ATV Florida Forum

I didn't know whether to put this in here or the technical thread but anyway, I just purchased an 04 polaris twin 600 that is bone stock except for a k&n filter. I have a 2" high lifter lift kit already on the way and am now trying to decide what mudtires to get. I will be riding mainly in NC and am not a 100% mudder. I'm more like a 60% mudder and 40% trail rider/recreational riding (that 40% is when my wife is on it). I like the swamplites and the mudlites in the 27" but I am new to the whole ute scene and am just looking for some opinions, suggestions, and/or recommendations. I appreciate any and all input.

we have been told that maxxis mud bugs and gators (dont remember who makes the gator) ride good on trails and do great in mud. we ride bout 50/50 mudding to trails.

Mudlites are not a good mud tire, I'd only recommend them for about 70% trail/20% rock/10% mud. Go with some 27" mudbugs, they'll do great in mud and pretty good as a trail tire. They won't perform as good as bighorns on the trail, or like outlaws in the mud. They make a good in-between tire. :)

my buddy has a set of mud lites on only the rear of his 2 wheel drive formen. we take it mudding all the time and it is a world of difference from the stock tires. some of my other buddys have the 589's and such and i feel the mud lites perform better than their tires. diffantly a great mud tire. but for the trail i would not recomend them, their v-tread design makes them horrible for soft sand and it is hard to turn with them in corners, but maybe thats because hes only got them in the rear. i do think the outlaws and maybe the mud bugs are a little more aggresive for the mud but cant vouch for them because ive never personally used them. also im preety sure the mud lites are the lightest in weight out of the major mud tires so thats something to think about performance wise, but no matter what mud tire you get you will feel a noticable decrease in performance. but whatever you do, do not get the big horns, they wont go through any mud - its like an all-terrain of atv tires. also the mud lites are very soft and do wear down on pavement. my buddy has got some vampires and they are not so soft. i would say the harder the tread the better

for an absolute TON of info on this subject check out the forums at www.highlifter.com From what I have seen and read about (almost all of my friends are mudders) the mudbugs do pretty well on the trails and still do pretty good in the mud too but they wear down fast. If you want an awsome mudder and are willing to give up some trail capability (probably not a good thing if you only mud 40% of the time) check out the maxxis mudzilla's, Highlifter outlaws or the Interco Vampire EDL's. If you are looking for a more trail oriented tire that won't let you down in the mud too bad look at the Swamp witches (find them on ebay for REALLY cheap!), Highlifter MST(same as swampwitch with a few small changes but ALOT more $$$), ITP mudlites XTR's or a set of GBC gators (pretty much the same as mudbugs but they are cheaper and wear longer). The aggressive mud tires are gonna dig REALLY bad in soft sand. There are times when i have to put it in 4wd just to get up some sand hills that have deep soft sand (like the eureka pit) with my mudzillas.

Thanks for the input. The members of this sight have again come through for me. I'll be looking for some more advice in the near future in regards to a winch and a snorkel.

I have mud bugs and have had them on my quad for a year and they still look as good today as when I purchased them so they do not wear down fast. I must say that I do not ride my quad on the paved road either. Anything will wear fast if you do paved riding. With most any mud tire you will feel a little bump at speeds of less then 5mph but if you ride over 5mph you will not be disappointed. Go with the mud bugs.

I  have a brand new pair of 28x12x12 ITP mudlites for sale, $150.00 PM me if you are interested

(http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y162/Chuck_Norris/DSCF1002Small.jpg)
(http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y162/Chuck_Norris/DSCF1001Small.jpg)

Alright, well I have narrowed it down to mudzillas, 589's, or mudbugs.

outta those i think everyone will say the bugs ae the best. good luck with ur decision.

Not to steal the thread, but:  Some people have said to run the tread backwards (mud tires) for better hookup in soft sand?  Anyone do this?  Is it the V tread tires that this works on?

Oh, I have the Kenda Bear Claws, and they work well for Mud and tril riding for me.  I also liked the GBC Gators, and Dirt Devils.

yeah if you turn the tire around it will make them work alot better in sand but it kills their mud ability which defeats the whole purpose of having a mud tire.

OIF_Warrior: If you are not a serious mudder I would either go with the bugs or the 589's because the zillas are awful in sand and are REALLY rough under 10mph. Tey are also a VERY heavy tire so if you don't have a bigger cc bike they could really hurt your performance. But the one really good thing about the zillas is that they are most likely the coolest, baddest looking tire out there!!! But the 589's and bugs are both very good tires. If you do go with the 589's go with the titan and not ITP, they are the same exact tire but the Titan 589 has a nice rim guard whereas the ITP 589 doesn't.
Here is my vinson with zillas.

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If your moving to Fayetteville, NC your going to have to check out Busco Beach located in Goldsboro (~65 miles).  1200 acres worth of lakes, trails, mud, and sand hills.
http://www.buscobeach.com/ (http://www.buscobeach.com/)

You might want to look at the Outlaw MST's for 60% mud and 40% trail.  I've been running them at Busco and couldn't be happier with their overall performance.  Smooth on the trail and great in the mud. Some other popular tires up here include Mudlites (reg & XTR), 589's, Mudzilla's, and Outlaw's.  (In order from the least to most aggresive)

(http://i.pbase.com/g5/52/587352/2/67461581.lEZvqsDw.jpg)

I have a couple friends who run the Bighorns on theirs and they go everywhere they want to. The tires are also really good for mountains and trails. They are a bit more expensive but they are radials. Not sure how they would do in nasty mud like at L-Cross or something, but i know in the mud we run across in the trails and what not they are awesome. I can tell you for sure they are the next tires I am buying.

The Bighorns are a great tire. But they do better in the mtns of western NC than in the mud of eastern NC.

Finally decided on some 27" Mudbugs on ITP 7 series wheels (I think???).

what kind of utility do yo have? I have a 05 grizz on 27"mud lite xtrs on the  series
7, 14" wheels. they are good on the trail and decent in the mud, if you trail ride more than 50-60% of the time and mud the rest id get the mud lites, i paid 750.00
for tires and wheels.

awesome decision. ;) ;D

Yeah that would probably be your best bet. I dont understand why so many people bash mudlites but thats another thread. Anyway, with a 600 your probably going to loose a little bit of power but nothing huge.