I have to get new tires in the near future and I was wondering what anyone thinks is a good choice.
I was looking at the Kenda Klaw, Maxxis I-Razr, and the Kenda Sport Radial.
Iwant something that will handle good, hook up good, but still ride softer. I ride mostly trails so I don't want anything too stiff.

 

if it was me I would go with the ITP Holeshots

 

So far, I have tried the Holeshot XC's, Holeshot XCT's, radial i-Razrs, and the new ITP radial TracStars. Keep in mind that I ride in the aird southwest, both open desert and very tight high altitude woods trails. First off, I really love a radial when I can find one.......running them is like getting a suspension upgrade!

I loved the ride of the i-Razrs, and loved the way the front tires literally stick to the ground. But, the back tires had very, very poor lateral traction. Straight ahead traction was acceptable everywhere except in the sand, but they would slide out sideways way to easily in any terrain and just waste all my power spinning. I pulled them off after riding for just a couple hundred miles......it was that bad! One of them already had a small gash in the casing.

I am now experimenting with the ITP TracStars. These tires are radial and the ride is absolutely superb! I have them on both our 250EX's, and it turns them into a whole different, way better machine. I am in the process of evaluating them on the larger quads (400EX and 450R). While they are absolutely superb on the 250's, time will tell how they do on a machine that has way more power. These tires run on the short side, so I have a set of 23" front/22" rears on order (rears are still out of stock everywhere), because I want to keep my ground clearance. I am doing a long mountain ride today, and I am going to pull the 22" front/20" rear ones off a 250, and give them a try (I will probably be giving my skid plate a good workout). I will let you know how it goes! One thing about these is that the rim protection isn't real great, so I would only use them with a rim that has a rolled edge or reinforcement ring (my choice is ITP Baja, but they are expensive). Oh yeah, my kids spent the summer torture testing these tires in all kind of nasty rocks on old mining roads, and there isn't a cut or even a scratch on them. These things are 6-ply tough!

As for the Holeshots, they are my old standby for many, many years! They are absolutely indestructible, and give excellent handling and traction in all the conditions that I ride. Only thing I don't like is that they contribute nothing to the suspension, and they give the ride a kind of "dead" feel, compared to a radial. But, if I were racing Baja or a big desert race, this is the tire I would absolutely trust to get me home!

 

I give another vote to Holeshots

 

Forgot that I had tried Holeshot H-D's at one point, and didn't like them compared to the XC's. They would make the quad fishtail on nasty monster climbs, and that is mostly what I ride around my house! Didn't keep them long.

A buddy of mine tried them recently, and he likes them. Dealer told him they have changed the rubber compound three times now since they first came out (I had them when they first came out), and that might have contributed to my dislike for them.

 

Any ideas about sizes? I need good trail tires for my 400ex and I dont want to loose any ground clearance.
Thanks

 

You can go with tall models, like the XCT's or the 23" front/22" TracStars (vs the stock 22" front/20" rear). But, you might want to lower your gearing to compensate for the effective gearing increase from the tires.

 

i give my vote to midsize holeshots

 

I've heard that the Holeshots wear out quick though.

 

Let me know about the TracStars with more power when you get a chance. They will be alot different on my Raptor than on your 250ex.