How does this tire performe in the sand? Anyone had experience? thanks

 

I have a set of Bearclaws on a 450 Foreman. They are a big improvement over stock tires and work well in soft conditions like sand, mud, and snow yet still ride fairly smooth on hardpack. My sand riding has been limited to a few beaches and sandy pine areas, not desert-like sand dunes. After about 500 miles they hardly show any wear. My only complaint is that the Bearclaws seem to have a very flat tread profile compared to some other brands. This may help in the soft stuff, but it greatly increases steering effort. Hope this helps.

 

Excellent traction everywhere But a bit hard, and should only be used on shaft drives other wise they will stretch chains fast and destroy bearings.

 

1Bullmoose, what size Bear Claws are you running and what PSI are you running in them. I am looking for a flat tread profile and thought the Bear Claws were more rounded. Also, how deep is the tread on your tires? Thanks for any info.

 

Greetings fellow mud beings
WeAresane from my experience Bearclaws dig until they hit something solid and then they launch you. With sand I think something with a more of a paddle tread would be the answer. [img]i/expressions/face-icon-small-wink.gif[/img]

 

So how are BearClaws for "general" riding?

It's getting to be tire-time on my Foreman 450 ES, and I'm hearing that BearClaws have a softer ride, better traction, tougher & longer wearing tread, and better light-to-medium-mud performance than the stock Dunlops.

I'm thinking of going up a size (from stock 25" to new 26) for lower top-end revs (for top gear riding out to the play-zones).

The Foreman isn't exactly light-steering as is, though mine steers lighter in 4WD than in 2WD, at least on winding dirt roads.
Heavier steering? Might be a problem!

Any experience with BearClaws for "regular" use (sand & dirt roads, rocky climbs, slickrock creek crossings) ??

 

Highrider, my AC is full time 4X4 and steer about the same or a little easier than my friends full time 450ES. I put 26X9X12 Bear Claws on the front and 26X9.5X12 Radial Outlaws on the back. I love it. The front steers easier than the stock tires and the outlaws have much better traction. I only have 100 miles on them so far, but the ride has been excellent.

 

The bearclaws do alright in compacted sand but in really loose stuff they tend to dig down to much, or atleast this is from I have found out. I think bearclaws are one of the best all purpose tires. They have great wear and I find they handle just as good as stock (as long as their aired up so that the side lugs don't dig in) but with a little rougher ride. The only downfall about them is that they dont clean out well in thick mud. My 22x12 bearclaws had a little oveer 1/2' deep lug and the same for the 27x10 but the 27x12 have close to an inch deep lug.

 

I mostly stay in the muddy and rocky conditions, but had the chance to go to Jericho Dunes (Little Sahara) in central utah and I let a enough air out to get me to 3 lbs in each tire and they handle really well. The first time I went, I had about 6lbs and there was deffinately a difference. They kept on digging in but let have the air out and hold on. I highly recomend these tires for all around even in the soft sand for utilities.

 

I have had Bearclaws and I think they were fair. I would look at the Mudrunner or the new ITP Mud Lite before the Bearclaw.