Which New Tires For 83 GS850?

[jaytex1969]

Been in Knoxville 2 years. Don't have a relationship with any local shops. Working to fix that. Just turned my ride in at Speed Lab for a short list of repairs and upkeep.

First on the list is tires.

They came back with two readily available options, Michelin Commander II and Pirelli Night Dragon.

If anyone has experience with these options or has other recommendations, please share your opinions.

Thanks.
Jay

[Rich82GS750TZ]

Bob Baatfam lives in Knoxsville. Prolific poster and respected member here. Has a number of bikes including a GS. Surely Bob’s got a tire guy he likes. Probably has some opinions as well on tire selection based on how and where you like to ride.

[Nessism]

They came back with two readily available options, Michelin Commander II and Pirelli Night Dragon.

Both of those tire models look great. Quite expensive, though.

The cheap guy forum favorite tires are Shinko 230 or 712. Reviews pretty much show they are very nice tires in all regards other than durability. If you don't plan to ride a whole lot, they would be an excellent choice.

[bwringer]

Do you have a 1983 GS850GL or GS850G? The rear wheels are different diameters.

Since they're recommending cruiser tires, I'm guessing you have a GL, which has a 16" rear. (The G has a 17" rear wheel, and there are fewer tire options.)



Anyhoo, the proper sizes for an '83 850GL are 100/90-19 up front and 130/90-16 out back.

Between these two (both are very spendy), I'd personally go with the Michelin. They're known to be fantastic in every respect.

If you mount your own tires (which you don't seem to) and want to save a few bucks, the Shinko 230 is outstanding bang for the buck; about half the price. It just doesn't last as long. If you're paying someone else to do the work, then you're better off to mount up a brand that's known to last somewhat longer.



Also, 130/90-16 is a popular size for front tires on some Harleys and other cruisers, so make sure you actually end up with a rear tire on the rear.

[dpep]

They don't get a lot of love here on the forum but I have gotten good service from Dunlop 404s. You know what you are getting and they are available just about everywhere. They obviously aren't the latest tech but then neither are our GSs. And any tire you purchase today will be vastly superior what was on your GS when it was new.

[Brendan W]

I haven't used anything other than Continental TKV 11 & 12 and the ContiGo.
Pricey, but no complaints.

[Baatfam]

Bob Baatfam lives in Knoxsville. Prolific poster and respected member here. Has a number of bikes including a GS. Surely Bob’s got a tire guy he likes. Probably has some opinions as well on tire selection based on how and where you like to ride.

Thanks, but I'm probably not much help. I order tires on line, and mount them myself.

But hey! Welcome jaytex1969 to the area! We moved here about seven years ago....and love it.

[bonanzadave]

I hope someone says Bridgestone Battle Axe. I have 2 new to be mounted for next season.....

[steve murdoch]

I hope someone says Bridgestone Battle Axe. I have 2 new to be mounted for next season.....

I am a big fan of the BT45, haven't seen much feedback for the newer BT46.

[jaytex1969]

I'm headed for the Michelin Commander II's
Will report my findings.

Thanks.
Jay

[Nessism]

Is Avon truly discontinuing the Roadrider, or just moving the manufacturing location? I still see them available for purchase.

[bwringer]

Is Avon truly discontinuing the Roadrider, or just moving the manufacturing location? I still see them available for purchase.

It's... murky.


The Avon Tyre factory in England is set to close by the end of 2023, or may already be closed.

Last time I bought a set of made in England Avon motorcycle tyres (for my FJ-09), in 2021, both turned out to be defective. I only found out later that the factory was closing. Make of that what you will.

Avon's tyre business was purchased by Cooper in 1997, and in turn Cooper was swallowed up by Goodyear in 2021.

There's some generic happy but extremely vague blather from Goodyear (published in March 2023) in this European market article about continuing production of the Avon brand, but it doesn't say where (which usually means China...).

https://news.goodyear.eu/avon-tyres-motorcycle-brand-accelerates-into-the-future-as-part-of-goodyear-family/

However, on the WIkipedia page for Goodyear, the only mention of motorcycle tires is Montluçon, France.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Goodyear_Tire_and_Rubber_Company

If you poke around, it would appear that US stocks of Avon Tyres are very spotty and thin -- click "Part Numbers" here and you'll see that many sizes are out of stock, low stock, or discontinued:

https://www.revzilla.com/motorcycle/avon-roadrider-mk-ii-tires?sku_id=1818530

My guess would be that, at best, Goodyear is still in the process of moving Avon motorcycle tyre production from England to France. In the happy-crappy press release above, they say "more focused", which is MBA-speak code for discontinuing stuff. They do mention the RoadRider MKII will continue. How long it might take for French tires to trickle into the US, if ever, is of course, unknown.

Or, they might also be moving Avon motorcycle tyre production to China and not France. That would be a shame, but many other brands have done so.

I suppose the Avon brand could just abandon the US market, or switch the US to the Goodyear brand, or something along those lines.

Time will tell, I guess.

[Grimly]

Well, corporate bullhit aside, if they carry on producing Roadrider MkIIs I'll be happy if they're still made with the same rubber, in the same way, as I've found my front one is perfectly fine, and probably the best front tyre I've had.

[Pewpew82]

They don't get a lot of love here on the forum but I have gotten good service from Dunlop 404s. You know what you are getting and they are available just about everywhere. They obviously aren't the latest tech but then neither are our GSs. And any tire you purchase today will be vastly superior what was on your GS when it was new.

Goodyear owns Dunlop, they wouldn't let me play with the CAD files for the motorcycle tires when I was designing the Edge AT line a few years ago.

[LAB3]

Been in Knoxville 2 years. Don't have a relationship with any local shops. Working to fix that. Just turned my ride in at Speed Lab for a short list of repairs and upkeep.

First on the list is tires.

They came back with two readily available options, Michelin Commander II and Pirelli Night Dragon.

If anyone has experience with these options or has other recommendations, please share your opinions.

Thanks.
Jay

They're a bit down the road a ways from you in Loudon but Purdy's Powersports has taken good care of me since I bought a pair of Bridgestone BT46's from them earlier this year. They go by the name OEM Cycle on eBay and have prices that are hard to beat!

The BT46's definitely ride quite well but wear out about as fast as the Shinkos. The Dunlop 404's wear the fastest and are just plain evil on tar snakes! In my opinion the Shinkos 240 is the best bang for the buck.