Tire prices for a 446

InTroubleAlltheTime said:

E Boy Dog What brand tires are they?
:222: :446: Best Regards, Rich

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Harvest King which is by a company called Eldorado? I was told they are made by Kelly Springfield?

Have not seen the tires, they have to get them from their warehouse which I told them I had to seem them first before they put them on, they need a few days notice to get them if I say OK.

http://www.tbcprivatebrands.com/harvest ... asp?id=260

Guys..... I fully understand the flag waving :usa: :usa: :canada: :canada: and the loyalty to your country and your working-class neighbours.

However, products that are not totally made on North American soil did not arrive there because China, Singapore, Malaysia, Hong Kong, Philippines, Korea etc sent them there blindly in the hopes of selling them. In all cases, an American or Canadian company sourced those items there and imported them. They did that because they knew that the American public is always looking for the best bang for their buck. Walmart is now the largest corporation in the world as a result of the demand by the North American market for lower cost items.

Those of you who refuse to purchase products made off-shore are fighting a losing battle. This continent competes in a global marketplace that is constantly on the lookout for cheap labour to make items it wants. You cannot buy a car, truck or motorcycle today that does not have foreign content in it. And even when you see that "Made in America" label on an item, that does not mean what you think it does. All it means is that the manufacturer has met the criteria set down by the US government to put that label on their goods.

The above has been put in this thread to add some perspective to the focus and it is not an invitation to take the thread political. These are the realities of life today in a rapidly changing world. If you wish to pay more for something because you believe that you are saving jobs around the corner, be my guest. All I can add is that you need to do a lot of research before buying anything today if you intend to buy only products that are 100 percent American or Canadian. Over on MTF, a female member tried to buy shovels, rakes and other hand tools for her landscaping business. Upon investigation, she found out that the metal heads were all imported and the wood handles were added here. That fact allowed the manufacturer to proudly state Made in America on every tool that left the factory.

In order to steer away from political, even though I have some opinions, they have no value to anyone but me.

BUT, where I do really care about country of origin is in the true value, durability etc of the product.

Thus far, I have found no far eastern rubber goods that meet my standards. Tires, glass gasketing for cars/trucks, plastics etc, all seem to oxidize/weather/rot far faster than the older North American products. Early Japanese cars had these problems. 60's Toyotas and Datsuns used to develop a film on the inside of the windows when setting in the sun with the windows up. Then the dash and seat plastic would crack after a few years. Turns out, the 'plastizer' in the mix that kept the plastic flexible was evaporating, coating the windows with that sticky mess and in turn making the plastic brittle. They learned, the Chinese will too, but I'm not payin' for the education, I'll wait til those products mature.

In addition, tires in particular suffer from shipping issues. They are compressed to the maximum in order to get as many as possible in the shipping container. Good luck on getting them expanded and seated on the wheel without one of the super air machines my local tire shop has.

Not political, just practical.

All that said, I do buy import stuff, particularly specialty tools (sand blaster, super thin wrench set, even large tool boxes) that are just too expensive in the NA versions. Good function, suffer somewhat in fit and finish, but for occasional use they are fine.

One of the companies in the rubber donut business is Toyo Tire. They are Japanese but in 2004, they opened a one million square foot manufacturing plant and warehousing facility 50 miles north-east of Atlanta, GA in a place called White. In 2008, they doubled the size of that operation.

I also understand that Toyo partnered with Kinugawa Rubber to produce the Nitto brand of tires. I can remember buying Nitto Motocross tires back in the early 80's.

Cheng Shin is a Taiwanese company that makes bicycle, motorcycle, lawnmower and golf course equipment tires as well as ATV tires. Currently, their tires are being manufactured in China.

Maxxis is another Taiwaneese company that makes motorcycle, ATV, bicycle, trailer, go-kart, industrial, automobile, light truck and commercial truck tires. They list a location in China too.


In 1987, Goodyear and Pacific Dunlop Ltd. created South Pacific Tyres Ltd., which manufactures tires in Australia, New Zealand and Papua New Guinea. In 1999, Goodyear merged with Sumitomo Rubber Industries, which owned rights to Dunlop internationally. The merger gave Goodyear further control over Dunlop's operations. Dunlop is currently the only motorcycle tire producer in the United States. Goodyear owns the majority of Dunlop tire facilities around the world. As of 2009, Goodyear controls a 17.2 percent share of the United States tire market. In its six plants in North America, Goodyear has 10,000 employees. Kelley-Springfield is also a Goodyear division.


The one-time illustrious B.F. Goodrich company is wholly-owned by Michelin, a French company. They have 4 plants in the USA, 3 in Canada and 1 in Mexico.

Michelin also owns Riken, Taurus, Kormoran and UniRoyal brands. They have plants in France, Germany, United Kingdom, Brazil, Thailand, Japan, Italy and several other countries that may also include China. Apparently, they are in 19 countries with a total of 64 plants.

In other words, tire manufacturing is a complex issue. You have to rely upon the manufacturer of the tire to produce a decent tire that will give decent service for the money expended. It's hard to build a good reputation but very easy to destroy one.