What do you think of your mud performance over the stock tires? Enlighten me because i want some.. I hear good things about the bi/tri claws and the 589's & MR's. Fill me in with what ya got so i can finally make a decision on a mud/trail tire.

 

MudStud-
If you're looking for an awesome mud tire with great trail manners, the Bi/Tri Claws are a great choice. I don't know what size you can run on your Sportsman with no lift or spacers however. I have the 27" magnums on my 'Cat, only using "spring spacers" to provide lift, and strengthen the springs to carry heavy weights easier. In the deep mud and snow, the tires are awesome to say the least. They might worry you at first compared to the stockers, as they tend to "pull" you down into the ruts. Now, where your stockers would be toast at this point, the 'Claws pull like hell, dragging you skid plate and all through even the deepest of crap. They clean out really well, and really get you moving through the mud, where you'd otherwise believe you'd never make it.

Outside of the mud though, on trails and hardpack, they ride surprisingly smooth at speeds above 4-5mph. Below that, you will feel the "up-down" movement of the huge lugs on hardpack, but in any kind of loose material, you won't even notice it. Speeds above 4-5mph on hardpack, they really smooth out well, so wide open runs on long strait stretches are great-they won't "rattle your teeth" in the slightest bit, when compared to the other "pure" mud tires with huge lugs, such as the vamps or outlaws. The handling characteristics are great with these tires. I would definately buy them again.

I've ridden with a few quads now with the 589s, which are also a great tire. The 'Claws do better in the deep mud, and seem to ride a HAIR smoother, as I think the "V" spacing on the 589's is a little bit TOO far apart for a lot of trail riding, keeping it really smooth. But, for an aggressive tire, thats your trade off-you can't expect "stock like" smoothness out of a mud tire of any kind. Both tires will get you where you want to go. I'm not sure on the weights of the 589's, they are pretty close to the 'Claws, which I think are 35 lbs. for the 27x12x12, and 29 lbs. for the 27x9.75x12??? The thing about the 'Claws though-they measure taller than claimed heigth at recommended psi, so you definately get the good ground clearance gain with the 'Claws that you won't get from most other 27" tires, which actually measure less than 27". And, in my opinion, the 'Claws just look mean as hell mounted on the 'Cat, so your sportsman would look pretty bad with a set as well-that's just personal opinion though! [img]i/expressions/face-icon-small-wink.gif[/img]

As for comparing them to the stock titan 489s, it isn't even funny. Because of the huge ground clearance gain, and the massive lugs, the 'Claws take me far more places, with authority for that matter, that the 489s only dream of. The stockers can get most places that the 'Claws go in terms of traction, but it takes them a lot more work to do it. When ground clearance comes to play, they don't stand a chance.

Best of Luck with the decision,

Mike

 

How is the tread ware?

 

On my 98 SP500 With EPI clutch kit and 1/8" wheel spacers the tires fit great on factory rims. You will look long and hard to find a better all around tire than the BI/Tri Claw. the road wear is very minimal. I have put 350 miles on these tires and most have been asphalt/concrete. They do not really show any wear yet. The only wear I can say they have on them is from turning into my garage which I have brushed concredt approach and it does get black marks on it from the tires.
The factory goodyears were wore out on the front within 350 of the same type of miles.
I do run these on hard pack, In deep Mud, and also Snow. I am equally impressed with each application.

 

MudStud-
I have around 900 miles on my 'Claws now, with very little sign of wear. I don't ride on any asphalt or concrete though, other than pulling out of my garage and loading on the trailer, then putting back in the garage when I get home. Mostly mountainous terrain-soft, loose dirt, rock, rock slides, lots of mud, tons of hills, gravel roads, etc. Basically the only thing you can tell from looking at the tires is where some of the extremely sharp rocks have cut into the deep lugs. Tread depth is still huge, just like new. Like TriClawMagnum said, you'll be hard pressed to find a better all purpose tire.

Best of Luck,

Mike

 

Hey man!

I have a 2001 sportsman 500 h.o. I love it. It has just over 1400 miles on it now and I just put some 25x9.5x12 bi-claws on the front and 25x13.5x10 tri-claws on the back. I'm very satisfied with them. I hardly ever use the 4x4 button now. Barely hurt the power of the H.O. I can still get the jump on my buddy's 2001 grizzly. He catches up when we get up to about 60 mph. Then they run neck and neck. The handle great on the trails and in the mud. A bit ruff below 10 mph. You have to put 1.5 inch wheel spacers on the front though. They rub the tie rod ends if not. The spacers helped it greatly on hillsides. Lots more stable than stock H.O.

Later, Jamie

JAMIEZ71@AOL.COM