Rear Tire

[Mud_Bug]

I have seen and read a little about people putting a car tire on instead of the "motorcycle tire". I don't know much about this since I'm all new to the Valk world.  I', looking at finally picking up mine Monday and need a little insight about what to do since the rear tire needs to be replaced already.  What would be the benefits of doing this or downfalls? The only advantage I can see would be tire life as I'm sure the automobile tire would last a little longer than the soft rubber on the other.  What tire manufacturer and size are typically used when doing this? I know it seems redundant and a hidious question....I simply do not know about any of this. HELP please......

[RainMaker]

This subject has burned up a lot of digital space over the years.  Suggest you do a search on "darkside" and you'll find a lot of articles, pro and con.  Tire sizes vary - I run a General Altimax 205-60-16.  But there are other choices.

Some swear by it (like me).  Others hate car tires.  Both opinions are right.

Darkside sizes topic, for example http://www.valkyrieforum.com/bbs/index.php/topic,46656.0.html



RainMaker

[Mud_Bug]

Thanks Rainmaker. I had no idea what to search for here since I'm all new to this world.  ALL of my past experience has been on a crotch rocket and 4 wheelers/SxS.

[BuzzKill]

I would suggest to think about how you plan on riding before thinking of what tire.  I'm running the same tire as Rainmaker.  Me personally, I would think about just starting with a normal MC tire if this is your first Valk.  Ride it for 6-12k, depending on what tire you get, and just get used to the bike itself.  During that time you might have the opportunity to ride one with a CT on it.  Then when its worn out, you can decide on what to replace it with.  If you just put a couple thousand miles a year, maybe just keep the MC tire and replace it every 3-4 years.  If you put 8-10k+ a year, it might make more sense to use a CT.  Thats my 2 cents.  Keep the change.  And just about any question you can think of has been brought up in some fashion.  The Tech Forum can be a useful tool, use it wisely.

[Christbiker]

Mud_Bug, please tell us more about your first Valk.  Pics are always good.  Did you buy it locally?

 
Blessings,

Woody

[john]

             mr bug     

         where in tyler are you located ... if I may           ???

[Mud_Bug]

I dont know much about this bike, but here's the info that I have:

'97 Valk, 19,000 miles, all services and work has been done at the local Honda shop.  I'm buying it from the second owner (shich is a really good friend oif mine) and I know that he's not ridden it much.  He's selling it due to health reasons and surgeries coming up. I don't hjave any pics to post from the computer, so I'll try to post some from my phone.  

[Mud_Bug]

             mr bug     

         where in tyler are you located ... if I may           ???

I live in Noonday but work in Tyler

[Mud_Bug]

Can't seem to figure out how to post pics from my phone. Sorry y'all.

[Mud_Bug]

Link to the Craigs List add....He just hasnt taken it down yet. 

http://easttexas.craigslist.org/mcy/4064419720.html

[RainMaker]

That plate is expired so likely that it hasn't been ridden much in the last year or more.  As the dealer has done all the service, I'd tear down the rear end immediately and check the splines and pinion cup - very few dealers seem  to do this maintenance correctly.  Good info is on the VRCC Shop Talk section http://valkyrieriders.com/shoptalk/



ThagAndy does have a good point - just go with the motorcycle tire to start.  After that, make your decision.  This valk is probably on it's second rear tire right now and I'll bet it's 10 years old.  Check the date on the front tire - if it's 6 years old or getting close to that, replace it, no matter what tread is left.

If it has had recent carb service, you may be ok.  If not, run some Seafoam through the tank to clear up minor issues. 

[Mud_Bug]

Thank all of you so much for this info. I think I found a jewel, only time will tell the truth.

[rocketray]

 I did the car tire and......it handles poorly   .....if you are cruising down the interstate for all your riding you will love the wear.....buy one   ......since the average guy rides 3-4 K a year     replacing the tire every 2-4 years is a small price to pay for great emergency save yourself  turns....I took mine off half worn and am very happy

[RainMaker]

I did the car tire and......it handles poorly   .....if you are cruising down the interstate for all your riding you will love the wear.....buy one   ......since the average guy rides 3-4 K a year     replacing the tire every 2-4 years is a small price to pay for great emergency save yourself  turns....I took mine off half worn and am very happy

Your car tire handled poorly.  That is a sample of 1.  Mine handles great.  Ask anyone who has followed me through turns. Watch Jimmy (HayHauler) if you want to see some great handling with any tire, but his is a car tire.  

But if you only ride 3K a year, a car tire would be 10-12 years old before you wore it out and any tire past 6 years old is dangerous.  

I'm not sure 3-4K a year is the average Valk rider, either.

[Disco]

Good find, Mud_Bug!  I look forward to more reports on your Valkyrie Rescue progress!  Hope to meet and ride with you soon.  

Now, to the tire...  Darkside is not for everyone.  That's why Baskin Robbins makes 31 flavors.  Ride whatever you decide is right for you.  However...

since the average guy rides 3-4 K a year

   Maybe the Stroker's crowd does, but not too many folks on here suffer from that deficiency.  Many of us take trips longer than 4K miles.  

I did the car tire and......it handles poorly

That's fine, RR.  Your tire setup didn't work for you, your bike, your riding style.  You are not alone.  Others have tried it and not liked it, either.  However, simply putting a motorcycle tire on a motorcycle doesn't ensure that it will perform like you want it or need it to.  One could install the wrong motorcycle tire and have a poor handling bike, too.  To make my point with absurdities, knobbies on a crotch rocket, slicks on a dirtbike, etc...  Similarly, just because a tire wasn't designed specifically for a motorcycle does not mean that it will perform poorly on a motorcycle.  

It's all about vehicle + application.  We're not talking Dick Cepek's on a Moto GP bike.  We are talking soft compound, symmetrical tread, properly inflated performance tires on a nice-handling, heavy, muscle cruiser/touring bike.  

Tread design, Uniform Tire Quality Grade (UTQG) (roughly, tire compound softness/hardness - low number to high number = soft to hard), and especially psi all are significant contributors to tire performance and how it will feel.  Some require much more steering input than others - so much so that the first one I tested, the very popular Goodyear Triple Tread, was a definite no-go for me - but some are very neutral.  I would challenge any rider of reasonable competence to say either the Falken Ziex 512 I just took off or the General Altimax HP I'm currently riding handles poorly.  Both of those are symmetrical treads.  My first, a Continental Vanco, was asymmetrical, but about as neutral is you can get in an asymmetrical tread.  I only realized its "personality" once I replaced it (at >31K miles) with the Falken.  

And by the way, not just on a straightaway, but even in the turns, a good darkside tire at a good pressure will have more meat on the ground than a motorcycle tire will.  HayHauler on a GYTT, 5_19 on a Toyo Proxes, and I on my Vanco followed a friend up the Blue Ridge Parkway and got a kick out of watching the relative width of the water trails we all left from puddle to dry to puddle to dry.  All three of us had wider trails than our friend on his MC tire.  

Bottom Line:  If you are inclined toward an MC tire, or are the least bit skittish about a DS tire, get an MC tire.  That will get you on the road and the miles you'll have should enable you to take someone's DS around the block.  OR, if you are intrigued with the possibility of roughly twice the life at less than 50% of the cost, get yourself the very neutral and easy to ride V-Rated General Altimax HP in 205/60-16.  That's what I did.

[Red Diamond]

I'll try to give a prospective from a non-darksider, meaning I prefer not to ride a car tire. I can't say I won't ride one in the future, there are many that I know who do use them. I have a rescue Valkyrie with a Hankook Optima H727, P205 60 on it. When I ride it, I cannot tell that it is a car tire on the rear of this bike. I have ridden some that I can really tell that there is a car tire on it.  Disco has good advice there, try several until one gives you that, "there is not a car tire on this bike" feeling. Most who ride the car tire have been doing so for a while and they are quite pro on that issue. You probably already know what a motorcycle tire feels like, get the darkside issue solved, don't let it haunt you, then ride what you feel safe riding.

[RainMaker]

Remember - going Darkside can lead to a flaming death!

[WDAN]

Good find, Mud_Bug!  I look forward to more reports on your Valkyrie Rescue progress!  Hope to meet and ride with you soon.  

Now, to the tire...  Darkside is not for everyone.  That's why Baskin Robbins makes 31 flavors.  Ride whatever you decide is right for you.  However...

since the average guy rides 3-4 K a year

   Maybe the Stroker's crowd does, but not too many folks on here suffer from that deficiency.  Many of us take trips longer than 4K miles.  

I did the car tire and......it handles poorly

That's fine, RR.  Your tire setup didn't work for you, your bike, your riding style.  You are not alone.  Others have tried it and not liked it, either.  However, simply putting a motorcycle tire on a motorcycle doesn't ensure that it will perform like you want it or need it to.  One could install the wrong motorcycle tire and have a poor handling bike, too.  To make my point with absurdities, knobbies on a crotch rocket, slicks on a dirtbike, etc...  Similarly, just because a tire wasn't designed specifically for a motorcycle does not mean that it will perform poorly on a motorcycle.  

It's all about vehicle + application.  We're not talking Dick Cepek's on a Moto GP bike.  We are talking soft compound, symmetrical tread, properly inflated performance tires on a nice-handling, heavy, muscle cruiser/touring bike.  

Tread design, Uniform Tire Quality Grade (UTQG) (roughly, tire compound softness/hardness - low number to high number = soft to hard), and especially psi all are significant contributors to tire performance and how it will feel.  Some require much more steering input than others - so much so that the first one I tested, the very popular Goodyear Triple Tread, was a definite no-go for me - but some are very neutral.  I would challenge any rider of reasonable competence to say the either Falken Ziex 512 I just took off or the General Altimax HP I'm currently riding handles poorly.  Both of those are symmetrical treads.  My first, a Continental Vanco, was asymmetrical, but about as neutral is you can get in an asymmetrical tread.  I only realized its "personality" once I replaced it (at >31K miles) with the Falken.  

And by the way, not just on a straightaway, but even in the turns, a good darkside tire at a good pressure will have more meat on the ground than a motorcycle tire will.  HayHauler on a GYTT, 5_19 on a Toyo Proxes, and I on my Vanco followed a friend up the Blue Ridge Parkway and got a kick out of watching the relative width of the water trails we all left from puddle to dry to puddle to dry.  All three of us had wider trails than our friend on his MC tire.  

Bottom Line:  If you are inclined toward an MC tire, or are the least bit skittish about a DS tire, get an MC tire.  That will get you on the road and the miles you'll have should enable you to take someone's DS around the block.  OR, if you are intrigued with the possibility of roughly twice the life at less than 50% of the cost, get yourself the very neutral and easy to ride V-Rated General Altimax HP in 205/60-16.  That's what I did.

I am a committed "Whitesider" All about looks. Need for high mileage tire not important. Do want safety though.

[Valkpilot]

I did the car tire and......it handles poorly   .....if you are cruising down the interstate for all your riding you will love the wear.....buy one   ......since the average guy rides 3-4 K a year     replacing the tire every 2-4 years is a small price to pay for great emergency save yourself  turns....I took mine off half worn and am very happy

Your car tire handled poorly.  That is a sample of 1.  Mine handles great.  Ask anyone who has followed me through turns. Watch Jimmy (HayHauler) if you want to see some great handling with any tire, but his is a car tire.  

But if you only ride 3K a year, a car tire would be 10-12 years old before you wore it out and any tire past 6 years old is dangerous.  

I'm not sure 3-4K a year is the average Valk rider, either.

What Rainmaker said, +1.

I've got over 80k miles on Valkyries and well over half of that is on car tires.  Have never had one that "handled poorly" at any speed, including in the parking lot.

But, it's important to pick the right tire and run the right air pressure.  Some tread patterns will definitely fight you more than others.

Most who try the Darkside, stay with it.

All that said, follow Buzzkill's advice for now.

[HayHauler]

I guess I will submit my $.01875.
I didn't really like my first CT, the Goodyear Triple Tread was pretty flat with sharp edges.  I rode it for about 7,000 miles.  I switched to the Falken Ziex 205-65-16 and man what a difference.  I now have 80,000 DS miles and I am now a DS Lifer.

Ride what you like, but get out and ride every chance you get.  

Ride Safe Brothers.

Hay  
Jimmyt

[houstone]

What the heck, can't resist this one!  ;-)
My 2nd GYTT is about to come off after 2 years and 31000 miles.  It will be replaced by the first one going back on since it has "only" 22000 on it.  They were each about 120 bucks, and I LOVE the handling.  Infact, I am about to order new driver fottpegs since the boltheads are gone from mine, and it's starting to gnaw on my kickstand...and the cookies are yummy!
Wheee!

[HayHauler]

I might have to look at my kickstand....  it seems to hit first on the left hand side.  Especially 2-up...

Sorry for the temporary hijack... Now back to our regularly scheduled programming.   

Hay 
Jimmyt

[SideCar]

+1 on Buzzkill's madness in his method (his idea) about riding MC tire first.  And, yes, I admit I was a very early adopter of car tires, but unless you've ridden the Valk with an MC tire, you don't really know how they compare to the car tire.