28" or 30" zillas

[shui5612]

Originally Posted by DesertSteve

OIC, so why are we going for bigger and bigger tires? what are the advantages other than a little height and top speed.
Are we trying to compensate for something here?

Not necessarily. bigger tires provide more traction as they have bigger lugs most of the time.

just to explain how traction is acquired with bigger tires,
IN MOST cases, the MUD where "we" go mudding is not deep. usually as deep as someone is willing to go and barely higher than the headlights or snorkels.

the mud is usually "soft" ontop , by this i mean, its most likely composed of fallen leaves, grass, "fresh" things and its its "water".

because mud doesnt really dissolve in water, pieces of mud falls down by gravity. this process is sedimentation.
mud, rocks, sticks and so on, fall or "drown" faster than earth, this causes the formation of mud as earth is still floating around in the water (eventually it should sediment down if uninterrupted.

Those same sediments are exactly the reason why we go for taller tires, as they are able to REACH lower into the sediment which, in return is harder and provides more traction than the more watery top.

BUT, if that mud hole is too deep, those larger tires would not help at all, nor would they help if that mud is uniform, or in water.

This is why we have "large" tires, usually being shorter but much wider. those tires provide flotation, which in most cases is less wanted as it provides less traction, but having no other choice, its the only way to get "traction".

there are many other terms, choices, and conditions that change with each location, soil conditions and composition and such.
Like i said, the factors of which tires to get are different to each person, machine and location.

Originally Posted by demon550xp

those r sick fuzzy buddy has em on his AC 680 in 2wd it goes through everything. but first time he got stuck locked the front diff in 4x4 broke all 4 axles and kursploded the front diff. oh did i mention it dynoed 64whp. he learned his lesson if he cant make it in two he uses winch. im geting tax return in a week ordering the 28 zillas im sure it handle the 30 fine but it too new to risk for me.
thanx shui for explaning

IMHO if you arent going into deep mud holes then you wont need 30,
and 28" is an acceptable size for trail riding.

Just on a side note, this is why i said having 4x4 UNLOCKED is better for the said bigger tires, they will decrease traction but will also lower the chances of broken axles aswell..

Hope i helped.

[xFuzzyInlinex]

so shui, by saying having 4x4 unlocked, you mean ride through the holes with 4x4? Because im relatively new at this as well, and one thing i DONT wanna do is break an axle...

[shui5612]

Originally Posted by xFuzzyInlinex

so shui, by saying having 4x4 unlocked, you mean ride through the holes with 4x4? Because im relatively new at this as well, and one thing i DONT wanna do is break an axle...

you have a polaris right?
in that case there is nothing you can do, just switch the WD on BEFORE going into the mudhole.
If you had another quad brand, you could put the 4x4 in UNLOCKED,
but on the polaris there is only 4x4 LOCKED.

let me just explain it to you really fast.
when i mean 4x4 unlocked, it means that the front tires could spin at different speeds, usually the tire with the MOST traction doesnt spin, as the friction on the other side (with no traction) has barely any friction, making that tire spin.

so, what do i mean by this? means that lets say you are driving, 2 tires on the right are on ice, and the ones on the left are on asphalt. in 4x4 UNLOCKED the right tires will spin, as they have barely any friction while the ones one the right will most likely not spin/turn at all.

Now, 4x4 locked means that all 4 tires spin at the same rate, maybe not front and rear wise, but left and right tire spin exactly the same speed.
just wondering, do you have a snow blower? or have seen one? you will notice that the tires are on a shaft and cant spin at different speeds.
So, a snowblower has a locked axle.

going back to our previous idea of having the right tires on ice and left on asphalt, in 4x4 locked, the tires will spin at the same speed, so instead of being "stuck" the tires on the left will provide traction and propel the atv forward.

So what did we learn? that 4x4 LOCKED just means the tires spin at the same rate, and provide the best traction, as either tire that has traction pushes the atv forward.

while 4x4 unlocked, will provide less traction, BUT will prevent axle damage.

Just an Idea, go YouTube the polaris atv shootout , and you will see by what i mean locked/unlocked 4x4 systems in their AWD test (3 tires on rollers)

On a polaris, there is nothing you can do to make it be 4x4 unlocked, as the design was meant to go into LOCK automaticly.

hope i helped you understand more, sorry if i wasnt expressing myself well and that you did not understand me.
If you still have trouble understanding, i will send you a link tomorrow to the polaris video i was talking about.


EDIT: if an axle ever breaks, they are pretty easy to replace if you have the proper tools, PLUS you can buy more Heavy Duty axles that wont break (or have less chance of breaking). Dont go all paranoid and not ride the ATV, just remember to have fun, and if something ever breaks, its not the end of the world as a fix/replacement can always be acquired but lost time cant.

[lod666ftw]

I happen to like polaris's 4 wheel drive, generally when I lock in the 4 wheel drive its because it is something bad or I have gone as far as I could in 2 wheel drive. When this happen I want as much traction as possible!!! After all I dont think we have to worry about making a turn in town on paved roads here! You just have to have a little comman sense with bigger mud tires! If you need all that power to the ground maybe its time for a winch not full throttle and waiting for something to break! " COME ON MAN"

[Bruteforcebob]

I can tell you that since I went 30" zillas from stretched 28" swamplites I have only used 4x4 twice and it was just because the ruts were in peanut butter mud

[shui5612]

Originally Posted by lod666ftw

I happen to like polaris's 4 wheel drive, generally when I lock in the 4 wheel drive its because it is something bad or I have gone as far as I could in 2 wheel drive. When this happen I want as much traction as possible!!! After all I dont think we have to worry about making a turn in town on paved roads here! You just have to have a little comman sense with bigger mud tires! If you need all that power to the ground maybe its time for a winch not full throttle and waiting for something to break! " COME ON MAN"

i completely agree on this...
nothing beats common sense guys...
also, this is why i keep(or will keep) close to stock size tires.

and you are also right, you can break off an A-arm while making a turn in 4x4 on paved roads!

plus i really like the polarise 4x4 system to be "THE BEST".

[lasportsman3]

you missed one of the main reasons for bigger tires shui. GROUND CLEARANCE. ground clearance is a must where i ride so that you dont high center and have wheels spinning touching nothing

[shui5612]

Originally Posted by lasportsman3

you missed one of the main reasons for bigger tires shui. GROUND CLEARANCE. ground clearance is a must where i ride so that you dont high center and have wheels spinning touching nothing

its one of those points for the taller tires, same as lift kits, they are not intended to make a machine look better, or allow for bigger tires (its just a `feature`)
but like i said, 30`tires wont help at all if the mud hole is 6 feet deep, BUT, being said that most mud holes arent, it helps...
never the less, there are MANY pros and cons for both large tires, tall tires, smaller ones, and so on...

hope i helped.

[Bruteforcebob]

Actually they do help in the super deep stuff by providing floatation and a paddle effect so you can get the bike to the other side. The bigger they are the better they float.