Mitas Radial Trials Tires

GMP

GMP

Active member
FYI for those who like the Mitas ET-01 radial trials tires. They are hard to find on the east coast as WER is not stocking then at the moment. I found this parts house that claims to have purchased a large stock. Free shipping over $150, so buying two worked out cheaper than from WER in NJ.

This is a great trials tire for a woods bike, as its sidewallls are more durable.

http://www.gnarlyparts.com/index.php?cPath=29_1467
 
GnarlyParts is owned by a guy referred to as "GnarlyParts Dave". Dave rides a gasgas and helped with Steve's (aka speedymaniac) efforts at this years ISDE in Chile.

In appreciation for his support of our gasgas brother - we have added him as a 2008 sponsor of the gasgas riders club forum. This provides him with a free banner ad in the forum.

Note that GnarlyParts has an american site at www.gnarlyparts.com and a canadian site at www.gnarlyparts.ca .

Please join me in welcoming GnarlyParts to the GasGas Riders Club.

Jeff
Webmaster
GasGas Riders Club
 
Thanks for the tip GMP. I want to try a trials tire and after reading so many positive reviews on the Mitas that's what I'm going with.


Skidad in MA
 
Skidad,

Its the bomb in the rocks, as long as you ride in a relatively smooth controlled style. It also takes more of the "sting" out of severe sharp edge hits, no matter how good your rear suspension is set up. I always feel less hammered after a long ride with a trials tire than with a knobby.

I always trail ride with one but I'm going to race with them more this year, after a good finish in a tough rock run last fall. If you go to Hancock for the Quarry Run its an excellent choice.
 
Well, as you know we have a few rocks up here and my style at 50 YO almost requires me to become smoother and more controlled to go faster longer and stay ON the motorcycle. I plan on doing more enduros this year in the super senior class and first up will be the Tri-State which is renound for it's rocks followed up by another rock ride in Freetown MA. Being less hammered is a great bonus as well.

The Hancock ride is awesome. I did it 2 years ago and it was sooooo much fun. The hills just kept coming and I can see how the trials tire would be so good. I'm also installing an auto clutch and a G2 throttle cam system so I'll really have NO excuses this year.


Skidad in MA
 
Just as a data point, I had mixed experience with the Mitas trials tire. First off, let me state that I was new to the bike ('06 EC300) and I'm an OK recreational rider. So I'm sure the issue was mostly with me. With that caveat: The tire work well in roots and loose dirt (which there is on Vedder Mountain in Chilliwack, B.C.). However, in the loose sand/fine rock/pine needles ;) we have up here in the Okanagan, I was always searching for traction. I had a much better time using a classic knobby (S12). Yes, my S12 chunked at first, but it's holding its own. And I've got a Maxxis IT (?) knobby in the basement for this coming season.

As you know, your milage will vary. :)

Dale
 
Yes thats true, I never run them in the sand, although some do at lower pressure and claim they work well. Problem I have is the only time I see sand is at a race, and I don't want to experiment there. I have a spare wheel so a swap is easy. S12 in sand, ET-01 in rocks/mixed technical terrain. I have a rule: if the traction is so good, terrain so smooth, that you can lean the bike over in the turns and push the trials tire's limits, you don't need it. Its in the rock studded single track, boulder fields, shale hills, ledges, or endless wet log hops that its a no brainer. I'll even deal with it in a short sand section if the race is primarily rocks/hills. The Mitas works noticably better than the others in the mud as well. It was outstanding in the mud covered bluestone on parts of the Hancock, NY WEC course.
 
Here's one more review. I'm not the best rider in the world but I have used this tire in all the local MN (non-winter!) conditions including sandy hillclimbs. It doesn't do particularly well in loose sand but is nowhere near as bad as I had expected. For the most part I have had no issues getting used to it. Keep wheelspin in control and it does what you ask of it. If you want to roost and brake slide, this isn't the tire for you. Brake sliding in muddy conditions is where it seems very different from a knobby. Once it starts sliding, it'll keep on sliding like you're on ice. Where it seems to do a lot better than a knobby is in rocks. Overall I'm about as happy with it as I have been with my favorite knobby. Better in some conditions, not as good in some, but a good tradeoff for where I ride. Considering how long it'll last I think it was a great investment and I think it has made me a better rider by forcing me to be smoother.
 
With the Mitas use one good Motion Pro rimlock. 6-8 PSI. As long as you are reasonably smooth and don't spin the tire like a madman it will last all year.
 
How do you keep from getting flats, ever time I try to run less than 10 PSI I get a flat. I put in a new super heavy duty tube before my last ride and cinched the motion pro tire lock as tight as it would go but managed to tear the valve stem completely off the tube at 9 PSI in a Mitas trials tire.
 
Don't use the Bridgestone UHD tubes if thats what you have now. They are too heavy and move in the tire, and will tear the stem, been there done that. I have had no problems with the Moose HD tubes. Mark your rim/tire with a Sharpie and you should see that the tire is not actually moving.

If you do have a tire slippage problem, modify the rimlock by drilling and tapping two M5 holes in each side, and threading in M5 setscrews. Leave about 3mm exposed. This will act as more aggressive teeth that will hold the tire. Also don't mount the tire with excessive lube that will not dry out.
 

Attachments

  • rimlock1.jpg
    rimlock1.jpg
    41.5 KB · Views: 35
gmp is that comment about the b stone uhd tubes the same for regular knobbies or just the mitas?? I have run the uhd's on my drz and 300 exclusively because of all the rocks here at 8 to 12 lbs and never have gotten a flat. They do move as you mentioned but I have never ripped out a valve stem. I always thought it was the tire moving. I'll have to try that marker trick. I actually ran one uhd tube on the rear of my drz for two full seasons. thats one tough azz tube!!! only one rim lock.
 
I've seen them move in knobbies as well, thats why I quit using them. When I had my Cannondale 440 I ran them with S12s, and saw the stem cocked. Because the bike had a lot of power, I thought the tire was slipping. I did the sharpie test and found the tire was not moving. Eric K experienced the same thing. It doesn't matter if the tube is twice as thick, the stem will tear out just as easy from what I've seen. The Moose HD tubes have been adequate, no flats in the rocks all year, at a fast trail pace.
 
GMP said:
Don't use the Bridgestone UHD tubes if thats what you have now. They are too heavy and move in the tire, and will tear the stem, been there done that. I have had no problems with the Moose HD tubes.

I've always have run the Moose HD tubes and never had a problem with the tube moving until I went from the IRC trials tire to the Dunlop 803 trials tire. I was thinking it was because it might be that the Dunlop is a tubeless tire and the IRC that I had was a tube type.
Click to expand...
 
Hey, whatever works for you, all I'm saying is what I've seen on a few bikes/wheels and tearing stems out is enough evidence for me. They also weigh a lot, make for a very heavy wheel.

It could be simple inertia, or because the tube is so thick that it does not stretch, but is pulled and moved in relation to the tire/rim. It always seemed worse when just installed (lubed with tire talc) or after a couple stream crossings where everything got wet and more slippery inside. Maybe its a combo of things, but what I'm sure of is my problem was solved switching to the slightly lighter Moose tubes.

Trials tires have different angle and more pronounced rib patterns on the inside. Possibly this may force the tube to move more in one direction? Don't the Dunlop 803s have larger ribs than most?
 
Personally I really didn't want to use the UHD tube in my new trials tire. I know many swear by them but many also report lots of movement within the tire and valve stem tearing. They also are very heavy. I have no idea what tube is in my current 97 KTM but it's been in there for YEARS with no problems and it's not anything super heavy duty. Can't even remember getting a flat in the last 4 years or so and that's in the NE rocks running anywhere from 10-14lbs. Always with a Pirelli MT16 with lots of powder used when mounting though.

I think I'll use a slightly heavier tube like the Moose and 2 rim locks with my new Mitas tire and see how it goes.


Skidad in MA
 
Mike,

Thats what I use as bead lube.

I think that flat problems in general have a lot to do with one's style as well.
 
Don't the Dunlop 803s have larger ribs than most?[/QUOTE]

They do, compared to the IRC's that I've used.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.

Similar threads

E
Tubliss and Metzeler Unicross – trials like traction with a knobby
Replies
10
Views
11K
stabak
stabak
Back
Top