Joined
·
1,837 Posts
I cut/pasted my post from another board b/c I know there are always folks asking about off-road tire choices. My observations, for what they're worth:
"8-ply,,,10-ply,,,2-ply,,,3-ply,,,sidewalls. Mostly nonsense & manufacturer hype. How thick are the plies? Is a 10 ply sidewall 3 times thicker than a 3-ply? No. My brother has run the same set of X-Terrains thru the Rubicon on week-long trips 3 years in a row and has yet to bust one. That's a 2-ply sidewall. Is it 5 times weaker than the sidewall of a "10-ply" TrXus? Hell no.
As a side note: All I can say about the MT/R [ed: a tire that is vigorously debated on most sites] is that at least 1/3 to 1/2 of Rovers that are actually wheeled hard in CO run these tires,,without complaint. The other 1/3 to 1/2 run BFGs, the rest run a mixture of the other main brands. [ed: same can be said about Moab]. Also, a significant number, if not the majority, of hardcore non-Rover rigs out here run MT/Rs. They are among the best rock/trail tires out there IMHO based on my observation of many rigs on many trails. I don't know if I could say they have the strongest sidewalls out there, but I'm not sure there's a tire with a significantly stronger sidewall. Before the [Easterners] start dropping bombs, I'm admittedly talking trail-runs, not mud-bogs. Though it should be noted that then MT/R has performed very well in several mud "tests" among them, if I'm not mistaken, one conducted by Peterson's.
Finally, all I would say in exhaustively discussing this issue with wheelers (Rover & others), observing performance on the trail, and web-searching feedback, is that something as minor as tread pattern is not going to make the difference between you getting out in one piece & getting stuck. Too many other variables to the traction equation. While different tires may perform differently in extreme terrain variations (ie: mud bog vs. slickrock), the majority wheelers in the majority of trail situations will not, IMO, get significant performance enhancement based on their tire choice among the recognized top brands of off-road performance tires."
So,,, the moral of the story is that unless your Rover is a dedicated trial-rig, tire choice among the main contenders is only one factor, among many others, in determining whether you will get the traction you need. Luck is another factor, particularly as it regards side-wall punctures. Driving ability is a large one. Suspension, diffs, etc are other factors. Speed is a factor on most obstacles. Etc. As you search forums you'll see those who swear by BFGs, and those who hate them. Same goes for MT/Rs, TrXus, ProComp, etc. You will also read opinions that are skewed by sponsorships. Every tire has strengths & weaknesses and your final choice is as good as anyone else's (unless of course you want bias-ply Boggers on your daily driver,,,).
So there it is, all (or most) of my thoughts on tires. My thoughts and advice are worth exactly what you paid for 'em
:drink1:
PS: to our friends in the UK, OZ, SA, & elsewhere,,,if I could get my hands on some reasonably priced Simex tires I would love to see how they compare. All I know is everytime I see pics of dozens of rigs lined up for the outback challenges, they are all running Simex and I'm pretty damn sure they can't all be wrong. :drink1:
"8-ply,,,10-ply,,,2-ply,,,3-ply,,,sidewalls. Mostly nonsense & manufacturer hype. How thick are the plies? Is a 10 ply sidewall 3 times thicker than a 3-ply? No. My brother has run the same set of X-Terrains thru the Rubicon on week-long trips 3 years in a row and has yet to bust one. That's a 2-ply sidewall. Is it 5 times weaker than the sidewall of a "10-ply" TrXus? Hell no.
As a side note: All I can say about the MT/R [ed: a tire that is vigorously debated on most sites] is that at least 1/3 to 1/2 of Rovers that are actually wheeled hard in CO run these tires,,without complaint. The other 1/3 to 1/2 run BFGs, the rest run a mixture of the other main brands. [ed: same can be said about Moab]. Also, a significant number, if not the majority, of hardcore non-Rover rigs out here run MT/Rs. They are among the best rock/trail tires out there IMHO based on my observation of many rigs on many trails. I don't know if I could say they have the strongest sidewalls out there, but I'm not sure there's a tire with a significantly stronger sidewall. Before the [Easterners] start dropping bombs, I'm admittedly talking trail-runs, not mud-bogs. Though it should be noted that then MT/R has performed very well in several mud "tests" among them, if I'm not mistaken, one conducted by Peterson's.
Finally, all I would say in exhaustively discussing this issue with wheelers (Rover & others), observing performance on the trail, and web-searching feedback, is that something as minor as tread pattern is not going to make the difference between you getting out in one piece & getting stuck. Too many other variables to the traction equation. While different tires may perform differently in extreme terrain variations (ie: mud bog vs. slickrock), the majority wheelers in the majority of trail situations will not, IMO, get significant performance enhancement based on their tire choice among the recognized top brands of off-road performance tires."
So,,, the moral of the story is that unless your Rover is a dedicated trial-rig, tire choice among the main contenders is only one factor, among many others, in determining whether you will get the traction you need. Luck is another factor, particularly as it regards side-wall punctures. Driving ability is a large one. Suspension, diffs, etc are other factors. Speed is a factor on most obstacles. Etc. As you search forums you'll see those who swear by BFGs, and those who hate them. Same goes for MT/Rs, TrXus, ProComp, etc. You will also read opinions that are skewed by sponsorships. Every tire has strengths & weaknesses and your final choice is as good as anyone else's (unless of course you want bias-ply Boggers on your daily driver,,,).
So there it is, all (or most) of my thoughts on tires. My thoughts and advice are worth exactly what you paid for 'em
:drink1: PS: to our friends in the UK, OZ, SA, & elsewhere,,,if I could get my hands on some reasonably priced Simex tires I would love to see how they compare. All I know is everytime I see pics of dozens of rigs lined up for the outback challenges, they are all running Simex and I'm pretty damn sure they can't all be wrong. :drink1:
