I just ordered Matco mains and nosewheel. I?m also getting ready to finalize my finishing kit order. George at Matco told me that the tires and tubes supplied by Van?s would fit the Matco rims yet it seems like people delete the tires from the kit and go with the Desser tires. I?d just as soon not pay extra for shipping tires that aren?t needed. Thanks for the clarification.
As you stated, wheel and tire sizes are the same.
There are many choices for tubes and tires. As you know, Van's tend to go with the frugal choice on most things. That means that there are better quality products available, but they are going to cost more.
Tire wear is also a function of how well you get the gear aligned when installing them. That's why some aircraft go through tires quicker than others. The other variable is how precise you are with landing. Do you grease it in every landing or are you one of those people that gets the load chirp because you aren't aligned with the runway properly?
My kit supplied tires lasted me about three years. I've know others that lasted longer and shorter than mine did.
My personal opinion is to delete the tires and tubes and upgrade to something better. The "what" to upgrade to is more of a religious debate.
Dresser sells many brands of tires as well as there own recaps. The recaps will require some modifications to wheel pants that were set up for standard tires due to their thicker tread. Some people have had good luck with the retreads and others haven't. Dresser does usually have pretty good prices.
I upgrade to Goodyear Flight Custom III tires. I've only had them on my RV-10 for a little over a year, but I've been happy with them so far.