Slightly wider tire? or any tire siggestions?

tlyons

Member
Hello,

In the US (or at least my state) many service people will not mount non-matching tires. The treads need to be the same so the front and back grip in a similar way. The front 130/70 17 is becoming more and more rare and worse few of those will have a matching 190/50 17 rear tire.

Tires I know of that have a OEM size front are Dunlop D220, Bridgestone Exedra Max, and Metzeler ME880. I am having trouble finding a rear in any of those

I am considering put Bridgestone Exedra Max 200/50 17 according to https://tiresize.com/comparison/ it is 0.4" taller and 0.4" wider. That seems like it would change the handling less than the 120/70 17 front some have done.

1. Has anyone done this?
2. Does anyone know of a different tire with an OEM matching front and back?
 

BobF

Member
There is the Dunlop Roadsmart III which you may be able to get in both correct front and rear sizes - a quick check of UK stockists shows it. Bridgestone BT021 may be available in fronts, but rears are getting rare to find. Both of these are quite pricey, though.
 

tlyons

Member
There is the Dunlop Roadsmart III which you may be able to get in both correct front and rear sizes - a quick check of UK stockists shows it. Bridgestone BT021 may be available in fronts, but rears are getting rare to find. Both of these are quite pricey, though.
Thanks for the response. I am in the US and not only is the Dunlop Roadsmart pricey so is the shipping. I am reluctant since motorcycles in the US are subject to inspection; I have no way to tell if the tire will be new enough (<8 year old) and that it will have the DOT approval stamp (similar to MOT.)

I am going to try the Exedra and hope it doesn't rub. Worst comes to worst I can get a non-matching rear; my mechanic agreed to let a non-match pass. Surely he will pass it if I buy it from him.

Happy New Year.
 


chornbe

New member
Hello,

In the US (or at least my state) many service people will not mount non-matching tires. The treads need to be the same so the front and back grip in a similar way. The front 130/70 17 is becoming more and more rare and worse few of those will have a matching 190/50 17 rear tire.

Tires I know of that have a OEM size front are Dunlop D220, Bridgestone Exedra Max, and Metzeler ME880. I am having trouble finding a rear in any of those

I am considering put Bridgestone Exedra Max 200/50 17 according to https://tiresize.com/comparison/ it is 0.4" taller and 0.4" wider. That seems like it would change the handling less than the 120/70 17 front some have done.

1. Has anyone done this?
2. Does anyone know of a different tire with an OEM matching front and back?
Mine has a pair of 120/70 + 190/55 Pilot Road 4s on it and handles like a dream. The minor size differences aren't enough to affect the profile to the point of any real world differences. Just buy regular sized modern tires and put zero more thought into it.
 

chornbe

New member
It seems that the entire aftermarket agrees that 120 is a fine tire for this bike. Literally the only reference I've found to 130 is the honda owner's manual. Most of the "what fits my bike" and recommended-pairings for it use a 120/70 and 190/55 set. ** shrug **

To expand on tire sizing, most rim/tire combinations easily allow for +/- 20mm in width without much trouble, so on a typical 120-front bike, you can run a 100-140 tire, though most people won't want to push those limits. 100-120 for a 110 spec, 110-130 for a 120 spec, or 120-140 for a 130 spec ranging is very typical, and won't change the overall profile enough to matter in the real world. The 190/50 vs 190/55 (all other factors being equal) is even more negligible in final tire size and handling characteristics.

In short, as noted above, just buy a good matched set of quality sport or sport-touring rubber, and enjoy the ride.

I have extensive hands-on experience with the Pilot Roads (now just called Roads), the Pirelli Angel GTs, and the Shinko Verge V011 (and 016) tires (oddly, the Verge 011 is available in 140/17). I can't in good conscience recommend any Dunlop or Bridgestone. I never met a Dunlop I didn't end up hating, and I've never had a Bridgestone that gave me nearly the confidence of the others, and that didn't wear really oddly over time.
 

Gizmo

Active member
Site Suporter
It seems that the entire aftermarket agrees that 120 is a fine tire for this bike. Literally the only reference I've found to 130 is the honda owner's manual. Most of the "what fits my bike" and recommended-pairings for it use a 120/70 and 190/55 set. ** shrug **

To expand on tire sizing, most rim/tire combinations easily allow for +/- 20mm in width without much trouble, so on a typical 120-front bike, you can run a 100-140 tire, though most people won't want to push those limits. 100-120 for a 110 spec, 110-130 for a 120 spec, or 120-140 for a 130 spec ranging is very typical, and won't change the overall profile enough to matter in the real world. The 190/50 vs 190/55 (all other factors being equal) is even more negligible in final tire size and handling characteristics.

In short, as noted above, just buy a good matched set of quality sport or sport-touring rubber, and enjoy the ride.

I have extensive hands-on experience with the Pilot Roads (now just called Roads), the Pirelli Angel GTs, and the Shinko Verge V011 (and 016) tires (oddly, the Verge 011 is available in 140/17). I can't in good conscience recommend any Dunlop or Bridgestone. I never met a Dunlop I didn't end up hating, and I've never had a Bridgestone that gave me nearly the confidence of the others, and that didn't wear really oddly over time.

Totally agree on all points!
 

DNSarnia

Member
So, part two of this discussion.... has anybody found any reasonably priced tires for our bikes? From my first set to the most recent research, there is about a 300% increase in putting new rubber on our bikes. Argh.
 

BobF

Member
Mine will probably need its third set of tyres this year and, after reading this post, I've deliberated a lot over what to fit considering the outrageous price of the OE specified Dunlops and Bridgestones.

Looking at the Avon fact sheets, a Storm 3D rear at 200/50/17 combined with a Roadrider MK2 130/70/17 for the front may well be a good compromise, and should come in at about £180 the pair. The Roadrider MK2 is a front/ rear fitment and is H-rated to 130mph, so should be safe, although you can get a Storm 3D in a 120/70 size with a V-rating. However, the difference between a 120/70 and 130/70 in diameter is 20mm, 0.8 inches, which is enough to throw the speedo out by about 2 mph at 60 mph. With the built-in inaccuracy of the speedo I would expect an indicated 60 to be around a true 54 mph with a 120/70 front.

The 200/50 rear would make little difference with just 4mm extra in diameter and 4mm per side in width, so why not have a bit of extra ground clearance?

Would anyone else think of trying such a combination?
 

Togo

New member
It seems that the entire aftermarket agrees that 120 is a fine tire for this bike. Literally the only reference I've found to 130 is the honda owner's manual. Most of the "what fits my bike" and recommended-pairings for it use a 120/70 and 190/55 set. ** shrug **

To expand on tire sizing, most rim/tire combinations easily allow for +/- 20mm in width without much trouble, so on a typical 120-front bike, you can run a 100-140 tire, though most people won't want to push those limits. 100-120 for a 110 spec, 110-130 for a 120 spec, or 120-140 for a 130 spec ranging is very typical, and won't change the overall profile enough to matter in the real world. The 190/50 vs 190/55 (all other factors being equal) is even more negligible in final tire size and handling characteristics.

In short, as noted above, just buy a good matched set of quality sport or sport-touring rubber, and enjoy the ride.

I have extensive hands-on experience with the Pilot Roads (now just called Roads), the Pirelli Angel GTs, and the Shinko Verge V011 (and 016) tires (oddly, the Verge 011 is available in 140/17). I can't in good conscience recommend any Dunlop or Bridgestone. I never met a Dunlop I didn't end up hating, and I've never had a Bridgestone that gave me nearly the confidence of the others, and that didn't wear really oddly over time.
I have Shinko 011 Verge on my NM4 and have been disappointed in the wear, they are a bit sloppy as they age. I'd try the 016 Verge with dual compound but I'm not finding the front available. I'm probably going to go with 190/55 on the rear, there seem to be a lot more pairings available with the stock size front.
 

Togo

New member
I have Shinko 011 Verge on my NM4 and have been disappointed in the wear, they are a bit sloppy as they age. I'd try the 016 Verge with dual compound but I'm not finding the front available. I'm probably going to go with 190/55 on the rear, there seem to be a lot more pairings available with the stock size front.
Pilot Power appear to be the cruiser version of Pilot Road. And I guess GT are the heavy duty version? Maybe not required for my 700cc, but maybe last longer?
 

Gizmo

Active member
Site Suporter
Pilot Power appear to be the cruiser version of Pilot Road. And I guess GT are the heavy duty version? Maybe not required for my 700cc, but maybe last longer?
I have the Pilot Road 5s on my DN-01 which just so happens to be the 'grandfather' of the NM4. LOVE THEM and they wear GREAT! The GTs are for a heavier bike, like the Goldwing (more for touring). I started out with the PR 4s on my Dino but they don't make them anymore!
 

samair77

New member
hi to all!!
all you guys that put 120 in front have you checked the load? for example most of the 120s have a load of 58 and 130s a load of 62. have you noticed anything strange like handling or breaking isues ?thanks
 

Gizmo

Active member
Site Suporter
hi to all!!
all you guys that put 120 in front have you checked the load? for example most of the 120s have a load of 58 and 130s a load of 62. have you noticed anything strange like handling or breaking isues ?thanks
NOPE! Other than the bike (with 120s) handles better and turns tighter, I really can't say.
 

friesentom

Member
Hallo
Ich fahre meine DN01 seit 13 Jahren so lange habe ich die DN01 vom ersten Tag an bis Heute fahre ich nur Dunlop Roadsmart seit neustem habe ich den Roadsmart III drauf vorn und hinten
den würde ich immer wieder kaufen lange Laufzeit der Reifen, auch bei Regen ist der Reifen Perfekt.
Das Profil hält sehr lange.
Friesentom
 

Knob

Active member
Site Suporter
NOPE! Other than the bike (with 120s) handles better and turns tighter, I really can't say.
Had choice to try both situations, front 120 and 130 mm. Didn't notice any difference in handling.
 



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