Thinking about a wider rear tire

[Pterodactyl_imp]

160 is too wide for 4.25". A 150/70 is the largest size that can properly fit on our bike. If we don't care about how it handles and just care about the look, then at least do it right:

[url=http://kosmanspecialties.com/services/wheel-widening-and-weldups/]Kosman Specialties Wheel Widening

Again, we see people desperate to revert our bikes to a modern bike.

I don't get it Red, do you?

FOR THE LAST TIME. CB1000R's ARE AVAILABLE!

Again, we see people desperate to revert our bikes to a modern bike.

I don't get it Red, do you?

FOR THE LAST TIME. CB1000R's ARE AVAILABLE!

Meaty! I love it...


And who are we today, Mr T, Dr Jekyll or Mr Hyde?

Seriously though, I'm in need of new rubber, particularly rear. Reading the tyre threads (this one and the Michelin PR3 thread) is enough to make anyone tired. The manufacturer recommended tyres, BT54 and D205, are no longer listed as available. At least not here in OZ, in stock size. Since changing from the D205s I have been running BT 45s. I have been happy with them, but in stock size they would now appear to be a "special order" (subtext $$$. I'd like to go back to radials, from the bias, so am now looking at the Dunlop Roadsmart and the Michelin PR 3s. Stock size in the front and 160/60s rear. I will be heavily influenced by cost and availability.

Cheers

[Cormanus]

That's interesting, Pterodactyl. I just replaced my Dunlops with BT45s which the tyre dealer had in stock. So far so good.

[Pterodactyl_imp]

That's interesting, Pterodactyl. I just replaced my Dunlops with BT45s which the tyre dealer had in stock. So far so good.

I had a good run with the BT45s, particularly wear, but they do exhibit bias ply characteristics. I preferred them to the D205s that were fitted on delivery. The Hay Plains flattened my rear tyre off so time for a change. Am now reading the "On the fence" tyre thread. Worse than oil threads!!

Cheers
"Special order" means freight, $50. Probably from Brisbane.

[Riko_imp]

hmm that BT45 160 rear tire, is that on a stock rim?

[the Ferret]

That's interesting, Pterodactyl. I just replaced my Dunlops with BT45s which the tyre dealer had in stock. So far so good.

I had a good run with the BT45s, particularly wear, but they do exhibit bias ply characteristics. I preferred them to the D205s that were fitted on delivery. The Hay Plains flattened my rear tyre off so time for a change. Am now reading the "On the fence" tyre thread. Worse than oil threads!!

Cheers
"Special order" means freight, $50. Probably from Brisbane.

hardly

Fact is, the manufacture has very highly educated engineers. The very highly educated engineers design the bike. The very highly educated engineers who designed the bike, specify which tires we should run on the bike they designed

BUT... we know better.........

You're right..it IS like an oil thread.

[Pterodactyl_imp]

hmm that BT45 160 rear tire, is that on a stock rim?

Yes stock rim. But it wasn't a 160. It was a BT45 140/70/18. Hmmm, I don't think I said it was a 160.

Cheers

[ingobohn_imp]

You could also consider the classic BT 45 as it is available in the right dimensions. It is however NOT recommended by Bridgestone, so you'd run on your own risk.

The BT45 is a bias ply tire which is (I asked Bridgestone and got it as reply) totally NOT recommended for use on the CB 1100.
Meanwhile my dealer mounted Pirelli Sport Demons on my CB 1100 (both tires had enough profile left for another 6.000 km, but the front tire showed an extreme and unacceptable sawtooth pattern.

My first impressions after 600 km:
(+) The tires get faster and slightly higher warmed up which helps having a good grip.
(+) The tire falls much easier into the curve than my Dunlops. In the beginning it was a bit surprising, now I am used to it. They are more agile.
(+) Nonetheless, running straight forward (even with higher speed) is still stable.
(+) Correcting the drive line in curves needs a bit more "hands on" compared to my Dunnies.
(o) The profile design looks even a bit too modern for a classic bike like the CB 1100.
(o) No difference in grip compared to the Dunlops on dry road. (Wet roads not tested so far.)
(-) The Pirellis are a bit harder (or have stiffer flanks) so they are a bit less comfortable than my Dunnies. Maybe I will reduce tire pressure by 0,1 or 0,2 bar.
(-) The tires follow a bit more road ruts or markings.

After now approx. 1000 km with the Sport Demon, I still did not completely get used to this very agile way of falling into the curves. I played around a bit with different tire pressures (lower/higher) but this did not work out.

What I did: I changed the pre-load of the rear suspension 1 setting softer (now on "2", before it was on "3"). The factory setup is "2" but I changed it after the run-in period to "3" because the whole bike was a bit more precise in handling then. The higher pre-load put more pressure on the front fork/wheel which helped a bit. But it seems that the Pirelli Sport Demon do not like this higher pressure. After setting it to "2" and doing a test ride, I was completely surprised how much better it is now. I did not expect that this would really have such a significant impact...

[ingobohn_imp]

Today, it was my first ride with the Pirelli Sport Demon on wet roads ("normal" rain). To make a long story short: no, the Pirellis do not have as much grip on wet roads as my former Dunlops D205. In one 90° turn with approx. 40 km/h speed, the front tire started skidding a bit - it was not dramatic as skidding started slowly not abruptly so I was able to intercept.

Wet grip together with the - for me - too agile handling in curves seems that the Dunlop would be the better choice for me and my CB compared to the Pirellis.

[Calamari_imp]

I wanted to add my 2 cents pertaining to the wider rear tire/wheel subject. I'm a big fan of a wider rear tire. I own a Suzuki M109R with a factory 240 rear tire. It's very fat and looks great. I also own a '13 CB1100 and had a sportbike until a couple weeks ago. With that said, the big rear tire definitely changes the handling of the bike. Even though Suzuki designed the M109R with the 240 rear, it is definitely different when turning with such a big rear tire and it's very noticeable. I'm sure they spent countless hours getting the geometry correct so it was rideable by the masses. I give them many props on the 240 setup. The factory did the 240 mod, so any time we decide to change our bike from the stock riding geometry, it's going to have some affects. We have to do our homework.

I say to each his/her own. There are certain things that I'll do to my bikes that some may not agree with and others may do things to their bikes that I wouldn't agree with. The cool thing is that we all have our bikes modded the way we like them. I won't knock anyone for how they personalize their bike because it's their bike not mine and quite frankly none of my business.

I personally want to put a sportbike 180 tire on my CB and am looking at how I can do that. I already know the handling will be affected and that I'll have to make some mods and I'm ok with that. Someone may say I could just go buy another bike with a 180 tire already on it. The thing is, I don't want another bike with the 180, I want the CB1100 with the 180 on it. I could understand someone's concern if it was the last CB on the planet but there are tons of them out there and people are buying the heck out of them. There are lots of them that will remain stock and tucked away in garages, living rooms, etc. The best thing I can do is research as much as possible and make sure I'm not doing anything unsafe because that's the stopping point for me. Another would be if it gets too involved or stupid expensive. One of the things I'm anal about is doing a ton of research before I jump into a mod. We all love bikes and our CB's. Let's just enjoy them. I say Mod away! Just be safe doing it.

[Pterodactyl_imp]

I'm finding the Michelin PR3 160 rear/110 front combination a pleasure to ride on. The Michelins have now done 900kms on all road types; highway, country road, straights and twisties, wet and dry. They work well both with a solo rider and a considerable load on the rack. I realise it is subjective of me but I am certain handling is better than the Dunlop 205s or Bridgestone BT45s I have used previously.

Cheers