Skat-Trak Extreme Hauler paddle tires
9
Skat-Trak Extreme Hauler paddle tires
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<table align="left" border="0" cellspacing="10" width="200"> <tbody><tr> <td>
</td> </tr> <tr style="font-style: italic;"> <td> Project Renegade 800 R makes its way to the dunes!
</td> </tr> </tbody></table>
We are taking project Renegade 800 R to the sand dunes for an upcoming ATV Product Review. I have been a sand addict for decades now, and have been sand duning on numerous sport quads, utility quads, dirt bikes, and a Rhino. I have always wondered if a 4x4 ATV with paddle tires on all four tires would work well in the dunes, and now it is time to find out.
<table align="right" border="0" cellspacing="10" width="200"> <tbody><tr> <td>
</td> </tr> <tr style="font-style: italic;"> <td> Many of the Skat-Trak tires have become legends among riders.
</td> </tr> </tbody></table> Tires make more of a difference in sand than on any other surface you will ever ride on, and after decades of sand duning I have found that the most winning combination for sand use is a high quality set of paddle tires from Skat-Trak. I've tried formed paddle tires in the past, and invariably they are heavy and do not provide anywhere close to the performance of Skat-Trak composite paddle tires. The Skat-Trak paddle tires are ultra light weight, with super grippy paddles. You can choose what size and shape paddle you want, and how many paddles you want, to gain the most performance possible from your particular ATV. The folks at Skat-Trak are professionals at this. Give them a call and tell them what ATV you have, and what you want to do with it, and they'll build you the best tires you can have for sand.
<table align="center" border="0" width="200"> <tbody><tr> <td>
</td> </tr> <tr style="font-style: italic;"> <td style="text-align: justify;">Skat-Trak tires come in a standard assortment of configurations designed to fit almost any need and sand condition.</td> </tr> </tbody></table>
<table align="left" border="0" cellspacing="10" width="200"> <tbody><tr> <td>
</td> </tr> <tr> <td height="67"> The Hauler Extreme is based on the most popular Hauler paddle.
</td> </tr> </tbody></table>
For project Renegade 800 R we chose the Extreme Hauler paddle tires from Skat- Trak. The rear paddles are 26x12x12 eight paddle Extreme Haulers mounted on Douglas 12x10 billet aluminum wheels. For the front we are going to try two different sets of tires, one of which will be a set of 26x10x12 seven paddle Extreme Haulers mounted on a set of Douglas 12x7 billet aluminum wheels, and one of which will be a set of 26x10x12 smooth buffs mounted on a set of Douglas 12x7 billet aluminum wheels.
The questions we want to answer are:
<table align="right" border="0" width="200"> <tbody><tr> <td class="style78">
</td> </tr> </tbody></table> Are four paddle tires better than two paddle tires for drag racing, hillshooting, and extreme hillclimbing? Are smooth buffs in front as good as four paddle tires? The smooth buffs actually do provide considerable traction in the sand compared to two wheel drive, and they may be substantially better for general duning, including railing the big bowls. We'll let you know which combo works best when we go to the Little Sahara Sand Dunes in Utah. We plan on doing timed runs up the 700 foot tall Sand Mountain to see which combo is faster for hillshooting, and we plan on taking on whatever sport quads we come up against to see how the big 4x4 does. We also plan on trying to climb a hill called Five Fingers, which is right next to the usual Sand Mountain hillclimb, but is much much steeper. I personally have never seen a 4x4 ATV climb Five Fingers in the last decade. We tried it a few years ago with a Prairie 700 that had a Four Stroke Tech 800cc big bore, pistons, cams, and porting; but rear paddle tires only, and never made it.
Here are the weights of our tire and wheel combinations:
OEM wheel and 25” Holeshot ATR tire: Front = 22.5 lbs; Rear = 30.5 lbs
Skat Trak 26” smooth buff front tire and Douglas 12x7 Billet wheel = 18.5 lbs
Skat Trak 26” Extreme Hauler front paddle tire and Douglas 12x7 Billet wheel = 19.5 lbs
Skat Trak 26” Extreme Hauler rear paddle tire and Douglas 12x10 Billet wheel = 20.5 lbs
<table align="left" border="0" cellspacing="10" width="200"> <tbody><tr> <td class="style78">
</td> </tr> <tr> <td class="style70"> We measured a five second faster time on the 700 foot tall mountain with the Skat Trak paddle tires over the stock setup.
</td> </tr> </tbody></table> By changing from the OEM tires and wheels to the Skat Trak tires and Douglas wheels we were able to reduce rolling mass by 26 lbs with the four paddle tire set up, and by 28 lbs with the rear paddle tire and front smooth buff tires. Twenty eight pounds less rolling mass that the engine needs to get turning each time you hit the gas makes for a dramatic improvement in performance that can be felt immediately when riding the ATV, and that can measured on a stop watch. We climbed Sand Mountain at the Little Sahara Sand Dunes with all three sets of tires, and measured a five second faster time on the 700 foot tall mountain with the Skat Trak paddle tires. You can see in the first part of the video the Project Renegade racing a KTM 300 XC dirt bike, a Yamaha YFZ 450, a Honda TRX 450 R, and other sport quads, and count for five seconds as our Renegade climbs the mountain. Notice how much ground Project Renegade covers in five seconds and you begin to see how big of an advantage the Skat Trak paddles provide. The only way to really know how much of an advantage they provide though, is to feel the difference from behind the handlebars, and the difference is like night and day.
We wanted more than an improvement in drag race times with our Renegade though. We wanted the ultimate sand dune ATV for extreme hill climbing, railing the big bowls, and just general duning. We wanted it all, from just one ATV. I wanted to know if front paddle tires would allow for adequate handling without throwing a lot of sand on the ATV rider. I also wanted to know if having paddle tires on all four corners would really improve hill climbing ability over what could be gained with just rear paddle tires.
<table align="right" border="0" cellspacing="10" width="200"> <tbody><tr> <td class="style78">
</td> </tr> <tr style="font-style: italic;"> <td class="style70"> The smooth buff front tires do feel lighter and ride a little smoother than the front paddle tires.
</td> </tr> </tbody></table> It turns out that the smooth buff front tires do feel lighter and ride a little smoother than the front paddle tires. For general sand dune riding, and for just playing around they are a tough combination to beat.
But our favorite combination was with Skat Trak Extreme Haulers at all four corners. Even with four paddle tires the Renegade is still very easy to ride in the dunes. It handles great, and does not throw sand on the rider at all. Four paddle tires even worked well for high speed riding in the big bowls on the back side of Sand Mountain, and for playing around on the countless natural jumps that are found in the sand dunes.
The big advantage of four paddle tires is when climbing extreme sand dunes though. The biggest climb at Sand Mountain is the Five Fingers climb. Five Fingers is the same 700 vertical feet that Sand Mountain is, but Five Fingers is much steeper than the main route up Sand Mountain. I have been coming to Sand Mountain for 10 years with ATVs, and for 25 years all together, and I have never seen a 4x4 ATV climb Five Fingers. I have seen a few very fast sport ATVs make the climb, but Five Fingers is a real challenge for even the better sport ATVs. I have not been able to climb the steepest “finger” of Five Fingers in the past, and have tried with a Raptor 660, YFZ 450, KFX 700 V-Force, and a Prairie 700 that had a Four Stroke Tech 800cc big bore kit in it. My son had been able to climb Five Fingers on the YFZ 450, but I weighed 50 lbs more than he did back then, and the extra rider weight the YFZ had had to carry with me on board kept me from conquering this hill. All of those ATVs were modded for performance, and they all had rear paddle tires, but none of them could take me over the top of Five Fingers.
<table align="left" border="0" width="200"> <tbody><tr> <td class="style78">
</td> </tr> <tr style="font-style: italic;"> <td class="style70"> You can hear the difference, you can see the difference, and you can definitely feel the difference when you are riding the Renegade 800 R.
</td> </tr> </tbody></table> It turns out that Skat Trak paddle tires were needed on all four corners of Project Renegade to get us over the top of Five Fingers on this trip to the dunes. We tried first with the OEM Holeshot tires, and we weren’t even close. We tried again with rear Skat Trak paddle tires and the super light weight Skat Trak front buffs, and did much better than with the OEM tires, but still couldn’t make the climb. Finally we tried Five Fingers with all four Skat Trak paddles, and here are the videos that show how much of a difference four paddle tires really make. Also, note the difference in how fast the engine builds RPM, and how fast the Renegade accelerates off of the starting line with the stock tires in the video, compared to how it does with the super light weight Skat Trak tires. You can hear the difference, you can see the difference, and you can definitely feel the difference when you are riding the ATV. Skat Trak tires are the biggest bang for the buck you are going to get when it comes to performance in sand.
<table border="0" width="100%"> <tbody><tr> <td class="style78">
</td> </tr> </tbody></table>
<table align="center" border="0" width="472"> <tbody><tr> <td class="style78" width="640">
<embed src="http://blip.tv/play/Ac3jBQA" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="466" height="371"> </td> </tr> <tr> <td class="style78">Here is the video compilation of the Renegade 800 R at the Little Sahara Sand Dunes </td> </tr> </tbody></table>
Conclusion
With the addition of Skat Trak paddle tires Project Renegade has become our all time favorite sand dune ATV. The Renegade 800 R will climb better than any ATV we have ever ridden, can more or less keep up with the 450 sport quads on the mountain, and can beat the 450 sport quads in 300’ drags on flat ground. Skat Trak did not let us down; they build the best sand tires in the business, and have enhanced the performance of our Project Renegade by even more than we had hoped for. Thank you Skat Trak!
For more information on Skat Trak Products you can contact them at:
http://www.skat-trak.com
800.969.7528
[email protected]
[email protected]
654 Avenue K
Calimesa, CA 92320
U.S.A.
</td> </tr> <tr style="font-style: italic;"> <td> Project Renegade 800 R makes its way to the dunes! </td> </tr> </tbody></table>
We are taking project Renegade 800 R to the sand dunes for an upcoming ATV Product Review. I have been a sand addict for decades now, and have been sand duning on numerous sport quads, utility quads, dirt bikes, and a Rhino. I have always wondered if a 4x4 ATV with paddle tires on all four tires would work well in the dunes, and now it is time to find out.
<table align="right" border="0" cellspacing="10" width="200"> <tbody><tr> <td>
</td> </tr> </tbody></table> Tires make more of a difference in sand than on any other surface you will ever ride on, and after decades of sand duning I have found that the most winning combination for sand use is a high quality set of paddle tires from Skat-Trak. I've tried formed paddle tires in the past, and invariably they are heavy and do not provide anywhere close to the performance of Skat-Trak composite paddle tires. The Skat-Trak paddle tires are ultra light weight, with super grippy paddles. You can choose what size and shape paddle you want, and how many paddles you want, to gain the most performance possible from your particular ATV. The folks at Skat-Trak are professionals at this. Give them a call and tell them what ATV you have, and what you want to do with it, and they'll build you the best tires you can have for sand.
<table align="center" border="0" width="200"> <tbody><tr> <td>
</td> </tr> <tr style="font-style: italic;"> <td style="text-align: justify;">Skat-Trak tires come in a standard assortment of configurations designed to fit almost any need and sand condition.</td> </tr> </tbody></table> <table align="left" border="0" cellspacing="10" width="200"> <tbody><tr> <td>
</td> </tr> <tr> <td height="67"> The Hauler Extreme is based on the most popular Hauler paddle. </td> </tr> </tbody></table>
For project Renegade 800 R we chose the Extreme Hauler paddle tires from Skat- Trak. The rear paddles are 26x12x12 eight paddle Extreme Haulers mounted on Douglas 12x10 billet aluminum wheels. For the front we are going to try two different sets of tires, one of which will be a set of 26x10x12 seven paddle Extreme Haulers mounted on a set of Douglas 12x7 billet aluminum wheels, and one of which will be a set of 26x10x12 smooth buffs mounted on a set of Douglas 12x7 billet aluminum wheels.
The questions we want to answer are:
<table align="right" border="0" width="200"> <tbody><tr> <td class="style78">
</td> </tr> </tbody></table> Are four paddle tires better than two paddle tires for drag racing, hillshooting, and extreme hillclimbing? Are smooth buffs in front as good as four paddle tires? The smooth buffs actually do provide considerable traction in the sand compared to two wheel drive, and they may be substantially better for general duning, including railing the big bowls. We'll let you know which combo works best when we go to the Little Sahara Sand Dunes in Utah. We plan on doing timed runs up the 700 foot tall Sand Mountain to see which combo is faster for hillshooting, and we plan on taking on whatever sport quads we come up against to see how the big 4x4 does. We also plan on trying to climb a hill called Five Fingers, which is right next to the usual Sand Mountain hillclimb, but is much much steeper. I personally have never seen a 4x4 ATV climb Five Fingers in the last decade. We tried it a few years ago with a Prairie 700 that had a Four Stroke Tech 800cc big bore, pistons, cams, and porting; but rear paddle tires only, and never made it. Here are the weights of our tire and wheel combinations:
OEM wheel and 25” Holeshot ATR tire: Front = 22.5 lbs; Rear = 30.5 lbs
Skat Trak 26” smooth buff front tire and Douglas 12x7 Billet wheel = 18.5 lbs
Skat Trak 26” Extreme Hauler front paddle tire and Douglas 12x7 Billet wheel = 19.5 lbs
Skat Trak 26” Extreme Hauler rear paddle tire and Douglas 12x10 Billet wheel = 20.5 lbs
<table align="left" border="0" cellspacing="10" width="200"> <tbody><tr> <td class="style78">
</td> </tr> <tr> <td class="style70"> We measured a five second faster time on the 700 foot tall mountain with the Skat Trak paddle tires over the stock setup. </td> </tr> </tbody></table> By changing from the OEM tires and wheels to the Skat Trak tires and Douglas wheels we were able to reduce rolling mass by 26 lbs with the four paddle tire set up, and by 28 lbs with the rear paddle tire and front smooth buff tires. Twenty eight pounds less rolling mass that the engine needs to get turning each time you hit the gas makes for a dramatic improvement in performance that can be felt immediately when riding the ATV, and that can measured on a stop watch. We climbed Sand Mountain at the Little Sahara Sand Dunes with all three sets of tires, and measured a five second faster time on the 700 foot tall mountain with the Skat Trak paddle tires. You can see in the first part of the video the Project Renegade racing a KTM 300 XC dirt bike, a Yamaha YFZ 450, a Honda TRX 450 R, and other sport quads, and count for five seconds as our Renegade climbs the mountain. Notice how much ground Project Renegade covers in five seconds and you begin to see how big of an advantage the Skat Trak paddles provide. The only way to really know how much of an advantage they provide though, is to feel the difference from behind the handlebars, and the difference is like night and day.
We wanted more than an improvement in drag race times with our Renegade though. We wanted the ultimate sand dune ATV for extreme hill climbing, railing the big bowls, and just general duning. We wanted it all, from just one ATV. I wanted to know if front paddle tires would allow for adequate handling without throwing a lot of sand on the ATV rider. I also wanted to know if having paddle tires on all four corners would really improve hill climbing ability over what could be gained with just rear paddle tires.
<table align="right" border="0" cellspacing="10" width="200"> <tbody><tr> <td class="style78">
</td> </tr> <tr style="font-style: italic;"> <td class="style70"> The smooth buff front tires do feel lighter and ride a little smoother than the front paddle tires.</td> </tr> </tbody></table> It turns out that the smooth buff front tires do feel lighter and ride a little smoother than the front paddle tires. For general sand dune riding, and for just playing around they are a tough combination to beat.
But our favorite combination was with Skat Trak Extreme Haulers at all four corners. Even with four paddle tires the Renegade is still very easy to ride in the dunes. It handles great, and does not throw sand on the rider at all. Four paddle tires even worked well for high speed riding in the big bowls on the back side of Sand Mountain, and for playing around on the countless natural jumps that are found in the sand dunes.
The big advantage of four paddle tires is when climbing extreme sand dunes though. The biggest climb at Sand Mountain is the Five Fingers climb. Five Fingers is the same 700 vertical feet that Sand Mountain is, but Five Fingers is much steeper than the main route up Sand Mountain. I have been coming to Sand Mountain for 10 years with ATVs, and for 25 years all together, and I have never seen a 4x4 ATV climb Five Fingers. I have seen a few very fast sport ATVs make the climb, but Five Fingers is a real challenge for even the better sport ATVs. I have not been able to climb the steepest “finger” of Five Fingers in the past, and have tried with a Raptor 660, YFZ 450, KFX 700 V-Force, and a Prairie 700 that had a Four Stroke Tech 800cc big bore kit in it. My son had been able to climb Five Fingers on the YFZ 450, but I weighed 50 lbs more than he did back then, and the extra rider weight the YFZ had had to carry with me on board kept me from conquering this hill. All of those ATVs were modded for performance, and they all had rear paddle tires, but none of them could take me over the top of Five Fingers.
<table align="left" border="0" width="200"> <tbody><tr> <td class="style78">
</td> </tr> <tr style="font-style: italic;"> <td class="style70"> You can hear the difference, you can see the difference, and you can definitely feel the difference when you are riding the Renegade 800 R.</td> </tr> </tbody></table> It turns out that Skat Trak paddle tires were needed on all four corners of Project Renegade to get us over the top of Five Fingers on this trip to the dunes. We tried first with the OEM Holeshot tires, and we weren’t even close. We tried again with rear Skat Trak paddle tires and the super light weight Skat Trak front buffs, and did much better than with the OEM tires, but still couldn’t make the climb. Finally we tried Five Fingers with all four Skat Trak paddles, and here are the videos that show how much of a difference four paddle tires really make. Also, note the difference in how fast the engine builds RPM, and how fast the Renegade accelerates off of the starting line with the stock tires in the video, compared to how it does with the super light weight Skat Trak tires. You can hear the difference, you can see the difference, and you can definitely feel the difference when you are riding the ATV. Skat Trak tires are the biggest bang for the buck you are going to get when it comes to performance in sand.
<table border="0" width="100%"> <tbody><tr> <td class="style78">
</td> </tr> </tbody></table>
<table align="center" border="0" width="472"> <tbody><tr> <td class="style78" width="640">
<embed src="http://blip.tv/play/Ac3jBQA" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="466" height="371"> </td> </tr> <tr> <td class="style78">Here is the video compilation of the Renegade 800 R at the Little Sahara Sand Dunes </td> </tr> </tbody></table>
Conclusion
With the addition of Skat Trak paddle tires Project Renegade has become our all time favorite sand dune ATV. The Renegade 800 R will climb better than any ATV we have ever ridden, can more or less keep up with the 450 sport quads on the mountain, and can beat the 450 sport quads in 300’ drags on flat ground. Skat Trak did not let us down; they build the best sand tires in the business, and have enhanced the performance of our Project Renegade by even more than we had hoped for. Thank you Skat Trak!
For more information on Skat Trak Products you can contact them at:
http://www.skat-trak.com
800.969.7528
[email protected]
[email protected]
654 Avenue K
Calimesa, CA 92320
U.S.A.
