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Nostromo

Member Since: 17 Jul 2015
Location: The Mendip Hills
Posts: 73

Viability of mud terrain tyres - Braking and Balancing ?

Hi all,

Seeking some advice about the viability of fitting mud terrain tyres to some alloy wheels I’ve been very lucky to acquire . . . background is;-

The wheels I’ve picked up at a bargain basement price as a second set of wheels for my Defender 90 are a set of Blindo 16x7 alloys . . Yea I know . . Probably not the most sensible set of wheels for mud tyres, but I’ve very luckily picked them up cheap, I love the look of them, and so want to explore all possibilities before admitting that off-road things would be simpler with a set of modulars ?

The mud tyres I’ve always had passion and option paralysis about are (in no particular order of preference) - Malatesta Kaiman, Fedima Sirocco, Insa Turbo Specials . . . all of which, as I understand it, are tread pattern copies of the ones I think I’d really like, the Simex Extreme Trekker made down under, and its that classic tread pattern, which I really really like the look of. Unfortunately I dont think I can stretch to the price the Simex originals seem to cost !

Thing is, even though I do have genuine and difficult off road work for my Defender which I’m sure would be made much easier by some decent mud tyres, I do none the less, need to drive on her majesties highways to get to and from this work, and, its at this point I’m not sure exactly what the realistic way ahead is on several counts:-

1) Braking - I’m not bothered about road noise but does anyone have any experience as to whether any one of the above tyre makes (or any others with similar tread design) have any significantly better braking performance compared to the others . . or, are they all basically equally bad ?

2) Balancing - I guess most people using “proper” mud tyres would think this is a very stupid question as no one in their right mind would bother to get “proper” mud tyres balanced for off road use . . but my question is . . . are any of my above choice tyres likely to be capable of balancing without inevitably sticking tons of weights on my nice alloys !! . . Its just that I will need to drive them on the road, and again, whilst I’m not bothered about noise and wont be driving fast so can cope with a fair reduction in breaking performance, I think the one thing that would drive me nuts is out of balance wheels with loads of steering shake etc ! ! ! . . . one of my mates who used to work as a tyre fitter said that, all other things being equal, remoulds can often take more lead than non-remoulds but he didn’t have much experience of this type of tread or these manufacturers. He also speculated that some of these tyres might not balance up properly at all as it wouldn't be a real requirement for a true mud tyre ?

So, that’s my two questions . . . . any experience or advice on which of the above tyres (or any from other manufacurers with very similar tread) might be right for my Alloys ??

All replies very very much appreciated.

Cheers,

22nd Jul 2015 8:15pm

sharkey964

Member Since: 05 Oct 2014
Location: On a muddy track
Posts: 574

2007 Defender 90 Puma 2.4 XS CSW Santorini Black

I run Insa Turbo 285/70/16 on my challenge truck,& have driven plenty of miles on tarmac.
Getting them balanced can be a problem,most garages,a 35" tyre wont fit on the balancing machine,if you do find one that will you will have loads of lead weights stuck to the wheel.Or you could go with balancing beads.
On road grip is not the best,OK in the dry,but on wet tarmac can be a bit scary.
Then there is the noise.........Dont expect to be able to hold a conversation at anything above 30mph.
They are the dogs danglies in mud though.

Marc

23rd Jul 2015 5:40am

K9F

Member Since: 12 Nov 2009
Location: Bournemouth
Posts: 9610

2008 Defender 90 Puma 2.4 XS CSW Stornoway Grey

Balancing....

If you don't 'need' such an aggressive tread pattern don't bother, the noise will be horrendous. I use Dynabeads....mixed reviews but mainly because I think people didn't put enough in. Work for me, no weights with 8" rims and 305 tyres.

http://www.defender2.net/forum/topic29747....=dynabeads If you go through life with your head in the sand....all people will see is an ar5e!!

Treat every day as if it is your last....one day you will be right!!

23rd Jul 2015 6:03am

Nostromo

Member Since: 17 Jul 2015
Location: The Mendip Hills
Posts: 73

Thanks for the above replies,

I've always been very sceptical about DynaBeads but thought I'd have a look on line and see if I could find any convincing evidence, one way or the other, to support the notion that they can really balance tyres ?

Have to say, most stuff I've read was people arguing that there's no explainable science behind them and thus they probably don't work . . . that said, I found this YouTube clip which is exceedingly interesting to watch and appears to demonstrate that they might actually work . . . well maybe ! ! . . . link below:-

I'd be interested to know what you good people make of this little bead demo ? . .

For me, if these beads do work, then they'd completely resolve all my concerns and hesitations about investing in a set of mud tyres.

That said thanks for the associated comments above re road noise . . . but, I think I could live with that as it would only be an issue getting to/from the places where I would be wanting the advantage of the Mud Tyre grip.

Anyway, do let me know what you think of the Youtube clip ? ? ? . . .

Cheers

24th Jul 2015 8:04am

blackwolf

Member Since: 03 Nov 2009
Location: South West England
Posts: 17454

2007 Defender 110 Puma 2.4 DCPU Stornoway Grey

I've run BFG muds, both the originals and KM2s, for getting on for 400,000 miles altogether on my Disco2 and Defender, with no stability, braking, or steering issues whatsoever. I can honestly say that they are better on the road than some road tyres I have expetienced.

They can become noisey as they wear, they need careful and regular rotation to even out directional wear patterns, and they can be difficult to balance. The KM2 tends to be more difficult in these respects than the original, and is more prone to picking up stones.

24th Jul 2015 8:17am

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