Multi New Tires. "Journey", "Trilobite", and "Ocelot" P350.

[DG Rider]

Got some ChapMoto Ocelot P350 in 26x10x12 a few days ago. This is the bighorn clone sold under many names (ie-journey p350, etc). They cost $304 shipped to my door. After finishing up well after dark, I'll give you the rundown...

Pre tires specs, w/OEM at 5psi. Tires have about 1/4-1/3 tread left. All are approximate...

GC: 9" to the bottom of the receiver, lowest preload. 10 1/4" at the bottom of the a arm tabs in front.

Track: F 50 1/2", R 49 3/8" (I have OEM rear tires/wheels all the way around)

Oem tires w/0nly weight of tire sitting on floor at this wear: 23 1/4"

I had heard that these tires run small, but that isn't really the case...depending on how you measure.
At the max load rating, 7psi, w/ only the weight of the tire resting on the floor, they were a full on 26 1/2" tall.
At 5psi...closer to where I will run them, they were 26". With the weight of the machine at 5 psi, they are closer to 25".

Post tire measurements:
GC: Rear at the receiver, 10 5/8", with similar gains up front.

During the tire install, I added 1" front, 1.5" rear wheel spacers.
Measuring track proved to be futile, but I got enough of a glimpse to confirm that adding 2 and 3" of spacers increased both ends by that amount (DUH!). I'm right around 52 1/2" ish front and rear.

So, went up 1.5", and went out 2.5". A nice balance, I think.

Preliminary ride in the yard: hurt my back a bit installing, so everything seems worse...but in reality, it does seem as though the ride has taken a good step in the right direction. And my old tires were usually run a 4.5 psi cold, so these new ones could probably go a pound or two lower, which will make a big difference...but I'll wait for actual trail riding before I make that call.
Can't say at this point that I notice the spacers up front in the steering at all...BUT, my yard isn't THAT rough.

Will definitely have to adjust my shifting for the slightly higher gearing. No biggie.

Getting done after dark means no real good pics, but I'll give you what I have for now.
Thing almost looks...mean!

 

[RB3offroad]

im looking at tires myself. Not sure what direction IM going

 

[bigr244]

Nice they look like my SunF 2.0 knockoffs.

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[DG Rider]

I've run original BH's (not 2.0's) myself, and they are probably the best tire I've ever run. But...IMO, their popularity went to their head, and the prices rose to the point where it's hard to justify. Kinda like ATV/UTV tires in general.

I can have 1 BHO, or 2 of these, for the same money. These might be crappy tires, but I suspect they will not be twice as crappy as BH's.

 

[Backwoods]

I've run original BH's (not 2.0's) myself, and they are probably the best tire I've ever run. But...IMO, their popularity went to their head, and the prices rose to the point where it's hard to justify. Kinda like ATV/UTV tires in general.

I can have 1 BHO, or 2 of these, for the same money. These might be crappy tires, but I suspect they will not be twice as crappy as BH's.

They are probably not crappy , just not paying for the name. They probably make their money by selling lots of them plus it doesn't cost Cheng shin tire A.K.A. Maxxis any more to make them than who ever makes those. One of the best atv tires I ever bought was off brand.

 

[DG Rider]

They are probably not crappy , just not paying for the name. They probably make their money by selling lots of them plus it doesn't cost Cheng shin tire A.K.A. Maxxis any more to make them than who ever makes those. One of the best atv tires I ever bought was off brand.

I'm sure they'll be fine. They aren't radials like OGBH's, so that's one reason they are supposedly cheaper (though they are available in a radial version).

I had forgotten about Cheng Shin until someone mentioned it a few weeks back. Back in the day, they were...well, inexpensive tires. And I remember when they launched the Maxxis line... wondering if they could shed that image. I'd say they succeeded; Maxxis is a top level brand in a number of segments. A far cry from Wooly boogers.

 

[bigr244]

I've had them on my King Quad 750 since 2015 and they still look great.

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[NitroxDiver]

I have a set of the big horn knock offs. About 1100 miles with lots of hard top and they are wearing fine. Also no punctures. I paid $220 shipped. Good investment in my opinion.

 

[500oneer]

I just bought 4 26x9x12 bighorn2 6ply for the p500. I have a set of bighorn2s takeoffs from a Yamaha that are 2ply and am saving them for the foreman. My roctanes lasted 6,000 miles but the cracks in the sidewalls started to leak too much. The tire on the left is a good bighorn2 6ply with 2,000 miles. The middle is a 2ply bighorn2 26x8x12 and on the right is my new bighorn2 6ply. $500 with tax but I didn’t want to risk buying tires that have a stiff compound like the roctanes or wear like crazy. The ride is better now.

 

[DG Rider]

Better pics...and I gotta say again, these tires really transform the looks of the 500 from a fisher price power wheels looking thing to something that almost looks...angry. Yellowjacket?

 

[DG Rider]

View attachment 137397 I just bought 4 26x9x12 bighorn2 6ply for the p500. I have a set of bighorn2s takeoffs from a Yamaha that are 2ply and am saving them for the foreman. My roctanes lasted 6,000 miles but the cracks in the sidewalls started to leak too much. The tire on the left is a good bighorn2 6ply with 2,000 miles. The middle is a 2ply bighorn2 26x8x12 and on the right is my new bighorn2 6ply. $500 with tax but I didn’t want to risk buying tires that have a stiff compound like the roctanes or wear like crazy. The ride is better now.

Glad (for lack of a better way to put it) that I'm not the only one to have issues with Roctanes...

 

[500oneer]

Glad (for lack of a better way to put it) that I'm not the only one to have issues with Roctanes...

3 of my roctanes lasted 6,000 miles which is a lot longer than stockers would of lasted. 1 tire lasted about 3,000 miles. They all had sidewall cracks at 3,000 miles.

 

[DG Rider]

View attachment 137537
3 of my roctanes lasted 6,000 miles which is a lot longer than stockers would of lasted. 1 tire lasted about 3,000 miles. They all had sidewall cracks at 3,000 miles.

For sure, the tires were going to wear well...but I think around 1800 is the longest I got out of one of them before it became one big ball of plugs.
One front went flat after the 1st ride. The cords were so close to the tread surface, it stared leaking air through them. I tried two more fronts trying to get one that was somewhat round before I gave up. STI and Rocky mountain ATV rear super cool trying to fix the out of round tires and the flat one, but there were obvious quality control issues with these tires even before the cracks in the sidewall started.

I'm out putting miles on my new ones as we speak and thus far I'm very pleased with their performance.

 

[DG Rider]

View attachment 137537
3 of my roctanes lasted 6,000 miles which is a lot longer than stockers would of lasted. 1 tire lasted about 3,000 miles. They all had sidewall cracks at 3,000 miles.

s***!
I didn't see that pic in my first response...and I thought mine were bad.
It's interesting, though because that doesn't look like a low pressure flex crack. It has been theorized by some that not running enough pressure caused my issues. An interesting theory on low pressure tires.
I ran "low pressure" in the stockers, Roctanes, Black Diamonds, Ripsaws, and Big Horns. Of those, the Roctanes and Ripsaws (another tire with what seems like very hard runner compound) gave issue, though they were bought used, and I can't vouch for how they were stored or used.

 

[DG Rider]

Impressions on the new tires:

Handling: I don't ride very fast at all, so ultimate handling isn't high on my list, but i do have some observations that can be fully explained by the fact these new tires have deep tread, and the old ones didn't. Taller sidewall, and tires that seem very flexible don't help either. The steering is a bit less precise. And it pushes a bit more in turns due to the rear tires gripping and resisting turning. I noted similar results on my 700 when installing BH's on my 700. I honestly think you'd get this with any agressive tire when replacing old, worn out ones.

One note is the 1" wheel spacers on the front: After some discussions on another thread, i was getting concerned about kickback through the steering from the offset, but my concern was unfounded. I'd never know they were there if i hadn't installed them. My theory is the increased diameter of the larger tires and their tendency to roll over obstacles with less feedback offsets the...um, offset of the spacers. Or to put it another way, if you drove it back to back with the stock tires, you might notice them, but not here.

Traction: What can you say here? They go. This tread pattern is well proven for desert terrain, and is a copy of one of the best all-around tires in biz. I climbed a couple of rock steps in 2wd and they did so without drama...or slip, for that matter. Larger ledges would produces that hound-dog like uurrp uurrp noise. IMO, traction is a tough thing to judge without testing tires back-to-back unless there are glaring deficiencies, and there won't be any here.

Construction: These tires are said to be 6 ply, but i think most of us have figured out that ply ratings are to be taken with a grain of salt. They seem nice and pliable, with good flex.

The build quality seems good. Not in the league of genuine BH's, but better than some of the cheap stuff i've seen over the years. They weren't flat after the 1st ride *cough-Roctanes-cough* , so i was pretty psyched about that. No off-moulded knobs, or anything like that. No wobbling at the speeds the 500 of is capable of either.

Ride: This is an area i had high hopes for. Combined with the spacers, I had secretly hoped for some sort of magic wand that turned the 500 into a smooth riding Cadillac, but it didn't happen, as you'd expect.

So, do they improve the ride? Yes...absolutely. And there may be more to come as i experiment with air and rear preloads. As it is, imagine riding your favorite, slightly rocky trail. Now imagine riding that same trail with snow on it, and thats kinda what you get. They take the edge off the harsh hits and trail chop, while the spacers effectively reduce the shocks' spring rate with more leverage.

That second point is something i need to experiment with more. After removing my swaybar about 2 rides into my 500 ownership, i set the rear preload at #2 to help offset any sway while i got used to it, and because i'm a lard ass at 275 pounds, so i figured it needed it. A few months back, i finally set it down to softest, and immediately wished i had done it long ago...noticeably improved ride, BUT...
With the spacers, it may be too soft. I jacked up the machine to check bearings and such just after installing all this, and noticed that 2-3" of travel are being used just under the weight of the vehicle without me in it. I tried both 1 and 2, but honestly couldn't tell much difference by the time i was able to change both, so i need to revisit this under controlled conditions where i can go back and forth over the same obstacles back-to-back.

I somewhat sabotaged the 1st ride impressions by taking the Coke ovens trail from the north end of box canyon. This trail, as i've mentioned before, brings out the absolute worst in the 500's ride. It is rocky...which isn't a big deal, but several sections of the trail are bare rock layer pockmarked from erosion and heavy travel. Throw in several rock ledges, and you have a pitching and rocking machine for a few miles...not ideal for a short, narrow SxS. So bad, that despite its huge scenic and historical value, i had only run it once in the 500. Yesterday was the 2nd time, and while its still a pounding ride in the 500, the level is reduced enough that i might do it with some regularity now.

Overall, if they prove to be durable, i think these will serve well. And honestly, the 500 looks sooooooo much better with these tires on it...
Honestly...rather than light bars, etc, you might want to make bigger/better tires one of the 1st mods you do on the 500. It really makes for a much nicer machine.

 

[mjager]

Better pics...and I gotta say again, these tires really transform the looks of the 500 from a fisher price power wheels looking thing to something that almost looks...angry. Yellowjacket?

Couldn't agree more

 

[500oneer]

s***!
I didn't see that pic in my first response...and I thought mine were bad.
It's interesting, though because that doesn't look like a low pressure flex crack. It has been theorized by some that not running enough pressure caused my issues. An interesting theory on low pressure tires.
I ran "low pressure" in the stockers, Roctanes, Black Diamonds, Ripsaws, and Big Horns. Of those, the Roctanes and Ripsaws (another tire with what seems like very hard runner compound) gave issue, though they were bought used, and I can't vouch for how they were stored or used.

I always ran about 20 psi in the roctanes because it was harder to steer and extra drag on the machine was terrible at low psi. I’m running 10 in the bighorns and it’s perfect.

 

[DG Rider]

A little update here...

I wish I had noted how many miles where on the machine when I installed these...just for the record. I now have about 2970 or so, and I would guess they have about 400 miles.
I continue to like them. They do flatspot a bit from sitting, which is pretty normal.

I've also gone down to 4.5 psi...and the ride is about as good as you could ever expect on a 500, and a nice improvement over stock.

I will say that these tires seem to be of a softer rubber, which makes them sticky and flexible, but will be interesting to see how they wear (they seem to be wearing fine). They also leave black rubber prints in my building when sitting.

All in all, I'm happy with them thus far, and would buy them again.

 

[MB_Rider]

Does anybody know what the widest and tallest tires someone can put on their p500 without spacers, lift kits or aftermarket rims? This question has probably been asked a million times before but I will be picking up my 2020 p500 from the dealer on Monday and I have a list of things I want to do to it, and bigger tires is one of them.

 

[JCart]

Does anybody know what the widest and tallest tires someone can put on their p500 without spacers, lift kits or aftermarket rims? This question has probably been asked a million times before but I will be picking up my 2020 p500 from the dealer on Monday and I have a list of things I want to do to it, and bigger tires is one of them.

Congrats on the new rig!
On my 2015 27x11x12 on 5-2 off set rims, have these on front and rear. 26” tires would be excellent too. If you are gonna change tires strongly recommend radials. Currently running Kenda Bear Claw HTRs in noted size, excellent tire for all round mud, snow traction. Ride is noticeably superior to bias ply tires, fact is Id not run a UTV/ATV without radials. Also can’t say enough about Elka Stage 3 shocks... these two mods will change your machine more than any other mod. If the plan is to keep it long term recommend doing these two mods as soon as you can afford.
Cheers,
j