Maxxis desert IT's or Dunlop 739 AT's

[atitagain]

I have an 07' WR450 with the crappy stock tires and I am looking to change them. I ride mostly hard pack, AZ desert. What tire is the hot setup, the desert IT with the IS up front or the 739 with the 756F RR or any combination of those? What size rear are you running, 110 or 120? The 120 seems VERY wide. Thanks in advance for any and all input.

[SJMC_DON]

I have an 07' WR450 with the crappy stock tires and I am looking to change them. I ride mostly hard pack, AZ desert. What tire is the hot setup, the desert IT with the IS up front or the 739 with the 756F RR or any combination of those? What size rear are you running, 110 or 120? The 120 seems VERY wide. Thanks in advance for any and all input.

I would go with the Maxxis set up..... you're spot on with the SI front, that IT front is a hunk of sheet..... the SI is good protection with a stiff sidewall and will wear a long time. The IT rear is a sweet tire that really hooks up good in most firma... the 120 is wide but fits well on the 07' I'd use the 120. I can't speak to the Dunlops but the IT rear will give you 800 - 1,000 miles:eek:

[emtrvt]

I did the 739 AT with the 606 front. Was a little nervous about running the 606 because I only ride it in the desert. But let me tell you it is awesome. It is so stable it is unbelievable. It is what dunlop recommends and I see why. Getting ready to turn my rear around it is starting to show some wear. The is about 600 miles on it. Was thinking about trying the maxxis rear next.

[KennyMc]

I would go with the Maxxis set up..... you're spot on with the SI front, that IT front is a hunk of sheet..... the SI is good protection with a stiff sidewall and will wear a long time. The IT rear is a sweet tire that really hooks up good in most firma... the 120 is wide but fits well on the 07' I'd use the 120. I can't speak to the Dunlops but the IT rear will give you 800 - 1,000 miles:eek:

I have been looking at tires as well. The Maxxis website says the SI is for intermediate / soft terrain. They have a IT and a desert IT for the front. They say the desert IT front has the stiffer carcass design. What about the HT front? Have you had any experience with that?

After reading all of the info on different tire websites, I get information overload.

[kskyles]

for the arizona desert, the maxxis desert IT in the back is great. go for the maxxis SI in the front, though. I've gotten a ton of wear and good traction with it.

[GCannon]

Maxxis Desert 120 rear and the SI tire up front works good in my Desert:thumbsup:

[GCannon]

We must all be reading the same Magazine:excuseme:

[JAVA JOE]

I put on a set of maxxis tires 2 years ago and ride mostly narly desert and my front still looks about brand new and my rear is about due for replacement. great tires!!!!

[Thumper_Bloke]

Me too! I've been using the Maxxis SI front and IT rear, gone though 2 sets and really liked them. I want to try the Dunlop now, lets hear from the Dunlop riders!

[atitagain]

Yeah, lets hear about the dunlops. Anyone using them?

As for the magazine reviews, I don't listen to them very much (ever since the off road bike shootout where KTM won just because it could be dealer plated).

I like reading reviews on the forum from people, like you and me, who have to spend our hard earned dollars on products for our bikes.

[snakesausage]

I have the SI front/IT rear setup and in the dry the SI front is fine but on wet roots it sucks. It has almost put me on my arse many times where the D756 stocker was much more stable over roots. If the knobs were a bit taller to grip past slightly exposed roots I think that it would be a great tire.

I am going to try the Metzler MC4 front and rear next.

[SJMC_DON]

I have been looking at tires as well. The Maxxis website says the SI is for intermediate / soft terrain. They have a IT and a desert IT for the front. They say the desert IT front has the stiffer carcass design. What about the HT front? Have you had any experience with that?

After reading all of the info on different tire websites, I get information overload.

My experience with the IT front leads me to the conclusion that while you will likely not get a flat and it will wear like Iron... it is the scariest front tire I have ever ran, it will not hold an edge in any kind of aggressive cornering. The SI front is better but as mentioned else where in this thread it's not the best for traction but I think it still has a stiffer carcass than any intermediate tire out there and is a good tire for the desert.

The best thing about this thread is Java Joe's avatar:thumbsup:

[kirkw]

In addition to IRC's, I had run a Dunlop 739 Desert in the back (110). I switched and am on my second Maxxis desert IT in the back in a 120 (seem to run a bit more narrow) and it is a very nice balance of wear then traction. Any tire may be great first ride, but I am not happy changing them every three so I like one that has a more consistent traction profile due to better wear over the long haul. I have a SI up front, which is wearing good. I do not like it as much as a M12 from a traction standpoint though.

[garr87v]

A friend of mine ran the SI and hated it he runs the maxxis HT up front and loves it. I ran the HT front and rear before I sold my kdx and loved them for the 150miles I owned them.

[ksrrider]

I have an 07' WR450 with the crappy stock tires and I am looking to change them. I ride mostly hard pack, AZ desert. What tire is the hot setup, the desert IT with the IS up front or the 739 with the 756F RR or any combination of those? What size rear are you running, 110 or 120? The 120 seems VERY wide. Thanks in advance for any and all input.

From my experience the Maxis IT 110/100/18 (non desert) rear is the best bang for the buck. I also like the Perelli MT18 front for it's all around traction and wear and stiff side wall. But, I have gone back to using the good old Dunlop 756 front for it's incredible hook up, I just buy more of them. I run bridgestone ultra heavy tubes with lots of baby powder at 16-18psi both ends, and don't ever flat. And trust me, I race desert in Lucerne valley which is a perpetual rock garden, and my set up works.

PS. you don't need a 120 rear for a 450, 110's work just fine.

[atitagain]

well... I just set the sag on my bike (WOW! did it need to be tightened up). I am going to the desert for a ride on Sat and I will see if that adjustment will help keep the front end from washing out. I know I still need to get the stockers off, but if I can hang on until they are worn out I will be content. Thanks for all of the input... real-life product evaluation is the best!

[Solo]

Put a 120 Desert IT on the back and never look back. I'm still playing around with various front tires.

[TheBlackSheep]

Those stock Dunlops suck. I used to swear by Maxxis Desert IT's front and back, But DesertRat450 talked me into the Michellin S12 up front and it rules! You can't beat the Maxxis Desert IT in the back though. Wears really well.

............... bahhh

[SJMC_DON]

S-12's are awesome tires but I would not run one in the desert with out tire balls or a moose.... they are the tire of choice up here in the NW for winters... they are super soft compound with an aggressive lug pattern, the rear will put so much power to the ground it's scary:eek: Michelin switched production from spain to thailand and the sense is that the compound is not as good as the one's from spain

I would not run an S-12 in the desert, they will chunk away real fast and will be very suseptible to pinch flats:prof:

[CheYuen]

Currently running Maxxis desert IT's on front and rear. The rear, like everyone else has said is great! I run a 120.

The front traction leaves something to be desired, but from someone that only has the stock front tire to compare it to, it is pretty good. One of my biggest concerns being a california desert rider, are flats. Riding high speed (sort of), over rocky terrain leaves me running higher tire pressures with a stiff sidewall tire. I'm currently running 21 psi up front and 18 psi in the back which is probably a bit over kill in pinch flat protection.

I'm looking forward to my Maxxis desert IT front tire wearing out so I can try another . . . but the thing lasts forever!