GS850G tires, Dirt tires?

[shirazdrum]

I'm looking for a pair of new tires and what I exactly need is some sort of dual sport tires. Something that does well at highway speeds, last a long time and handles gravel/dirt better than street tires. I would say 80 slab/20 dirt.
Is there such tire anywhere for GS850? What are your experiences with riding a GS on dirt and long gravel roads? Any suggestion?

Chris

[Nessism]

GSR member bwinger would be a good one to ask... http://www.thegsresources.com/_forum/member.php?u=155 You might want to drop him a PM and ask his opinion.

[Hank.SD]

The Pirelli Scorpions that came stock on my KTM are a great 80/20, or maybe 70/30 tire. Last pretty good and are Vrated. Not sure about sizing for the 850 though.

[reddirtrider]

Dirt is a pretty vague description. It can range from smooth to really nasty. The 850g is a pretty heavy bike with short suspendion travel and you don't want to get into a situation where you have to muscle it around.

You shouldn't have any problem on gravel or dirt roads you could take the family car down. Anything more aggressive and you're going to get in shape fast.

As for tires look for a dual sport tire. I know Avon, Bridgestone, Dunlop, and Conti all make some, but without knowing your rim sizes ....

[twr1776]

Link to the original thread. I have seen these tires in person and they are very cool looking. According to Brian they have a Jeep sounding tire noise but he has taken the 850 out on our last couple of BC "scouting runs" so I have not heard them in person yet. Must be a loud tires save lives thing.

http://www.thegsresources.com/_forum/showthread.php?t=134684&highlight=todius

[bwringer]

You can get the Avon Distanzias in sizes that will fit an 850G (100/90-19 front and 120/90-17 rear), and as others have remarked, I've found them to be outstanding road tires as well as offering greatly increased traction in the dirt.

They also make a 130/80-17 rear, but I think the 120/90 would end up closer to the stock 130/90, and the rim width would be correct -- on my VX, I found that the Distys were somewhat wider than pure road tires because of the knobs.

Sure, an 850G makes a lousy dirtbike, but there's no reason you can't do a little more exploring in greater safety with some decent tires.

If you have an 850GL with a 16" rear rim, you'll want to fit a 17" rear from a G model. This is usually quite easy to do. AFAIK, there aren't any dual-sport tires in 16" sizes.

The Pirelli Skorpions are also excellent dual-sport tires, and IIRC are available in "close enough" sizes for the rear.

[shirazdrum]

Well I have no intention of taking the bike on jeep trails or single tracks, just off payment when I’m forced to.
This bike is going to South America in August hence the dirt tires. What I want out of it is just more traction and confidence on dirt roads when it's loaded with luggage and weighs close to 1000 lbs with me on it.

I checked out your thread and those are nice tires. But I’ve heard they don't last very long under heavy loads and highway speeds. ADV riders seem to love these tires but they all complain about how short of a life they have. Well I know they won't last as long as a good touring tire but 4-5k miles is just way too low.
The bike is an 850G so no 16" rim here.
Are there any more durable tires out there that I should look in to?

Regards,
Chris

[bwringer]

Well I have no intention of taking the bike on jeep trails or single tracks, just off payment when I’m forced to.
This bike is going to South America in August hence the dirt tires. What I want out of it is just more traction and confidence on dirt roads when it's loaded with luggage and weighs close to 1000 lbs with me on it.

I checked out your thread and those are nice tires. But I’ve heard they don't last very long under heavy loads and highway speeds. ADV riders seem to love these tires but they all complain about how short of a life they have. Well I know they won't last as long as a good touring tire but 4-5k miles is just way too low.
The bike is an 850G so no 16" rim here.
Are there any more durable tires out there that I should look in to?

Regards,
Chris

True, word is that the Distanzias don't last as long as some. Mine are starting to just show a flat spot on the rear after about 3,000 miles. I'll be happy if it makes 6,000, but I'm pretty brutal on tires.

A guy named Dan (dantheman?) a while back used the Pirelli Skorpions on the rear of his 850, and said he was getting very good wear from them -- around 12,000 to 14,000 miles. I don't know exactly which Skorpion, though, or whether it's one of the models still available. He's smaller than me and doesn't ride like a wild-eyed maniac either, so that probably helps tire life.

I also hear very good things about the Michelin Anakees, and they are available in the right sizes.

[Hank.SD]

I only got about 5K miles out of my first rear Scorp on my KTM.. but it was abused fairly heavily. I was using the A/T variety. I liked it enough to get another though. It works very well across a wide range of conditions.. I've ridden rocky creek beds with 2 feet of water and gone 110 on the interstate w/ the same tire. I prefer something a little "knobbier" for true offroad work in the front, but that's not what you are looking for.

What I have:
Pirelli MT90 A/T 150/70VR-18

http://arizonamoto.com/Merchant2/merchant.mvc?Screen=CTGY&Store_Code=SWMT&Category_Code=MT90AT

[shirazdrum]

Pirreli Scorpion 90 S/T go around 100 bucks and it seems that lot of people like it. they make the matching front tire as well. but they are not as aggresive as A/T (I think that's what come on KTM's).
They advertise it as 95% highway and 5% off-road.
Have you guys heard anything about these tires? any first hand users?

Regards,
Chris

[shirazdrum]

I think i'm gonna try a set of Kenda K761 to see what happens. KLR people seem to love theses tires and get a very good life out of them. (Of course their bike doesn't weigh as much) For 50 bucks a tire i can't go wrong. They make the right size for my bike too!

[bwringer]

I've looked into the Kenda K761 as well -- I believe they are tube-only, so make sure you order up the appropriate tubes.

Take pictures and let us know how they work!