually lower, depending on the ride and terrain.

 

I think tire reviews are much too personal. There are too many variables, too many different expectations.

The trails, the bikes, the intended ride....everything is a compromise.


Let's take the Ardent for example.

A lot of riders see the 29 x 2.4 size and start thinking......"DH" tire. It is not. It is a high volume XC/Trail tire, but they expect it to handle like a DH tire. It is actually a great "tweener" tire. Not as aggressive as a Minion, but better than an Ikon.

You also have to look at the intended ride. For me.....the thought of dragging a pair of big aggressive knobby slow rolling tires(ie: Hans Dampf) around for 60+ miles / 10,000+ ' sounds horrible.

Same can be said about the bike......I get a giggle when I see a long travel trail bike running light XC tires, the same way I see XC race rigs running oversized monster truck tires.

Personally I like the Ardent....both the 2.25 and the 2.4(29er). They work well for my big death march rides, but still have enough bite for my shorter more aggressive rides.

Just my thoughts.

 

I agree @mtnbikej . It's not that I feel they are too personal, I just believe you have to take them with a grain of salt. Meaning, because a member hates a tire, unless I know them and know they're riding style, trail preferences, etc., I will not make a final judgement on that tire based on a third party review. A friend of mine and my MTB mentor told me years ago...tires are high wear items, so try out new ones every time unless you absolutely love one. I've taken this to heart and rarely ride the same rear tire.

I also try to drop a blurb about my riding style, trails I prefer to ride, conditions and riding traits I am looking to fulfill when I write reviews. That way a member who does not know me can get a bit more benefit from my words. Anyhow, back to the regular scheduled programming.

 

^^^And yet, @mtnbikej & @Makoto ,^^^
This is exactly why I think a tire review works better on a Forum, as oppose to reading an Ad blurb. As time goes by and the posts add up, you start to get a flavor of what might be a good fit for you. One post by one person is not enough, but several posts by several people start adding up.
I have a Yeti ASR5c like to ride chunk, often get side wall tears in the rear from dicing it with large sharp rocks, need beefy meats to stay afloat, ride loose over hard pack, need tires for aggressive cornering. The site has led me to Maxxis which I am very happy with. Now looking to get that grip and aggression in a somewhat lighter tire in furthering my ultimate tire panacea.

 

@mtnbikej is right about the Ardent. It's a high-volume tire but not the greatest for fast or aggressive DH. Pushing the front made it want to slide around on me.

@Mikie is right as well. Had I had a review to read I would not have purchased it for my type of riding.

 

All good points are made, but I think all those variables are taking a review too far. Yes it would be nice to get more data, but I'm a proponent of getting the right data. So what if you put all those data points on a sheet of paper and find that the Ardent is phenomenal on 3 deg grade semi-loamy 30% dust at 72 deg atmospheric temperature. I only have 2 wheels and only have room for 2 tires. I am not going to change my rubber to ride, whiting, then change it for aliso especially when I have 2oz of stan's sloshing around.

Here is my review, the tire was great at the beginning of Whiting until I hit the downhill part. I couldn't have gone faster because the tire was the weakest link in my bike chain. My feeling is that this would have happened on any bike regardless of single pivot, hard tail, split pivot, dw, vpp. Perhaps I could have lowered the psi to 25-29 ish and I'll try it out next week, but overall I am very disappointed with the performance. It did roll very nice, but I'd rather have the extra grip on dusty berms to prevent myself from going over the edge. This is one sacrifice I will make in terms of tire performance.

 

Tire reviews and really anything is subjective. As most stated it depends on the rider, location and sometimes air pressure. I have gone through a ton of tires because I felt they weren't for me. But you have to try them out just to be sure. In our shop we a ton of 29er tires with few miles on them because someone didn't like them.

 

I totally get this, and the fear receptors within us is probably why we stop using 1 tire because of a near miss or close call. Which is why a good review would have helped. Who knows, that tire would have been completely different if the pressure was reduced or you should have bought the pacestar instead of the trailstar exo xyz. There is one spot in Whiting where I took a bad endo. I still brake before hitting that spot even though I'm on a more capable bike.

 

Round 2 on the ardents. I lowered the PSI to 25 and it seems to be better. But it could also have been the early morning misting which kept the dust to a minimum. Although the tire rolled and gripped better, I got a sudden flat 1/2 way up mathis which forced me to make refill stops every 5-10 mins until I got to the top to change out the tube. I ran my fingers gently inside the tire to check for any sharp objects and found nothing, but overall carcass felt real flimsy. I am still going to trade them in for Conti mountain kings.

 

EXO sidewall? If not, the sidewalls are kinda flimsy.

Maxxis tires with EXO sidewalls are much stiffer.

 

Rather than start a new thread....

I now have an Ardent 2.4 DC EXO TR on the front. I assume the "DC" means "Deformed Carcass," because the beads are set perfectly and there is a wobble at the sidewall where "Maxxis" is printed. However, comma, I just put the tire through its paces on Monroe Truck Trail and I can say without reservation that although it may not be a true DH tire (heck, I'm not a DH rider) it sure makes me go faster through more stuff than I ever thought possible. Can't wait to get it up on the Motorway.

Although it's over 800 grams, I really don't notice it. Didn't slow me down any today, that's for sure. I like it. I'll keep it. I'll also hope for one that is not malformed next time.

 

I had the same issue with a 2.4 Ardent. Mounted up, it had a huge wobble in it.....took it off and returned it. Take it by the LBS and have them check it. Could be a warranty replacement.