I apologize in advance if this has already been asked/answered. But I'm planning on coming back to Polaris and buying a Sportsman 850 SP Camo with power steering in the somewhat near future... I previously had a 2004 Polaris Sportsman 500, 2004 Polaris Sportsman 700, and a 2008 Polaris Sportsman 500. My last ATV was a 2011 Grizzly 700.
On my Polaris Sportsman 700 I had ITP 589's and loved those (but I don't think they even sell those anymore). I thought the ride was pretty good and they performed well in the muck. For my Grizzly 700 I wanted the best of both worlds. A radial tire that performed well in the muck but rode well on trails while not robbing a lot of power which is really what I'm looking for all over again for the 850 Sportsman. But anyway for my Grizzly 700 I got 27 inch Mudlite XTR's on 14' ITP SS wheels. I really liked that combo and I'm thinking about going back to it.
However, I kinda like the Maxxis Viper tires that come stock in the Sportsman 1000. I like that they are 27inch, radial, and seem to just 'fit' the machine. I'm sure some one here will say just get the 1000 if I end up wanting those tires lol but for now I just want to know for those who have used those tires what they think of them.
To clarify I'm looking for an aggressive tire than can hold its own in the mud but gives the best ride available on trails while still being pretty comfortable and not robbing to much power away from the machine. I'm looking at going with 27 inch tire probably on 14inch weels again for whatever tire I go with. IMO when I bought the 2011 Grizzly the ITP XTR's fit the description I gave above the best. I'm not sure what all has changed since then. Right now I'm looking at/considering:
1.) Mudlite XTR's
2.) Maxxis Vipr Radial
3.) ITP Blackwater EVO's
4.) Bighorn or Bighorn 2.0?
Let me know what you think. It will definitely play a role in what I choose to buy.
On my Polaris Sportsman 700 I had ITP 589's and loved those (but I don't think they even sell those anymore). I thought the ride was pretty good and they performed well in the muck. For my Grizzly 700 I wanted the best of both worlds. A radial tire that performed well in the muck but rode well on trails while not robbing a lot of power which is really what I'm looking for all over again for the 850 Sportsman. But anyway for my Grizzly 700 I got 27 inch Mudlite XTR's on 14' ITP SS wheels. I really liked that combo and I'm thinking about going back to it.
However, I kinda like the Maxxis Viper tires that come stock in the Sportsman 1000. I like that they are 27inch, radial, and seem to just 'fit' the machine. I'm sure some one here will say just get the 1000 if I end up wanting those tires lol but for now I just want to know for those who have used those tires what they think of them.
To clarify I'm looking for an aggressive tire than can hold its own in the mud but gives the best ride available on trails while still being pretty comfortable and not robbing to much power away from the machine. I'm looking at going with 27 inch tire probably on 14inch weels again for whatever tire I go with. IMO when I bought the 2011 Grizzly the ITP XTR's fit the description I gave above the best. I'm not sure what all has changed since then. Right now I'm looking at/considering:
1.) Mudlite XTR's
2.) Maxxis Vipr Radial
3.) ITP Blackwater EVO's
4.) Bighorn or Bighorn 2.0?
Let me know what you think. It will definitely play a role in what I choose to buy.

