Front Tire

Moto520
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Moto520
Guys......I'm having issues with the knobbies coming of the sides of my Dunlop MX33 and MX53. Can you guys recommend a tire comparable to these? I think it's time to try a different brand and need some real world feedback. What do you all use for intermediate terrain?

Thanks
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Munson'd
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Munson'd 9/27/2021 9:31am
9/27/2021 9:31am
I’ve been running a Kendra Washougal III for the last 10 hours or so and that thing has been in awesome in sand, hardback, grass.
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MX915
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MX915 9/27/2021 9:36am
9/27/2021 9:36am
I recently did a Yamaha demo and various bikes were equipped with MX33, MX53 and AT81F. On sandy terrain with a hard base i really thought the AT81 was the best. I put one on my KTM recently and still feel the same. Had an MX33 on before and wasn't a fan. No durability issues with either though.
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wrc777
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wrc777 9/27/2021 10:57am
9/27/2021 10:57am
I don't think I have heard of anyone ripping side knobs off an MX33 or 53. What air pressure do you run?
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Moto520
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Moto520 9/27/2021 11:23am
9/27/2021 11:23am
wrc777 wrote:
I don't think I have heard of anyone ripping side knobs off an MX33 or 53. What air pressure do you run?
I go 13-14 PSI. The knobs come off at around 15-20 hours. I'm not complaining about the durability though....the knobs can come off on the trailer depending on how and where it gets strapped. I think the knobs come off on the trailer but i'm not 100% sure.
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LungButter
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LungButter 9/27/2021 11:27am
9/27/2021 11:27am
I've been liking the Michelin Starcross Medium. Haven't tried the soft version but lots of people rave about it being a great all around front as well.

In my experience, Dunlops have always ripped off knobs quickly and have shit traction once rounded even a little bit. I'm always blown away when guys like them but I also work in Marketing and understand it's power....
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quadzrulebro 9/27/2021 11:29am
9/27/2021 11:29am Edited Date/Time 9/27/2021 11:30am
I run a Michelin Starcross 5 soft damn near everywhere and I have been very happy with traction and durability. The last Dunlops I had were MX3S, and the side knobs peeled off.
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R66
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R66 9/27/2021 11:40am
9/27/2021 11:40am
I see the knobs rip off the the sides the most when riding a lot of off camber stuff.
Leeham
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Leeham 9/27/2021 12:20pm
9/27/2021 12:20pm
Another vote for Starcross 5s. I really like the mediums. My brother ran a rear for over 30 hours and only at the very end complained about the grip/drive. He wore off 5mm of rubber on the center knobs. Excellent tires. I hate Dunlops. I fry 33s in 3 hours, and the 53s are mediocre from the start. Not too mention it takes me less than 10 minutes to swap an old starcross off the rim and put a new one on.
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TSCHAM101
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TSCHAM101 9/27/2021 12:55pm
9/27/2021 12:55pm
you are going to sacrifice performance.. but if you are worried about chunking at 15-20 hours, you arent after performance..

im running pirelli's and they chunk about 12 hours... at 15 hours i replace rears.. i just threw a dunlop on, so we will see in a few weeks how good it holds up..

im gonna run a set of pirelli's and dunlops back to back on the same day and see which i like better..

Since ive switched this weekend,(not a back to back test, swapped wheels mid track day due to chunking), ive noticed the pirelli likes to powerslide more a little looser feel like the rear end gets a little too light, and the dunlop likes straight lines better, set up, roll through sections 1 and 2 and section 3 of the corner its damn near wide open.. with the pirellis i could do the off camber stuff better though.. that slight powerslide helped me in those areas maintain speed.
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wrc777
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wrc777 9/27/2021 2:05pm
9/27/2021 2:05pm
Knobs come off on the trailer? That is weird. How tight are you strapping it?

15-20 hours is about all a good tire has in it unless you are fast and then it is more like 10 hours. I have noticed Michelin and Pirelli knobs on front tires wear more than Dunlop but the carcass can't take much more than 20 hours anyway. Pirelli are the cheapest high end tire right now maybe try those but run 14-15 psi. Same for Michelin. I prefer those two due to the carcass smoothing things out a little, and I did not like the MX33 front because it pushes on power pretty bad for me.
Madc32
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Madc32 9/27/2021 3:30pm
9/27/2021 3:30pm
Starcross 5 medium for me.
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swordfish
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swordfish 9/27/2021 3:41pm
9/27/2021 3:41pm
LungButter wrote:
I've been liking the Michelin Starcross Medium. Haven't tried the soft version but lots of people rave about it being a great all around front as...
I've been liking the Michelin Starcross Medium. Haven't tried the soft version but lots of people rave about it being a great all around front as well.

In my experience, Dunlops have always ripped off knobs quickly and have shit traction once rounded even a little bit. I'm always blown away when guys like them but I also work in Marketing and understand it's power....
I like the soft because I find it has more traction than the medium and doesn’t wear much quicker. Soft front, medium rear. The Medium enduro front might be an offroad tire but it seems to work on everything including the track and lasts forever.
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LungButter
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LungButter 9/27/2021 4:01pm
9/27/2021 4:01pm
swordfish wrote:
I like the soft because I find it has more traction than the medium and doesn’t wear much quicker. Soft front, medium rear. The Medium enduro...
I like the soft because I find it has more traction than the medium and doesn’t wear much quicker. Soft front, medium rear. The Medium enduro front might be an offroad tire but it seems to work on everything including the track and lasts forever.
That's the next tire I want to try.

It looks just like the tire that both the Dakar and the Extreme Enduro guys run, I'm sure they could have different carcasses for each discipline but if the tread pattern is that versatile it should work great for my part of the country.
Gravel
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Gravel 9/28/2021 8:54pm
9/28/2021 8:54pm
I just took the first couple rides on a 90/90/21 Golden tire GT216, very impressed with its hardpack and sand performance. Haven’t been on intermediate terrain yet though.
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ktmwoods
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ktmwoods 9/28/2021 9:15pm
9/28/2021 9:15pm
Michelin Desert Race. Bombproof, great traction, DOT and will last ~4 or more rear tires before you need to change it.
Langhammx 9/28/2021 9:49pm
9/28/2021 9:49pm
Gravel wrote:
I just took the first couple rides on a 90/90/21 Golden tire GT216, very impressed with its hardpack and sand performance. Haven’t been on intermediate terrain...
I just took the first couple rides on a 90/90/21 Golden tire GT216, very impressed with its hardpack and sand performance. Haven’t been on intermediate terrain yet though.
Been running these OffRoad for several years. Great tire for single track and even faster desert riding, but I wouldn’t run that tire at a track.
Personally, I like the Dunlop MX3S front, but also don’t dislike the MX33. But to be fair, I ride mostly sandy / Loamy tracks, not much hard pack.
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Langhammx 9/28/2021 9:54pm
9/28/2021 9:54pm
ktmwoods wrote:
Michelin Desert Race. Bombproof, great traction, DOT and will last ~4 or more rear tires before you need to change it.
Good tire for Baja, but there’s not a chance in hell I’d run that on my 350 (track bike). That thing is hard as a rock. Lol

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galactic_salmon 9/28/2021 10:11pm
9/28/2021 10:11pm Edited Date/Time 9/28/2021 10:12pm
Pirelli mx32 is the best off the shelf front you can get in my opinion with the starcross 5 soft in second.
I find the Dunlop’s offer not much lean angle grip
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Broseph
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Broseph 9/28/2021 10:13pm
9/28/2021 10:13pm
Gravel wrote:
I just took the first couple rides on a 90/90/21 Golden tire GT216, very impressed with its hardpack and sand performance. Haven’t been on intermediate terrain...
I just took the first couple rides on a 90/90/21 Golden tire GT216, very impressed with its hardpack and sand performance. Haven’t been on intermediate terrain yet though.
I run Goldentyre front and rear specifically because they’re the only tire I’ve ever used that hasn’t chunked knobs. Also they perform really well too.
chump6784
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chump6784 9/28/2021 10:38pm
9/28/2021 10:38pm
I really liked the Maxxis MX ST front in pretty much all conditions from sand to hard pack. The Pirelli MX32 mid soft is also a good tire but run it at higher psi than you would in other tires or it will tear knobs quickly. I didn't put much time on the MX33 that came stock on my YZ450f, I felt it would let go with not much notice so I took it off my bike and put it on the missus 125
Sandusky26
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Sandusky26 9/29/2021 2:19am
9/29/2021 2:19am
galactic_salmon wrote:
Pirelli mx32 is the best off the shelf front you can get in my opinion with the starcross 5 soft in second. I find the Dunlop’s...
Pirelli mx32 is the best off the shelf front you can get in my opinion with the starcross 5 soft in second.
I find the Dunlop’s offer not much lean angle grip
I agree, I love my pirellis.
Muz11
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Muz11 9/29/2021 3:03am
9/29/2021 3:03am
I’ve just gone to a Michelin Soft and was blown away at how much better it was than the Dunlops soft I’ve been running for a long time.
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Moto520
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Moto520 9/29/2021 8:57am
9/29/2021 8:57am
thanks for the feedback guys!
mx317
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mx317 9/29/2021 9:03am
9/29/2021 9:03am
galactic_salmon wrote:
Pirelli mx32 is the best off the shelf front you can get in my opinion with the starcross 5 soft in second. I find the Dunlop’s...
Pirelli mx32 is the best off the shelf front you can get in my opinion with the starcross 5 soft in second.
I find the Dunlop’s offer not much lean angle grip
I really like the Pirelli MX32 mid-hard in most conditions. I never really gelled with the mid-soft. With Dunlop, I am currently running the MX3S and it's an ok tire.
TeamGreen
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TeamGreen 9/29/2021 9:06am
9/29/2021 9:06am
galactic_salmon wrote:
Pirelli mx32 is the best off the shelf front you can get in my opinion with the starcross 5 soft in second. I find the Dunlop’s...
Pirelli mx32 is the best off the shelf front you can get in my opinion with the starcross 5 soft in second.
I find the Dunlop’s offer not much lean angle grip
Yup

Best “All Around” tire and they last.
wrc777
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wrc777 9/29/2021 12:30pm
9/29/2021 12:30pm
galactic_salmon wrote:
Pirelli mx32 is the best off the shelf front you can get in my opinion with the starcross 5 soft in second. I find the Dunlop’s...
Pirelli mx32 is the best off the shelf front you can get in my opinion with the starcross 5 soft in second.
I find the Dunlop’s offer not much lean angle grip
mx317 wrote:
I really like the Pirelli MX32 mid-hard in most conditions. I never really gelled with the mid-soft. With Dunlop, I am currently running the MX3S and...
I really like the Pirelli MX32 mid-hard in most conditions. I never really gelled with the mid-soft. With Dunlop, I am currently running the MX3S and it's an ok tire.
Front or rear?
mx317
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mx317 9/29/2021 1:34pm
9/29/2021 1:34pm
wrc777 wrote:
Front or rear?
front
crowe660
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crowe660 9/29/2021 2:12pm
9/29/2021 2:12pm Edited Date/Time 9/29/2021 2:13pm
I have two rides on my MX32 mid softs coming off mx3s’s.

Has anyone had issues with ruts on Pirelli’s. It’s the only thing I’ve changed, and I’ve all of a sudden seem to be struggling with keeping my front tire locked. Everywhere else it’s as good as the Dunlop, but I don’t know if I’ve just been off, or maybe I need to make some adjustments. They just seem to be less forgiving than the Dunlop’s.

The track is very disced and very loamy like redbud National prep.
cwolf96
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cwolf96 9/29/2021 2:19pm
9/29/2021 2:19pm
Moto520 wrote:
Guys......I'm having issues with the knobbies coming of the sides of my Dunlop MX33 and MX53. Can you guys recommend a tire comparable to these? I...
Guys......I'm having issues with the knobbies coming of the sides of my Dunlop MX33 and MX53. Can you guys recommend a tire comparable to these? I think it's time to try a different brand and need some real world feedback. What do you all use for intermediate terrain?

Thanks
@Moto520 you live in Schaumburg? What tracks do you ride at mostly? I live just over the IL border in WI. This summer I got a set of Medium Starcross 5's and was VERY pleased. The rear lasted me about 20-22 hours riding clay tracks in southeastern, WI
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