CushCore PRO Set

Night and day difference. Installed cushcore pro 29s on bontrager line elite carbon rims with Maxxis minion dhf 2.6 tires. Lots of soap and and 4 strong hands and a few broken tire levers later they were on. The directions are good and easy to follow but these rims were so tight I ended up putting the tire on the rim, setting the bead, breaking one bead and then slipping the cushcore on the rim under the tire. Rode down a huge set of stairs after and the wheels felt solid. Super quiet and boosted the confidence to send harder. Can run a lower pressure and still super responsive feel from the tire. Highly recommend but maybe have a shop install them for you.

People don't seem to get that these things do way more than just protect your rims and tires against square edges hits. Sure, they do that, but the vibration absorption helps to dampen the trail and make a softer tire more stable... these are huge! You get more grip, more comfort, more confidence to shred harder. Once you figure out how to put them on (first time always takes ages with anything!), they are actually pretty easy to install.

Hydraulic disc brakes, dropper posts, and cushcore. Some of the most important technology changes in my journey with mountain biking. They're like fork tokens for your tires. Lower pressure, more grip, sidewall support are some of the reasons why I run them on my mtb and gravel bikes. If they made some for the roadies I'd run those too! There isn't anything to not like about cushcore. Ride changing.

TLDR: Poor customer service and an extremely cumbersome product.

Firstly, their customer service is sub par and they are more concerned with keeping their money than keeping people happy. I was unable to return the product due to easily removable sealant residue and "blemishes" that don't exist. Photo attached so you can verify the blemishes.
On to the product. I purchased the e-mtb model. Installation took two people due the density and bulk of the material. Attempting to get the tire around the material was absurdly difficult and placing the bead in the space between the rim and insert was equally as troublesome. After breaking a tire-iron I finally got it on. Then I needed to take it off because I accidentally dropped my pump and bent the valve stem.
Oh lord. Trying to get the tire and insert off was a devious task. Having to use two people, grown men, to maneuver this thing off. At that point I decided it was not worth putting back on.
If I ever got a flat 15 miles out, it would be impossible to fix. The company says that it is designed to be ridden on if flat, but why would I not want to fix it an continue having a good ride like I can with inserting a tube? Instead you want me to ride on sharp rocks and ruin the insert and tire even more?
Anyways, waste of nearly $100. Maybe I should have gotten a different insert, but I am certainly not giving them any more money.

It's hard to describe how monumental the benefits of CushCore are, but I'll try. The handling benefits are frankly unfair. The ability to run significantly lower tire pressures provides a level of grip that is shocking. I went from running 28F/31R on a 2.5 DHF with a 30.5mm internal hoop to running 20F/25R and raced an entire season of Big Mountain Enduro with ZERO issues! The damping characteristics are also something I've come to greatly appreciate. Living in Bentonville AR, I'm constantly riding rough, rocky trails and CushCore smoothens out the trail to such a massive degree that it's now nearly impossible for me to ride without them!