New Goldentyre GT 369KX "Taddy" Gummy Rear Tire

[Moto7man]

This tire was just released in Europe, I am thinking about buying one for the gasser. and maybe for my RM 250 restoration. Anybody know anything about this tire? From what little I know about Goldentyre, Shinko owned the molds and was building tires for Goldentyre, then Goldentyre lost the access to its compound patent from Gibson Tyres and at the same time Goldentyre and Shinko had a falling out.

Then,Goldentyre developed new tire compounds and started building their tires in Thailand while Shinko, a Japanese company that designs their tires in Japan and manufactures them in South Korea, started selling their 505s, 525s and 216mx 216 Fatty etc.

From the information that I have, it seems the Shinkos really wear out very fast, while the Goldentyres last much longer and even though the Shinkos and Goldentyres look identical, the Goldentyres have a much better compound and much higher quality tire carcass.

Should I pull the trigger on a Goldentyre GT369KX?

https://www.goldentyrewest.com/gt369x-gummy-rear/

 

[RudolfHucker]

Normally, these "gummy" tyres are intended as a one race super sticky items for extreme rocky events. If you are concerned about tyre wear, these aren't for general trail use.

The Goldentyre brand, especially the front GT216 "fatty",are outstanding on medium to hard going and loose rocky surfaces. Transition to mud or grass can be a bit of a surprise! Wear rates are really good despite this.

The GT216 rear is probably the best allround trail tyre I have ever used but the UK distribution is not suficient to get decent unit pricing. They seem to handle such a wide range of surfaces and wear well too.

The Shinko versions are just starting to come into the UK and I haven't used one yet. We will have to see how the build quality and compound holds up against the Goldentyre benchmark.

 

[Moto7man]

Normally, these "gummy" tyres are intended as a one race super sticky items for extreme rocky events. If you are concerned about tyre wear, these aren't for general trail use.

The Goldentyre brand, especially the front GT216 "fatty",are outstanding on medium to hard going and loose rocky surfaces. Transition to mud or grass can be a bit of a surprise! Wear rates are really good despite this.

The GT216 rear is probably the best allround trail tyre I have ever used but the UK distribution is not suficient to get deceng unit pricing. They seem to handle such a wide range of surfaces and wear well too.

The Shinko versions are just starting to come into the UK and I haven't used one yet. We will have to see how the build quality and compound holds up against the Goldentyre benchmark.

I might go with a GT216.Thanks for the information!

 

[RudolfHucker]

Probably the only thing to note about the GT216 tyres is that they are FIM standard so the knobble depth is only 13mm when new. If you are not restricted on depth then this may not appear to be value for money.

In Europe, FIM tyres are street legal and we can plate our bikes easily so it's worth the compromise and tyre performance is great despite that.

 

[SS109]

The 369, I bought the X version when GT said it was the replacement for the GT523KX (my all time favorite rear ever). I can tell you I was so disappointed with it. On steep downhills the rear end would try to come around uncontrollably. That was really scary and dangerous on some of the stuff I ride. Braking performance was weak everywhere. Lastly, when cornering it would step out quickly and had no predictability to it. IMO the knobs are just too wide/blocky and don't dig in to the terrain.

The gummy tires are not a one-and-done tire for every rider. Don't be a tire spinner, and don't go locking up the brake and sliding in to corners, and they will last pretty decent. I got over 550 miles out of my GT523KX gummy tire and IMO it was worth every penny.

I haven't had a problem in the worst mud when running the GT216 fatty. Works as good as any other tire in the mud and maybe a little better. Below is a pic showing me trying to figure out the best way through this nasty mud bog. I'm on the right on my GG. I never got stuck in the multitude of mud holes like this one. Ask AZRickD how bad it was as he was there.

 

[Moto7man]

That?s a lot of mud. I heard the GT523KX was a great tire and that the first GT369 non gummy was a disappointment.

 

[AZRickD]

How bad??

Second-worst ever... to the same place and post-rain race from 2010.

 

[farmerj]

I've been waiting for this tire to come out! I'd say buy one and let us know how it works!

My understanding is that the KX is quite different from the standard 369. I forgot what the "K" stands for or what makes it different - but I've also heard that in the same way the standard 523 is not as good in some applications as the 523KX. Maybe the "standard" series has FIM-spec'd knobs which aren't quite as tall???

Here's a guy who also said the GT523KX was his favorite tire, and liked the GT369KX even more.

http://www.cafehusky.com/threads/shinko-216mx-unabashed-gt216aa-clone.87468/page-5

Moto7man, note that your link is to the 369X not KX.

I liked the GT216X, great in the woods (but in the desert I ripped off knobs in the rocks).

I talked to Goldentyre West a few weeks ago and they said that they might bring the KX in in the spring...it would be worth giving them a call if you're interested in that tire, they are a wealth of information and were great to talk to.

Jeff

 

[Moto7man]

I've been waiting for this tire to come out! I'd say buy one and let us know how it works!

My understanding is that the KX is quite different from the standard 369. I forgot what the "K" stands for or what makes it different - but I've also heard that in the same way the standard 523 is not as good in some applications as the 523KX. Maybe the "standard" series has FIM-spec'd knobs which aren't quite as tall???

Here's a guy who also said the GT523KX was his favorite tire, and liked the GT369KX even more.

http://www.cafehusky.com/threads/shinko-216mx-unabashed-gt216aa-clone.87468/page-5

Moto7man, note that your link is to the 369X not KX.

I liked the GT216X, great in the woods (but in the desert I ripped off knobs in the rocks).

I talked to Goldentyre West a few weeks ago and they said that they might bring the KX in in the spring...it would be worth giving them a call if you're interested in that tire, they are a wealth of information and were great to talk to.

Jeff

Hi,
Actually I had seen your link above and some other links that got me interested in the KX.

 

[SS109]

I was told by GT that the "K" stands for the rocky terrain version. Looking at the pic of the 369KX version, it looks noticeably different from the 369X but yet very similar. Hmm, don't know if it's worth dropping another $140 on a tire I might hate. Plus, I don't see that it's available in the US.

BTW, I corrected my earlier post. I bought the 369X and not the standard.