http://s483.photobucket.com/albums/... Trail Jam/?action=view¤t=allat1_xl.jpg
Well, took it out yesterday for a little run. As expected, they do a lot better then the Bajas on the soft sand and sand hills. Climbed surprising well. Unless I purposely made it fail to climb to see where it would, they never gave me the feeling they weren't going to make it over the top. This is nice as it isn't the case with the Bajas. And they don't tend to trench-in like the XTRs or one with a deep solid bar across.
Engine Braking down hills was good although they did seem to want to slide a bit more in 2wd but nothing uncontrollable.
Trail riding was smooth and sure. They almost feel like a radial. Corners were solid with no sliding unless you wanted to, then it was easy to control and once off the throttle they snapped-back to the trail. Fun!
One thing that I expected was with the smaller amount of rubber making contact with the hard-pack, it would not grip it as well. That was untrue. My Brute with these tires wheelies easier then it ever did before, meaning it is getting better traction on the hard-pack over the Bajas. In fact, it wheelies easier on any surface with these...even easier then with the XTRs. There is something to be said for concentrating pressure in smaller areas.
Another unexpected pleasure was how easy it was to steer again with these 9" tires over the 11" Bajas on the front. I guess I have been fooling myself in thinking the Bajas didn't steer that much harder. They do. And with these Racelines, it felt like I had power steering.
Mounted on the stock rims, the overall width was approximately back to stock from 49.5" to 45.7" and of course this put some of that "Tippy" back in powerslides and off-camber situations but still way better then it was with the stock tires.
At higher speeds, say at 45+ they do have a small amount of wobble or bounce but it seemed to be coming from the rears not the fronts.
The tread pattern alternates from side to side and the rears have s depth of about 3/4" where the fronts have about 1/2". This might explain why there is no frontend wobble and why it does not tend to trench in like so many others.
I can't find anything I really didn't like about these tires. They are even pretty good in reverse up hills being a directional tire.
The only thing it needs is not to be mounted on the stock rim and installed without spacers. Yes, the rears did rub...and more then I thought it would. You will see at the end of the video. All fixed now though.
In summary, I liked them. It was a great ride and I wouldn't be worries about taking on anything. If I has a nicer set of rims with some 4+3 Offsets or some 1.5" spacers, they would stay on. They are definitely worth keeping. They do show not to be made in the USA, and they do only show to be a 2-ply tire with a 4-ply rating although they are stiff like a 4-ply. This makes them suitable for a backup set but here in the rocky mountains...and many other places around the world, 2-plys may not be suitable for the back-country. Sorry Raceline...need more plys to be trusted....or at least some time in the mountains which I intend to give them. I still like that way they perform.
Here's a little video from yesterday. Funny how the wide-angle liens always make the hills look like nothing..when they are something. Excuse my rambling at the end, those holes had me thinking and wondering why I hadn't heard or felt anything.
Anyway, you can get these tires from Discount Tire.
Raceline Tire Test Ride Video
And here are some shots with them mounted on the new wheels
http://s483.photobucket.com/albums/rr196/BFFreak_2008/Raceline%20tires/New%20Douglas%20wheels%20with%20Raceline%20tires/?albumview=slideshow
Well, took it out yesterday for a little run. As expected, they do a lot better then the Bajas on the soft sand and sand hills. Climbed surprising well. Unless I purposely made it fail to climb to see where it would, they never gave me the feeling they weren't going to make it over the top. This is nice as it isn't the case with the Bajas. And they don't tend to trench-in like the XTRs or one with a deep solid bar across.
Engine Braking down hills was good although they did seem to want to slide a bit more in 2wd but nothing uncontrollable.
Trail riding was smooth and sure. They almost feel like a radial. Corners were solid with no sliding unless you wanted to, then it was easy to control and once off the throttle they snapped-back to the trail. Fun!
One thing that I expected was with the smaller amount of rubber making contact with the hard-pack, it would not grip it as well. That was untrue. My Brute with these tires wheelies easier then it ever did before, meaning it is getting better traction on the hard-pack over the Bajas. In fact, it wheelies easier on any surface with these...even easier then with the XTRs. There is something to be said for concentrating pressure in smaller areas.
Another unexpected pleasure was how easy it was to steer again with these 9" tires over the 11" Bajas on the front. I guess I have been fooling myself in thinking the Bajas didn't steer that much harder. They do. And with these Racelines, it felt like I had power steering.
Mounted on the stock rims, the overall width was approximately back to stock from 49.5" to 45.7" and of course this put some of that "Tippy" back in powerslides and off-camber situations but still way better then it was with the stock tires.
At higher speeds, say at 45+ they do have a small amount of wobble or bounce but it seemed to be coming from the rears not the fronts.
The tread pattern alternates from side to side and the rears have s depth of about 3/4" where the fronts have about 1/2". This might explain why there is no frontend wobble and why it does not tend to trench in like so many others.
I can't find anything I really didn't like about these tires. They are even pretty good in reverse up hills being a directional tire.
The only thing it needs is not to be mounted on the stock rim and installed without spacers. Yes, the rears did rub...and more then I thought it would. You will see at the end of the video. All fixed now though.
In summary, I liked them. It was a great ride and I wouldn't be worries about taking on anything. If I has a nicer set of rims with some 4+3 Offsets or some 1.5" spacers, they would stay on. They are definitely worth keeping. They do show not to be made in the USA, and they do only show to be a 2-ply tire with a 4-ply rating although they are stiff like a 4-ply. This makes them suitable for a backup set but here in the rocky mountains...and many other places around the world, 2-plys may not be suitable for the back-country. Sorry Raceline...need more plys to be trusted....or at least some time in the mountains which I intend to give them. I still like that way they perform.
Here's a little video from yesterday. Funny how the wide-angle liens always make the hills look like nothing..when they are something. Excuse my rambling at the end, those holes had me thinking and wondering why I hadn't heard or felt anything.
Anyway, you can get these tires from Discount Tire.
Raceline Tire Test Ride Video
And here are some shots with them mounted on the new wheels
http://s483.photobucket.com/albums/rr196/BFFreak_2008/Raceline%20tires/New%20Douglas%20wheels%20with%20Raceline%20tires/?albumview=slideshow