Tires/Tyres question

[James England]

I wondered if anyone could recommend tyres for a standard XS1100E? I've really lost touch with tyre makes and so on. In the past I used Avon Roadrunner. I don't even know if these are made any more. I'm looking for good roadholding and, of course, the rear has to fit into the rather tight dimensions of the swinging arm. I don't ride particularly fast and always take corners steadily, so I don;t need race-type tires.

Does anyone have any suggestions or recommendations? Sizes would be useful...

[justme1100]

I use the stock size but want to try a 140. As far as a brand Metzlers are a good tire and I use Dunlop Elite II for the last two tires I have put on the rear and am very happy with them. Good in corners and holds up well. I used a Chen-Shin once (real inexpensive) and was content with the handling but I didn't get but about 7000 on it and it was done, it was a softer compound. This is just my opinion. There are just a few threads on this, just do a search with "tires" and the opinions will flow like water off a cliff.

[XS1100 Newbie]

The question on tires is a loaded one. Most everyone has their own ideas, and likes in tires. Some will say one is great, and someone else will say they wouldn't use anything else. For myself, i have used Kenda, and thought it was pretty good except for the mileage. Nw i have a Dunlop GT500 or something like that, and i like it a lot, but i can't ride 2 up with it because of it's load rating, so choose carefully. I think overall that the ME880tire may be a good all around tire. Be sure to watch the load rating, especially if you ride 2 up.

[DGXSER]

Just like what tire to use on your cage, which one for the bike is very subjective. Newbie says Kenda is good, for me, they were crap. I think it depends on your riding style, your road conditions, and weather conditions which will work best for you.

[crazy steve]

James, the big limitation to tire selection for your bike is going to be that 17" rear wheel. Most manufacturers only offer one tire in the correct 130/90-17 you need, a few none. Only Shinko has two choices in 'quality' that I'm aware of, and no one offers a 'correct' oversize. All of the rest have one offering in their 'mid line' or 'value' tires. Bridgestone, Metzler, and Shinko appear to be the 'better' tires, at least going on where they place them in their product line and reports from owners here.

There are a few additional choices if you go 'off size', but be aware of load rating and particularly tire width; you cannot fit any tire wider than 5.45" without serious modifications to the swingarm. All of these choices will have a considerably smaller diameter compared to the 'proper' size, and all are of a lower-profile design; the tire will look 'small' on the bike.

You have one other tire alternative; swap to the 'Specials' 16" rear wheel; you'll also need the specials' wheel spacer and steel caliper bracket to make it fit. This opens up your choices to nearly any type you want, as both 130/90-16 and 140/90-16 sizes will fit in nearly all cases (except for 140 sizes with raised letters; the letters will scrape). These also have a slightly smaller diameter compared to the 17", but not objectionally so.

This help?

[James England]

This help?

Sure does, thank you

[Crusty Snippets]

Tyres

Bridgestone was suggested to me as the brand to use to help with the squiggles of these bikes. Not sure what model of tyre but I have them on my Yami. Can check the model later if need be.
But frankly all of these modern tyres have a funny feeling to me, especially in the rain. Yami just wallows and squiggles even worse than my Suzuki.
Last time I felt comfortable in the rain was on Dunlop TT100s, but I may be dating myself there.
Over here in the Great White North where the roads get cracks in them, they fill the cracks with tar which is really slippery. The tar can be 12 inches across and ten feet long and the stuff is all over. Makes for interesting rides, and I will need a tow truck ( lorry ) to get Yami upright if I ever drop it.

BTW you already know the incorrect spelling of tyre is tire over here, but it is tar in the Southern US.

Crusty

[James England]

Bridgestone was suggested to me as the brand to use to help with the squiggles of these bikes. Not sure what model of tyre but I have them on my Yami. Can check the model later if need be.
But frankly all of these modern tyres have a funny feeling to me, especially in the rain. Yami just wallows and squiggles even worse than my Suzuki.
Last time I felt comfortable in the rain was on Dunlop TT100s, but I may be dating myself there.
Over here in the Great White North where the roads get cracks in them, they fill the cracks with tar which is really slippery. The tar can be 12 inches across and ten feet long and the stuff is all over. Makes for interesting rides, and I will need a tow truck ( lorry ) to get Yami upright if I ever drop it.

BTW you already know the incorrect spelling of tyre is tire over here, but it is tar in the Southern US.

Crusty

So, in the Southern US, you can get a tar stuck in tar, then?

[lee_dutcher]

one word kenda... i always ran them there cheap reliable and look good on the 11

[crazy steve]

One thing you Special owners need to remember is a 'standard' owner needs a 130/90-17" rear tire, so the choices are severely limited. Dunlop, Bridgestone, and Metzler only offer one tire that fits (D404, Spitfire, and Marathon models respectively). Shinko offers two, and Avon, Kenda, and ChengShin don't offer any....

If anybody knows of other brand/model tires in that size, standard owners would like to know.

[mro]

Avon don't offer any....

Avon, Roadrider AM26 (rear)
130/90-17 68V MT3.50 2.50 - 3.50 140 5.5 671 26.4 7.5

mro

[crazy steve]

Ok, I missed one.... and it's another low-line model.

[Crusty Snippets]

Tar

So, in the Southern US, you can get a tar stuck in tar, then?

Yes I believe that would be correct especially on a hot day. Around here it does not get hot enough to melt the tar. However inland in BC there is the Okanagan Valley that stretches down into Washington State. It goes over 100F or 37C often.
They must use a different mixture of tar where it gets really hot.

Back to tyres, others in the group are more up to date on the subject than I am. There are many more choices available for my other bikes, but they are all too much money IMO.

Crusty

[Cobia]

I just installed Kendas on my 80G to replace the Chen Shing (sp?) Maxxis that lasted for over 8k miles. One of the features I was looking for this time was a front tire without a groove running down the middle, center, of the tire. I wanted to avoid tires that followed every groove and crack on the road.
The Kenda I installed is the Kruz model. It has interlocking blocks of rubber about 1" to 1.5" wide that run down the center. It totally eliminated that wandering, particularly on those grates they have on drawbridges. Unfortunately, they don't make a rear tire in that model so I went with the Challenger model because I liked the tread pattern. Don't know how many miles I'll get out of them but the ride is excellent. Being in Florida you don't see too many twisties but close to my house there's a road with a few of them, and they seem very surefooted.
BikerPhil showed me how to install them and balance them. They went on fairly easily and balanced without too many counterweights. Thanks Phil!!
Finally, I really got an awesome deal on them from Motorcycle Superstore.
Ready for this?...... $117.00us delivered to my door.
So, that's my 2 cents worth on this subject, for what it's worth.

[slow mo]

i also installed Kenda tires and have no complaints ! JC Whitney 120 cost 11 bucks delivered to my door in Canada ,,good deal all round,,ride safe ,,slow mo!