Pitbull Rockers……….

After putting a couple hundred miles on the GBC Dirt Commanders I was really starting to miss the ride comfort and handling of a radial tire. So, I decided it was time to try out a set of the Pitbull Rockers and find out for myself just what all of the hubbub is about. After getting them mounted up and installed on my Rincon I thought to myself…..”even if these tires suck….they look really cool!” As I expected the tires did not suck. I have only put 100 miles on them so far, so I don’t have a lot of experience on them and have not ridden on a tremendous amount of different terrain. However, I will share with you what my thoughts and concerns are for the first 100 miles…
Details….Front Tires are 25.5x8-12 8Ply Pitbull Rockers mounted on 12x7 (4+3) Vision 161 Bruisers and the Rears are 25.5x10-12 mounted on 12x8 (4+4) Bruisers….I ran 5psi in all 4 tires.

Saturday’s “adventure” took us through a lot of hard pack, tons of volcanic rock and some asphalt. The tires did extremely well in the hardpack. The ride was nice and smooth, traction was excellent and steering response was very predictable. I am always a bit skeptical and amazed at the same time when riding in volcanic rock. Some of this stuff can be razor sharp and wreak havoc on tires..not to mention it shakes and beats the heck out of you. The Rockers came through virtually unscathed….but more important to me is the fact that they are very absorbent. They actually helped dampen the ride and make things much more comfortable (in comparison to the 8ply Dirt Commanders). As far as the asphalt goes, I was very curious as to how a tire with a tread design this aggressive would do on the streets. Iwas VERY surprised!! A few of the guys asked me “Are they loud?”…my honest answer is “I don’t know?”..I have a Big Gun exhaust , so between that and my helmet…I didn’t hear a thing. The only thing that I did notice on the asphalt was a little “tread squirm”. But I think this will diminish as the tread wears down a little bit,,,The tread lugs on these monsters start out right at 1” deep!! I’m actually quite excited to find out how these things perform in some good rock crawling situations and also in some mud, sand and water…..I’m sure they will do well in all of the above.
One big drawback to the Pitbull tires is the fact that they are made in the USA. Yep, you read that right…being made in the USA is a bad thing. Wanna know why? People don’t want to spend the money on them, that’s why. I hear all the time…”Why can’t we get anything made in the good ol’ US of A anymore?” Well, because it’s too damned expensive. I’m not saying it’s not worth every penny….but people don’t want to spend the money. These things are about $20-25 bucks apiece more than a Bighorn….Are you willing to spend the extra? I admire Pitbull for having the guts and determination to have their product built here in the United States….I hope it works for them!!

In summary, I think these tires are going to do well in all types of terrain. I have no idea how long they are going to last or how many miles you are going to get on them. In fact, I can almost assure you that I will never wear a set out…I switch tires too often (anyone interested in a set of Dirt Commanders). I will keep this “review” up to date as I put more rides and more miles on this set of tires. So far, I am very pleased with the ride and handling of these tires.


PS – You gotta see the detail that is incorporated into the sidewalls of these tires. They have an American flag that reads “Honor, Guts, Glory” beneath it. Chain links all around the enormous bead protector that read “Tear it up”….I’ll try and get some good close up pics and post them for ya…Too Cool!!

Here are some pics from the ride...
http://picasaweb.google.com/emehiser/WilliamsAshfork06262010?authkey=Gv1sRgCIyg44aDucTYag#

Here are some pics of the tread and sidewall.....

What is "Fang Technology"?

Provides more "bite"? haha

Greg