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Why not make baloon style tires again?
Why doesn't one (or more, since more would be better for all parties in the long run) of the AATV manufacturers out there work a deal with a wheel maker and major tire manufacturer to introduce a five or six inch beadlock-style wheel and tires upsized to fit them???
I figure the most likely excuse is initial cost. But that's a pretty lame and downright sad argument. I think most folks here would agree that the most common complaint about our machines is the ride quality. This seemed to be a lot less if an issue back in the day, when the Firestone 1-piece balloon wheel/tires were the standard skins for these rigs. Why not do something to eliminate that complaint altogether?
If the current 8" and 12" rims currently in use on our amphibs were scaled down to either 5" or 6" diameter and the sidewalls of the tires were increased to fit them... imagine how comfy our buggies would be! WOW! A 23" tire (Goodyear RHIII's come to mind) with a sidewall fat enough to seat on a 5" or 6" rim??? Even better, think of the comfort of a 26"/27" tire (GoodYear Super-TerraGrips) on that small of a beadlock rim, running only 1 - 1.5 lbs of air?!?!?!?!
Recreatives AND the ODG boys should pool their resources and work together to negotiate better pricing for manufacturers to tool up for this... I mean it can't be that hard folks! Everyone would win in the end. C'mon! Sure the up front cost wouldn't be cheap, but if you factor that cost out over time, and make the "improved" wheel/tire set-up as the stock package for all machines, then the cost doesn't look anywhere near as bad. Better yet, it would allow AATV engineers the opportunity to design a tire SPECIFICALLY for our machines from the ground up, featuring the best attributes for land, mud AND water speed - - - something perhaps like a GoodYear Super-TerraGrip that featured the outward-facing Vampire ASX-type sidebiter lugs.
It would be the next best thing to springer-equipped amphibs, and the cost would be far less since it would only involve an upgrade of the stock wheels & tires. Tire manufacturers come out with new designs all the time, why not make it work to our advantage and do something that would eliminate one of the most serious turn-offs to our machines for those fence-sitters and others who would otherwise go with a quad or UTV? Heck, I think the smaller rims/fatter tires would quickly become the AATV industry standard, yet buyers would still be able to get 8" or 12" rims as an alternative if they wanted to be able to run tires offered for the quad marketplace. But then again, if you had an awesome tire that had TONS of traction in every environment AND offered a cushiony ride to boot, why would you want to go with anything else???
Your thoughts?
I figure the most likely excuse is initial cost. But that's a pretty lame and downright sad argument. I think most folks here would agree that the most common complaint about our machines is the ride quality. This seemed to be a lot less if an issue back in the day, when the Firestone 1-piece balloon wheel/tires were the standard skins for these rigs. Why not do something to eliminate that complaint altogether?
If the current 8" and 12" rims currently in use on our amphibs were scaled down to either 5" or 6" diameter and the sidewalls of the tires were increased to fit them... imagine how comfy our buggies would be! WOW! A 23" tire (Goodyear RHIII's come to mind) with a sidewall fat enough to seat on a 5" or 6" rim??? Even better, think of the comfort of a 26"/27" tire (GoodYear Super-TerraGrips) on that small of a beadlock rim, running only 1 - 1.5 lbs of air?!?!?!?!
Recreatives AND the ODG boys should pool their resources and work together to negotiate better pricing for manufacturers to tool up for this... I mean it can't be that hard folks! Everyone would win in the end. C'mon! Sure the up front cost wouldn't be cheap, but if you factor that cost out over time, and make the "improved" wheel/tire set-up as the stock package for all machines, then the cost doesn't look anywhere near as bad. Better yet, it would allow AATV engineers the opportunity to design a tire SPECIFICALLY for our machines from the ground up, featuring the best attributes for land, mud AND water speed - - - something perhaps like a GoodYear Super-TerraGrip that featured the outward-facing Vampire ASX-type sidebiter lugs.
It would be the next best thing to springer-equipped amphibs, and the cost would be far less since it would only involve an upgrade of the stock wheels & tires. Tire manufacturers come out with new designs all the time, why not make it work to our advantage and do something that would eliminate one of the most serious turn-offs to our machines for those fence-sitters and others who would otherwise go with a quad or UTV? Heck, I think the smaller rims/fatter tires would quickly become the AATV industry standard, yet buyers would still be able to get 8" or 12" rims as an alternative if they wanted to be able to run tires offered for the quad marketplace. But then again, if you had an awesome tire that had TONS of traction in every environment AND offered a cushiony ride to boot, why would you want to go with anything else???
Your thoughts?
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