How does the MT43 perform?

[Eric K]

Has anyone run the MT43? How does it work compared to other trials tires? How does it work compared to the MT16?

I read that the MT43 is noticeably larger in diameter than the other trials tires. What is the diameter/circumference of the MT43? Did the larger size affect the performance/handling?

 

[Skidad]

Well if you can bring yourself to browse the KTM Talk tire and wheel forum you will find plenty of info...and I mean plenty. Overall concensus is it's an excellent tire. It's beefy, has strong sidewalls, doesn't squirm at low pressures and I've seen no mention of chunking or knobs tearing. It's also about the heaviest trials tire out there but seems to be THE trials tire of choice for the TuBliss system because of it's strong sidewalls. I would not say it's really any bigger than other trials tires. It looks big off the rim but once mounted up it seems smaller than you would have thought.

Speaking of the MT16 and Tubliss, I used this setup recently at a Rhode Island rock ride. 7.5psi in the MT16 which had been re-cut with the Knobby Knife tool. It worked awesome I must say and I never even really thought about it all day. No funny business at that low pressure on road sections either. Now I want to try the TuBliss setup in an MT43. I also ran True Goo tire sealant f/b.

 

[eff]

I'm running the MT43. I'm a C rider that does turkey runs and ride rocky areas in NE. I can say that I am very pleased with it, but I can't tell you how it performs in relation to other tires (see DirtRider.com they did a comparison). The tire hooks up well everywhere, even in mud if you are on the throttle. On my last ride I found out that it is useless when braking on a muddy/slick surface. (same ride that Skidad was on but he didn't come over to say hello lol)

It does have a larger diameter than my Maxxis IT that went off, but the bike has handled great.

 

[GMP]

Thats the only trials tire I havn't tried, but I hear form those that did its similar to the Mitas (heavier sidewalls). No trials tire will offer braking control like a knobby in mud especially on downhills. I did a race in PA this weekend, and switched to an S12 due to the grass track and relatively good traction from past experience. Well, after a hard rain at night, shortened grass track, and a late number (chewed up trail), I would have been better off running the trials tire. I have so much more time on them a knobby just feels alien to me now in anything but sand.

 

[iancp5]

It's a good compromise for an enduro bike. It is not a true competition trials so has stiffer sidewalls and harder compound which makes it about perfect for a heavier bike. The pure competition trials tyres will grip better but will tear and pinch flat very easily. They also weave at anything above 30 mph at off road pressures. So as a trials tyre for an enduro bike MT43 is great. Obviously they lack grip in flat turns compared to knobblies and require a gentle style in slippery stuff.

 

[lankydoug]

I'm thinking of trying either the MT 43 or the Dunlop 803. There are other variables like which tube or tubliss set up to use with which tire. I've been reading the KTM forum as suggested and it sounds like they would both work well, it's just deciding on the stiffer sidewall of the MT 43 or the true trials grip of the 803.

 

[fury1]

the dunlop is much softer than the pirelli,go with the cheaper of the two and ride it and make your own conclusion,they wirk in alot of spots,but i found they do give up a bit on high speed trails,due to the fact braking is very tough especially downhills,they werent designed to ride at high speeds.

id personally run a bib instead of a tubliss if given a choice,if seen the tubliss gash the front wheel and although it made it back to the start for a rim swap,a bib wouldnt have gashed the wheel,he also gashed the front wheel later on,he got rid of the tubliss system and went back to H/D tubes

 

[Ed Ventura]

My MT43 Experiance

I jump back and fourth between an MT16 and a trials tire depending on conditions..

Last year a dunlop 803 with a bib. Worked great at climbing slick stuff. As long as there was something to grab, root rock ect it would climb with no wheel spin.

This year I tried and mt 43 with a bib. I tried it a few times, its last ride was yesterday. The tire sidewall is just to stiff for the monster size bib you must run. I got stuck on more hills yesterday than I have in the past 4 years. I would have had much better luck with dunlop 803 for sure, or a mt16

ED

 

[GMP]

After looking into the MT43, it appears its not a radial, but a "reinforced bias ply", and has a harder compound by design. No wonder it seems stiff to those who are used to real trials tires and doesn't work as well, why bother. Seems more like a '70s vintage dual sport tire.

 

[iancp5]

After looking into the MT43, it appears its not a radial, but a "reinforced bias ply", and has a harder compound by design. No wonder it seems stiff to those who are used to real trials tires and doesn't work as well, why bother. Seems more like a '70s vintage dual sport tire.

Why bother? Because it works well on enduro bikes. What you lose on ultimate grip you gain on stability and resilience.

 

[Keg]

A lot of people in Australia run trials tyres. Most run the MT43. If you want something more like a Michelin with softer side walls we generally run a Vee Rubber VRM308.

Flat track riders use them and a few trials guys as they are $50 cheap than the mICHELIN and $10 cheaper than a MT43.

 

[lankydoug]

My MT43 Experiance

I jump back and fourth between an MT16 and a trials tire depending on conditions..

Last year a dunlop 803 with a bib. Worked great at climbing slick stuff. As long as there was something to grab, root rock ect it would climb with no wheel spin.

This year I tried and mt 43 with a bib. I tried it a few times, its last ride was yesterday. The tire sidewall is just to stiff for the monster size bib you must run. I got stuck on more hills yesterday than I have in the past 4 years. I would have had much better luck with dunlop 803 for sure, or a mt16

ED

I was thinking of trying the MT 43 but run it tubliss @ about 8 or 9 psi. My thinking was to take advantage of the stiffer sidewall by not running a tube and less air pressure. The more I read about riders running trials tires in the rocky slick stuff the more I think my current set up (stiff sidewall knobby with a tube) is way off.

 

[GMP]

iancp5,

Why bother? From what I hear in the US like Ed mentioned it sucks compared to a radial like the Mitas or Dunlop. What makes trials tires work is an adhesive compound and a flexible carcas to maximize contact patch. It sounds like with the MT43 you get the disadvantages without the advantages, thats why I say why bother. Have you run the Mitas in comparison? Its a radial but has much stiffer sidewalls than the others, and a round profile. Also DOT rated here in the US. I beat the hell out of several and they never failed in any way. I go through one a season, the one on my bike now is down to less than 6mm thread and I can still climb stuff I shouldnt be able to.

 

[eff]

I've been using the MT43 and loved it. It gives me a lot of confidence in the rocks and still works fairly well in the mud. It's useless on greasy mud on hardpack.

 

[GMP]

Ed, all trials tires suck on grass tracks. The best in flat turns is the Mitas because its more round. It still has poor side grip but being round its more linear in release rather than the square profile that just drops you like a rock with no warning. My point is simply that the radial should work better when things get challenging. I've used all of these tires for years now but don't want to drop $$ on a bias ply tire to find out what I suspect. The Mich is too soft and cuts easy but you can climb a wall before it dies, IRC a bit better (still cuts), Dunlop pretty good, Mitas the best. Funny the trials guys hate the Mitas because its way stiff on a trials bike but great on an enduro bike, and probably don't run the Pirelli either. What really tests the tire is wet rocks, ledges, and logs on an uphill climb where momentum is already gone and you have to rely on traction. Hey I'm willing to try it on someone elses bike and if its as good as a radial I'll stand corrected!

 

[Cruiser]

Glen, the guys up here all use the mt43,, seems to flex well on the heavier bikes.. the 4 strokers do better with them then the 2 strokes.. I think I have to re-train myself for corners to run a trials tire.. I do want to try one.. I think I'm going to get an extra back wheel to use..

 

[iancp5]

iancp5,

Why bother? From what I hear in the US like Ed mentioned it sucks compared to a radial like the Mitas or Dunlop. What makes trials tires work is an adhesive compound and a flexible carcas to maximize contact patch. It sounds like with the MT43 you get the disadvantages without the advantages, thats why I say why bother. Have you run the Mitas in comparison? Its a radial but has much stiffer sidewalls than the others, and a round profile. Also DOT rated here in the US. I beat the hell out of several and they never failed in any way. I go through one a season, the one on my bike now is down to less than 6mm thread and I can still climb stuff I shouldnt be able to.

I've used the soft proper trials tyres such as Mich X11 and an IRC. They give amazing grip on rock, roots and such like. But the sidewalls rip easily and at the low pressures needed to provide that grip they have very little straight line stability. The MT43 provides better grip on rock and roots than a knobblie but still has stability and you can confidently ride flat out straights without the tail wagging all over the place. They also have a bit better resistance to ripping the sidewalls.

But ..... there is no perfect tyre that does everything well. The MT43 provides a good compromise as many have clearly found. I find Michelin comp 3 & 4 the best tyres for me but they don't work as well as an MT43 over rocks and roots let alone a pro trials tyre but all round work best for me as I also need to do flat turns and boggy mud. They forgive me more if I'm clumsy with the throttle in slippery conditions too. Plus, I run Mousses which would defeat the point of a soft radial trials tyre. And finally a lot of my events are in working forestry and there are a lot of hidden small stumps that get wacked at high speed sometimes.

Some events in the UK specify a trials tyre only on the rear and having tried many types the MT43 turned out the best all round compromise - for me anyway. Your mileage may vary as they say.

 

[GMP]

Ian all I can say is try the Mitas ET-01 if you have not done so, its not like the Mich or IRC at all and you might like the profile better. If it was a soft gumball it would not get a DOT rating here. I've had it WFO on dirt/gravel/blacktop roads and it goes straight, and I agree the Mich/IRC are spooky. If I can get a season out of one without destroying it where I ride its a good tire. Here the MT-43 is about $8 cheaper than the Dunlop 803 and $22 cheaper than the Mitas, but Mitas is free shipping so actually its much closer.

Steve said it works better on the 4strokes and I can imagine why, same reason the IRC works great on my wife's Pampera and better on the XC125 than our 250s. Perhaps its not so much which is absolurtely better, but which is better for the application/bike. We need a trials tire shootout!

 

[iancp5]

I'm pretty sure I've used an ET-01, it was a Mitas trials and it wasn't a full on competition trials. It didn't work for me. It was the stiffest sidewall I'd ever come across. I ended up with 1 psi trying to get it to hook up although I didn't realise it until later because the sidewall was so stiff. That's my experience anyway. Nothing against trials tyres they often work very well but I found the competition ones gripped like glue but were scary at speed. The MT43 was ok all round. But for what I ride with special tests using lots of flat turns and a fair bit of boggy mud, no rock usually, an FIM enduro tyre works best, particularly Michelin. I lose a lot of time on special tests using a trials tyre.

 

[2whlrcr]

I give a thumbs up for the MT43 also. I race enduros and HS in the A class and like this tire for dry and damp conditions. If it's a real mud run the S12 is my choice.

I run Dunlop 803's on my trials bike and have used them on my enduro bikes too. I think the Dunlop is a little stickier, but it does flex more and doesn't hold up to sustain speeds as well. When I'm ambitious, I'll mount a new Dunlop to my trials bike and put the used one on my enduro bike and run it until the knobs are ripping off.

I think that's another plus of the trials tire over a knobby. Most knobbys seem to lose their performance, once the knobs start to wear. I don't notice the difference so much on a trials tire, until the knobs start ripping off.