Sick of talking about tires yet? I recently bought a 1980 Suzuki GS850G + Sputnik sidecar. Following a suggestion from this forum, I'm replacing the forks with GS850GL forks for less rake. I'm also replacing the wheel with a tubeless type wheel. I also need a new tire for the front, and all the nice squared off sidecar tires are TT only. So now I have a couple questions. Say the bike (557 wet) + packed luggage + fairing + gear + rider is about 900lbs, Sidecar is 235lbs with 100lbs weight in it. 1. Is a 507lb weight rating good enough for the front tire? 2. Would something like this work? https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00570XH1W/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o06_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1 I know that's pretty specific. I actually already ordered it before coming to ask for help. It says 6 ply, but when I got the tire, the sidewall says 3 ply tread, 2 ply sidewalls. I'm not sure that that means 6 ply, but I don't know if there's some magic involved. 3. If anyone has any tire suggestions, I would greatly appreciate it 3.5-19 (stock) or 100/90-19 size Rim is 2.15 inches wide
that should work. some times tire maufactors with give a ply rating instead of accual ply. So it could be you have a ply rating that would corespond to a 6ply tire
Avon tripple duty sidecar tyre. They come in 19". The big load though on most rigs is on the rear tyre almost half the total if i remember correctly. Also that is the one subject to the most wear. Is yours a 17" or 18" rear? I think Metzler? do an 18" rear sidecar tyre (square tread) I could stand corrected on that though.
Avon Triple Duty is a TT tire. The O.P. needs a TL tire. 500 lbs is fine up front. About 30% of the rig's weight is carried up front. 50% in the rear. That Kenda tire you bought is kind of a lightweight. If low price is your main criteria, you would be better off with a Kenda K671 Cruiser. Same price but much beefier. A 2.15 rim doesn't leave you with a lot of choices but if you can dig a little deeper into your wallet for a much better street tire (I'm assuming you want to stick with a street tire and not an adventure tire?) you should have no problem at all bumping up to a Bridgestone G515 bias-belted tire in size 110/80-19. Stiffer sidewall with a little bigger contact patch.
When shopping for tires, there is a series of filters (decisions) you need to consider. Size. Duh! Obviously, the tire needs to fit your bike. Though for sidecars, there is often more than one size you can try. Still, if it's not the right size, it's not the right size. TT (tube type) or TL (tubeless). Your rims are one or the other. Yes, some guys will mix and match if they know what they're doing, but you need to know what kind of tire you're looking for and ignore the others. Front or Rear. Front tires have a more rounded profile than rear tires which aids in handling on a solo bike. For non-leaning hacks, the flatter (or "squarer") the profile the better. That's why many of us use Rear tires up front. Bias ply or radial ply. Each has its pros and cons, but you should figure out what you want, or at least be aware of what kind of tire you're buying. There are some newer tires with very stiff sidewalls that are technically radials, but for most radial tires are more compliant and "grippy" while bias ply tires tend to be stiffer to better resist lateral deflection while cornering a sidecar. Tread. Street tread (100% paved; 0% off-pavement), Adventure (80/20), Off-pavement (usually 50/50), or Knobbies (100% for dirt, sand, and mud). Price and reputed quality. This being the case, it amazes me how many tire vendors don't state if the tire is TT or TL, don't say if it's bias or radial, and some don't even indicate Front or Rear. But anyway, this is the decision tree I use when shopping for tires.
I would've thought that Speed and load ratings would fall well within the parameter of being in #1. .
If you use helium in the tires load rating is mute. It makes gravity loose its hold on these overweight beast.
That old Suzi will probably chew off whatever you feed it, find as large a tire as you can fit in the forks.
+1 and I would add that replacing the front wheel with a wider one, to fit a wider tire, would probably give you tires that ride better and last longer. Not to mention better braking with a bigger contact patch. The biggest tire that will fit, even if it means a wider rim.
Look for the load code (index number) on sidewall. Hope this helps. Tire loading info: LOAD INDEX (LI) RATING CHART LI lbs. LI lbs. LI lbs. LI lbs. LI lbs. 20 176 33 254 46 375 59 536 72 783 21 182 34 260 47 386 60 551 73 805 22 187 35 267 48 397 61 567 74 827 23 193 36 276 49 408 62 584 75 853 24 198 37 282 50 419 63 600 76 882 25 204 38 291 51 430 64 617 77 908 26 209 39 300 52 441 65 639 78 937 27 215 40 309 53 454 66 661 79 963 28 220 41 320 54 467 67 677 80 992 29 227 42 331 55 481 68 694 81 1019 30 234 43 342 56 494 69 716 82 1047 31 240 44 353 57 507 70 736 83 1074 32 247 45 364 58 520 71 761 84 1102
Thanks so much for the replies, folks. I vaguely remember this from looking at LT tires. Makes sense. I still think this will be my reason for returning the tire. Thanks, I was hoping for this kind of specific suggestion. Price is definitely an important criteria right now, and with the K657 I thought I had found a cheap heavy duty tire which happens to have a flat surface profile. Looking back that may have been foolish. Should I be concerned that the G515 is fairly rounded? I did try to look for a rear tire, but I couldn't find a rear tubeless in a 19". I'm only looking to do paved roads, dirt roads, and gravel roads. I think stepping up the price to match the G515 opens some possibilities in the adv tire segment. Do you by any chance have any suggestions there? The newer 2.15 inch rim I bought is already a step in the right direction from the stock '80 rim, which is 1.95 inches! I'm the worst kind of buyer, no time, no money. The later year tubeless GS850 wheels are a bit wider, have the tubeless bead, and interchange directly with my brakes/axle. Also I picked one up for about $35 shipped. I needed a new front tire, so now I get a slightly wider wheel without any added work, for $35, and I really can't beat that right now. It should server for the next tire or 2.
The G515 profile is not really any different than any other front tire in the same size. Don't trust internet pictures -- they are not real. To step up to an Adventure tire, realize that nearly every tire in this segment is a radial. Looking only at 110/80-19's, if you can find an Avon AM43 Distanzia, that would be a good one, but it's being phased out by Avon. Other than that, the Metzeler Tourance is tried and true, the Continental TKC70 is a rising star, and if you wanted to go to a more 50/50 tire the Heidenau K60 Scout is a real winner.
I've liked Tourances on 2-wheelers before, but they're a bit more than I want to spend right now. The Avons, too. Bad timing - I also need tires for my commuter right now, and I can't afford to have a cheaper tire on that motorcycle. I hadn't considered the TKC 70's before. They have a bias ply TL 100/90-19. It's a little thinner than the 110, but it's bias ply, so hopefully that trade off is worth it. Also a fantastic price for an adventure tire (probably due to bias ply). I think that's what I'm going to go with. That looks like it will be a good option for the rear wheel, too. https://smile.amazon.com/Continenta...id=1481132075&sr=8-1&keywords=TKC70+100/90-19 Thanks again
I didn't know the 100/90-19 was not a radial. I learned something today. For the rear tire, that's a totally different kettle. I don't think you'll be happy with how fast it'll wear. Plus, with your load you'll probably get some cupping. What size rim are you working with, and what size tire is on there now? I can throw out some options to consider.
The rear is a 17x2.5 rim, tubeless. The stock size is 4.5-17, so I know a 120/90 or 130/90 should be good. I think anything wider would be too wide for the 2.5
Hmmmm . . . another skinny rim. Now here is where you could really do yourself a favor by finding a wider rim that would work with your bike! A guy you might consult with here is NortwestRider. He hacked a GS850 recently. I'm not sure, but he might have changed his handle to BigFatAl. A PM to both those guys might be worthwhile. If the 130/90 will fit, good, but I think it's a little wide for a 2.5" rim. A 130/100 would be better, but there aren't any good choices in that size--just fairly soft dual sport tires that will wear quickly. A 120/90 will look a little short I think but might be a better choice. You might have to adjust the suspension to make the bike sit right. That said, the Avon Roadrider AM26 is a tubeless bias ply long distance touring tire. So is the Bridgestone Battlax BT45. Both are excellent. There is also the TKC70 bias-ply rear in 120/90 as you pointed out above. This tire has a tendency to cup when used on a non-leaning motorcycle, but might be a better match to a TKC70 front both from an appearance aspect as well as traction.
I'm afraid anything wider than a 130 is a non-starter anyway due to the swingarm. I went out to measure how much room I had, and it looks like the 130 is the most I can fit. This is a 130/90-17 on there now, and there's no more than 4 mm of clearance. So I think I just have to choose between a 120/90 adventure tire and a 130/90 touring tire. It's not imperative that I choose immediately, since the rear has some more tread left in it.
