Cross Ply Tyres

I wanted to go to rag tyres too , for the same reasons , but everyone told me that they were extremally difficult to get off anything but split rims when a repair was needed . Bummer .
Willie .

hi
I think you hve been given a bum steer about crosplys tyres
there is available raidial light truck heavy truck tyres with = to 12 or 14 ply rating
i have done aprox 100.000 ks on 4wd tracks and i have never had a stake in my tyres
i have done the simpson out back NSW , SA ,QLD and VIC STURTS STONEY DESERT

BUT the more ply rating you have the stiffer the tyre becumes and the harder the ride and you will find that a stiff wall does not go aroud the rock it goes over the rock and gives a stiffer ride
FOR your first set of off road tyres try B F GOODRICH all terain ko/al this should give you about 50000 ks now dont air down to much i see on this forum people air down at every opertunity except for beach sand i do not air down my tyre pressure on my truch every where i go is on the manufacture tyre pressure sticker
Snailbait

Cross-ply's on splits are the only way to go for true OFF road in Goldfields WA.

People tend to confuse track work with actual off-road travel. (it used to be called 'bush-bashing' but we are not allowed to mention that term these days)

The less agressive the better. Grip has very little to do with it, staying inflated and keeping sidewalls intact is all that matters. The chunkier the tread, the more 'feed in' you give the stakes into the carcass.

Davoe from Widgemooltha is the man to talk to. My knowledge is ten years out of date now (exploration) but he is still currently working in the field. The Indian ones seem to be the go.

MTR's, BFG's, Coopers etc not worth a pinch of poo off road from what I've seen and heard. Fine for tracks though.

Dunno about suppiers in Perth but I will be running MRF 12 ply cross plies on Nissan 750x16 splits, this year for my travels which will include four OFFROAD(do not get confused with bush tracks) adventures. I am leading all the trips so hopefully those coming behind me will not suffer any sidewall damage to their tyres.

I run Cooper STT's now but they can have a rest in the shed while I am away.

Just make sure that the supplier uses a top brand of tube if going split rims ( Michelin is probably the best)
Try Marathon Tyres in Kewdale. They supply a lot to the mining industry & may be able to suggest what to use
Was a brand called Rhoden available a few years ago, don,t know if still around now , but they were bullet proof off road.

For starters i wouldnt run them on a 7 inch rim. You dont say what type of vehicles but either the 5.5 or 6 inch split rim is ideal.
We had good runs out od dunlup dr2 12 ply tyres but they are fairly expensive and can be hard to get. I was running MRF super traction tyres which were 12 ply 6 in the tread and 4 in the sidewall. I am still considering getting another set but probably will get the super lug next time as they are a 16 ply
Costs for them are around 140dollars for 12 ply Triangle tyres
$160 for 12 ply MRF Super traction
and $200 for MRF Super Lug 16 ply
These prices are country prices from Beurapairs and include tube, rustband fitting the lot.
If as your Moniker suggests you drive a Prado In all honesty i wouldnt be doing much off track work that would warrant crossplys as your CV boots wont last long and they are a bit litely constucted underneath for off track work. i am also unsure if you can get splitties to fit and I certainly would not run them on a one peice

Thanks for the info guys. Much appreciated.

Prado 4x4,

You will probably be looking for a 7.50 x 16 size tyre of which there are some available but they are only suitable for up to about 6" wide wheels.
Most are also only speed rated to 120 km/h, so high speed highway cruising is not what their good at.

You could look for Bridgestone Jeep Service or Goodyear custom extragrip, hi-miler or maybe simex mp trekker. Toyo also do some. Michelin have some radials such as xzy which is 14 ply rated.

I currently use 7.50x16 firestone super all tractions (no longer available and too aggressive for desert use) on one piece 6" rims and have no problems repairing puntures but these are only 8 ply rated not the 12/14 ply you seem to be looking for. All of my puntures have been caused by grit wearing a hole in the inner tube.

HTH

John D