Rear tire suggestions...

[Nessism]

Nobody makes radials skinny enough for our old wheels.

Yup, do to the radial belt construction, those tires need to use short sidewalls that are pulled tight. Only way to do that is with wide wheels...which our GS bikes don't have.

[tkent02]

Yup, do to the radial belt construction, those tires need to use short sidewalls that are pulled tight. Only way to do that is with wide wheels...which our GS bikes don't have.

I have a few bikes with radials, have ridden a few others. They seem to stick well, supposed to last longer.
I don't think the difference is as drastic as it is in car tires.

[Steve]

. They seem to stick well, supposed to last longer.

I think somebody forgot to mention that to the engineers at Honda.

With the GL1500 that ended with the 2000 model year, tire life ranged from about 15,000 to over 20,000 miles (on bias-ply tires), depending on how you rode and how well you maintained proper pressures. The 2001 GL1800 came out with radials. They are the same size as those on the 1500 and the bike weighs about 80 pounds less, but the initial stock tires only lasted 5-6,000 miles. Other manufacturers stepped in with different compounds and got mileage up to the 8-10,000 mile range, and now the latest batch (I think they might be Dunlop or Bridgestone) are back into the 12-15,000 mile range.

My bike is still doing well with "only" 143,425 miles on it , and my last two sets of Dunlop E3s got 23,000 and 21,500 miles on them, so I am in no hurry to "upgrade" to an 1800.

.

[chef1366]

The IRC Durotours are good tires. They should take the place of the HiMax easily.

[bwringer]

Also, replace BOTH your tires. Please. We want you to live longer.

Front tires don't wear in the obvious way like rear tires, but they do scallop and get hard.

Put on a matched set and enjoy the much-improved feel and braking.


Honestly, there are few to no bad tires being sold these days. Any modern tire will be light-years beyond the stuff they had in the '80s.


Please leave behind low-tech car-based thinking when you consider motorcycle tires. Radial and wider does not automatically mean better. The stock sizes are the most appropriate for your bike and will give the absolute best possible handling and performance. (I think your bike takes 100/90-19 front and 130/90-19 rear.)

As noted before, the difference between bias and radial is not all that important for bike tires. The most appropriate technology to make tires in the correct sizes is bias-ply, so that's what is used. The Avon RoadRiders are V-rated and very modern bias-ply tires, as are the Pirelli Sport Demons and the Bridgestone BT-45.

As it happens, my other bike, the VX800, takes tire sizes that are available in both bias-ply and radial. The main difference is that radial tires tend to be a bit lighter and they don't last as long as a good set of bias-ply tires would.

Unless you're rebuilding your bike with modern suspension, stick with the correct tire sizes.

[Phaseman]

Here's what I'm thinking!

Pirelli
Sport Demon Sport Touring.

Rear Tire Size - 130/90V-17


Front Tire Size - 100/90V-19

Anyone tried em'?

[Nessism]

Pirelli
Sport Demon Sport Touring.

Rear Tire Size - 130/90V-17


Front Tire Size - 100/90V-19

Anyone tried em'?

Sport Demond is a sticky but short lived performance tire. They are also expensive. I thought you were on a budget?

Bridgestone S11 is popular with members here and is a good value. $123 shipped. Unless you are scraping the footpegs on a regular basis it would be perfectly functional. http://www.motorcycle-superstore.com...Rear-Tire.aspx

HiMax 100 front and 130 rear for $100 shipped ... http://www.americanmototire.com/cata...cPath=33_96_97

[Phaseman]

Pricing

I knoooooow ness (that's excitement, not sarcasm), that's why I considering em'! Motorcycle Superstore is having a sale! I can get the Pirelli set I mentioned for $200.68 and I live about 1 mile from them so no shipping and their local store will mount and balance em' for free!

Budget in tact!!

[Phaseman]

Oops!

I read too fast. I thought you said 100.00ish EACH shipped..

Got too excited.

[gshub]

tyres

Pirelli
Sport Demon Sport Touring.

Rear Tire Size - 130/90V-17


Front Tire Size - 100/90V-19

Anyone tried em'?

Had a set of Sport Demons same size fitted to me Gs1000s they were nice for 1500/2000mls,then they went like the old Phantoms used to (older riders will know what I mean)so gone back to good old metz lazertecs.
over 32yrs of riding in all weathers I havent a better tyre for any of my suzukis.

[woodman]

The cheapest tire made today is probably better then what the bike came with new

[gshub]

Tyres

Anything has got to be better than the Jap Dunlops they fitted new.

[hampshirehog]

Anything has got to be better than the Jap Dunlops they fitted new.

Never a truer word....we used to get loads of customers asking for their brand new bikes to be fitted with TT100s or Roadrunners before they left the showroom. Personally I never took to either - I always felt that they turned in in stages rather than progressively. Michelin M?? (?? = a number I've forgotten) was always my favourite.
I've got Sport Demons on the 1100 (for the first time) but haven't hit the 1500 mile mark yet - I hope they don't turn in to Phantoms. Agreed on the Metzlers but I must admit I'm really impressed by the value for money of the Hi-Maxx (though they seem to be shooting up in price recently).

[Phaseman]

Phantoms?

OK, after a 22 year gap between bikes... I have to ask... What was up with the Phantoms? Did the compound change after a couple of thousand miles or something? And who made them?

[Flyboy]

Since I got my current GS and thje others I have had, I have run them all on Avon Road Runner on the rear and Metzler ME33 Lazer on the front.
I originally used my bike as a daily workhorse, so milage was more important than peg scratching ability, the combination gave me this, as the rear Road Runner had a harder compound, which gave good milage and the softer Metzler kept the front end stuck to the road.
This said, although the Avon was not a scratching tyre, and let go before the super duper expensive tyres, it let go progresively, not suddenly, like the super stickys do, so it is dead easy to control, with a touch of opposite lock, when I felt like pushing it through the twistys.
I don't mind the back end stepping out when pushed hard, as long as the front end stays stuck.
In fact my mate and I used to tackle each other around the local race track from time to time when it was not beung used, and to watch two GS 1000 shafties cranking in formation around the corners both in a two wheel slide must have been a site to behold .......oh, happy days