Avon Venom Tyres are the Best!

[E-Fishin-C]

The one thing I did like about the Dunlaps was the availability of the raised white letters. I thought that looked good on my bike.

RandyA

 

My avons have white lettering .I use white tire marker.

[Cdnlouie]

Just a thought about comparing different types of tires. I wonder if we are doing a valid comparison between the previous old worn tire brand and the newly installed tire brand? At every new tire change you are going to notice a significant difference in tire behaviour and perhaps wrongly assume that they are better than the older brand. It has to be hard to remember how good a new tire handled when it was first put on, compared to the new one. It would be nice if we could rule out this subjective aspect of comparing the new with the old.

[Jerry W]

Ok, you guys are so cranial it just makes my head hurt to try and understand what all you have said. I have run Avons for several years. I put them on my 1996 Royal Star and loved then and plan to go to Avon's when I need tires on the 2006 RSV I bought in April.

 

I just want to ride and have fun, I retired in April and bought the RSV in May. I guess what I am asking is what tire sizes you are thinking I should go with. I always used the same size as what came on the '96 Royal Star and loved them. The 2006 RSV is a different bike and does not sit as low as the '96, I also have short legs.

 

Without having to understand exactly why, could I get you to let me know what is the best Avon Venom tire size for my 2006 RSV. I ride in town, out of town, highways, anyplace I can find pavement. I plan to do quite a bit of traveling since I retired, and will be riding double most of the time.

 

I realize this got a little long, you guys amaze me on your discussions and your understand of all the dynamics of bikes. I am just happy go get to ride.

[Freebird]

Just a thought about comparing different types of tires. I wonder if we are doing a valid comparison between the previous old worn tire brand and the newly installed tire brand? At every new tire change you are going to notice a significant difference in tire behaviour and perhaps wrongly assume that they are better than the older brand. It has to be hard to remember how good a new tire handled when it was first put on, compared to the new one. It would be nice if we could rule out this subjective aspect of comparing the new with the old.

 

I think there is some validity to this line of thought but let me give you one example. After the trip to Colorado, my rear Michelin Commander was pretty well shot. It may have made it a while longer but I didn't want to chance it on the Vogel trip. It turned out though that a friend and member here gave me the rear wheel and tire off his bike. He had it left over after his trike conversion. So, I found myself with a new rear Bridgestone. I had forgotten how awful the Bridgestone tires were until I headed to Vogel with this one. These have to be the worse tires on the market for our bikes. This thing just HOWLS if you get off dead center even a little bit. For example, you get a little cross wind or something where the bike is not running straight up. My hope was to wear this one out and by then the front would probably need replacing and I could do the set. I am leaning toward staying with the Michelin but haven't ruled out trying the Avons that everybody seems to like. I seriously doubt now though that I will wait that long. I may try to tolerate the Bridgestone the rest of this summer but that will be the most. Come spring, I will have a new rear tire. Probably go with another Michelin and then maybe after I wear it out, it will be time for a complete set and I can try the Avon then.

[Tom]

Just a thought about comparing different types of tires. I wonder if we are doing a valid comparison between the previous old worn tire brand and the newly installed tire brand? At every new tire change you are going to notice a significant difference in tire behaviour and perhaps wrongly assume that they are better than the older brand. It has to be hard to remember how good a new tire handled when it was first put on, compared to the new one. It would be nice if we could rule out this subjective aspect of comparing the new with the old.

Ok I am the Guinea Pig..I put a NEW set of Metz 880s on because I had to have new tires to got to Big Bend Park.While the tires were somewhat close to Avons as far as handling the road noise and roughness was TERRIBLE. I took my wife for a ride last weekend and didnt say a word about tires but she told me half way thru the ride "get me home,I hate these tires. When you put Avons back on I will ride with you again." So after 1500 or so miles I have Avons being installed on my bike today.Anyone want some Near newMetz880s,1500-1700 miles or less cheap?

[Ramblingman]

Well after all the talk of Avons I went with them too on my trip home from Texas...Tom was a gentleman and set me up to have them done in Kerrsville...well I have to say ...I'm sold on Avons ...I have the links so I went with the correct size front.. the bike feels about 300 pounds lighter ...I found with the Dunlops it liked to climb high in the curves ...not anymore...takes the line I want it to take ....and the difference is noise the wife noticed frist time out .... I pulled a trailer home and they made a difference dong that also ....As Squid says ...till I find better ....these are the tires that go on my bike!!!

[RickH]

Without having to understand exactly why, could I get you to let me know what is the best Avon Venom tire size for my 2006 RSV. I ride in town, out of town, highways, anyplace I can find pavement. I plan to do quite a bit of traveling since I retired, and will be riding double most of the time.

 

 

 

Here are the Tire sizes for the RSV.

 

 

 

I want to add a note here because for what ever reason I still see others mounting other tires. Yes, the Michelin is a pretty good tire but has one of the lowest weight ratings. Yes, the new Dunlop EIII seems to be another good tire (kind of funny how much it looks like the Avon) and the Metzliar is just a piece of junk IMHO!

 

 

 

I like the Avon Venom tire. Great grip, Good wear 16,000 on a rear is good enough for me! The front tire has a broken up center groove which has less tendency to hang in ridge grooves than the Dunlop design.

 

 

 

The Avon Venom has proven it's worth and they do stand behind them.

 

 

 

 

 

Front: MT90-16 .800 THINNER THAN STOCK

 

 

Part# AV-320

 

 

 

 

Rear: 150/90HB-15 BLK 80H AM42 Venom

 

 

PART # AV-336

 

 

 

Air them up tight! Side wall stated Max pressure! Let the suspension soak up the bumps. Not the tires! They will run cooler and give you longer mileage when they are at the proper pressure. Check the air pressure often! Please your life may depend on it!

[V7Goose]

Air them up tight! Side wall stated Max pressure! Let the suspension soak up the bumps. Not the tires!

I disagree with this last bit of advice. My personal testing has shown me that my 05 RSV does NOT handle the best when fully loaded and running max pressure in the tires. If the bike is not loaded to max GVW, it doesn't make much difference, but when fully loaded, if the tires are at max sidewall pressure, the bike feels a bit twitchy in high speed sweepers - quite sensitive to any road surface imperfections.

 

Under the identical conditions where it was "twitchy", simply lowering the tire pressure to about 40 front, 44 rear (maybe 38/42) completely removed all negative sensations. Since this was done in the middle of the day on a long ride, the before and after comparison was the best it could be. Just my opinion. Ride safe,

Goose

 

 

 

[RickH]

Goose

 

We'll just have to agree to disagree!

 

I don't have any twichy feeling but when the tire pressures are lower they will run hotter (tested and confirmed) Hotter tires wear faster. I have found the bike feels more washy mushy on lower pressures like your not part of the bike.

 

If you want a softer ride take some air or preload out of the suspenion. That's why it's adjustable.

[Tartan Terror]

I wasnt gonna get involved in this one but I very much agree with goose and so does the Avon sales and technical staff.

[V7Goose]

Goose

 

We'll just have to agree to disagree!

 

I don't have any twichy feeling but when the tire pressures are lower they will run hotter (tested and confirmed) Hotter tires wear faster. I have found the bike feels more washy mushy on lower pressures like your not part of the bike.

 

If you want a softer ride take some air or preload out of the suspenion. That's why it's adjustable.

While your comments are generally valid and should be considered in a generic tire discussion, there are certainly reasons whey every manufacturer of every motorcycle, and every manufacturer of every tire publish specific inflation pressures for each combination, and these are virtually never max sidewall pressures.

 

If the subject was as simple as you would have us believe, every tire manufacturer would simply state to run all their tires at maximum pressure so you would get maximum life out of them. That would supposedly be best for them and best for their customers. In reality, it is not.

 

The best tire pressure for each bike and its owner is going to be based on a combination of the tire design, the load on the bike, the conditions, the suspension settings, and the individual's specific riding style. There is not going to be a single pressure right for everyone, but the right pressure is more likely to be closer to the vehicle's recommended pressure than the maximum permissible for the tire as stamped on the sidewall.

Goose

[RickH]

Goose

 

Your points are well taken. Please don't take this as bragging because it's not just to let you know what I have found and why.

 

About 4 years ago I would agreed with you more than I do now. Only because a couple seasons ago I got to work with Avon on some tire issues they were having. Short version over the season I spent a lot of time on the road and the phone with their engineers. Mounted and rode many sets of tires and recorded tire temps at a range of temperatures and monitored wear. This is where it all started. Most of the testing was done with a GL1800 but there was some RSV input for comparison sense the weights are close on temperatures and wear monitoring.

 

I'll stand by my opinion of what I found and learned during this time. Some of the results where surprising like the almost 30 degree lower tire temperature on a tire being ran at stated max temperature verses what the motorcycle manufacture said should be used. Results in all of this was Avon risen the recommend tire pressure.

 

Now you can check this if you like but sense I have the Avon information in hand I will use it.

 

Yamaha states the RSV/RSTD should be running 36 front and 36 rear with a light load and 36 front and 41 rear on heaver loads. Avon recommends 36 front and 42 rear all loads. Now the front is with 4 psi of the states max side wall and the rear is 8 psi light of max side wall. Personally I wouldn't drop it below 47 on the rear but that's me.

 

Now for the Honda states GL1800 the pressures should be 36 front and 41 rear.

Avon states 41 front (stated side wall max) and 42 rear (stated side wall max) It was 41rear but was raised.

Found the best wear and lowest temprature was at 46 psi rear. Which is where I run mine now.

 

So with this additional information you can make your own mind up. But facts are fact and the tires will wear better with higher pressures. And for my riding style they handle better too.

 

Now you know what I know.

[Jerry W]

Thanks for all the information, you guys are awesome.

[TEW47]

Received this from Avon. With my weight I need to run 48 to 50 psi

 

 

Dear Mr. Weir

 

Please feel free to revisit Avon Tyres with me. So we both together can

see/read the info that you have requested, plus some.

 

www.avon-tyres.co.uk/motorcycle/

 

See, fitment guide - click; see, Choose A Manufacturer; see, the down

arrow

- click; see, Yamaha - click; see, Model/cc type in "1300"; see, go -

click;

see, XVZ 1300 Royal Star, Classic, Tour Deluxe (1995-2001) - click; see,

Front (AM41) Venom 150/80-16 71H @ 36 p.s.i. (@ cold temp.'s) and Rear

(AM42) Venom 150/90B15 M/C 80H @ 42 (42 = a misprint) should read 44 p.

s.i.

(@ cold temp.'s).

 

NOTE; the front size, your MT90B16 74H AM41 Venom is not the OE size

fir

this model of motorcycle.

 

So plus time for this custom front fitment.

 

Please feel free to view the attachment that I have sent you.

 

Note; Based on a 170 lbs rider with no luggage; see, Venom Tires with

reinforced construction (for both the MT90B16 74 AM41 Venom and

150/90B15

M/C 80H AM42 Venom); see, Front Solo 38-40, 2 up light 40-41 (loads)

and 2

up heavy (loads) 42-43 and Rear Solo 44, 2 up light (load) 46 and 2 up

heavy

(load) 48-50; now see (that the bottom of this page) NOTE; This is a

wide

range recommendation for average conditions only. High speed riding

and/or

High road temperatures may require a moderate increase in pressure

(also).

 

I hope that I have answered your question. If not, please feel free to

call

me at 1-800-624-7470, Mon. thru Fri., 800 to 1700 hours PDT.

 

Thank you for your interest in buying and using Avon Tyres.

 

Regards, Keith

 

Avon Motorcycle Customer Service

c/o Hoppe & Associates, Inc.

PO Box 5112

Lynnwood, WA 98036 USA

1-800-624-7470

 

www.avonmotorcycle.com

www.avonracing.com - Racing Tyres

www.avonmoto.com - For all the Promotions and Contests!

 

-----Original Message-----

From: Gene & Margie Weir [mailto:weirsaved@bellsouth.net]

Sent: Friday, August 17, 2007 2:39 PM

To: info@avonmotorcycleusa.com

Subject: TYRE PRESSURE

 

What is Avon recommended tyre pressure for a '07 Yamaha Royal Star

Venture?

AM41 MT90B16 74H and a AM42 150/90B15 80H. Thanks for your help.

 

Thomas Weir

3401 Roberts Lane

[wizard]

Thank you for posting about the miss print on Avon's website. For the past 6000 miles on my Venoms I have been riding under-inflated!

[Cdnlouie]

Thanks Tom and Freebird, for the "apples" and "apples" comparison, that is a very informative and helpful comparison. There are so many factors that change the handling characteristics of a tire (Ie. age, wear and not to mention the bike itself) as well as the circumstances where it is ridden (wet, dry, pavement surface, cold or hot temperatures, air pressure, rider weight, to name just the obvious ones) that seriously jeopardize comparisons. I really appreciate the effort by everyone to describe and share their experience with tires, it is always an interesting discussion.

[Everette]

This might not be the place to post this, but here goes. My venture is a 03 and the rear tire was replaced at 8000 miles by the previous owner. I have only had the bike for a couple of months. I was in the mountains of North Georgia yesterday and noticed a wobble when I was in a tight curve which was most of the time. It was very noticable. I never felt like I was going down but if I did not have a near death grip on the handle bars the wobble would be there.

I guess I'm thinking I should go to the Avon front tire, that this may cure the problem.

Any Ideas?

Thanks,

Everette

[GeorgeS]

This might not be the place to post this, but here goes. My venture is a 03 and the rear tire was replaced at 8000 miles by the previous owner. I have only had the bike for a couple of months. I was in the mountains of North Georgia yesterday and noticed a wobble when I was in a tight curve which was most of the time. It was very noticable. I never felt like I was going down but if I did not have a near death grip on the handle bars the wobble would be there.

I guess I'm thinking I should go to the Avon front tire, that this may cure the problem.

Any Ideas?

Thanks,

Everette

 

 

I don't think you have a Tire problem, related to the wobble.

 

You said " Death Grip " I think you need to check the Torque Setting on your Steering Head, Fork Alignment, Fork fluid level, engine mounts, etc etc.

 

You need to get this fixed, Its very dangerous !!!

[Everette]

Maybe a death grip was overstatement, but there was definently a wobble in the curves. Like I said I never felt out of control, but could feel the wobble if I had a light touch on the handle bars.

 

Everette

[RickH]

Maybe a death grip was overstatement, but there was definently a wobble in the curves. Like I said I never felt out of control, but could feel the wobble if I had a light touch on the handle bars.

 

Everette

 

What are your tire pressures?

[V7Goose]

That condition is not normally caused by a front tire - it's possible, especially if the tire is badly worn or cupped, but I'd really look elsewhere first. Steering head bearings are the most likely culprit, but bent or misaligned forks or frame also. Even loose swing arm bearing or rear axle can do it. Good luck finding it!

Goose

[Dusty]

Just want to make sure I order the right tire. From what I've read Avon sounds like the tire for me, but I was on the Avon site and found Venom and Venom R tires, but no Venom X?

My dealer only knows what Yamaha tells him so I need the right information to order.

 

Thanks,

[Everette]

OK, It appears I have a bad gage. My front tire was at 29psi. Just bumped it up to 36. The back tire is and was at 40psi. Hopefully this is the problem. Hopefully.

Thanks

Everette

[Christo]

After reading this entire thread (2 days *G*) I see that the Avons are the preferred by many. I will try them when the time comes to replace my Metzlers.

 

One comment I have... I just put on my Metzler 880's this year, and I was IMPRESSED to say the least. I think I have had Dunlops, and I think a Bridgestone, and I always thought that my RSV handled weird. Now I am a small guy, about 5'8" with a 31" inseam, and I always felt it difficult to handle my RSV in slow turns - parking lots & U Turns on the road, and I thought it was just the nature of the RSV... until this year when I put on my new Metzlers - I feel like I have a brand new bike. It rides easier, it turns easier, it handles easier, and the ride is smooth.

 

I read this forum, Delphi's, and VentureRider's, first B4 I made my decision. I read about the Metzler's and their "chunking", but most said this was just a bad batch. So far I have put about 2K miles on the new rubbers, and I am completely happy.

 

So, my 2¢ and some change - I can't wait to try the Avons when my Metzlers die out (based on all the praise I have been reading on the 4 forums I read about Avons), but I love the Metzlers. My Metzlers are the best tires "I" have ridden on in the last 8 years, thus far. I don't recommend the Dunlops or the Bridgestones.

[GunnyButch]

Personally I like the Avons at max cold pressure on the sidewall.