2005 Sportsman 700EFI

Well Spring appears to be early here in central Maine and as soon as I take off the tracks I will be looking for some new tires. I have pretty much decided on some Zillas but the size is still a question.
I guess the main question is will 28's fit without a lift or spacers(28x10x12 front and 28x12x12 rear) or should I just go with 27's(27x9x12 front and 27x11x12 rear)
I ride about 50-50 mud vs trails/roads.

 

Hey Rusty....I was just asking in another post about folks who run equal size (11") tires front and rear, as opposed to say 9" in the front and 11" in the rear. What advantages and disadvantages do you see in running 11s on the front?

I'm in southern Maine (Yarmouth area). Taking my tracks off tonight. Gorgeous day today. Supposed to be even nicer tomorrow.

 

I would think that the main issue would be clearance; there may be some affect on the steering with a little extra weight and possibly a larger contact patch of the tire but it probably would boil down to personal preference.

 

If you're going to spend the $ I'd go with the 28's since they will fit. Can't say I've ever ran into anyone who wished they had bought smaller tires-lol!

 

The difference in price was $60.00 from 27" to 28"....so if they will fit without modification I'll go with the 28's.

 

i know i had no problems w/ the 27" tires w/ out a lift, but would bottom out of them once in awhile when riding hard over bumps so i would guess that the 28"s would hit for sure, but thats a guess. switz says they will fit w/out a lift so maybe he's right?

 

Other than the hole I put in my tire Wednesday night, I have been pleased with the 28" Zillas. I tried getting it stuck in a mud hole that I've had to winch out of with stock tires, but it just walked right through it in 2wd. I do have a lift on the front of mine though, so ground clearance is roughly 2"-3" more. I ordered the Zillas with ITP steel wheels that have a better offset. It's nice having 2 sets of wheels now in case I do hard pack trails only. I love the way it sits and handles now with the bigger shoes. My only regret was not looking into 29.5" Outlaws. I do a little more mud riding than 50-50.

 

Sten...Any comment on running the same width tires on the front and rear? Seems like a wider tire up front might dig a bit better on rutted trails. Might throw off the steering too. Not sure....Sure does look cool with massive front rubber.

 

Thinking they should fit fine. I had 27" zillas and wished I'd gotten 28's cuz there was plenty of room. If it does have bottoming issues you can upgrade to hd springs front and rear and that will help without having to add a lift kit. Will make the ride stiffer though. I installed the hd highlifter rears and popo hd fronts while installing my lift and it added about 2 inches of extra lift. Think I'm going to need taller garage doors to get it in/out with the tracks on-lol.

 

I believe these run a bit small. I had some 28's on a foreman a while back and they were close to 27". So go with the 28"s. You will be happy with them.