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To start, this is NOT a dedicated off road tire, but it is on the slightly more agressive side of the lineup of all terrain tires out there. Average retail is about $145, but careful shopping(or a buddy in the right business) can land a steal. I picked this set up for $113 each.
Lacking the heavy shoulder lugs of some others, like the BFG KO2, it does however sport very nice, deep tread blocks. Aesthetically, i prefer the solid whiteletters of its Cooper bretheren, but thats nitpicking. On to the good stuff.
Road Manners
These tires ride and track very nice. They balanced out with minimal weights, and are pleasantly quiet on the highway. Cornering is sure footed and predictable, and they gripped very nicely in the rain.
The Really Good Stuff
Yes, they're A/T tires. Yes, for most people they'll spend 90% of their life on pavement. But... we all know what REALLY matters. How will they do off road?
For this first test run, i left them at street pressure, 32psi all around. Next weekend i will run this trail again, with the tires aired down to 18-20psi.
I was pleasantly surprised. Super slick, slimy nasty mud? Rolled into it in 4L @ about 10mph then stabbed it to half throttle. Zero hesitation, no squirrelling side to side. She just clawed a straight path right through it. Also ran this little pit in 4H, and 2H. The only time she felt iffy was in 2WD, but she still got through pretty easily.
Once out the other side, tromped the gas to give the tires a quick spin, and the treads cleared out the mud very nicely.
Water crossings were no issue, felt solid even over really slick loose rocks under the water. The jagged slate rocks that made up most of the trail were no problem, and a post-run inspection showed no signs of tread chunking(cough cough BFG).
Where this showed it's A/T colors, and being at 32psi didnt help matters any here, was when dealing with vertical obstacles. Primarily when climbing back out of this pit, to get back onto the main trailhead.
She definitely struggled here. Had to get just the right angle, the once she was climbing, hit the gas and launch her over the ledge. Fun, but my spare tire ended up in my back seat, lol.
Overall im pretty impressed.
For the money, these sure are hard to beat. Next weekend ill run it again aired down, and explore this area a bit further. My new bumper is due in this week, so i should have her winch back on by the next run. Peace of mind to push the limits and see just how much these tires can deliver.
I noticed those tires on some previous pics of your rig (bumper pics?) and they looked pretty good. Thanks for the review. The tread pattern reminds me of the Cooper AT3.
I noticed those tires on some previous pics of your rig (bumper pics?) and they looked pretty good. Thanks for the review. The tread pattern reminds me of the Cooper AT3.
Thanks everyone, hope its useful info. Yeah, very similar to the AT3. No coincidence, seeing as Cooper owns Mastercraft.
I ran them on my Diesel, and they didnt last but 20k miles regularly rotated. They seemed to do great in the snow / loose dirt. I might try them on my XJ being 4k lbs lighter, but idk.
i cant get a solid opinion on these a few come into the shop and people utterly hate them..... But i cant get a solid answer since the inside has plenty of tread and the outside looks like bologna.
Well, you have a tire guy here saying it's a mid-range "decent" tire, and another guy that owned them saying he got 20K miles out of them. So, take the price of the tire, weigh it against those statements and those of your customers, and form your opinion of their value.
Well, you have a tire guy here saying it's a mid-range "decent" tire, and another guy that owned them saying he got 20K miles out of them. So, take the price of the tire, weigh it against those statements and those of your customers, and form your opinion of their value.
its not a bad tire. There are plenty of tires that fall in the same price range. But if someone came in sayimg, "im looking for an allterrain tire. Not something too expensive but that performs pretty good." My top recommendation2s are the falken wildpeak at3 and the khumo at51. Same price range as these but just based off my use of them, customer feedback, and kust general digging into them those 2 are probably rhe best of the mid range bunch.
Right. I wasn't trying to imply that you were crapping on it. I would put Hankook Dynapro AT-M in that category as well. It's priced about the same, maybe a bit more than the Falken.
Right. I wasn't trying to imply that you were crapping on it. I would put Hankook Dynapro AT-M in that category as well. It's priced about the same, maybe a bit more than the Falken.
yes that tire is there competing with both those..but when you get into the middle range of all terrains, where most tires sit, theres very little separating the first 5 or so that are actually worth buying over the others.
The whole point of this is to take a look at an oft-overlooked brand. No point in reviewing a tire everybody and their mother is already running.
Also not much point in reviewing a bottom of the barrel garbage tire.
But ive got experience with Mastercraft tires, theyre a sub company of Cooper tires. I was able to swing four new 31" A/Ts mounted and balanced for just under $500. So i figured why not, ill test em out, and share my thoughts.
Are they a magic pill? Lol, no. So far im pretty impressed with their capabilities. BUT... they do have their shortcomings. Im trying these out, but this XJ is not a daily driver. My tire of choice for a DD is the BFG KO series.
So head to head, just from what ive noticed so far.
BFG weighs in at 43lbs, AXT at 40lbs. A three pound difference PER TIRE. Less rotating mass is nice on the street, but BFG gets that weight from thicker sidewalls and beefy shoulder lugs that are nice when hitting ruts, rocks, and broken branches.
AXT has a noticably softer compound. Great for grip on and off road, and reduces tread chunking on sharp rocks. But this is where itll take a big hit with daily drivers. Softer compound=shorter treadlife.
The flipside of this depends on how quickly you pile on miles. This is specific to BFGs, ive never worn out a set. Having seen tread separation on too many sets of BFGs... I replace them at the first sign of dryrot/cracking.
The testing shall continue! And ill keep updating as i go, let you guys know how they fare.
The whole point of this is to take a look at an oft-overlooked brand. No point in reviewing a tire everybody and their mother is already running.
Also not much point in reviewing a bottom of the barrel garbage tire.
But ive got experience with Mastercraft tires, theyre a sub company of Cooper tires. I was able to swing four new 31" A/Ts mounted and balanced for just under $500. So i figured why not, ill test em out, and share my thoughts.
Are they a magic pill? Lol, no. So far im pretty impressed with their capabilities. BUT... they do have their shortcomings. Im trying these out, but this XJ is not a daily driver. My tire of choice for a DD is the BFG KO series.
So head to head, just from what ive noticed so far.
BFG weighs in at 43lbs, AXT at 40lbs. A three pound difference PER TIRE. Less rotating mass is nice on the street, but BFG gets that weight from thicker sidewalls and beefy shoulder lugs that are nice when hitting ruts, rocks, and broken branches.
AXT has a noticably softer compound. Great for grip on and off road, and reduces tread chunking on sharp rocks. But this is where itll take a big hit with daily drivers. Softer compound=shorter treadlife.
The flipside of this depends on how quickly you pile on miles. This is specific to BFGs, ive never worn out a set. Having seen tread separation on too many sets of BFGs... I replace them at the first sign of dryrot/cracking.
The testing shall continue! And ill keep updating as i go, let you guys know how they fare.
cooper makes a whole mess of other brands as well. Theres alot of debate in the industry as to whoch of their off brands is their "next in line" brand meaning that the cooper line is their top line. Their premium tires. Which brand is right below that? Ask around and youll get different answers haha
05-21-2018, 07:45 PM
Budget Tire Review; Mastercraft Courser AXT
