Favorite Tires for the KX500

[mikesmith]

I may try this tire on front instead of the s-12 I was going to get in a few months after reading your review.Sound like the same type of rideing I do.Thanks!

[KXcam22]

Mikesmith,
  Yeah.  I was quite nervous about trying a "cheap" tire on the front.  But I thought what the heck it was not really much money.  I was pleasantly supprised.  I'm not sure if made any difference having the same tire front and back (balanced?).  Would love to compare it to an S12 back to back.  It beat the MS2 (although it was on an orange bike) in most conditions.  I really thrashed the tire last weekend, 3days of +7 hour high-speed rides through everything possible.  Need a new pipe and bars after that one.  I can barely type my hands are so stiff. Cam.

[mikesmith]

Im kind of scared of the cheap tires after trying a Maxxis IT on the front (before word got out just how bad a front tire it is) but Ill have to see.

[KXcam22]

Mike,
   I notice in the latest dirtbike mags that they are putting the Maxxis IT on their test bikes (with the logo painted of course). Graft and advertizing dollars at work I guess.  I'm still sold on the Kenda Unadillas.  The front is excellent and I just replaced my worn-out rear Kenda Unadilla with a new one.  Got a whole season out of it.  It even survived a big day at a moonscape area where I previously had demolished a 752 in one ride. This is the first repeat tire I have put on in the history of my bike (a '92).  Best performance/wear yet.  With the matched pair is seems to make quite an improvement in how the bike corners (see my tire review).  Depending on your dirt conditions, definitely a tire to consider. Cam.

[91kx]

Cam,I thought you used the millville.The Unadilla is their hard terrain tire,is it not?

[mikesmith]

Unadilla or Millville?Let me know which ever it is how it is for flat protection in the rocks,I noticed the Maxxis on a lot of bikes and heard they improved the front tire but Im not taking a chance on another one.I ride hard pack,decomposed granite,rocks,roots,mud,snow,you name it.

[crazyryan]

I bought a 3.5''x 18'' SunWheel and mounted a IRC 140/18 and it has been a great combo.  The extra width rim makes the M5B wider instead of rounder.  I run hillclimbs and dirtdrags in soft and intermediate.  With a change in air pressure, I think it's the best.  With no rear bead lock on the rim you'll need to screw through the rim into the tire to keep it from moving.  I used 6 screws per side.

[KXcam22]

OOOPS. Color me illiterate! Yes my mistake it is the Millville.  I guess I was thinkin waay back when it was the Unadilla and they renamed it to Millville. I feel dumb now.......

Mike your terrain sound a lot like mine. Kamloops looks a lot like SoCal (at least in summer), very hilly (powdery, sandy loam) with sagebrush and rocks. Lots of anchored rocks, shale and mud, trees, roots and then snow as you get higher up.  I would say the tire is great for flat (or rim protection) although I don't normally get alot of flats, front or rear.  I do get lots of big front rim dents.  My area is littered with skull sized rocks half anchored in the dirt.  They're easy to hit at speed in some dust. So far no flats no dents in 400 miles not worn too bad either! I've used a lot of different tires in my race career.  These Kendas seem very darn good. It would be nice to get a second oppinion from someone so I can tell if I am off base or not. Cam.

[mikesmith]

Itll be awhile,but I plan on getting some.

[FastKX500]

can anyone tell me what a good "all around" rear tire is..i know anything is better then mine right now..hell it looks like its off a 125 lol if you look in the Members gallery..im always having problems with traction with all the torque..but i mostly ride in fields and dirt, sometimes woods, but is there a good all around tire out there for me? Thanks
-Kayne

[mikesmith]

Well the Kenda Millville mentioned above or a Maxxis IT (is a little heavy and stiff side wall), but great for the price.IRC MB5 will give you a lot of traction in soft dirt or mud and a decent all around tire.

[gowen]

I have pretty much tried all tires, the M5B was ok, but the corner and grab on hard surgaces suck. Which is mostly North Carolina. I had it mounted on my CR250 and wiped out many times in the hard stuff, but would grip awesome in mud/sand and decent in grass. Good tire.

The Dunlop series are horrible on the rear. I have not found a tire that will last me a few months at least.  The tire I have found the BEST luck with all, hard surfaces and soft, that lasts for at least 6 months on the 500 and a year at the least on any other bike, is the Kenda Trak-Master II. It is cheap, lasts forever, grips hard and is just my tire preference. I currently have it mounted on four bikes and as soon as it is time for tires on the others, I will mount it too. Great tire. That is my A+. The only downside is to the person behind you.

[KXcam22]

I ran a 140 M5B on an old CR500.  Was a decent trail tire but really skittery cornering on hard stuff.  Good hillclimbing tire but not one I would buy twice.  Quite heavy.  I have given up on Dunlop.  I wasn't impressed with the stock 490/695 combo, didn't seem to work that well anywhere and I couldn't corner the beast if my life depended on it (I though it was me!).  I was reasonably happy with the rear dunlop 707 HT but they quit making them.  My Dunlop 752 lasted one ride (rocky area) before most of the knobs blew off ($$).   Kenda seems to be making decent tires.  I haven't tried the Trak-master ( I think it looks like the 752) but any tire that works 6 months or more on a KX500 is darn good.  I can vouch for the Kenda Millville. You feel like a hero in sand or soft stuff and they still perform great when quite worn.  Initially I was worried about rocks but they have survived some killer rock rides with no obvious wear.  Sticks to hardpack and blue clay better than you would expect.  I just bough a second one and will contine to run these.  On the front, the best thing I did was toss the stock Dunlop 490.  It might be me but the bike just never felt settled enough in the corners to really push it.  When I put on a Dunlop 755 (stock on hondas) it was a big improvement, bike started to corner - that is until it rained! Yikes - death tire, guaranteed to wash out everywhere. I put on a Millville front late last year and haven't looked back.  I've been extremely happy with it.  Far superior to any other I've tried and again sticks suprisingly well to hardpack and blue clay.  What's suprising about it is that it doesn't seem to wash out like other tires. When you push it past the limit it just skids/planes evenly. My past tires would dump you on your head, but this one just starts to skid and lets you do an even 2-wheel drift, kinda fun actually.  In about 400 miles the only section it didn't like was an off-camber outside corner made entirely out of wet 2" diam tree roots (dirt all washed away).  I repeatedly deflected off into the bush on that one!  When I bought it I thought I was gambling on a "cheap" front tire.  Turned out to be the best by quite a margin!  For all the miles it doesn't seem to be worn much. Should last this season too and at only $60 CAD I'll be happy to wrench on another. Cam.

[hughes]

Hey guys,

any reason that i would want to run a 120 rear tire over the 110. My bike came from the factory with a 110 back in 87. The old tire was a 120 but it was badly worn so I could not see any performance. I am running a new set of maxxis cross it and love them. Just wondering if I should go with the 120 rear when I wear this 110 out. Thanks

[KXcam22]

Hughes,
  My philosophy is to run the widest tire I can, as long as the bike has the HP to turn it, and it is not too heavy. Traction is always better than wheelspin. Of course the weight is a factor since some really large tires (ie terraflex types) have enough mass to noticeably effect the handling of the bike (ie bike feels sluggish in the rear when throwing it around).  I always go with the 120. If the Millville was offered in a 130 I would probably use that, unless it was a lot heavier. I have noticed lately that the european made tire sizes are different, hence my 120 Millville is a touch wider than a 140 Michellin.  I think it is how they measure the tire.  The european tire makers measure across the knobs and the Japanese/other tire makers measure across the tire carcass. Hope this helps. Cam.