One of the problems with making tires in this country is that they have to be DOT certified in order to be sold for highway use. The process makes the tooling/startup cost prohibitive. Coker tried having their Cushman tires made offshore, but the rubber was defective, and checked in less than a year. They brought their molds back to the US, went thru the certification process, and replaced all of the offshore tires under warranty. Cushman tires were not available for the 2 years it took to go through this certification and restart US production. The price of Cushman tires more than doubled. In the 15 years or so since, Cushman tires have doubled in price again. And Cushman tires have relatively high volume. Simplex tires have a much smaller volume, but it is so much easier to find them than before Coker stepped up and repopped them. Considering the very low number of Sportsman bikes out there, the cost doesn't seem excessive to me. It used to be so frustrating looking for good usable Simplex tires 20 years ago. I have never had a problem with my Coker ires, and I can order them over the phone, as well as on line. Talk about convienient!
