GMP who rides area's similar to Calabogie in USA praise the Shinko 505 Hybrid Cheater:
I promised Gary (Knoxenduro) a review on the Shinko 505 hybrid in my terrain and I finally had the chance to mount and ride it so here goes. I got the 120, it sat for a long time and looked a little large and felt heavy but man is it tall when mounted, looks too tall and almost gets into the mudflap. Taller than a TT. I run Tubliss and the tire mounted and sealed easily first time, no issues. Its super sticky with a thick but medium sidewall, so fine with a tube as well. Started @ 7.5 PSI. Before I get anywhere with dirt, I have a long rocky climb with switchbacks and several large smooth slabs. This tire is like a D803 TT on rocks, its amazing. Better than the MT43 TT. I had to be carefull as the bike wanted to wheelie with total hookup. Once in the dirt the bike was almost oversteering. I dropped the preload(easy with my XTrig, thanks Steve!) for approx 105 mm sag to make up for the tall tire and it was fine with the added bonus of a plusher ride. On perfect dirt sections, it hooks up great, and while it will release quicker than a knobby, its very linear unlike a TT or a Sedona(unpredictable) that it replaced. Braking is fine. On some steep dirt/rock hills it was incredible, I could stop/start at will. Some short mud sections proved no issue, but no loose muddy hills to test on. Wet, muddy rocks in low sections seemed dry. Only drawback was a loose, sandy/gravel powerline hill, where it would spin up under the power of the 300 if I got too happy, and on some leaves. On my favorite ST littered with large rocks and skinned logs it was awesome and with the tall sidewall I could hit anything hard without fear. With the short stiff sidewall Sedona I added two small dings to my rear rim on these trails. I ended up riding longer than I planned because the tire worked so well, and I never even played with pressure.
So, for me, this is the best tire yet for my local trail, but this is a very rough place that destroys normal knobbys. I think I bought my last TT, and last Sedona as well. My brother ran a 505 with a tube and two rimlocks and it was fine unlike a Sedona or AT81RC that needs Tubliss. He also looped his 300RR from hookup he didn't expect! Its like a TT with more cornering scope, better braking, and MUCH more durable sidewall. I think it will last OK if you ride it more like a TT and don't spin it up constantly. I have a feeling it will still work well when worn, at least on rock, because its so sticky. Its way cheaper than the Golden Tire my buddy destroyed in a single ride too. I would still run an MT16 in a race if it was more dirt than rock but there are a couple courses in PA I would run this tire without question. Maybe not a tire for general use, but certainly an excellent technical rock tire.
Here is the link:
http://www.betarider.org/forum/viewtopic.php?f=4&t=1296
