Levo SL Gen 1 Butcher 2.6

[tabrat]

Happy Friday!
I'm considering changing my front tire to a Butcher 2.6. Has anyone tried this? I find the 2.3 always feels like it's going to wash out at speed. It's also interesting that the 2021 Levo is now 2.6 F/2.3R.

You might want to consider just scrapping the Butcher and go to anything Maxxis. There is no comparison IMO. The side knobs on the Butchers just are not nearly as good as Maxxis and the Maxxis technology is far superior.

 

[tabrat]

I prefer the assegai. I still have the original dhf which I ran while it was dry. When I first changed to assegai I thought it wasn't as high volume as the dhf. After living with the assegai for the last 6 months I'm happy with it - it has just worked. I changed to assegai when it started getting wet and slimy here. I will put the dhf back on soon, as it is coming into our dry track period. I will wear the dhf out, but not replace it. I'm happy with assegai on the front all year. It doesn't have that "no man's land" between centre knobs and side knobs - that has caught me out a couple of times when I wasn't aggressive enough. I did buy a dhf for the rear for dry use - it is an easier roller than the dhrII and seems to climb just as well. I'm not good enough to compare the braking of it to a dhr in the steep stuff, but surprisingly I felt the dhf was the better climber! Hard pack, loose over hard, rocky, steep. I have a couple of tyres to use up on the rear yet, but I haven't settled on a year round tyre for that. I'm considering assegai or schwalbe eddy current 2.6 rear. Or I could stay with DHRII which is good in the small amount of mud we get here - that tyre never packs up.

I am running a Assegai up front and an Eddy Current in rear and I like the combo since the sidewalls on the Eddy Current are very stable.

 

[Dano78]

I have a 2.6 Assegai on the front and it will give you confidence but I would not use it on the back as it is a bit draggy. Use what ever you have on the back until they are worn and see what feels best and why then replace with something similar.

Does the assegai 2.6 blow up to a 2.6 or does it come abit smaller like alot of maxxis tyres thanks

 

[Singletrackmind]

My new 2021 Specialized Turbo Levo S-Works came with a 2.6 Butcher on the front wheel. Absolutely hated it! Inspired no confidence after run Maxxis DHF's on my 3 clockwork mtbs for many years. Wanted to try something different then Maxxis and really wanted to try an emtb specific tire. Went with the Schwalbe Eddy Current 2.6 and it rocks! Have it laced to a 30mm internal width rim and tire profile is spot on, performs well in berms and isn't squishy. Unbeknownst to me before purchasing, it actually measures less in width then the stock Butcher. Think its a great all-dieiround tire foe trail/all mountain biking endeavors. waiting for my YT Decoy to arrive and have a set of emtb specific Michelin E-Wild's (2.6 front/2.6 & 2.8 rears) that I'm dying to try when my new bad boy arrives. Will definitely share thoughts on this thread.

 

[Singletrackmind]

Yes the Gum-X! Strange that they only come in 2.4. Well that's better than the 2.3 the bike comes with.

I was able to get 2.6 Michelin E-Wilds from Ebay. Live in the US, took a little over a week to artive from Germany. Will give it a go when YT Decoy Elite finally arrives.

 

[AlexEMTB]

My new 2021 Specialized Turbo Levo S-Works came with a 2.6 Butcher on the front wheel. Absolutely hated it! Inspired no confidence after run Maxxis DHF's on my 3 clockwork mtbs for many years. Wanted to try something different then Maxxis and really wanted to try an emtb specific tire. Went with the Schwalbe Eddy Current 2.6 and it rocks! Have it laced to a 30mm internal width rim and tire profile is spot on, performs well in berms and isn't squishy. Unbeknownst to me before purchasing, it actually measures less in width then the stock Butcher. Think its a great all-dieiround tire foe trail/all mountain biking endeavors. waiting for my YT Decoy to arrive and have a set of emtb specific Michelin E-Wild's (2.6 front/2.6 & 2.8 rears) that I'm dying to try when my new bad boy arrives. Will definitely share thoughts on this thread.

Good to hear about the Schwalbe! I'll give them a whirl next. I went with the Michelin's on my SL and they are fantastic!