Tyre use in the high country

[kemsafe@bigpond.com]

I notice on many of my trips to the high country that the use of very wide tyres and the damage they can do to many tracks.

Whilst they do give more grip it seems that they also when driven hard tear up tracdks very easily.

I use a reasonabley wide Kuhmo tyre that gives a good ride and on road performance.

If we do not loo after the high country more an more tracks will be closed
Once closed they never ever re-open.
The words tread softly seem to fall on deaf ears.
Reg

[growler2058]

In my humble opinion and from experiences all be it not in the high country an all terrain tyre has much less traction and tend to slip and slap around a lot more than a mud tyre that doesn't spin and dig in unless a hell of a lot of berries are enthusiastically applied. Generally a mud tyre on lowering of pressures will give a larger overall footprint as well also lessening the need for wheelspin. I.ve got a vid in the members section where me with me muddies on slowly traverses a mud hole while me old mate with A/T spins and gets stuck, causing damage. Totally agree with you that as 4wdrs we need to take care and not cause unnecessary damage to our tracks causing us to get locked out

[AB]

I was bought up in the 80's with the old mans lazy Hilux with Pizza cutters.

We did the high country, Wanangatta, Howards High Plains, The Razorback and all of those full on high country areas with just 31 inch pizza's.

We did the Simpson, Fraser Island, Kimberleys, etc etc and made it through like everyone else did.

There's a few tracks near my area I live in that I simply can't go now because of people using 38-40" tyres ripping out deep trenches thathave made it simply impossible to go along now which is a shame.

[Mrowka]

I thought it was supposedly the narrow tires that tore up tracks more than wide tires?

[Bob]

i HAVE DONE QUITE A LOT OF DRIVING IN THE HIGH COUNTRY AND ALL OF MY VEHICLES HAVE HAD WIDE TYRES. I DONT BELIEVE IT IS THE WIDE TYRES THAT DO THE DAMAGE TO THE TRACKS BUT PEOPLE WHO BELIEVE THE ONLY WAY TO GET THROUGH MUD IS TO GUN IT AND SPIN THE WHEELS. I HAVE ALWAYS FOUND THE BEST WAY IS TO GO TO A LOWER GEAR AND DRIVE THROUGH SLOWLY. I DONT HAVE MUD TYRES ON MY PATROL BUT CAN GO MOST PLACES AND IF I DONT BELIEVE I CAN DO IT I DONT

[Spock]

+1 Bob, I've used both types of tyres thick and thin and it makes bugger all difference, as Bob said those that gun the sh!t out of it cut up the tracks more than the type of tyres on the vehicle.

I once watch an idiot gunning it with huge muddies on up a steep pinch he had about 6 goes at it and couldn't make it. I had narrows on and just crawled up the same pinch without the slightest bit of wheel spin. You should have seen the stupid look on his face, he then tried it slowly like I did and got up without a problem...... It wasn't the tyres, it's about how you do it.

Gunning it is what I do if everything else has failed, and even then I have to think is it really worth it.

[Sir Roofy]

X3 common sence prevails, but hey you cant go home with a clean rig after being up there in the high country
well thats what the whipper snipers think