Schwalbe

Hans Dampf Tire -27.5in

The Schwalbe Hans Dampf 27.5-inch Tire is designed as a jack-of-all-trades tire that positions itself between the fast-rolling Rocket Ron and tenacious Knobby Nic. It'll do it all, but it's got an especially large appetite for looser and more technical terrain.

The Dampf's large and widely-spaced tread blocks, robust sidewall reinforcement, and relatively low weight all conspire to place the Hans Dampf squarely in the hot spot of the 27.5-inch wheel market. A majority of bikes in this category are full-suspension all-mountain machines that lean toward gnarly terrain over all-out speed, and that's the idea behind the Hans Dampf.

The tire uses Schwalbe's 67tpi casing with a three-ply layer under the tread. The SnakeSkin version of the tire has a puncture-resistant casing that you can easily set up tubeless, while the SuperG (for Super Gravity) version of the tire is the heavy-duty version with heavy-duty sidewall and casing reinforcement so it can take big hits. Both tires are made with Schwalbe's TrailStar rubber compound, which is slower-rolling but grippier than the company's less tacky PaceStar compound.