All Terrain Tires

There are really a huge number of professions that may require off road activity. Farmers, police, loggers, builders, there is almost no end to the list of professions that may find you in need of going off road. Then there are the people that just want to get off road. The hunters, the boater, the campers, and even those who get off road just for the sake of driving off road are all possibilities among countless others.

One that this is shared by people who go off road is the need for gear to take them there. Many will use SUV’s or trucks to go off road, while others will find the smaller footprint and maneuverability of an ATV to be more to their taste. Off road motorcycles, often call dirt bikes are one of the most capable off road vehicles due to their light weight and ability to pick paths that couldn’t be accessed by the larger heavier vehicles. Some people don’t even require an engine for their off road vehicles, and will use a mountain bike to get as far off road as they could ever want to be. What all of these types of people and their vehicles require for going off road is an all terrain tire. Normal street tires are almost useless in off road conditions and there are a wide variety of tires made just for this purpose.

What Is An All Terrain Tire?

An all terrain tire is made almost completely differently from a street tire. First, the casing of the tire are often much different, with many more ply’s or layers to the tire to improve puncture resistance. This is often augmented by a layer of special material that is built into the tire that is often puncture proof or very close to that level of puncture resistance. The next is that the sidewalls are often very flexible, this doesn’t accommodate high speed driving and cornering well, but off road this allows a much greater amount of suspension effect from the tire, absorbing bumps and actually increasing traction, since the sidewalls will tend to flex before the tire spins. All terrain tires will also often feature some kind of locking mechanism on the bead to keep it from popping off of the rim during the most brutal impacts. This can something as simple as a Kevlar bead, or a metal bead lock that physically prevents the bead from popping off the tire.

Perhaps the most important aspect of the all terrain tire is the tread. While on road tires have a very flat tread pattern to make better contact with the flat road, an all terrain tire will have large knobs or lugs that actually dig into the softer ground, and providing more grip to move forward in less than ideal traction conditions. The shape, size, and arrangement of these tread blocks is what makes the tread pattern. It is different depending on the type of terrain you expect to be driving on. There are many general purpose tread patterns that handle everything from mud to hard pack and even on road/off road tires, but true all terrain tires are selected for a specific type of terrain. Huge, widely spaced lugs are best for deep mud, where the lugs can dig in and the spacing allows the tires to clean themselves. For sand, often the tires will literally have a paddlewheel like configuration which scoops into the sand as each paddle goes by. More everyday tires will have a closer set of large to medium sized knobs. These are the more general purpose all terrain tires and are suitable for soft ground or hard pack dirt. The inflation pressure of the tires comes into play as well, as many all terrain tires have a very low inflation pressure; this allows them spread out over the ground and actually gives some level of flotation.

Who Makes Them?

There are many different makers of all terrain tires. Some make full ranges while others work specifically on one or two different types of tire and make them as good as they can be. Some good places to start looking for all terrain tires are listed below.

Automotive Tires

Interco™ is one of the larger makers of off road tires. Making some of the most famous super swamper models as well as many others, they are at the forefront of all terrain tire makers. BFgoodrich™ is another tire maker who has a good reputation for their all terrain tires and a huge diversity of tires they make for different off road applications.

ATV Tires

There is some overlap of tire makers between automobile tires and ATV tires, but most of the best ATV tires are made by companies who work specifically with ATV’s and not consider them just another marketplace like some of the big name auto tire makers. Kenda™ is one of the best, with many models that are very highly regarded for their quality and performance. ITP™ makes the Holeshot™ series of tires and they are considered the top performance tire by most ATV racing teams. ITP makes different models for different terrain configurations and even some specialty tires for mud and sand.

Where To Find More Information Online

Tire Rack.com

This is one of the internet’s largest tire and wheel dealers. They have tires for virtually all the possible needs of anyone with an automobile. They have surveys and other information to help people make more informed choices when selecting tires. They can be found at http://www.tirerack.com.

BFgoodrich Tires.com

Makers of some of the premiere all terrain tires, BFgoodrich can be found on the web at http://www.bfgoodrichtires.com.

Offroaders.com

This site offers an interesting view of all terrain tires, including an overall rating as well as reviews from people who have purchased the tires. More information can be found at http://www.offroaders.com.