Goldentyre GT216AA 100/90 "fatty" video review: https://youtu.be/fIxfprRkNWM
A year ago I'd used the standard GT216AA front on the old KTM 250EXC with great results, and once the stock front tyre on the Beta RR300 got a bit tired I took a punt on trying the Goldentyre "fatty".
It's higher and wider, something that apparently is working well on the KTMs with their twitchy front ends, but of course the RR300 is fine at the front end already so wasn't sure if this wider tyre would slow down the steering too much.
First impressions? It didn't affect the steering adversely at all. If anything the Beta simply felt more planted and even more stable in a straight line at speed. At low speed, it was the same. It doesn't seem to need any extra effort to steer, but that big footprint makes for great stability and the Beta is even easier to balance at a stand still if needed.
The traction is brilliant... the stock Goldentyre front on the old Kato stuck like velcro, and this is just more of the same. The fat tyre has a good stiff
sidewall so this tyre can be easily run at zero PSI with the TUlbiss system, or up to 4psi for hitting hard edges at speed if needed.
While the high profile of the fatty looks a bit weird on the bike, it's great for soaking up those hard hits too - it does feel as though you've got an extra inch of front fork travel and a bit of extra plushness over rocky terrain or landing from jumps.
Traction was great in all terrains... mud, dirt, wet rocks, off camber, loose rocks, downhills, grass. It opens up new possibilities for diving into corners under brakes, the front tyre flattens out and grips like mad and haven't really found the new braking limit as yet. Riding in soft sand was brilliant - it just stays on top of the sand at ridiculously slow speeds. A big thumbs up in all respects.
The down side? If you are obsessed about weight, it is a tad heavier than a standard tyre, although if you have a twitchy front end that extra rolling mass will be a plus.
I suspect on any bikes where the steering is already close to being a bit slow, this tyre could make the bike less inclined to drop into corners. I can't find any reports on this, but logic would suggest this may be the case for some heavier four stroke dirt bikes. I don't know how it would work on the Beta four strokes, for example.
If you do a lot of sand riding, as mentioned it's brilliant at riding over the top instead of digging in. However, this may mean it's less likely to carve in if you do a lot of aggressive cornering in soft sand. Again I can't confirm this as I don't ride like that, but it could be an issue.
The extra grip is great, and it takes a fair bit of testing to find the new boundaries of how far you can push cornering and braking - a possible downside of the extra traction is the tyre seems to let go faster when it does... not in an arse puckering way but a bit less warning than the average tyre.
Finally the cost - the Goldentyre costs more than some of the very common brands so the budget conscious will want to weigh that up. But if this has the same wear characteristics of my original GT216AA, I figure this tyre lasts so long then it probably won't be more expensive in the long run.