Kenda Dagger 2.4

Why I Like It

When you reach for more control and grip out of a tire, you almost always give something up in terms of speed on smoother terrain. The Dagger isn’t an exception, but it cuts that gap quite thin, making this tire a compelling option for rougher XC courses.

What stood out to me most was how much braking traction, cornering support, and technical climbing grip it delivers. When the course smooths out, it still feels quick and efficient on your way back into the rowdy sections.

Disclosure: Kenda provided early access to the Dagger. As always, this review is based on my own testing and impressions.

Quick Specs

• Weight of each: 729g / 734g measured
• Casing: 120 TPI
• Width (Measured at 18 PSI on 29mm internal rims):
  • 2.36” front / 2.38” rear
• Knob height: ~2.62mm center / ~2.8mm intermediate / ~4.5mm shoulder
• Best conditions: dry to mixed
• Best for: moderate to technical terrain

In My Setup

• Dagger 2.4 front and rear
• Bike: Specialized Epic 8 ↗️
• Inserts: Vittoria Air-Liner Light inserts ↗️
• Pressures: 16 PSI front / 18 PSI rear
• Trails:
  • Lake Georgetown: limestone that’s so sharp it feels like it’s trying to kill you, slow tech, loose punchy climbing, and chunky descending
  • Georgetown Trail Foundation trails: fast, fun hardpack flow
  • Barton Creek Greenbelt: a mix of slow tech, chunk, flow, limestone slab, and loose-over-hard

I put about 20-25 hours on the Daggers abusing them on some of the roughest terrain in Central Texas.

Ride Feel and Grip

On trail, the Dagger feels:

• supple and smooth, with a tread that conforms well to rough terrain
• especially good on punchy technical climbs where traction saves you a ton of watts
• light and quick enough to keep mellow and connecting sections feeling fast and efficient

The quickest shorthand I have based on the tires I’ve ridden is that it feels like a grippier, more forgiving Rekon Race.

Braking and Cornering

Braking traction is one of the Dagger’s biggest strengths.

• a lot of bite for a tire that still feels race-friendly
• easier to hold a line and brake later when descents get loose and awkward
• smooth, natural, predictable transition onto the side knobs

Because of the excellent braking and cornering performance, the Dagger as a front tire paired with something lower profile, like a Rush ↗️ in the rear, would make for a solid, balanced setup.

Climbing Traction

My first ride on these was the Lake Georgetown loop, infamously known as The Dragon. It’s a relentless mix of slow tech, rough limestone, punchy loose climbs, and rock gardens that just keep coming.

That ride made the Dagger’s climbing character obvious right away. It let me stay on the gas through awkward, loose climbs where a less substantial tire would have had me spinning the wheel, getting off, and burning energy.

What stood out was how steady and composed it felt over the whole loop. It felt like it ate up the gnarly bits (about 20 miles of the 27-mile loop) and on the 7 miles of smooth terrain, I felt like I was flying.

That’s a good summary of the Dagger overall: more grip and control without paying much for it in speed.

Durability and Wear

Durability has been one of the more impressive parts of this tire.

I’ve put a lot of abuse into these and the knobs still look almost new. Wear has been excellent, and the rubber has managed to feel grippy without disappearing quickly or tearing at the base of the knobs.

In my book, if an XC tire can make it around the Lake Georgetown loop without any drama, I wouldn’t hesitate to trust it in any kind of terrain (see the photo below for a representative example of the kind of rock out there).

I did have one puncture on the front tire in the Barton Creek Greenbelt. I came off a small ledge and smashed the front wheel into a sharp rock hard enough to cause a pinch flat:

• a large hole in the tread that wouldn’t seal
• a small hole near the bead that did

I plugged the hole in the tread with a Dynaplug ↗️ . I topped the tire off with fresh sealant later and replaced the original plug with a more permanent Lezyne Tubeless Pro Plug ↗️ . After that, I put another 10+ hours on the tire with no problems.

For me, that puncture doesn’t change the durability story. Hard, unlucky impact in a bad spot, and the tire has otherwise been impressively solid.

Width and Sizing Notes

At 18 PSI on 29mm internal rims:

• 2.34” front
• 2.38” rear

They also ballooned a bit after inflation and ride time (I think they both measured closer to 2.3” brand new), which matches what I’ve seen with all tires over the years. Personally, I don’t mind that. I’d rather start a little under the advertised size and end up in a good place than start at 2.4” and potentially run into clearance issues later.

A Few Comparisons

The comparison that kept coming to mind while riding these was the Maxxis Rekon Race ↗️ . The Dagger occupies a similar space: race speed with enough tread and support to stay composed when the course gets rough. The difference is that the Dagger feels more forgiving and more composed when the trail gets loose or blown out.

Compared to an Ikon ↗️ , the Dagger feels faster but not quite as planted or supportive. The Ikon remains my XC comfort blanket for particularly gnarly days (looking at you, Breck Epic Wheeler stage), but the Dagger gives you a bit more speed and gets you close in terms of handling.

Compared to something like an Rush ↗️ , Aspen ↗️ , or especially an Aspen ST ↗️ , the Dagger starts to make more sense once the course is rough enough that cornering/braking traction and technical climbing are paying you back. On smoother, more power-heavy courses like Leadville, Sea Otter Fuego XL, or Silver Rush, I’d rather be on one of those faster, lower-profile options.

For me, the best use case is as a front tire paired with something faster in the rear, or front and rear for rougher marathon courses like The Breck Epic, The El Paso Puzzler, or Grand Junction Rides & Vibes.

✕

The Dagger’s value is that it can be the fastest tire in this category when the course is rough enough to reward its braking, cornering, and climbing traction, yet it still gives up very little speed when it isn’t.

Notes

• The Dagger feels like a grippier, more forgiving Rekon Race
• It stays closer to the speed-tire end of the spectrum than the level of control suggests
• Braking traction is one of its biggest strengths
• Cornering support and transition feel are both excellent
• It climbs technical, loose terrain very well
• It makes sense as a front tire or as a front / rear setup for rougher courses
• Wear and durability has been impressively solid so far
• Enough space in the treads to clear in mixed conditions