[Hawkman]

I had seen talk of these next-generation puncture proof tires, and now they've popped up again during my web surfing. These are made for full size cars but the technology is especially applicable to UTVs since they are meant to handle rougher terrain. These Hankook tires use a rubber framework instead of a air-filled bladder to provide support and shock absorption.

What are the benefits? Using these tires would theoretically give your Brutus a comfier ride because the shock absorption would be spread over the entire network of tiny shock absorbers. The tires are also lighter than traditional tires. And the cherry on top is that the tires are 95% recyclable so they are more environmentally friendly too.

Would you consider getting some of these next-generation Hankook tires for your Brutus? I think they look pretty dope.

 

[charlieP]

How about this.... Polaris is thinking about offering us a new type of plastic tire for its off-road vehicles that doesn't go flat and isn't inflatable.

The tires are made of a specialty plastic that has give when going over sharp or rocky terrain. Polaris acquired the technology in 2012 when they bought a startup called Resilient Technologies. The initial market has been the military, with Michelin already supplying them.

One Polaris executive estimated that eventually more than half of Polaris' consumer off-road vehicle customers could opt for the new tires, according to a story in the Star Tribune.

Airless tires are relatively quiet when running on the flat because there's no air chamber for road-noise to reverberate.

Check out the video..

 

[sosa]

this is actually not a bad idea for our UTV's but considering how much smaller the wheels need to be, unfortunately we wont get as much of a soft ride as people with these on their cars would.

What should we expect cost to be like?

 

[KingB.]

for those your gonna need a more rugged tread design to catch grip once those get wet fuggetaboutit.

Depends on how long they last. I am curious on the price too.

 

[BrutalAffairs]

finally it took them a while. I have been waiting on these suckers for years. I would like to see how much they price them at versus the conventional tire prices. If it make sense then I'll be looking in to getting them for the brutus.

 

[charlieP]

this is actually not a bad idea for our UTV's but considering how much smaller the wheels need to be, unfortunately we wont get as much of a soft ride as people with these on their cars would.

What should we expect cost to be like?

They would be worse on cars. I think the idea because they look like they will be softer on the lawn... Ever driven a SxS with a locked rear diff on your lawn, the minute you turn they chew up the lawn...

Actually, wait, does the Brutus have a locked rear diff?

 

[bruteforce]

Where would you buy something like this? I don't think they sell this sort of stuff. If you are having issues with your tire puncturing you could look into heavier duty tires or even going as far as to fill your tires in with some sort of filling so it never deflates.

 

[Hawkman]

Where would you buy something like this? I don't think they sell this sort of stuff. If you are having issues with your tire puncturing you could look into heavier duty tires or even going as far as to fill your tires in with some sort of filling so it never deflates.

I think the only thing that you should put in your tires is air.

These tires are not very widely available because they are just coming out now, but in a few years you'll be able to buy them more places. They seem more applicable to UTVs than to cars IMO.

 

[sosa]

Where would you buy something like this? I don't think they sell this sort of stuff. If you are having issues with your tire puncturing you could look into heavier duty tires or even going as far as to fill your tires in with some sort of filling so it never deflates.

the only ideal place the masses would go to are the same dealers that sell them the tires they buy at the moment, for this stuff to be successful it will have to make it's way to those same dealers/retailers.

 

[Hawkman]

Couldn't you just order them online after giving a little phone call to the company to make sure they will work with the Brutus? That was my plan.

 

[charlieP]

Couldn't you just order them online after giving a little phone call to the company to make sure they will work with the Brutus? That was my plan.

The company that makes them is actually owned by Polaris.

From Car and Driver:

So what is Polaris doing in the tire business? Polaris’s defense division recently acquired Resilient Technologies, a Wisconsin-based defense-tech firm that already had been working on airless tires for some time, and believes the time is right to put NPTs into consumers’ hands.

And construction machinery has been making use of airless tires for almost as long as the military has been. I think the next logical step is to vehicles like the Brutus, for farm work or property work and then lastly to the enthusiasts who want them for trail riding and what nots..

 

[bruteforce]

You could really make your own airless tires. Just fill the tire with a hard foam. I've seen it done before.

The airless tires that the heavy machinery market uses are $$$$

 

[hr43]

it would be great if they can use this for our UTV's and ATV's, I want to say automotive is better but when you have a ton of regulations that factor into things legally being on cars, it's just not worth it to start on a consumer level.

 

[bruteforce]

DIY puncture proof tires

 

[sosa]

DIY puncture proof tires
how to make Rhinotire - YouTube

read through the comments on the video and some people report it's hard to get a hold of those tires since they lack distributers. i guess if it was that good a lot of people would already have them

 

[charlieP]

You could really make your own airless tires. Just fill the tire with a hard foam. I've seen it done before.

The airless tires that the heavy machinery market uses are $$$$

because of low turnover and low demand. Watch how fast the $$$$ come down once production of these tires can be ramped up for applications like the Brutus and sport SxS'. Tire turnover will be much greater in a SxS application because of the type of use. A guy bombing his Polaris RZR over rough terrain is likely to need tires alot more than a dozer that crawls around the quarry all day...

Its all about demand and its all about scale...

 

[bruteforce]

Has anyone looked up durability of these new puncture proof tires?

 

[charlieP]

Has anyone looked up durability of these new puncture proof tires?

the military uses them, so theres that...

they go out on steady patrols on ATVs and Humvees. The Military has said the airless tires can withstand being punctured by a .50 caliber bullet or rail spikes while continuing to log over 1,000 miles. Polaris maintains that the tire can sustain up to 30 percent damage to the web structure and still function seamlessly...

Also read Polaris could have their version ready for mass market by next year for $500/tire. If its good enough for the US military its good enough for my Brutus.

 

[bruteforce]

$500 a tire

No thank you

You can have it

I have a feeling the durability of the tires in terms of lifespan will be 1/3 of a normal rubber tire.

If your tires are constantly being punctured this is for you

But I've only had a puncture once and I asked for it riding in the rubble of an industrial area that was filled with metal bits and nails.

For me paying like 8x the price for 1/3 the durability makes no sense to me.

I would imagine comfort would change as well for the better or worse.

 

[polarisfan]

the military uses them, so theres that...

they go out on steady patrols on ATVs and Humvees. The Military has said the airless tires can withstand being punctured by a .50 caliber bullet or rail spikes while continuing to log over 1,000 miles. Polaris maintains that the tire can sustain up to 30 percent damage to the web structure and still function seamlessly...

Also read Polaris could have their version ready for mass market by next year for $500/tire. If its good enough for the US military its good enough for my Brutus.

This is golden, companies that will eventually sell these can sell a ton by showing how worthy it is since the army uses them.
Going off of what I know already and seeing things like this, it should be only a matter of time till we can get our hands on them.

But will any of you guys buy them? We have been fine with traditional tires for along time, some people might not see the need to "upgrade"