You guys should really try out the new sand stars!! I bought my self front and rears and these are the best tires I have used yet.. ITP did a great job on them and man do these things look awesome. They hooked up great. I could handle and turn perfectly with them. And these tires climbed those hill flawlessly. GREAT TIRES.

-Eric-

 

Hey guys thanks for the info I think I'll go with the sand skate 2 they seem to be the best all around tire. Hell I've been able to pull any hill wet or dry so far with my stock 03 400ex tires which brings me too another question. Should I get front sand tires or just stick with the stockers. I like the stockers just fine. I'm just wondering what you guys think.

 

There's a sandtire article in Dirtwheel Jan. 04

 

If you are riding nothing but sand then get a front sand tire, if your gonna switch back to knobbies all the time then I probably wouldn't. I want to see how much those sand stars weigh before I would buy them, if they are even close to the weight of the maxxis roosters I wouldn't buy them.

 

Are the Sand Skate 2 that heavy. Also is there a versitile front sand tire.

 

haulers for all around everything

 

Haulers are probably going to be the best performer on hills and they slide better than some would have you believe.If you go with haulers just get the appropriate number of paddles and you will be pleased with them in most situations.

 

having several sets of hauler, i have a little more to share now. i started with the 20" and on a 400 there great, on a ds they work but the 22" are easier to use. for pure drag racing the taller side wall are better for the hole shot. but i also have a set of 23" that are on 12" rims, which cause a small side wall and those slide real well, not as good as edges but still very well

 

I have owned several sets of sand paddles from wedges to straights. Sand skates I+II, skat trak-edges, skat-trak haulers, and skat-trak extreme haulers. By far the, extreme haulers are the best hill and drag paddles. The sand skates were ok for all around but traction just wasnt there. I keep the edges around for carving the hills. Straight paddles push the bike forward during turning and dont allow for power sliding as easy as the edges. The v paddles are good for turning but dont have the traction you will need to climb the big hills.

Now as for size.

Assuming you are piped and jetted.

Get a set of 21x10x8 8 or 9 paddles.
You want the taller tire for more traction.
Go with the 10 inch wide tire for a wide foot print. Or even an 11 inch wide.
8 inch rim for more side wall. It gives more floation effect on the sand. MEaning you will ride on top of
the sand instead of sinking. I made this mistake when buying the 20inch haulers.
As for number of paddles, Your bike probably doesnt have enough power to keep you in the power band
for a larger number of paddles. Thats why you dont want to run large number of paddles
I would lean towards the 8 paddles.

 

Sand Skate II are not heavy tires.
My cousin has an '03 Banshee piped and jetted and those tires work really well for him. For a near-stock 400ex, I think the sand skates are the best budget choice, otherwise, go with what 1BigDSRider said.
I run 22" 8 paddle extreme haulers on my DS, and I can throw A LOT more sand than than my cousin can. [img]i/expressions/face-icon-small-happy.gif[/img]