Sand Paddles

[Chevycoyote]

I'm looking to buy some paddles, don't know which direction to look, or what size to get. Any thoughts?

[gojk]

Get some 7 paddle haulers in a 20" tire. Anything more than a 7 or 8 paddle is too much for the ex.

The other dimensions of the tire do not matter much, but I prefer the look of the taller wheel so I have 20x10x10 tires.

[Chevycoyote]

Ya I was thinking that it may be a little too much for the 400 to handle any paddle, but i'm bored of spinning in 1st gear and waiting for second, but i'll probly go all out and get those thanx!

[gojk]

Check out rockymountainatv.com for tires. Their tire/wheel combo deals are usually the best.

[scuzz]

Straight paddles are best for drag racing and hill climbs.

I liked the sand sharks (angle paddles) for whipping my 400EX around. I also never had any traction issues.

Also, as was mentioned before, I wouldn't go above 8 paddles. Also, something worth mentioning if you go the drag racing route a lot. Heavy tire rim combo's rob your engine of power, so the lighter teh better for that. (think light rim and something like the extreme haulers) The problem with lighter rims is that if you jump a lot....you WILL bend them. So, you need to pick what suits you best.

[Chevycoyote]

Ya, I think that I'm going with the skat trak haulers, a little more expensive, but I've heard they are the best buy. I don't have that much power, but soon I'm going to bore and cam stage 2, so I should be fine with getting the paddles. Any thought though on the AMS Sand Snake? Are the skat traks a little to much traction for the 400? Thanx for the input

[dang400ex]

I have AMS paddles, they are probably the sand snake. I really liked them....can turn and slide and whip it around really good. They were a lug on my bike though...They were 20" tall

[Stroker81]

I just ordered a set of sand stars front and rear. On ITP ss112 wheels. I will post some pics when I get them. I got them for 475 from local dealer, Got a good buy on them.

[frenimy]

I have a set of the 8 paddle haulers and a set of the ITP sand stars and let me tell you that the ITP paddles far surpass all other paddles out there. I would suggest a 20X10X10 for the look but that is up to you. If you are interested look at Motosport (www.motosport.com) they are the best prices I have found, no tax, and usually free shipping which is a major plus. I know a lot of people on here run straight paddles but take it from someone that has both you will like the sand stars better because they are easier to turn and still hook up about the same.

[GPracer2500]

I can't believe it. I just wrote a gem a reply and then Firefox crashed on me before I submitted it. :mad: It was kind long so I won't try and duplicate it.

But my bottom line is....

I'm of the opinion that it is far better to error on the side of being underpaddled (to the extent there is such a thing) vs. being overpaddled (which can be very real and I think is very common).

I like 20x10x8 6 paddle Haulers for most any 400EX being ridden in ISDRA type sand. 7 paddles tops as long as their not Extremes. Any more and the lost performance from 3rd on up (cause by excessive traction, yes--there can be such a thing as too much traction in the sand) is too much to take.

$0.02

[Chevycoyote]

I had been concerned with too much traction as well, so I was leery of the Skat Traks because they just look like they lock on all the time. I'm still undecided :ermm:

[86 Quad R]

for the money. the best all around tires are the20x10x8 AMS or the GBC straight or V pattern tires on the widest wheel that ya can put em on.

[Chevycoyote]

Alrite, I'm down to my two choices, Sand Snakes, or Skat Haulers. 20X11X8 in the Snakes, and 20X10X8 in the Haulers. I'm going to decide on those two though. Would it be okay to go with a .190 thickness on any of these, or is it just as good to go .125?

[Stroker81]

For sand Id got at least 160. them 125's bent pretty easy. Just my thoughts.

[Rkangel7]

Originally posted by Chevycoyote
Alrite, I'm down to my two choices, Sand Snakes, or Skat Haulers. 20X11X8 in the Snakes, and 20X10X8 in the Haulers. I'm going to decide on those two though. Would it be okay to go with a .190 thickness on any of these, or is it just as good to go .125?

I have Douglas black label (.160) and Sand Stars and so far I like them. They came with the quad, so I haven't tried anything else. I did get stuck one or two times on the last ride, but that is more likely because I'm still getting used to sand rather than any fault of the tire.

I would suggest thicker than .125 though. Even in the few times I've been at the dunes I've seen a number of bent up .125 wheels.

[04TRX400EX]

I too would recommend .160 Douglas wheels or maybe a more "flashy" ITP SS or the like, depending on the look you're going for.

Even though they are not in your consideration set, I would go with ITP Sand Stars. They seem to be the best all-around dune tire as they get good traction without being too heavy and they float very well. I had a set of GBC Sand Sharks which I was not a big fan of mainly because of their weight I would say. I always felt like I was digging into the sand versus floating on top of it.

[AutoRoc]

I nabbed a set of AMS Aerospeed molded sand tires off of Ebay for $50...on .125 rims also...On my 426ex 14/26 gearing, they're great. Me and a friend are neck and neck on knobbies...With my aerospeeds on I can get 4-6 bike lengths out front from a stand still. They slide better than I expected...I didn't expect to be able to do doughnuts on the beach but i managed.

Also tried them saturday on my 295R with (I think) 12/36 gearing, maybe 12/38 and they are still a nice tire I think. I had to be really careful with 1-2 and in 3-4 the front end would still climb as the powerband hit. :D


Well worth $50 if you find a set!

[Chevycoyote]

Thanx to everyone on their detailed input. I decided to go with the AMS Sand Snakes 20X11X10 Dougle .160's and see how they work out. I will post my reviews as soon as I get them on the dunes. :chinese: