Can-Am Outlander 650 Max

"WorkHorse"

Part Three

Project "WorkHorse" is getting a new pair of shoes!

The massive Can-Am Outlander 650 max project is gaining ground to becoming the workers choice in all around farming and hunting forums. The ATV industry standard now has plenty of cargo space and clean bright HID lights.

The next step is to make sure we have rugged indestructible wheels and tires that will get a bite on most all terrain. This is where leading wheel manufacturer, OMF Performance and Industry great Maxxis tires will help us "get a grip" on things.

After debate on which wheel would benefit us most on the "workhorse" we found that a good beadlock was the right choice. The new "Billet" center wheel is a product that offers many things including great strength and dependability. The Billet center is a feature that allows us to change the offset of the wheel for the application. The width of our front wheels would be 12x7 but we needed the wider part of this to be on the outside. This will allow the "part four" product to fit correctly. This is no problem as we simply mounted the center of the wheel on the inside. The rear wheels are 12x8 and the offset would be placed to the outside also. The OMF billet center wheels also come with the exclusive scalloped beadlock pattern, a stainless backer plate to hide unsightly brake rotors, hubs and a tougher than nails inner reinforcing ring.

The biggest surprise for us was when I received an extra box from the guys over at OMF Performance. Daraugh "bones" Flynn had thought a little deeper on the wheel center and took into consideration that we had a Camoflauge Can-Am Outlander. They had the billet center fixed up with some Camo hydro graphics. This was the icing on the cake. Absolutely fantastic and not a bad match either!

Well, with the awesome wheels we only had one choice for a great all terrain and tough tire. Maxxis Tires USA office is located near Atlanta Georgia and that's not to far to drive in order to get a tested and proven set of Maxxis tires. Now our decision on which tire would be the best, came down to a proven, race tested, Baja 1000 survivor called the "Bighorn". This tire has been used by many racers on the cross country circuit and is widely used by utility riders everywhere so it has to be right for the "WorkHorse".

The Bighorn has huge lugs that are spaced evenly enough to make the ride somewhat smooth but the goal is to provide maximum traction in the most diverse conditions. The 25 inch tire might handle better but there again we wanted to look great and get the grip and ground clearance of a USHRA monster truck! That's why we chose the big "26 inch".

With the centers of our wheels changed out to the Camoflage billet center we began our mounting process and we learned a few home remedies for the tough to compress, tire, bead ring and rim problems we faced. A box of the latest Dirtsports magazine would do great as a semi tire stand and with the rim resting on this box the ring came right into its home atop the bead rack. Remember to only put 12lbs of torque on these 1/4 inch bolts because even though you are tightening them into a steel insert that is pressed into the back of the welded in bead ring, this is all that's needed for this application.

Another thing to watch for when assembling beadlock tires is to make sure the tire is centered in the bead rings platform so it is not out of round when mounted on the quad. This is best achived by slowly and evenly tightening the ring while adjusting the tire so it is even all around the wheel.

Well the mounting has been finished and our attention turns to removing the stockers from the Can-Am Outlander Max 650. When the stock tire and wheel combo was removed I noticed a small problem. The hubs on the Outlander were polished and semi rusted. With the stainless backer plates not yet offered for the billet center wheels on our Outlander I had to come up with a solution for the unsightly shine. So with my trusty Razor knife and a sheet of cardboard the space was well protected and ready for the spray can full of flat black hardcore paint that would make our hubs somewhat disappear into the wheel center.

Off to the wash rack we go to clean up the tires and then off for a little testing.

Be sure to visit our great project sponsors today for great deals and awesome products!

OMF Performance: www.omfperformance.com

Maxxis tires: www.maxxis.com

Look for an Off-Road.com adventure coming up soon with project "Workhorse". Until then stop back in at Off-Road.com garage and we will have another great product to make our Can-Am stand out and on top of the competition!!