Car tire gurus

[Big Mike]

I have a 205/55 cooper zeon on the back right now. What advantage or disadvantage do I have by stepping up to taller tire, lets say a 60 or 65. I am not concerned about the nut cages as they are removed and the 2 pieces of the fender will be welded together.

[bigdog99]

i will probably go to the taller tire when i change, i have a 55 series now. you get lots of torque with the shorter tire, but i would like to bring the rpm's down. especially now with the gas prices. unfortunately i will have to do the nut mod. 
wish i would have been a member and read about it before i put the tire i have on. although, the Hankook has been a great tire. it still looks good, and handles well.

[Ricky-D]

I don't understand how welding the two fender halves will mitigate the situation since the bolts are still necessary for fender rigidity.

I found there are not as many tire options with the 60 profile as with the 55 profile, 55 being the tire I am presently using. I have not even looked at a 65 profile tire.

I did notice a drop in mileage but didn't consider the tire having a lot to do with that since the difference is not that much.

[X Ring]

I'm running a Toyo Proxes TPT in 205/65HR-16.  Lots of people told me it would be a difficult fit but I didn't have any problems other than cutting the nut cages.  It did drop my rpms at speed by 2-300 which would probably give me a little better economy if I could keep from twisting my wrist.    I'm happy with the size.  

Moving up from a 55 series tire, you will probably bring your rpms down about 500 rpms while cruising on the highway and depending on your wrist twisting you fuel mileage will go up.  Down sides can be finding a tire.  Bigger variety in 55 and 60 series tires.  Every Valk is different so what fits mine may not fit yours.  That being said.  Give it a try.  Find the tire you like and compare it specs to the tire you're currently running, especially width.  Good Luck.

Marty

[0leman]

I went with the 65 series tire, 205/65 HydroEdge.   I had to do the rear cage nut/new bolt plus move the front fender bolt out a bit.  I wanted to put a General tire on her but couldn't find any in the 65 series that I liked.  When (if) I wear out this tire, I will probably go to a 60 series as there are more choices.

Only downer, so far, is that Valk seems to lean over a bit further over when on the kickstand and really had to jack up the "ole Lady" when I put the tire on.  I would suggest that you not weld the fenders as you might have to take it off the rear section to get the tire on/off.

[Smokinjoe-VRCCDS#0005]

I like soft compound the Cooper Zeon 2XS is 280 rated I also run a Fuzion ZRi that's 320 rated both in the 205/55. My style of riding I just feel better knowing when I go into a hard curve I'm going to come out of it still on my bike.Picture below was taken a couple weeks ago by www.moonshinephoto.com up on US129 The Dragon the road was covered in salt and marbles the tire never broke loose....Cooper Zeon rear and Avon Venom front.Some of these hard compound Grandma's Buick tires these guy's mount on their Valk's I would'nt ride to the mailbox on.

[John Schmidt]

Using the RPM link below, you'll see that going from a 205/55/16 to a 205/65//16 will cause a 183 RPM drop/difference at 3k.

http://www.dakota-truck.net/TIRECALC/tirecalc.html

[Tropic traveler]

I have a 205/65 Michelin Hydroedge on my '99. I did have to do the nutcage mod to keep it from rubbing. After that no rubbing issues.
As far as RPM even the 65 series seems to cause a few more RPM at speed than a 180/70/16 Avon rear MC tire. Not a significant difference but it certainly isn't LESS RPM. I would imagine a 60 or especially a 55 series would add a noticeable amount of RPM.
The CT is coming off & a new Avon MC rear is going back on soon.

[John Schmidt]

Eddie, according to the link I show above, if you're turning 3k with the 180/70/16, the 205/65/16 will show 65 RPM less. It has to run at a lower RPM....it's over 1/2" taller and slightly more than 1.75" greater in circumference than the 180.

[Mildew]

I ran the 55 for 24,000 and switched to a 60 and I notice a difference on the ride. The 60 seems to be made fore the bike. No nut cage mod was done. I may try a 65 or a 70 on my next just to experience them all. I'm sure I'll have to do some grinding to do then but taller rubber equals less rotation per mile which will result in longer wear but the splines may be bone dry if one never greases those things until it tire change time.

[X Ring]

When I went DarkSide I was advised to take my rear wheel off every 10K miles to perform the required maintenance.  To make it easy to remember, I do it at every 10K reading on the odometer, i.e.  40K, 50K etc.

Marty

[Tropic traveler]

Eddie, according to the link I show above, if you're turning 3k with the 180/70/16, the 205/65/16 will show 65 RPM less. It has to run at a lower RPM....it's over 1/2" taller and slightly more than 1.75" greater in circumference than the 180.

Not so sure about that, John. Maybe it's a perception on my part but I do run only 28 psi in the car tire to get rid of some if the ill low speed handling. I run 40-42 in the Avons. The psi disparity may shrink the CT & increase the circumference of the Avon.
Like a lot of things sometimes the real world results differ from the "charts". I'll find out for sure after I switch back to an Avon.
But of course even that result may be skewed as I'm switching to a brand new Metz & taking off a worn out Bridgestone on the front. More circumference variable to throw off the speedo.  ???

[rodeo1]

i do not ! want to start a crapslinging contest here, i just would like you guys to explain something to me. i keep reading how you are changing these car tires out at 24,000 +- miles. if you aren't getting a boatload of miles from them, why run them ? i get right at 20,000 out of a set of elite 3's. do the car tires have enough good qualities to be only good for an additional 4,000 miles ?

when i see the photo smokinjoe posted i see a bike cornering on the very edge of a car tire, scares me to watch it. but again, i am uneducated in the use of tires not intended for the application.

just asking.

[Daniel Meyer]

i do not ! want to start a crapslinging contest here, i just would like you guys to explain something to me. i keep reading how you are changing these car tires out at 24,000 +- miles. if you aren't getting a boatload of miles from them, why run them ? i get right at 20,000 out of a set of elite 3's. do the car tires have enough good qualities to be only good for an additional 4,000 miles ?

when i see the photo smokinjoe posted i see a bike cornering on the very edge of a car tire, scares me to watch it. but again, i am uneducated in the use of tires not intended for the application.

just asking.

Because the way I ride I may get 20,000 out of a car tire (usually somewhat less), but I'll eat an E3 or an Avon on the rear in about 7-10,000 (I've had several I had to change sooner than an oil change). In addition, they outhandle the the MC tires, but as you know, that's a controversial topic.

 

[John Schmidt]

The braking is especially important. If you lock up the rear m/c tire in a panic stop, you run a good chance of high siding. Three times in traffic I've had to hit the anchors and that rear c/t just squatted and grabbed....in a straight line.

[Tropic traveler]

The braking is especially important. If you lock up the rear m/c tire in a panic stop, you run a good chance of high siding. Three times in traffic I've had to hit the anchors and that rear c/t just squatted and grabbed....in a straight line.

+1.... I will miss two things about the car tire when it's gone. The great rear braking & the looks & questions that almost always follow when people notice it. 
I still say I would love to find a 195/70/16 car tire to try on a Valk. Some RPM reduction AND probably no rubbing issues that a 205/65 CT can have.

[2qmedic]

i do not ! want to start a crapslinging contest here, i just would like you guys to explain something to me. i keep reading how you are changing these car tires out at 24,000 +- miles. if you aren't getting a boatload of miles from them, why run them ? i get right at 20,000 out of a set of elite 3's. do the car tires have enough good qualities to be only good for an additional 4,000 miles ?

when i see the photo smokinjoe posted i see a bike cornering on the very edge of a car tire, scares me to watch it. but again, i am uneducated in the use of tires not intended for the application.

just asking.

I had some concerns on the actual performance when I went to the darkside. But the tire will conform somewhat to the road. The tire does not actually ride up onto the actual edge like many believe.
That being said, when going around a corner, I don't worry about the traction of the rear car tire. The rear end is like glued to the road. The front will slide out before the rear.
Cheers

[blotar]

I have great respect for many of the responders here, as I have read much from some of them. Having said that I realize that much is said about riding style and so what I am about to say may mean that My Style needs to change? While out on a trip with 5 or 6 K miles on my C/T
 (gytt - 205/60/16) Some of us decided to wring out our motors. I followed a couple of adventurous souls and at 115 mph on a smooth road the 'fat lady' started complaining loudly by twisting and swerving all over the road. She didn't stop all that scary nonsense until I got down to about 90 mph or so. I discovered that I could cruise on a good road at 105 mph without too much back talk from her, but let the road  roughen up a little and that top speed goes way down. basically anything over 85 mph is uncomfortable over time. (I am running 38 psi in the C/T and 42 psi up front, a metzler) Now the question is, do I need a different bike for this style of riding? Or is my air pressure too low?
thanks in advance for any input that you have.
Blotar

[X Ring]

Wow!  You're running 38 in your car tire?  When I converted a year and a half ago, I was told by many members of this site and a couple of DarkSide sites to run 40 psi till the tire sidewalls were broken in then drop the air pressure a couple of psi at a time till I was satisfied with the handling.  I'm currently running 30-32 psi.  I know one VRCC member that runs 26.  The lower pressure allows the sidewall to flex which will keep the tread planted on the road.  Try it, you've got nothing to lose.

Marty

[Daniel Meyer]

I have great respect for many of the responders here, as I have read much from some of them. Having said that I realize that much is said about riding style and so what I am about to say may mean that My Style needs to change? While out on a trip with 5 or 6 K miles on my C/T
 (gytt - 205/60/16) Some of us decided to wring out our motors. I followed a couple of adventurous souls and at 115 mph on a smooth road the 'fat lady' started complaining loudly by twisting and swerving all over the road. She didn't stop all that scary nonsense until I got down to about 90 mph or so. I discovered that I could cruise on a good road at 105 mph without too much back talk from her, but let the road  roughen up a little and that top speed goes way down. basically anything over 85 mph is uncomfortable over time. (I am running 38 psi in the C/T and 42 psi up front, a metzler) Now the question is, do I need a different bike for this style of riding? Or is my air pressure too low?
thanks in advance for any input that you have.
Blotar

Don't know if it's your air pressure or something else, but something is wrong.

Should be rock steady at any speed.

[2qmedic]

Concerning the high speed stuff. At 1st, I noticed like he said that hitting 90mph the rear would begin to wobble. After a while I figured that running a higher pressure would stiffen the tire and decrease the wobble.
However, I did change the shock bushings and it helped.
I still need to tighten the steering head bearings.
Fork wings helped to stabilize it also (no wobble up to 115mph)
But the increased psi made a big difference in the handling.
I run a GG triple tread at 38 psi, and as mentioned earlier, a higher speed rated tire has stiffer sidewalls of which I will be sure to get for the next tire. The stiffer side wall will help the stability. I currently have 22K miles on it and 6/32 tread left. So I still have quite a few miles left.
It rides different than a MC tire. Like anything else, I learned the pros and cons (little wobbly at top end), but the pros have won, hands down. Like I pointed out above, I have purchased 1 CT and it should last longer than 3 MC tires at this rate.
Enjoy and Ride Safe

[X Ring]

Yeah, I'll have to admit I was advised to buy at least an H speed rated tire for the the stiffer sidewalls.

Marty

[blotar]

Thanks for the help. I have changed upper shock bushings when I went darkside. I have tried to find any play in the triple tree while on the jack and it seems to be rock solid. It does however swivel very freely. I may need to add some preload to the assy to make sure there is no play. I realize that the front wheel and forks are kind of heavy and lifting up on the tire might move the bike on the jack before the looseness is noticed.?? I like the idea of a higher rating on the next tire. the only thing that I havn't checked is the possibility of swing arm slop. I am not sure how to measure that. Thanks for the posts I feel like I have a few things to try.
Blotar

[Mildew]

The wet road braking is one great feature the c/t gives. I doubt I would still have my valk if I
 hadn't switched

[2qmedic]

The wet road braking is one great feature the c/t gives. I doubt I would still have my valk if I
 hadn't switched

Amen on that one sir.
Tat is one of the things that I will point out to some one inquiring about the CT. There is no squirmey feeling of riding on ice persay. You still know the road is wet, but you still feel secure with the CT. You know your on the ground with traction.