The secret to so many UCI MTB World Cup wins and podiums is customized tire treads. Not tread patterns, necessarily, but simply optimizing tread block heights for the conditions on the day. If you’re chasing top performance from your bike, take a close look at this tool.

Developed by Schwalbe in conjunction with our Unior Tools Team MTB program this tool allows a mechanic to quickly and accurately trim tire knobs to the same height every time. Why? Even though companies like Schwalbe offer many different treads for many different conditions it’s A) nearly impossible to bring every tire to every race and B) there are sometimes unique conditions that maybe are best suited towards a unique tread that might not be in production. The 2730/4BI Tread Cutter allows you to customize an existing tire to perfectly match the course conditions.

It also allows one to “freshen up” a worn tire by trimming off the rounded edges on tread blocks, letting the rider start fresh with a crisp edge, ideal for finding traction.