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SEVEN DAY CYCLIST
CYCLING, BUT NOT USUALLY RACING
LATEST UPDATE MAY 21st
HOW DO WE REACH THE OVERALL RATINGS FOR PRODUCTS WE REVIEW?
CST Patrol Dual Compound 60TPI Folding EPS Tyre
26x2.25 720g £39.99ea
The CST Patrol Dual Compound 60TPI Folding EPS Tyre are a cross-country mountain bike tyre designed for a broad range of conditions. In some circles this might suggest a tyre that is jack of all trades, master of none. True, they excel in dry hardpack - a dedicated mud model will win in the gloop and there are lighter choices. Otherwise, I’ve found the Patrol engaging and very dependable, wallet-friendly all-rounders.
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Pros: Engaging, yet predictable ride in most conditions, ood puncture resistance, sensible range of sizes, competitively priced.
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Cons: Slight weight penalty, best for dry to moist hardpack, not tubeless (26 inch version).
Specification
There are several sizes. I opted for the 26x2.25 dual compound folders, which also feature the brands’ EPS (Exceptional Puncture Safety) puncture repelling belt. This is closer to Maxxis silk Shield, than the aramid/nylon double breaker belt employed within CST’s top tier Xpedium . Ranking 4 on their scale, basically, the EPS is a woven nylon belt running bead to bead, designed to offer reliable defence against flats without piling on the grams, or giving a stodgy, uninspiring ride.
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Before I get distracted by things like tread patterns, aside from the 26x2.5 tested, there’s 26x2.30, 29, 27 and 650b options, which caters for a broad church. The 26-inch Patrol aren’t tubeless ready, which may be a deal-breaker for some, but operating pressures range between 40 and 65psi, which is a little higher than typical of contemporary xc rubber. That said, in my experience this provides a very respectable amount of grip along trails and sprightly passage across smooth hardpack and metalled lanes.
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Now the tread pattern. I’m told the fairly aggressive shoulders are designed to bite deep when you’re cornering. Medium height centre knobs are ramped and staggered for improved rolling resistance and “consistent feel” across the tyre’s profile.
Test Bike & Contexts
Ursula, my long serving and beloved drop bar rough stuff mountain bike hails from the late 1990s and was recently repaired, modernised, refinished and took on a more trail biased persona. Our Patrol arrived in March and prior to this, I’d shod Ursula with Continental Cross Kings- a quick rolling and lightweight tubeless ready model.
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However, despite definite charm, that particular version proved particularly vulnerable to sharps-thorns and hedge clippings (I’ve their latest counterparts on my test bench as we speak).
Ursula’s rear triangle will manage a 2.3 inch without tickling the chainstays but it’s a tad close for my tastes, hence the 2.25 Patrol. I default to a mix of green lanes, bridlepath, forest trails, gravel and unmade roads.
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Then of course, there’s often a bit of B-road and country lanes joining these dots. I’ve run ours with bog standard butyl and TPU tubes. The latter are arguably an extravagance, and I’d agree with those of you saying that money would be better invested elsewhere.
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However, I had them to hand and wanted to see what impact they’d have on speed, handling, ride quality and to a lesser extent, puncture resistance. Talking of resistance, I’m pleased to report I’ve been able to whip them aboard 19 and 25mm rims using only my thumbs and only a single, bog-standard composite lever’s been required to remove them.
Ride Quality & Handling 3.5/5
Like for like, along smooth asphalt and hardpack, the Patrol are slightly slower off the mark compared with models such as the Continental Cross Kings Black Chili (632g each), or Kenda Small Block 8 but that wasn’t surprising, given their weight advantages.
Staying with this a moment, cross country knobblies can squirm a little when cornering hard on metalled roads, especially at the higher pressures- a phenomenon I was all too familiar with racing at Eastway in the late 1990s. However, even at their 65psi maximum, they’ve never felt unduly harsh and cajole as I might, they’ve provided plenty of reliable feedback, allowing me to back off, or power on as conditions permitted.
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Whirr and general road noise is also minimal. For context, I’ve often ridden several miles, sometimes hauling the kitchen sink until I’ve reached the trails and winding dirt roads. Hitting the hardpack, the Patrol are in their element, biting deep into the ground providing ample traction and at 50psi, a really compliant, responsive ride over churned sections.
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Much the same story over loose gravel- I’ve cruised along at a steady 18-20 mph with plenty of feedback and to date, there’s been no issues with small stones or flints getting embedded within the tread, resulting in that annoying “fut”, or worse still, burrowing into the casing, inducing a flat. I’m pleased to report it’s much the same story along forest trails and singletrack. Models such as Continental’s Cross Kings are a little nimbler, say when flicking around tree roots and similar obstacles but on the flip side, with the pressure between 40 and 50psi, I found the Patrol very forgiving of errors.
Given the all-terrain brief, Ursula sports a more road typical 11-25 cassette, which some will say is a little tall for the trails, especially laden. I’ve never had any issues in moderate conditions, just drop to the little ring and cassette’s bigger sprockets.
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Dropping the Patrol’s pressure to 40psi offered some additional contact and ultimately traction on some longer, steeper climbs without unduly robbing power but this was palpable when returning to less challenging hardpack and of course, country lanes. Though lofty compared with a tubeless setup, the ability to run them at 35psi bodes well for winter outings where sneaky icy patches can still catch us out.
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Thankfully, I had the luxury of being able to effortlessly ram a bit of extra wind inside, courtesy of the Muc-Off Airmach Electric Mini Inflator Pro .
I’ve found 45-50psi my sweet spot (alright 48psi if we’re being ultra specific) giving plenty of speed, compliance across the board, whether I’ve been letting rip along a long, clear farm track, sprinting away from a railway crossing or just cruising home from a morning’s exploratory venture.
Puncture Resistance/Durability 3.75/5
Two months and 550 miles down the line, the EPS belt has proven very reliable. On the one hand, this isn’t unexpected, given my experience of puncture repelling belts mirrors this for the first 1,000-1200miles or so. Encouraging though.
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Similarly, the test period has been primarily dry, with the odd showery spell for good measure, so difficult to say how effective the casing and EPS belt is against cuts and similar damage when its muddy and you’re running at 40psi. However, we can only speak as we find and ours has fended off flats where others had succumbed. Specifically invasive flints, shards of glass and hedge clippings. There are no cuts or similar in the casings, or obvious signs of tread wear.
Value 4/5
£39.99 is impressive factoring everything into the equation. The Continental Cross King Protection (review to follow) are another all-rounder. The new black chili compound is a selectin of polymers that have been mixed to cater for specific conditions. E-bike compatible and tubeless ready, they are definitely sprightlier, more responsive than the CST Patrol but again, I’d expect so from a tyre costing nearly twice their price. Schwalbe Smart Sam (£37.95) are quick rolling and reasonably compliant. Puncture resistance is also better than I was expecting from a baseline model. That said, the tread pattern clogged faster, and deeper mud can overwhelm them. Maxxis Ikon are another long serving pattern, and their baselines models impressed me
with their relative speed and compliant ride, and they can be run at 35psi. They’re also quite a bit cheaper than the others discussed here. However, the base models do not feature any puncture repelling belt and as the miles mounted up, I found them very susceptible to sharps.
Summary
There are better choices if you are a seasoned XC racer, but that’s also reflected in the price. Similarly, if you're building an all-terrain beast of burden and doing extended miles on metalled roads, I'd point you toward something like Specialized Crossroads Armadillo. (a tyre with a very long production life and one I've run to very high mileages in these contexts).
Nonetheless, providing clearances allowed, the CST Patrol provide plenty of bang for buck. I would recommend the Patrol to newbie racers wanting a reliable staple capable of delivering in most contexts, or OEM upgrade. Those building a rigid winter mountain bike, or monster crosser (26/29-inch mtb conversion) should also give the Patrol a closer look.
Verdict: 3.75/5 Competent, reliable wallet friendly cross-country rubber with few vices.
Michael Stenning
Bickers Powersports - Importer & Distributor
PUBLISHED MAY 2025
