March 19th, 2008 by 
Francois
Mountain King 2.4 29er
By: Ty Brookhart
The Continental Mountain King 29 tire comes in both 2.2″ and 2.4″ widths with 29″ diameter. The casing is made from 3 ply 180tpi cloth, and it has a foldable Kevlar bead. The tread and sidewalls are Black. Maximum inflation pressure is 65psi. 735g (2.2)/ 860g (2.4).
Continental’s Mountain King 2.4 tears through wet, mucky conditions. The tire has aggressive knobs that are well spaced to shed mud and rotting leaves. In messy conditions, cornering is superb and steering is predictable. The rubber compound is soft and tacky, adhering well to wet roots. The angular knobs dig deep into loamy soils and loose gravel. These are the best wet weather 29er tire I’ve ridden and they performed well in gravel and sand as well.
However, they tend to wander a bit on hardpack and the tread pattern, combined with the soft rubber, just doesn’t engage well on rock faces or pavement. There fells like a bit more rolling resistance than some of the other tires in its class. The thin sidewalls also give some concern to durability, though I rode the tires hard through rocks and roots and never had an issue.
Strengths:
- Great traction in wet and mucky conditions, as well as loose soils and gravel
- Light
- Big volume
- Predictable steering and cornering
- Splendid climbing tire
- sheds mud and trail debris very well
- Continental quality in construction and roundness
Weaknesses:
- Wanders on rocks and hardpack
- Rolling resistance - the tires seem to make noise and squirm a bit on asphalt and hardpack. Thus it seems like it’s not the fastest tire for those conditions
Bottom line:
These are my wet winter tire of choice. They claw up muddy climbs, straighten out slimy turns, and hold a line in loose soil conditions of all types. They are one of the lightest big volume tires out there, and there is sacrifice in performance if pure speed is the issue. If you’re not racing, this may be an ideal tire to keep you upright and safe in any kind of riding condition. They are a great value at $40 too. Continental has done a superb job again.
Click on images for large versions
Value Rating:
5 out of 5 Stars
Overall Rating:
4.75 out of 5 Stars
Read or write reviews:
Read or write reviews:
http://www.mtbr.com/reviews/29er_tire/product_131761.shtml
March 19th, 2008 at 4:33 pm
what kind of bike is that?
March 21st, 2008 at 6:38 am
Nice looking treads. They have been on my short list after a local shop had a set on a demo bike. 40$ is seriously the msrp? That seems really low for a conti.
March 21st, 2008 at 11:50 am
I believe it’s a Pereira custom… very very nice bike…
March 23rd, 2008 at 7:25 am
Did you happen to put a caliper/measure this tire? Looks like a scant 2.4.
March 28th, 2008 at 8:08 am
Sticky rubber doesn’t make a tire have poor traction on rock. I wonder if this reviewer knows what he’s talking about. I doubt it.
Sticky tires will always have great traction on rock — wet or dry, doesn’t matter. Doesn’t matter what tread pattern either.
April 10th, 2008 at 1:20 pm
i know what i’m talking about. the soft knobs are just that, soft and so they wander on rock. its not that they don’t stick well, its that the knobs move around.
Caliper on the casing- yeah, its a small tire. Like 2.2 at the tread, 2.1 at the casing.
The are a great deal at $40!!