I replaced my stock wheels and tires on my 2011 Xp 900 with a wheel and tire combo I bought online. They are ITP Mudlite tires and MSA Elixr wheels. I went to 14" this time. They are a good looking, aggressive tread combo. The tires are 27x9x14 in front & 27x11x14 in the rear. I loved them until this past weekend. I went riding in West Virginia with friends at the Hatfield and McCoy trail system. We went from Wednesday until Sunday, and I had flat tires every day. I run about 10-12 lbs of tire pressure. I know it is very rocky and hard on tires, but I had more flats than everyone else put together. These tires are 6 ply and I just thought they would stand up a little better. Some people said I was running too much pressure, and some said I should run more. I called ITP and they recommend 8lbs. What do you all think ?
snyderes
what tire pressure do you run ?
I replaced my stock wheels and tires on my 2011 Xp 900 with a wheel and tire combo I bought online. They are ITP Mudlite tires and MSA Elixr wheels. I went to 14" this time. They are a good looking, aggressive tread combo. The tires are 27x9x14 in front & 27x11x14 in the rear. I loved them until this past weekend. I went riding in West Virginia with friends at the Hatfield and McCoy trail system. We went from Wednesday until Sunday, and I had flat tires every day. I run about 10-12 lbs of tire pressure. I know it is very rocky and hard on tires, but I had more flats than everyone else put together. These tires are 6 ply and I just thought they would stand up a little better. Some people said I was running too much pressure, and some said I should run more. I called ITP and they recommend 8lbs. What do you all think ?
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I run 6 to 8lbs im on 14" rim and 28" gmz tires. I ran ten for first time last weekend and I hated it!!!! Tires weren't gripping for shit
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Depends on terrain.
At Durhamtown Plantation, I ran between 8 and 10 psi.
In the dunes, I drop down to about 3-4 psi.
Here in AZ, because of all the rocks that can be found, I'll bump up to 12-15 psi.
Knowing the H-M terrain, I'd be on the 12-15 side. There are some really rocky sections there and a lot of those are pretty pointy rocks (great place, btw - haven't been there in a long time)
The rockier, the higher the pressure.
You do loose traction with the higher pressures, but it can be worthwhile in longevity.
Where were you seeing the holes that let the air out? Tread? Sidewalls?
If you're seeing sidewall flats, there could be a couple reasons:
Not enough ply on the sides (I run 8 ply - just switched to Mongrels and love 'em)
Too narrow a rim or too wide a tire (my 28-10/15's are on a 7" rim and they just barely bulge past the beadlock)
Are you sliding in the rocks? If the tire's lower on pressure and you're doing a lot of sliding (driving right!), the tire will roll over onto the sidewall more so and that opens them up to the dreaded poke in the side.
Was there a common aspect to the flat you had? Think about the driving, driving style, terrain and such at each flat event. Maybe just a little change in driving habit/style can help.
I say this from learning how to make my old desert race car last for long miles of abuse. When I first started racing, I was horrible about toning it down just that little bit to make things survive. After wasting enough rims and tires, I realized I just needed to pull back a bit and pay attention to the terrain and not overdrive it. Since then, flats have been minimal.
At Durhamtown Plantation, I ran between 8 and 10 psi.
In the dunes, I drop down to about 3-4 psi.
Here in AZ, because of all the rocks that can be found, I'll bump up to 12-15 psi.
Knowing the H-M terrain, I'd be on the 12-15 side. There are some really rocky sections there and a lot of those are pretty pointy rocks (great place, btw - haven't been there in a long time)
The rockier, the higher the pressure.
You do loose traction with the higher pressures, but it can be worthwhile in longevity.
Where were you seeing the holes that let the air out? Tread? Sidewalls?
If you're seeing sidewall flats, there could be a couple reasons:
Not enough ply on the sides (I run 8 ply - just switched to Mongrels and love 'em)
Too narrow a rim or too wide a tire (my 28-10/15's are on a 7" rim and they just barely bulge past the beadlock)
Are you sliding in the rocks? If the tire's lower on pressure and you're doing a lot of sliding (driving right!), the tire will roll over onto the sidewall more so and that opens them up to the dreaded poke in the side.
Was there a common aspect to the flat you had? Think about the driving, driving style, terrain and such at each flat event. Maybe just a little change in driving habit/style can help.
I say this from learning how to make my old desert race car last for long miles of abuse. When I first started racing, I was horrible about toning it down just that little bit to make things survive. After wasting enough rims and tires, I realized I just needed to pull back a bit and pay attention to the terrain and not overdrive it. Since then, flats have been minimal.
Thanks K-fab for the great reply.
All flats were on sidewalls for the exception of one on a rear tire. We got up in the morning and I noticed my rear passenger side tire was flat. I hooked up the compressor, and sprayed it with soapy water, and got bubbles about half of the bead on the outside of the tire. I put in a can of fix a flat and was fine for the rest of the trip. My tires are ITP Mudlite XTR and are 6 ply radials. The terrain was very rocky, but noeone else had near as many flats as me. Polaris dealer said they know of other people with those tires and they had trouble too. I wish I knew this before. ($600.00 mistake:sad: ) But they do get excellent traction and are great for plowing snow.
All flats were on sidewalls for the exception of one on a rear tire. We got up in the morning and I noticed my rear passenger side tire was flat. I hooked up the compressor, and sprayed it with soapy water, and got bubbles about half of the bead on the outside of the tire. I put in a can of fix a flat and was fine for the rest of the trip. My tires are ITP Mudlite XTR and are 6 ply radials. The terrain was very rocky, but noeone else had near as many flats as me. Polaris dealer said they know of other people with those tires and they had trouble too. I wish I knew this before. ($600.00 mistake:sad: ) But they do get excellent traction and are great for plowing snow.
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