brockj

It seems not very soft to me. Just a touch more sway than Medium. Leaperkim firmware gets firmer with every iteration, it seems. That said, the soft mode is lovely.

Here I was, literally holding a bottle of 388, while looking for confirmation that it would work. That was my experience putting on that same tire. It made me question my life's choices for a bit there...

I used to ride lower psi in the stock knobby, like 26 psi for my 235lbs weight. With time I inched the psi up, and lower psi started feeling flabby and unpredictable...I'm liking 36-38 psi on the same tire now and about the same on the Michelin PS2 tire.

Soft mode usually, 1 pedal angle with minimal foam padding near the top (like in my profile pic). Alternating toe-forward leans seems to work well enough to comfortably push it to 35mph (56km/h) at least. Running about 26-28 psi on the knobby and I weigh 106kg without gear.

Pad yourself up too. The essentials are knee pads, wrist guards and helmet. While learning, wear something to protect your ankles a bit, as those pedals bite hard when the wheel falls. Oh, and hydrate

Are you talking about pedal dip during riding at speed or during tight, slow turning? What riding mode are you in?

The pedal dip on tight 180s surprised me too (my wheel is from the early December/late Nov batch). I'm used to it now and actually appreciate how it helps turn the hefty thing around in a tighter circle. It doesnt mix well with the low pedals though... I sometimes scrape the front of my shoe.

The added traction and smoothing out bumps better are positives. It's slippery and bumpy this time of year in my city But I have the same experience with foot adjustment. The rubbing is so bad that I think I keep my feet too stationary on it. Please, don't apologize. I appreciate the push in that direction. I think that's what I'm ultimately doing... I miss the rounder feeling of the Chao Yang anyway.

I also prefer riding without power pads. I've bought so many different kinds of pads based on the number of people who have insisted that I'd get more out of my wheel with pads. I have the Chinese blocky pads, the eWheels custom softer pads, and Clark Pads v2. (They are all better than the Veteran pads, because those are so narrow and the position they are made to fit into forces my feet too far forward.) But anyway, I've mostly ridden without them and I love it that way. Soft mode makes carving and digging in really flowy and fun. That dramatic dip when you do a 180 takes some getting used to, but I appreciate how that helps me turn on a dime (it's much more pronounced on Soft). I think I would want the pads for more secure cruising above 30mph, but I rarely do that. @houseofjob made some really good notes on riding this way. Similar context too as I was describing my impressions coming from the 18XL:

My wheel originally had the Chao Yang H-5201 tire. After putting in a CST 1488 (I bought it from AliExpress but it should be the same tire newer 18XL come with), Im definitely getting some tire rubbing on the shell when I shift a lot of weight on either side. Yes Im a heavy guy, but I've had my much lighter friends reproduce the rubbing. https://youtu.be/kLNkKud I've seen threads here on 18XL tire-shell rubbing before.. but I'm curious if anyone had this issue with the CST and not the CY tire, especially if you solved it. It's disheartening because I love the grip of the CST, but getting this sound whenever I pick up my foot to adjust is annoying and kinda concerning.

Now that I have the Sherman, for my 106kg (235 lbs) weight, I found 30 psi on the knobby to feel about as hard as the 18xl at 40 psi. I'm finding 24-26 psi to be a sweet spot, as this still feels responsive but has a suspension-like quality that inspires more confidence cruising over the usual potholes and gravel on my route. Hopping off curbs are non events, just a soft bounce. This tire is amazing.

Wow, that looks... quite different vs the gap I see. This is a straight-down shot with the wheel on its side, flat on my table: And here's a closer look at the cutout they made on the side to accommodate the (higher?) pedal hanger.

I don't have a Gotway wheel to compare with, but I got this wheel on Sunday and this is the clearance I saw. Is this the same?

That is really good to know. Thank you! Most of this describes my preferred riding style, albeit with KS "Hard". I have recently been trying different power pads and they all bother me. If I can't dance on the wheel, what's the point? I'm excited to give Soft another chance now.

The turn dip does seem intentional, to help make the turn tighter. It will just take some adjustment to riding style, which is fine, there are always Medium/Strong modes. To be fair, I didn't made any wide turns at speed in soft mode, mostly the tight turns at slow speed.