Pit Bull PBX A/T Hardcore Alien compound review and video

[new2rocks]

I was at the PitBull Tires Super Series Mega-Cup Intergalactic Nationals of the Universe, aka Recon G6 at Blue Rocks Family Campground in Lenhartsville, PA (thanks for that mouthful, Parker ) last weekend and was fortunate enough to get the opportunity for some extended wheel time with the new Pit Bull PBX A/T Hardcore tires with Alien Puppy Kompound. The tires are still 3-4 weeks away from shipping, so it was quite a treat to get to run them for a full 100-gate stage. Big thanks to Desmond and the folks at Pit Bull for the opportunity.

For starters, hats off in a big way to Put Bull for bringing this new tire to the scale scene. From the basic specs, you can tell that Pit Bull means business:
- 4.05" OD
- 1.25" width
- New Pit Bull foams designed specifically for this tire
- Alien Kompound (their stickiest)
- Ultra scale tread pattern to match the 1:1 PBX A/T Hardcore tire

To put these through their paces, I ran them on my GCM J2 Skeleton with China Jeep body. The basic setup includes GCM's Terramod axles, HH Puller Pro Stubby 3300 with HH BLE ESC on 3S, 90mm RC4WD RRD Emulsions in front, and Dinky RC cantilevers in the rear. I usually run RC4WD 1.9" Kryptons with X2SS tires unweighted on GCM 12-spoke beadlocks. The Kryptons are an excellent C1 tire in a wide range of conditions, and I love their aggressive look. I had already run that setup on 3 stages (250 gates) at that event, so this was the perfect C1 rig to test out the new Pit Bulls. The set I tried was installed on Pit Bull's new glue-on vented wheels with stock foams and 2 oz of lead rope in each front tire.

So how did they do? Extremely well, I must say. Performance was eye-opening, particularly given the narrow width and highly scale tread pattern. Grip was terrific in a wide range of conditions, from wet rocks and leaves to loose dirt on a steep hill climb. The tires had no problem transitioning from mud to slippery rocks without needing spin cycles to clear. Side hill performance was another pleasant surprise for such a skinny tire running stock foams. Even on extreme side hills (one of this rig's strengths), fold over was very manageable and the tires just kept gripping. Overall, I was very impressed. This is definitely a tire that will look great in a show-and-shine and then go out to tear it up in a comp. Bravo, Pit Bull, for a great addition to the scale scene!

The only bummer to the day was having to give them back. But no worries, as I look forward to getting my hands on a set (or 3, lol) once they're released.

Here are a few pix with the new Pit Bulls:








Here's what it looks like with my usual setup for comparison:

[new2rocks]

For YouTube fans, here's a link to a video review and chat with Desmond Mooney of Pit Bull tires:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j3WvfliFMqs

[Davis_Krawling]

Those look really good. Where they broken in at all before the run, or brand new?

[Szczerba]

Those look super good on that Jeep. Awesome little video chat about these! Ready for my set.

[new2rocks]

Originally Posted by Davis_Krawling

Those look really good. Where they broken in at all before the run, or brand new?

Thanks! The set I ran was broken in (came off Desmond's Hi Lift / TLT / Tundra). My experience with other PB tires is they get better the more you run them, esp. after 2-3 solid packs. I would expect the same with these.

Originally Posted by Szczerba

Those look super good on that Jeep. Awesome little video chat about these! Ready for my set.

Thanks! We had a lot of fun out there, and Desmond and the Pit Bull guys are good folks. I agree about the combo with the Jeep body. Seems spot on. I look forward to seeing you put them through their paces.

[Natedog]

New tires look very scale, nice interview and crawl video, thanks! Looking forward to seeing these in person!

[SteveC6R]

Nice video David, looking forward to trying a set of these on my GCM Skeleton also.

[imthatguy]

Glad to hear they did so well on the east coast. I feel that tire manufacturers on the west coast focus on terrain that they're accustomed to.

[JatoTheRipper]

I saw your video last night. The tires are impressive. I do think they are a tad too skinny for the height. They end up looking like pizza cutters/tractor tires. I wish they were closer to square like the 1:1 tires. Other than that I'm sure I'll be picking up a set. I love Pitbull tires and I'm sure these will be just as awesome.

I do wish they made their other tires in the super sticky Alien compound.

[NewScaler]

In the video he mentioned new foams specifically for this tire. Will they be sold with the tires or are they going to be separate? Wonder if this Alien compound will be offered on the 1.9 rockbeast?

[new2rocks]

Originally Posted by Natedog

New tires look very scale, nice interview and crawl video, thanks! Looking forward to seeing these in person!

Thanks, Nate. I look forward to seeing how you get a set into your Ascender fleet.

Originally Posted by SteveC6R

Nice video David, looking forward to trying a set of these on my GCM Skeleton also.

Thanks, sir. You won't be disappointed.

Originally Posted by imthatguy

Glad to hear they did so well on the east coast. I feel that tire manufacturers on the west coast focus on terrain that they're accustomed to.

Desmond is from Jersey. I knew there must be something worthwhile in that state...

Originally Posted by JatoTheRipper

I saw your video last night. The tires are impressive. I do think they are a tad too skinny for the height. They end up looking like pizza cutters/tractor tires. I wish they were closer to square like the 1:1 tires. Other than that I'm sure I'll be picking up a set. I love Pitbull tires and I'm sure these will be just as awesome.

I do wish they made their other tires in the super sticky Alien compound.

I wouldn't be surprised to see more Alien Kompound tires. They already have the 2.2 Growlers in that compound, and they will be releasing a 2.2 version of the A.T Hardcores in the Alien Kompound, as well. In the meantime, it's great to have this option to add to the other scale tire options on the market.

Originally Posted by NewScaler

In the video he mentioned new foams specifically for this tire. Will they be sold with the tires or are they going to be separate? Wonder if this Alien compound will be offered on the 1.9 rockbeast?

The new foams will come with the tires. I don't know whether they will start offering other styles with the Alien Kompound, but I wouldn't be surprised to see more of it.