Wayne National Forest last weekend with bald tires.

[Flyfloatr]

I took my newly acquired 700 down to Wayne this weekend for my first ever trail ride.  I had a blast but I must admit I was caught off gaurd by the level of difficulty in some areas.  It wasn't bad at first but when the rain was coming down in buckets I foundmyself unable to split the rut and kept sliding in and getting stuck.  I also almost rolled it at the top of a hill that had a switchback right at the top.  My rear tires are bald and just couldn't get me the grip I needed.  They are the stock tires and have about 20% of their tread left.  Can anyone suggest a tire that will get me up the muddy hills?  Oh yeah, and my buddies kept saying it wasn't the tires, hopefully someone here has tried to run the trails in mud on bad tires who can reassure me that it's not just that I suck!  Hello by the way, I'm Matt, a nu be to this site.

[Colorado700R]

Welcome Matt. If you are gonna run mud trails allot, perhaps some ITP mudlites are in order.  I believe they are available in 22" rears to give you extra ground clearance as well.  And they bite HARD!

As for your buddys talking smack, get the mudlites, slow up on the trail a bit, and then roost the shit out of them

[Flyfloatr]

I was thinking of the Kenda Claws.  I saw a post of yours a while back where everyone was chiming in on tire selection.  Did anyone ever come to the conclusion that they had found the best tire??

[Krandall]

I'm still a HUGE fan of the XCR rears they clear the mud out of the tread really well, and grip like a mofo in both wet and dry conditions.

[Colorado700R]

Check out the Kenda Kutters too

[Flyfloatr]

They seem like pretty similar tires.  Either one will be a night and day difference from stock tires with only 20% of the tread left I assume.  How much of a difference do the front tires make?  My stock tires have 50% left.  Should I go ahead and replace them too?

[Colorado700R]

When I replaced my front tires, i noticed a massive difference. cornering speed, and overall ride comfort were better.  With our tires being low air pressure, they're part of the impact and intial jarring control with the suspension.  Also the stock front tires roll or fold over too much when diving hard into a corner. Quality front tires made holding a line much easier without washing out through the corner.

Aaron

[Adam]

i have some 20in mudlite SP's on my stock wheels for muddy trails. sport profile tire with the big tread for diggin outa mud. woulda gone with a 22in from the getgo though. my newb mistake. but they still kick ass in the mud for sure. and yes sometimes they do "bite" a little too much. like tring to powerslide. welcome to the site!

-Adam

[Krandall]

When I replaced my front tires, i noticed a massive difference. cornering speed, and overall ride comfort were better.  With our tires being low air pressure, they're part of the impact and intial jarring control with the suspension.  Also the stock front tires roll or fold over too much when diving hard into a corner. Quality front tires made holding a line much easier without washing out through the corner.

Aaron

amen, I couldn't believe the difference fronts made. I have GNCC's ont he front of mine. and it was crazy, When I was stuck in ruts with both tires using the stock tires, I was basically screwed, w/ the gncc's I could put both tires in ruts, start turning and they have knobs on the site of the tires, and they'd bit their way out..  Cornering with the stockers when new were "decent" but you could feel the quad push through the turn still. vs the new ones where they'd just grip and pull you through

[Peelz]

oooh a tire argument.

I like the kenda klaws.  cheap, durable and okay in mud. IF you are inclined to go mudding alot...maybe not your choice then. Mud lites are good in soft stuff, but sacrifice top end. 

welcome to the site.

[Bert]

Aaron is right Kenda Kutter XC

http://www.kendausa.com/en/home/atv/sport/kutter-xc.aspx

[Colorado700R]

Aaron is right Kenda Kutter XC

http://www.kendausa.com/en/home/atv/sport/kutter-xc.aspx

I got a full set of those with G-force xc rims in my RMATV cart at the moment, just waiting to have some $$$

[XC_Raptor700R]

I ride at WNF alot and the trails are alot easier than they used to be. The Kenda Kutters are awesome tires, a guy I ride with at WNF has them and loves them. I had a set of Klaws but the sidewalls didn't hold up. I'm now on RazrII's which is the best tire I've ever had, also have GBC X-Rex's for spares which are a RazrII copy.

[Mad Dog]

I have been itching to try my Razr2's and ITP GNCCs out, maybe this year I'll finally make it down there to wayne for a ride.  I hear it's a great trail system.

[Dales396LT4]

Just get the best tire you can, like Razr2's or ITP GNCCs. I eat tires (A set every 6 months) back tires mostly... As for trail riding 22 and 23 are the way to go..