Dual sport tire suggestions for 2010 te310???

Can you suggest a tire that will excell off road without being too crazy on road? Thanks.

The TE310 doesn't like being on the road. I run Motoz enduro IT on mine but my road sections don't exceed 4 miles. The TE310 isn't a dual sport bike IMO. It is a racing Enduro bike with a plate.

I agree with you Reveille. I just do a little riding on-road. If I was doing a lot of on-road riding I would have to get rid of the 13/50 gearing. But right now I think I will stick with stock gearing at least until next year. Right now though, I only have 117 miles on the bike, I can already tell that these stock tires do not offer a lot of bite, so upgrading to a tire with more bite will be a good investment.

Are you in the states? I have never seen the Motoz tires.

I get my Motoz tires from "Phat Performance parts". I run the "Tractionator" and it is an awesome tire, very tough. 140/80/18 rears are about $100.00 and worth every penny.

Yes I am in Illinois. I ordered my Motoz from 7602 racing. I run a motoz tractionator enduro IT front and a 110/100 Dunlop MX51 rear. The 310 doesn't need a wide rear since power isn't huge. I like to roost so I go 110 rear. It also turns much faster.

I've never seen a tire roost as straight and as high as the "Tractionator" as it pulls to the middle with the big center lugs. if you're directly behind its a gravel fest time for the flackvest for sure. My buddy Cody hates it, Logs, branches, cactus, dead animals, everything. About 15 ft' high.

My local shop is recommending the Kenda K760 Trakmaster front and rear for my bike. But I didn't want to buy them without checking here first for some opinions.

I am myself currently running a Kenda "Southwick" front tire and its a good tire in my opinion on the surfaces I ride. Its not very far to the trailhead from my house. Its only about 1/4 mile, but its a good front tire so far. I like it. The tires being DOT approved where I live isn't really an issue as I know all the Cops and they are all pretty cool. I also know all the Border Patrol Agents I may run into on the trails and roads as I work for them.
I have run different "Kings tires" that were all DOT approved and always got long service and good wear out of them as well with no chunking. Usually run the "Kings" during the hotter months though.
The "Tractionator" you can actually turn around on the rim and run it backwards on loam, mud and grassy surfaces in the wet and it works very well also. It will then exhaust everything out the sides when its turned around and ran backwards. it's a good way to get the most out of your hard earned Dollars.
I've run the Michelin S12s and worn them completely out in about 3 to 4 rides here. We have a large slag pile here from the Old copper smelter that was closed down years ago and the slag, which is about like lava or glass is commonly crushed and spread out on some of the dirt roads around here and it will destroy the S12s in a matter of hours.. The "kings tires" hold up on this same surface.

I’m currently on GT213 front & GT230 rear, happy with these so far.
Some tires to consider; all are DOT, all are dirt-oriented.

front
GoldenTyre GT230, 80/100-21
GoldenTyre GT213, 80/100-21
GoldenTyre GT216, 80/100-21
Pirelli MT-21, 90/90-21
Pirelli Scorpion Pro FIM, 90/90-21
Pirelli Scorpion XC MH, 80/100-21

Rear
GoldenTyre GT230, 110/100-18
GoldenTyre GT216, 120/80-18
Pirelli MT-21, 120/90-18
Pirelli Scorpion Pro FIM, 120/90-18
Pirelli XC-MH, 120/100-18

I'm about 90% dirt riding here on my 250s and the 760 rear tire worked OK here. Nothing too great, just an all-around good tire and was little longer lasting than the IRCs I usually run... Not sure on the front tire ...

Aside from being "compliant", is there any other "good" reason to run dot tires on your dual-sport if your really looking for the best off-road performance?

I'm running a Pirelli MT-43 trials tire which is DOT approved on the rear and a Scorpion intermediate on the front that is also DOT. I used this combo to do the Colorado 500 on a Husaberg 390 and other than deep mud it exceeded my expectations.
DK

No. Definitely not. Especially in the front. I do not know of a DOT front knobby that is comparably to a good off-road knobby. I know of plenty that are decent (AC10, Enduro Comp), but none that are "good."

Kyle what would you suggest in a NON-dot tire?

Tires are very subjective and it depends on the terrain you're going to ride, but I have had great success (in front) with:

Kenda Washougal
Dunlop MX51
Pirelli XCMS

The best DOT tires I have run are the Michelin AC10, Michelin Enduro Comp, and Pirelli Pro FIM. These are all good tires, just not as good in my opinion as the non-DOTs.

In the rear I am running a XCMS on my 300, and a K760 (DOT) on my 610. I have had very good luck with longevity out of the 760, which is why I have it on the 610.

The Motoz tractionator enduro IT is an amazing front tire AND it is DOT compliant. Just as good if not better than non DOT IMHO.

I've done some looking online, the Michelin ac10's look like a good all around tire for what I do. I'm gonna google the Tractionator and see what I can find out about them.

I rode a dirt bike (DRZ) from Colorado to Oregon last month, 90% off road, and I ran an AC10 front with a K760 rear. Both tires made it the whole way (about 2500 miles), barely.



They are the best DOT front tire I've seen (although the Michelin Enduro Comp is pretty similar). I have run them quite a bit on my 610 and I ride it pretty aggressively off road, I have even raced it some on those tires. However, there is a noticeable increase in grip at the limit with a "race" tire like a MX51 and a Kenda Washougal.

Earlier I said that there were no good DOT front tires, but that was a bit of an exaggeration. I know of a few good tires that are "DOT rated," even though I question the legitimacy of these ratings.

For example, the Kenda Washougal has a DOT stamp on it, and I run that as a front tire on my race bike. I think someone also said that some of the Motoz front tires are also DOT. My buddy loves the Michelin Desert front tire, which has a tread pattern like the AC10 but I think is more aggressive, and it's DOT (it's also $125 a pop, which is insane). The Pirelli Pro FIM is DOT and works really well in soft-mid conditions (but I destroyed one in a day on rock).

At the beginning of the thread, you said that the stock tires didn't offer a lot of bite, and you were looking for something better. What stock tires are on your bike, and what conditions are they not working in? If your bike came with Enduro Comps (my 300 did), you're not going to see an improvement with an AC10...

I replaced my tires with the stock Pirelli pro fim tires. I can't complain about em. I will be going back to a trials tire in the back when my Pirelli wears out. I miss the sticky trials

@Kyle, the Metzler Karoos came stock on my bike, front 90/90-21 & rear 140/
80-18. I only have just over one hundred miles on the bike so far and most of that is road riding. I've noticed that when I stop on dirt, the back tire locks up, it seems those large knobbies just don't bite. My other bike with Pirelli mt320's didn't lock up like that. I plan to ride state trails and fire roads and maybe occasional street riding.