Tire inserts are one potential solution. Maybe you need them, maybe you don’t. How we spec our wheels, tires and even our inserts largely depends on where and how we ride. It’s a really interesting topic. Some people would choose a heavy tire and no insert and some would combine the two for all out protection. What I’m interested in during this comparison is the idea of running a slightly lighter tire than I normally would while hopefully reaping all the benefits the insert has to offer. Go Bigger- CushCore improves suspension performance by 16% and reduces impact force from big hits by 50%. Send it with total confidence.

The way it dealt with compressions left a little to be desired. It feels more like a last defense rather than a full system. I don’t think the MegaNorris is something to be run with sub-20psi or for somebody who is happy to rely on the insert to do the heavy lifting duties for the tire. The MegaNorris feels like you ride it as a normal tire, with normal pressure and it will provide added protection and stability. The rim and tire combination also has a major influence on how easily the inserts can be fitted. The bikes on test rolled on Stan’s NoTubes (Flow MK3), DT Swiss (FR 560) and eThirteen (LG1+ DH) rims and were combined with MAXXIS tires with a Doubledown or Downhill casing as well as Schwalbe tires with the robust Super Gravity or Downhill casing. Tire change

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Before beginning testing in earnest, I acquainted myself with the tires and wheels with no inserts in. They behaved admirably, however burping wasn’t uncommon, clangs and bangs were a running theme and I could often feel the tire roll and squirm in turns. For your reference, I weigh 85kg and wouldn’t say I’m overly aggressive on the bike.

CushCore responds differently depending on the tyre load and scenario. The more the tyre flexes, the more damping it provides. Some of the other inserts really felt as if they “turned on” as you went through the tire’s stroke. The Panzer is different in this regard. It feels neutral and there’s no place where it really feels like it switches on or times where it makes you realise “that was all insert”. There are other inserts that dominate the feel of the tire but that isn’t the case with the Panzer.

Many riders prefer to run 1-5 psi less tyre pressure with CushCore. The ideal pressure depends largely on your starting point - your normal air pressure with standard tubeless. Riders who already run low pressures (for example, 20 front and 23 rear) have less room to adjust than riders who normally run 30 or 35 psi. Excessively low tyre pressures increase the risk of flats or wheel damage. We encourage you to experiment and find your own preferred setting. Start at your normal tyre pressure, then drop in 1 psi increments until you find the sweet spot for your riding conditions. Tubeless tires have won-out against their tubed counterparts in mountain biking but that doesn’t mean that it’s the perfect system. Not only is it vulnerable to the possibility of burping the air out of the tire at high load or while cornering, it also needs to be a system that keeps damage and destruction at bay while withstanding a whole variety of different forces and abrasions. my solution: wrap the noodle in fibre glass tape at 90deg to the direction that the rim will impact it, the tape will not tear and will give the noodle that outer skin it needs.

I found that the Rimpact could be fatiguing at times. It doesn't feel that comfortable, in that you often feel like you ride on the support of the material as opposed to solely on the tire supported by a chamber of air. It offers huge amounts of grip, but to say that there isn’t a trade off in terms of comfort wouldn’t be true. I also tend to run a very firm spring rate, which could have exacerbated this issue to some extent. I would, however, be very curious to try the Rimpact with a slightly lighter compression tune on my fork.CushCore is no ordinary tyre insert and is based on a new concept, tyre suspension. Any suspension system has a spring and a damper, and with CushCore, pressurised air in the tyre is the spring and the CushCore tyre insert is the damper. lb rider here, riding east coast rox. This year I switched to EXO+ rear tire with Tannus Tubeless insert from the same tire (DHR2) in DD casing. I had been happily riding the DD going through approx. one tire a year, for the past 3 years. DD marked the first time for me I could actually wear out a tire before pinching and cutting the casing of a tire. Typically, I would run a rear tire weighing around 1200g or 1250g. For this test I ran tires that were around two or three hundred grams lighter. My ultimate goal was to have a tire and insert that was roughly the same total weight as a heavier duty tire. I think the MegaNorris does have its place and it does offer excellent stability in turns. This is the insert for somebody that rides hard, corners harder and isn’t particularly worried about feel or how it copes with rough choppy terrain. There are lots of people who ride high-load berms and want something very secure that will stop their tire squirming and rolling over, this could well be that option.