Should I be so concerned with tire ply ratings?

[Huffa]

2,4 & 6 ply, bias ply, none bias.............whats it really all mean? Some say a 4 ply can be every bit as good as a 6? Are plies made out of different materials?

What's bias and none bias?

Is it always true the more plies the less flex or that depends on the ply material used?

Fill me in on ply knowledge. I'd like to learn brfore I buy. Most likely on occassin I'll be on rocky terrain and a 2 ply scares me. Should I be? I also demand some flex in a tire with having only 4 inches of travel in rear.

Thanks!!

[straight pipe]

one thing i know is that the more plys the less air pressure you can run, cause the side walls are stiffer. plus more puncture resistant,flex less in corners,hmmm that's all my brain can handle at 8 in the morning.!!

[chris200x]

Basically what it comes down to is the more ply, the more money, the less flex. Or at least that's what I was told. Oh , and the less likely it will be to get a punture.

[Huffa]

Basically what it comes down to is the more ply, the more money, the less flex. Or at least that's what I was told. Oh , and the less likely it will be to get a punture.

I think it's more complex then that. I don't think it always holds true that more plies = less flex. I think it depends how the plies are run across the tire and if they are nylon, steel or polyester cords.

[chris200x]

Your probably right. The guy I bought my tires from told me that most guys around here go with 4 ply. He said those are about the best for the type of terrian up here in these parts. As for bias and all that other stuff I've never really thought about it that way. What always came to mind when I thought about it is how much the tire was exposed or what I mean is the thread pattern. For example the thread on say a mudlite tire compared to a Holeshot. I would think because the Holeshot has alot more thread or knobbies that it would be less likely to puncture compared to the mudlite that has it's thread more widely spaced and keeps more of the tire exposed. Do you kind of understand what I'm trying to say? It is hard to explain.

[Huffa]

Certainly. You thinking makes perfect logic. The more exposed area though might have thicker belts, or more heavy duty construction over all to compensate.

[chris200x]

Decisions...decisions...decisions. What I think you sould ask yourself is what type of riding you will be doing. Then, break it down into your basic tire catagories. Ya know you have mud/snow, knobbie style, sand tires and so forth and go from there. I personnally always used knobbies on any atv I have owned exept on the prarie I had. That used those ITP 589's on it. I wasn't to crazy about them. Too much grip and couldn't slide very well and had alot of flats-more plugs than knobbies.

I also used a set of wooley's on a 250sx I used to have. Those were OK.

Sometimes you just have to accept that flats are just a way of life when off-road riding.

I guess I should of posted that in your other thread about tires!

[straight pipe]

and some rubber compounds are lighter and softer than others too. even if you have a 6 ply...puncture resistance would be good but it would flex more than a different tire with lets say 4 ply with a hard and heavy compound.

[straight pipe]

tires are the most noticeable mod a person can do on a atc/v. go by the 90% rule. install the type of tire you normally be in use for 90% of the time.

[Dirtcrasher]

I always buy the XC's or XR's or XCR's whatever, as long as they are the most plies - I buy them. Every single time I buy cheap tires with 2 or 4 plies I either get a flat, a side wall tear or worse than that a tire that on occassion decides to lose the bead to the rim sealing point. Then I have to unmount it and bead seal it and pray for the best. My riding is lots or trails with rocks and mud and fallen trees and I need a reliable tire.

[Huffa]

I always buy the XC's or XR's or XCR's whatever, as long as they are the most plies - I buy them. Every single time I buy cheap tires with 2 or 4 plies I either get a flat, a side wall tear or worse than that a tire that on occassion decides to lose the bead to the rim sealing point. Then I have to unmount it and bead seal it and pray for the best. My riding is lots or trails with rocks and mud and fallen trees and I need a reliable tire.

That pretty much will be my type of riding too. I like the feature on some tires where they have "rim gurads". Where the sidewall tucks into the rim it protrudes out a bit protecting it from nasty rocks.

[edog]

I ran my six plys with 5 pounds of air in the back.The front one is at 10 psi.I was told that i could put 30 psi in them and they will still hold up.Not that i would want to.

[Huffa]

I ran my six plys with 5 pounds of air in the back.The front one is at 10 psi.I was told that i could put 30 psi in them and they will still hold up.Not that i would want to.

Who in the world told you that? At those lbs, you'll be bouncing all over the place. That sounds to me like max inflation only for getting the bead to seat.

Even 10 seems way too much!

Look on the side wall and see if it doesn't say what the max inflation is.

[TimSr]

Plys are layers and more layers does not necessarily mean thicker, less flex, or more puncture resistant. The thickness of the layers makes as much difference as the number of layers, and the hardness of the rubber also has as much ore more to do with those same characteristics. Take the Maxi All Trax as an example. Its a two ply. They are very thick and heavy, but with a softer rubber compound you can get soem flex and run 2 or 3 lbs. Ive managed to puncture one, out of three machines over a 14 year period. The ones on my TriZ are the oldest at 14 years, and barely show wear. Thyve got many miles of use on rough rocky terrain. Would a 6 ply have held up better? Yeah, right! Take Carlisle tires. They copy popular designs but for some reason they are always a lot harder than the originals they copy. More plys, or harder rubber compound? Take the Blackwaters, the hardest most indestructible tire known to man. I might be wrong, but I think they were a 4 ply. By the way, their weakness, like a lot of hard tires are they have problems seating on the bead without leaking. (on the other end of the spectrum, you dont see many Cheng Shin knobbies with bead leaks.) Lots of flat profile MX tires (where you dont want sidewall flex) are 2 ply. They also recommend 6-8 psi instead of the 2 or 3 you run on trail tires. Its the air pressure they were designed for, not the ply rating that eliminates sidewall flex.

My advice is to ignore the ply rating. If you need a hard tire, get a hard tire. If you need a soft one, get a soft one. Soft rounded tires get batter traction, and give you a smoother ride, but are less stable and dont powerslide as well. They are ideal for trails, especially woods, mud, and sand. Flat profile hard tires kick out better for powerslides, and more stable because they dont flex, and give better traction on surfaces tires dont penetrate, by way of a wider footprint and more surface contact, making them more suitable for dirt tracks, MX racing, and hard surfaces. Ignore teh ply rating and look at the overall charcteristsics of the tire to choose what best suits your needs. As somebody on here said once before, If one tire did it all, we would all be running the same tire.

[Huffa]

Thanks Tim...........some good intelligent info there.

I had 2 pairs of the All-Trax myself and was real happy with them. Wore like iron. Had them on a 200X and a 250 X 4 wheeler. A bit harder to slide around, much heavier the stock ones and probably took away a bit of ponies but I'll say this...........I never got a flat and through rocky terrian the tread still held up well.

They were quite stiff too. I think if I had a flat I could of still finished out the day! Thats the main reason I don't want them for these little puppies I mentioned.........too stiff and too heavy and not enough ballon in them .