Pete has been testing two summer enduro tyres from the Vee Tire Co. stable over the last few months to see if they can really cut it with the big dogs.
Vee Tire Co. came from relative obscurity but have done a good job of thrusting themselves into the limelight.
Pete’s been running their Crown F and R through the mill to see what they can do.
Key features:
- Tackee compound.
- 27.5 and 29″.
- 2.25, 2.3 and 2.35″ available.
- 790g (F-ree, 27.5 x 2.25)
- VeeTire.com
- Crown F from £39.99, R from £44.99 RRP
I’ve been running the Vee Tire Co. combo over the last few months, replacing the Minion DHF and Aggressor setup that came on my Bergamont Trailster Elite test bike.
While the rear specific Crown R offers rolls with similar speed to the Aggressor, it does a bit of weight due to the more resilient carcass and softer rubber compound.
The combined weight of both tyres is, as you’d expect, around the kilo mark. They’re slightly heavier that the Maxxis combo I took off but that doesn’t seem to cause any problems when you’re riding.
The Vee Tyre Crown F and R combo is fast once you’re up to speed and grip, in the dry summer conditions we’re all enjoy, is exceptional. The carcass offers loads of support meaning that you can brake later and lean harder into turns.
Tubeless setup on the SunRingle Duroc wheels was a breeze. They were easy enough to get on the wheel without tools and up in one blast of an Airshot.
That said, being only 8 stone, I did find I needed to run the Crowns slightly harder than I would with other tyres to stop the firm carcass from leaking air.
That didn’t take long to get used to though, and the ample grip didn’t suffer too much as a result. If anything only further improving the tyres’ puncture-free run.
With the recent months being as dry as they have been, testing the Crown duo in the wet hasn’t been on the cards so far. So far though, they’ve been excellent and super capable through off camber terrain. Despite not sporting a super aggressive edge, they don’t suffer any lack of traction.
Grip under braking is good, although I’d imagine the rear Crown R will clog fairly quickly in winter slop. Oppositely, that’s not an issue I suspect the fairly open tread of the front Crown F will suffer with.
Bar the low pressure leaks early on, I can’t really fault the Crown F and R. They’ve been reliable workhorses throughout.
We like:
- Good cornering grip and support.
- Good dollops of grip.
- Zero punctures.
- Fast rolling.
Could do better:
- Better low pressure support.
What do we think?
You would be hard pushed to go wrong with the Crown combo of F out front and R out the back if you want a fast rolling tyre with a sturdy carcass that offers plenty of grip.
Without running these through the winter or super wet conditions, it’s hard to know how they’d fare, but it’s likely that the Flow series that Rich T tested would be a better shout when things get steep, loose and muddy.
