Difference I Found In Sand Tires

[JD400exrider]

Well just got back from sand mountain. Before I left I ordered a pair of new 20 11 10 Sand Stars The tires look allot like the sand sharks and resemble the sand skate II allot. The paddles on them are tall and angled like the others.

I found with these tires they Rob way to much power. To tall of tread for my bike. After the first day I sliced the side wall on the sand trails and ended up plugging it with four plugs. (Still holding air)

I swapped tires with a friend that has a 493 stroker. He runs Skat Trac Gliders. Right away I was pulling much better up the hill. Not having to tach out as much either.

My buddy also noticed a difference in power with the taller paddles. They bite real good but the power loss was noticable. We switched them back and I figured since one tire is toast anyway with four plugs in the sidewall i might as well do some trimming.
I cut off at least half the paddle height on each tire. Right away I noticed a big difference in how well it climbed and dragged. Not quite as good as the skat trac gliders, although worked well.
I did notice most of the Ex's and KFX quads on the mountain were also running the skat trac gliders or haulers.
I tried about three differect tires. I felt the smaller paddle less aggressive tread design worked the best.

My next tire will be a smaller height tread like the glider. Not as much bite but allot more power to spin them wheels.
I think the sand stars are good tire but just a little tall for my 416 . I think they would work great on a high powered two stroke. Just my opinion after trying a few different tires.

[wilkin250r]

Son of a $#@&% I wish I had gone with you. For quite some time I've been wanting to try several sets of paddle tires to see which one was best...

[JD400exrider]

Next time we will have to hook up. With your two stoke the sand stars should work real well. I liked them a whole lot more after I cut them down halfway.

[airheadedduner]

Your buddie runs gliders on a 493 stroker:huh I run 9 paddle extremes on my 440 and it feels like they are bald. Gliders I though where for blasters. Maybe your sand is different cause I am baffled by that:huh :huh :huh

[norrisboat]

Ive heard the sand stars suck all the way around.

[wilkin250r]

Originally posted by JD400exrider
Next time we will have to hook up. With your two stoke the sand stars should work real well. I liked them a whole lot more after I cut them down halfway.

Yeah, I'm not sure what stradegy I should be looking for in sand tires. Do I want something with lots of bite, so I'm not just spinning my wheels all the time? Or do I want something that DOES slip, to keep me in my powerband? That's why I want to try a few types of tires to see what works best for me.

My girlfriend and I are toying with a Thanksgiving trip. We don't know if we'll go Wednesday-Sunday, or have Thanksgiving with the family, and do a Fri-Sun trip.

[JD400exrider]

Originally posted by airheadedduner
Your buddie runs gliders on a 493 stroker:huh I run 9 paddle extremes on my 440 and it feels like they are bald. Gliders I though where for blasters. Maybe your sand is different cause I am baffled by that:huh :huh :huh

I thought the same thing. When I took a look at them dam not allot of tread. He rides them in pismo, orgeon and sand mountain. There is no dout the sand stars hook up well but i could tell a difference in power after shaving them down. His gliders are 22 10 8 seven paddle.

[Chef]

Originally posted by airheadedduner
Your buddie runs gliders on a 493 stroker:huh I run 9 paddle extremes on my 440 and it feels like they are bald. Gliders I though where for blasters. Maybe your sand is different cause I am baffled by that:huh :huh :huh

I was thinkin the same thing man. I ran 10's on mine last time I was there and it just smoked the damn things. :confused:

[airheadedduner]

Good to see other people where confused too. For a second I though a great rift appeared in space/time and I fell into another world:p

They are 22's but still, Gliders....:huh :confused:

[WyoDuner]

There are 3 types of paddles:
1. Paddles like Haulers that hook up well and and at the same time drag you down some.
2. Paddles like Gliders that hook up Ok and drag you down less
3. Paddles that don't hook up well but still drag you down.

Sand Stars and Geckos are type 3.

[kgbg]

After my trial and error runs of paddles I have come to the consensus that:
Haulers are the only way to go. I do not hill shoot, drag or whatever straight line racers call it. Angled paddles suck, they are all too heavy, Hauler 7 paddles are the best for a 400, 8's if you are a skinny ****.
You get what you pay for.

[JD400exrider]

Originally posted by WyoDuner
There are 3 types of paddles:
1. Paddles like Haulers that hook up well and and at the same time drag you down some.
2. Paddles like Gliders that hook up Ok and drag you down less
3. Paddles that don't hook up well but still drag you down.

Sand Stars and Geckos are type 3.

I thought the sand stars hooked up well. Just to well. To much drag down. I could tell a big differene though when I cut half the tread off them. I guess it depends on what type of riding you are doing. We did all kinds when we were there. Straight out drag racing from the bottom to the top. Side hilling, trail riding out in the back. The big difference i saw running the 22" rears was going back down the hill. Did not seem as stable coming back down the mountain. :eek:

[airheadedduner]

Originally posted by kgbg
After my trial and error runs of paddles I have come to the consensus that:
Haulers are the only way to go. I do not hill shoot, drag or whatever straight line racers call it. Angled paddles suck, they are all too heavy, Hauler 7 paddles are the best for a 400, 8's if you are a skinny ****
......and 9+ if you have a bad arse motor:devil: :devil:

[Sandgod4]

Dennis Packard.....He builds very high hp exotic quads. I have not seen his stuff in person, but have been told he only runs Gliders no matter what. He just has more of them as the pony's increase..

[airheadedduner]

I think he runs ultralights, not gliders. The most paddles I have seen or heard of on gliders is 7.

[Sandgod4]

I've heard from people he runs 14 paddle Gliders on most of his exotic machines.. Skat trak will build you whatever you want for a price.. My bro is running an 8 paddle Glider/Hauler combo on his YFZ.. It was 160 for this set up..

[Bad Habit]

I think the Glider being 22" is what is making you run up the hill faster. My 416 and 16t front runs faster with 20" Haulers than with 20" Sand Sharks. Even with the 16t my bike doesn't have any problems with powering the Haulers, so I too am confused on why yours is getting bogged down.

20" = bogged down
22" = better power
:confused2 :confused:

[pnut420]

I got a 426 with a stage 2 cam, ported head, FCR39MM, Sparks X-6 and weigh only 125, you think I should run a 8 paddle hauler or a 9, I want a little spin off the line cause I start in second, but I want it to hook up good after the launch, which isnt much of a problem at all.. So Im leaning towards a 7 or 8, my buddy has 7 padle with the same mods, but weighs another +30 pounds..

[JD400exrider]

I would go a 7 paddle. The haulers are a taller tread than the glider. Severn paddle will Spin a little easier.
You only weigh a Buck 25. :eek: Dam pnut your a light weight pup. That 426 should rip with you on it.

Are you getting 8" or 10"

My budy runs either six or seven paddle 22" Gliders on his 493 stroker.

[pnut420]

Prob 8 inch, but I might run the 10 inch to stay on top a little more, if I go 8 paddle then 8 inch, 7 paddle, 10 inch most likely.

Yeah with me weighing 125 it should fly!

[Dextreme]

One variable that I have not heard any of you discuss is "gearing"...which can drastically make a difference in what your quad can turn for paddles (to a point anyways). If you are running stock gearing, I can see why Gliders might appear to work well. Try dropping a tooth on the front sprocket and then try some Extremes! ;)

[pnut420]

Originally posted by Dextreme
One variable that I have not heard any of you discuss is "gearing"...which can drastically make a difference in what your quad can turn for paddles (to a point anyways). If you are running stock gearing, I can see why Gliders might appear to work well. Try dropping a tooth on the front sprocket and then try some Extremes! ;)

My buddy ran the haulers with a 14 and 15 front and in a 100 yard sand drag, it was close, but on Comp Hill the 14 was better for sure... I cant decide between Extremes or haulers, the Extremes start at 8 paddle, so might go with the haulers

[JD400exrider]

Originally posted by pnut420
My buddy ran the haulers with a 14 and 15 front and in a 100 yard sand drag, it was close, but on Comp Hill the 14 was better for sure... I cant decide between Extremes or haulers, the Extremes start at 8 paddle, so might go with the haulers

pnut. The extremes are going to be taller than the haulers. Why do you need such tall paddles. Taller paddles rob power. The haulers would be better. ;) Just my opinion. Drag racing up sand mountain my 416 ran much faster after i cut half the tread off my sand stars. I went with 10" and on the trails they sliced on a rock. Six plugs latter I was back on the mountain :D I saw more 8" than 10" out there.

[JOEX]

Originally posted by JD400exrider
pnut. The extremes are going to be taller than the haulers. Why do you need such tall paddles. Taller paddles rob power. The haulers would be better. ;) Just my opinion. Drag racing up sand mountain my 416 ran much faster after i cut half the tread off my sand stars. I went with 10" and on the trails they sliced on a rock. Six plugs latter I was back on the mountain :D I saw more 8" than 10" out there.
I belive the Extreme haulers have the same blade height as the regular Hauler, it just has a reinforced paddle.

There is a 'taller Hauler' available though with taller paddles.

http://www.skat-trak.com/paddletire.html

Joe

[Chef]

Originally posted by JOEX
I belive the Extreme haulers have the same blade height as the regular Hauler, it just has a reinforced paddle.

There is a 'taller Hauler' available though with taller paddles.

http://www.skat-trak.com/paddletire.html

Joe

They have a "Ripper" now too, even bigger than the taller haulers. :eek:

[310Rduner]

On skat-traks forum they say that an 8 paddle extreme is equivalent to a 9 paddle hauler, so keep this in mind. I would say that an 8 paddle extreme would be over-paddling your bike.

[Wallrat]

For those confused about tires try calling up Jim at Fullerton Sand Sports in Stanton, Ca. He's really well informed and a no-B.S. kind of guy. Plus his prices are great. As far as the Sand Stars go, I just tried out a set of em on my Banshee and those things are really nice! Granted I've got a 2 stroke with gobs of wheel spinning power. I had geckos before and those things blew - all I would do is spin em, knobbies worked better. The stars grab tons of sand and throw my front end skyward. Plus they're a comparable weight to the Sand Skate II for a fraction of the cost. I've got em on .120 10" rims and couldn't be happier.

[2004TRX450R]

I've been running the Skate IIs on my R every since I got it. I love them. I have a set of haulers that I got for the 400EX and treid them on my R and didn't like them as well so I left them on the 400. Now that I am getting a new 450R I am thinking of getting a new set of paddles for it and was thinking on the Sand Stars. They look really similar to the Skate IIs. Anyone try the Sand Stars, Haulers, and Skate IIs on the same bike and what did you think of them?

[CJ400EX]

I have tried all of them on my 400ex. I like the Haulers & Sand Stars. I tested all of the @ Pismo when the sand was packed. The Sand Star impressed me. The only thing is I have not tested them in the summer when the Sand is dry & soft.

[cerberus]

Another variable in addition to gearing that has not been mentioned is weight. Losing unsprung weight and rotating mass allows for more paddle strikes per second, and results in a faster, better climbing tire. If you're willing to spend the money, there is a 4th type of paddle that Wyoduner didn't mention (although he's absolutely right in what he does say), those that bite well and don't bog you down. This would include tires like comp grooved Padla Brats and Superlite Haulers. These tires only weigh between 7 to 8 pounds mounted on .125 rims, and have tall, aggresive paddles. They're not the best for sand trails or other rough areas, as they aren't that durable, but IMO they're the ticket if you want to go fast and climb well.