TESTED: Rocket Ron 27.5 x 2.8" tyres

Words: Adam Macbeth    Photo: Chris Herron

When the first, twenty-six inch generation of Schwalbe’s extremely fast rolling Rocket Ron was released in around 2008, I remember reading a review in the UK publication MTBR that said ’the only thing that is certain with the new, fast rolling Rocket Ron is that you will be delivered to your next crash faster,’ and I think that pretty much sums up how I felt about the tyre in ‘regular’ mountain bike widths. Sure, it rolled as fast as hell, but if you wanted to corner even remotely aggressively you were going to end up on your face, or lodged in some kind of shrub three metres off the trail. They performed better in a twenty nine inch model for sure, the extra rubber on the ground clearly making a difference, but they still weren’t what you would call predictable. It was with this in mind that I exercised great caution, at least initially, in testing Schwalbe’s new Plus version of this tyre. 

Generally though, with Plus tyres, I would say that the traction is a lot less about the actual tread pattern and a lot more about the compound and definitely about the size of the footprint the tyre can get on the ground. Case in point, the Maxxis Chronicle has barely any tread, but grips like brown stuff on a blanket thanks to good rubber and big spread, and so I was optimistic. 

Weight wise the 2.8” Rons are great, coming in a 820 grams in the tougher Snakeskin version. You could go even lighter by running their Liteskin model but yeah, rocks would eat that thing alive and it’s best left to super loamy trails in German forests. As it’s a bunch wider than its predecessors the 2.8” version of the Rocket Ron features an extra row of outer nobs (hello cornering?) and Schwalbe claim a 28% bigger footprint than their 29×2.25” model. I liked the sound of all of this. 

Setting up tubeless was a breeze on a set of 45mm internal Whisky rims and there was no need to resort to fitting a tube for a while, or swearing profusely. It did take a little extra pressure to get the last little bits to bead up, but not in an anxiety creating way like some other tyres. Like all of Schwalbe’s modern tyres they held air well and didn’t suffer from any random sealant leaks like tyres of old. 

On the trail it was obvious where the heritage of these tyres lay. The Rons are lightning fast. The tread profile engineered for speed and the low weight of the tyre had us hauling. I tend to run my tyres at 14 front and 15 rear on rims this wide and even with the Rons at these numbers they were still faster than a lot of the 29er tyres I’ve ridden. Getting into some rougher stuff though it was apparent that a fait bit of Schwalbes weight saving had come from sidewall trimmings and I increased the pressure by 2psi front and rear. This was more to protect my rims rather than avoid tyre squirm as the Rons didn’t seem to roll around at all under cornering. Oh yeah, cornering, how did that go?

Well, better than the narrower, higher pressure versions of the tyre that’s for sure. And if you are used to riding some cross country oriented rubber in 2.25” or below you’ll probably love these things. There is still quite a bit of uncertainty though when pushing hard into a turn and even after some solid miles on these tyres I was still a bit scared of them, especially on the front. I had a pair of Schwalbe’s Nobby Nics at my house in 3.0 though, and I threw one on the front. NOW we’re talking. As a rear tyre option, the Rocket Ron is boss. It pedals super fast, has plenty of traction when climbing and combined with a more aggressive, predictable front tyre makes for a great ride. Now that I trusted my front tyre I was able to push a lot harder through corners and the Ron on the rear would break free into a drift. It was hard to predict when it would break free, but when it did it was easy to control and a whole lot of fun as long as the front stayed put. 

I’ve heard a lot of people say things like ‘Plus bikes are only good for short rides, right?’ and the Rocket Ron 27.5×2.8” definitely disproves that. I would happily show up to some recreational endurance racing with one of these on the back. Just chuck something a little more trustworthy up front.