Guys, I need some help and advice. I am ready to get new tires. I am considering Gators, Mudbugs, and 589's. Thanks for all your previous advice regarding these brands.

There are two size sets that I am considering:

25X8X12 front
25X10X12 rear or possibly for both front and rear

and

26X9X12
26X12X12

I ride 50% trails but still want a good mud and snow tire for hunting and winter. I ride a Prairie 650 and really enjoy the pep I have with stock tires and do not want to lose too much of it.

With the 25" tires, would 10" wide be too much for the front or should I stick with the 8" wide?

With the 26" tires, would I lose too much power that I enjoy with the 650? If I went with this set I would keep the 9" wide for the front. But is 12" too wide for the back? Will I see significant power drain?

Thanks for the help!

Daryn

 

I can give a little feedback from my own tire choice. I kept the stock size tires and I could notice a bit of a drop off in acceleration it wasnt a hugh difference but it took just a hair longer to get up to speed. I dont regret going with such a beefy tire and would do so again. I kept the stock size up front because of concern for the handling and even went with a less aggresive tread pattern. Maybe someone else can give you some advice on a wider tire up front. Even if you do loose a bit in acceleration you will probably be so much more impressd with the added traction over the stockers that you will find it a good trade off.

 

I have stock tires on my 650 right now but will have 26 inch 589 M/Ts or Bearclaws shortly. The reason I chose these two tires is that a lot of my buddies have one or the other on their machines. The bearclaws seem to be a good all-round tire whereas the 589s are more mud oriented. I'm not a real mudhog, so I am leaning a little more to the bearclaws as their ride seems to be a little better on hardpack than the 589s. Both of these tires will make your machine ride rougher than your stockers, but who cares!!! As long as a guy can roost up hills and through mudholes, it don't really matter what tire you use.

 

Yes I did put 26 mudrunner on my 650 .Went with 26 x 9 front and 26 x 12 back on stock rims.Yes you do lose alittle power but most of it is on the top end lost around 5mph.
DUSTANKO after you have been riding with the S&^t dunflops that the 650 came with .You will be surprized how much better it will handle along with less soft front end no matter what you put on. I do same kind of riding as you stated . I have not gotten struck in thick mud with these tires and they seem great on hard pack too. Had no snow here in NJ to try them up . But if you do search on this site for mudrunner there are few other guys that have them.

 

Tampavii,

I stayed up until 1 am last night researching tires. I saw a positive article about the mud and hardpack performance of the Goodyears in the 25" range. I can only expect that the performance would be the same for the 26" which I am leaning towards. But I still do not know their weight and their prices are a little outragious compared to Gators. But the Mudrunners definetly caught my attention. Thanks.

Anyone know that disadvantages or advantages of a 12" wide rear tire?

Daryn

 

You probably did not loose any top end , remember the speedometer is showing you a slower speed than you are truly running with bigger tires

 

Hey guys,
Not a regular to the Kawasaki forum. I have a Arctic Cat 500, or just sold it due to a new baby on the way. I had 27" gators on my bike. 27x10x12 on front, 27x12x12 on rear. These are truly awesome tires. The tires are modeled after the Maxxis Mudbugs, but they have a little wider lugs. Check with the guys at Highlifter, they will tell you how good they are. They are smooth on hardpack, but will climb like crazy and if you want to get in the mud, hang on! I've ridden other quads with bearclaws and even some mudrunners which are good tires but very expensive. The guys at Highlifter were selling whole truckloads of Gator's before they even hit the ground. All I'm saying is I loved them, and when I buy a new Prairie 650 I can guarantee that is what I will put on it. I just want to know if the 650 is everything everyone says it is. All I have done is read all the magazines and they can't say enough good things. How has it performed in the real world as far as alot of working, hunting, and some playing also? Have any of you guys had any significant trouble? Good luck in whatever tires you choose, but don't overlook the Gators. You'll be glad you didn't. They have a great price on them at www.4atvtires.com.

Waco4whlr

 

I have Gators and I really like them. They handle just as well as stockers on hard pack and can go through alot more snow and mud. They also have a nice price tag. I can still race my buddies down the road and beat them in the mud. One of my buddies has Vampires on a Sp500 and I stuck with him through all the mud. A few others I ride with have HO's and Xplorers and I beat them on the road even with 27" tires and they have stockers. This machine has the power to run any tire. I just wonder how the belt will hold up. My next tire may even be a 28". Nice thing about Gators I have noticed is, you can manipulate their size by tire pressure easily. With 3-4 psi they are about 25.5-26 inches tall. With 7 psi they are 26.5". I run mine with 5 psi and they run good for all around use and measure about 26 or so. I wouldn't worry about 10" wide tires on the front. My 27x10 Gators are narrower than my 26x9 MT's and they seem to be wearing better. The 27x12's fit with plenty of room to spare on the rear with 12x7 wheels.

Between the two tires I have (27" Gators and 26" MT's) I like the Gators better. The Gators measure a bit taller, but yet lighter and cheaper. They are probably equal in mud, maybe giving an edge to the MT's but not much if any. 589's seem to be wide and heavy on the front end. If you really need the speed stay with 25" tires. I myself think the 650 needs more GC, which means bigger tires, and like I said it still rips down the trail.

Sorry for the long post and I hope you can get some info from my rambling. [img]i/expressions/face-icon-small-smile.gif[/img]

 

Hey Waco,

Thanks for the Gator update. It really helps. As for the 650 it is truly an awesome ATV. I test drove the Artic Cat 500i, Suzuki Vinson, Honda Foreman 450, SP500 HO and SP700. The Arctic Cat and SP700 were quite smooth and I got to take the SP700 offroad. But the acceleration of the 650 really sold me. It can whoop any utility in a drag race.

Now that I have had it for almost two months I can say that I have never been happier spending $6,100 for something. Its great offroad, the single axle is not as smooth as IRS but not at all uncomfortable. I have the power to get through a lot even with stocker tires. My initial premise for getting an ATV was for hunting and slow offroad speeds. One would think that the SP700 or Cat would be best suited. But I loved the sportiness of the 650 and by the way, its still a great ATV for hunting. I have had it on steep hills going up and down and it is magnificant.

Just be careful, the power is deceiving. I rolled it once doing a cookie and almost lost it in a river. Get it, enjoy it, and ride it often. It also makes married life much more tolerable.

Daryn

 

Roofer, thanks to you too for your comments. I am torn here between the Gators and 589's. I thought about the Mudrunners but the Gator is a better value for the money. My estimation is that the Gators are 16 lbs lighter overall than the 589's also. I was not sure about the Gator tread for hardpack so thanks for helping me out.

Daryn