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I had a tire installed on the front wheel while on vacation last year. The dealer installed a Dunlop 404 rear tire on the front. I did not notice that it was a rear tire untill this past weekend. It is my understanding that a rear tire will work on the front but needs to be mounted with the rotation arrow backwards. My question is can I remove the wheel and turn the wheel and tire around so that the tire rotation is correct. Or does the wheel only mounts one way. Thanks for the help.
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At the risk of redundancy with many other threads, I thought I would recap all of my experiences with front tire choice on the RSV. I'll try to keep this fairly short, but some of you may know how hard that is for me! I did a lot of testing on various tires (both sizes and brands), and I was one of the very vocal members a couple of years ago who posted so much about how great an improvement the narrower MT90 or 130/90 front tire was over the stock 150/80 size. Since then I have amassed even more comparisons and have come to these conclusions: The stock Brickstone 150/80 front tire is the WORST possible tire you can use if you have not raised the rear with shorter suspension links. ANY other front tire will be a vast improvement. Raising the rear of the bike 1" with the Leveling Links will make even the stock Brickstone 150/80 front tire handle like any good tire. Poor handling is not just related to the front tire size. In fact, any rear tire that begins to flatten out in the center from too much straight line riding will make this bike track grooves and jump around on surface irregularities. And the stock Brickstone rear tire is the ABSOLUTE WORST for this!Since my initial testing with my 05 RSV which came with the ****ty stock Brickstone tires, I have been able to compare a stock 07 RSV that came with Dunlop tires, and a stock 07 RSV that had Avon tires in stock size. In both of those cases, the bike felt agile and nimble with none of the horrid slow speed heaviness of an RSV with stock Brickstone tires. Since most RSVs come with Bricksones, but a few lucky ones get Dunlop 404s, I think this explains why so many new owners complain about the heaviness and slow speed handling, while a few new owners say "Huh? Feels fine to me." Bottom line, although I think the MT90 front tire is a good tire for the RSV, I no longer recommend it at all. IMHO, if you have raised the rear of the bike with the Leveling Links, the narrower front tire makes the bike a bit squirrelly as the rear tire begins to wear flat. And even with the stock suspension links, I have found that any other good tire in stock size on the front makes the RSV handle just fine at slow speed (note that this EXCLUDES the Brickstone front tire). So, for those of you who have not already made up your mind on tire brand and size, here is what I recommend: If you have Brickstones, get rid of them immediately. They make the RSV and unpleasant bike to ride, and sometimes a dangerous bike to ride. The only exception to this is if you raise the rear with Leveling links, then the FRONT Brickstone will handle fine and last long time. Decide on any other brand of tire and buy stock sizes, front and rear. I personally will never trust my life to Metzeler tires on this bike (see plenty of other posts on this subject), but even if Metzeler is your brand of choice, the bike will handle just fine with stock tire sizes until the rear tire begins to come apart on you. Sorry, I just could not avoid that bit of editorializing!Good luck and ride safe, Goose
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Yesterday morning I dropped my Nankang Rear Tire & RSV wheel off at the dealer to get it mounted. At 4:00pm they said they couldn't get it to bead & wanted to try more tomorrow. At 10am this morning they called & said that they even took it over to a car tire place to try to get it seated & failed. So then I called 6 different places just to see if they would even try to bead/seat the tire. None would try. That was disappointing. So I set off to do it myself - bought tire irons & 2 hp air compressor from Harbour Freight - bought silicon spray, grease & dawn dish liquid. Then I broke the seat on the side that wouldn't bead - greased & soaped the rim & tire... tried to set the bead once - failed - broke the bead - tire ironed the spot that stuck - tried to set second time - failed - did the same as before third time same forth time - beaded & seated - done It took about 45 minutes of messing with & it popped at about 65 psi. The dealer then balanced the tire for free. Why is nothing ever easy for me. At least now I have a nice 8 gallon 2hp oil air compressor for other things. Tire irons are nice hunks of metal for prying & banging on things when your frustrated. What happened to the old time bike shops? The last time I had a car tire mounted, HummingBird kindly did it for me. Thanks & too bad HB is so far away in Ohio! JohnB
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I just put a Roadliner/Stratoliner 18" front wheel on my Venture. It looks awesome, and the low profile radial tire handles like a dream- rock solid and glued to the road. Handling response is much quicker. The rotors are also an upgrade, because they are full floaters. It is a perfect match, same size rotors and axle, bolted right up, din't have to change anything. I got the wheel tire and rotors off of ebay for $240 plus $50 shipping.
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Hello Everyone: As most of you know, our 05 RSTD was heavily smoke damaged about a year ago. While it was in the shop for restoration, I decided to have new tires installed. The PO had Metzler 880's on it. I did not do any research. I trusted my dealer to guide me. He installed Dunlop 404's. $611 total for tires and labor. We enjoyed 7,000 miles of two up riding last year. I noticed yesterday while installing new pipes that the rear tire is worn more than I expected. I am not unhappy. $300 for an entire season of fun is cheap entertainment. I guess I expected the tire to last more than one season?? I see by many other posts that 7-12K is the norm? I might be able to go another $2500 miles, but really do not want to risk it. What are your thoughts, experiences and suggestions on brand, size etc. I appreciate your input. I have read good things about E3's. Thanks in advance
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Bike was feeling kind of sluggish and sloppy in turns so I check the tire pressure. Rear had 45 PSI and the front had 35PSI. I am running Dunlop Elite 3 front and rear. I am about 320 pounds. So a lot of weight on the tires. I know the front sidewall said 41 max. I ran it up to 40 and it is a whole different feel. Almost like it is to much and the front tire feel like a teeter totter on a point now instead of a rounded tire. So my question is with my weight, what should I be running in the tires if the sidewall says 41 max. And this is unloaded and just my body weight and the bikes weight. Thanks
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So as the wife was driving out of the garage this morning, I noticed the edges of the tires weren't wet (it was raining). the jeep has been riding a little rough since they were were installed. The door sticker calls for 35 lbs and they read 38 lbs. I don't think 3 lbs would do it, and it's not hard to check, but I'm just wondering if the door sticker might be a guideline and correct pressure will vary from tire to tire depending on sidewall stiffness and seven other things. Anyone got any thoughts on tire contact patch??
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Had my new Avon VenomX 150/90-16 80H installed today. My last one wore flat in the middle due to me running it with to much air pressure. Why did I run to much psi is beyond me. Call it a $145.00 mistake. 54 to 56 psi and it turned into a car tire...totally square. It started riding so bad that I thought my swingarm was worn out. Had swingarm checked while tire was off and no play at all...perfect. New mount and balance and the old girl tracks true as ever. Bring on the weather...we are ready to roll once again! Thinking about a Thanksgiving ride to Myrtle Beach tomorrow...gonna be a beautiful day here in South Carolina.
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today i was out doing laundry. when i saw a lady in the parking lot looking at the back right side of her car? i went out and she had a flat tire. she said she had no spare no jack nothing to change this or fix this tire. i went to work and got out my floor jack and huge 4 way tire wrench. with my knee i had a little trouble but got the tire off. told her to watch my laundry and i will be right back. i went down to kings tires just down the road to see if it could be patched? well the tire had a huge screw in it that came out the side wall. and the tire was pretty well shot. so i said hey do you have a used tire you could sell as they do have them. then i explained why i could not afford a new tire. the owner put on a brand new tire and just charged me for mounting. then said merry christmas. it,s people like you who do good things for others and i want to help pass it on. so i give a big A++++++++++++ to kings tire of lasalle IL the woman is now back on the road and the smile and thanks from her just made me feel all warm and fuzzy inside.
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Just finished this morning replacing my rear shock. easier than I thought went through the right side did not remove tire. Not a bad 2 hours job.
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Will be ordering a new rear tire for my Venture in an hour or two. Kind of shocked how much they have gone up. Going for a Michelin Commander II for 159 dollars. Anybody know somewhere cheaper? I could go for a Dunlop Elite III also. The 159 is free shipping.
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Does Anyone in the San Antonio Area have a motorcycle tire changer ?
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I think this has been asked before but I don't find it. Is there a car tire that can be used on the front wheel of the 2nd gen Venture? If so would that be a good choice? It seems to me that it would be okay for a trike to use a CT on the front.
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Ok Folks, I started a post to see if there was interest in a Houston Maintenance Day, folks are sounding like they want one. So here it is, Saturday October 27th will be the main work day, but anyone wanting to come over Friday afternoon and spend a couple of nights are more than welcome. We have 2 1/2 acres and plenty of space for pop up trailers and tents. I have all the tools we'll need to do just about anything you want to try and accomplish. I will ask that you bring whatever fluids you want to change with you. I do have a vacuum bleeder, a Carb and Color Tune, and I'll borrow the tire machine from Doodle and we can do some tires if folks want to. If you can give a yea or nay up top it will give me an idea of how much grub we need to think about. If you have any questions PM me or give me a call, my cell is in my profile. Looking forward to seeing all the brethren again
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This is not a question of whether an Avon is a good tire or how good their customer service is or warranty or how long they last or how they handle. I like the way Avon's handle on my 91 VR. I am on my 6th or 7th SET of Avon Venom's in the last 5 years. And frankly it could be the 8th. I have lost track. I have yet to get more than 5000 miles out of either a front or rear tire before the sidewalls have cracked extensively and usually I get more in the range of 1000 to 3000 miles. All of the tires were mfg'd within 6 to 9 months of mounting. Understand that I maintain the tire pressure per the techs at Avon, bike has been garaged, I do not wash the tires with anything but rain water, I haven't washed my rims in 10 or so years. I use no chemicals or products on the rims or tires. I put the tires on and ride. The bike did sit for a few months after I had a hip and knee replaced but otherwise I try to get out and ride (ie: exercise the tires ...) when ever I can. I have found the Avon reps (and I have been through 2 different companies that rep for Avon here in the states) agreeable and out of all the Avon's I have had, I have only paid for one (1) set and mounting twice. Good for Avon. Whoopie. The bike has a touch over 200,000 miles on it. No problems that would affect it's ride or tire wear or condition. Period. Once again after a short time on this set I am experiencing rather extreme sidewall cracking. So here is my question: Has any one actually heard of or experienced a sidewall blowing out as a result of this type of cracking (not related to age rot) or is this just cosmetic? I am getting tired of putting tires on this thing every 3000 miles.
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OK, I've just noticed that my current rear tire says 42# max. Maybe I'm going nuts, but, I seem to remember they used to say 50# max. I've been running it at 47#. What does your Avon rear tire sidewall say? If yours says the same, what do you make of it? Is it no longer safe above 42#? Thanks.
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I put new Dunlop Elite 3 tires on my 07 RSV recently and went to the 130/90 front instead of the stock 150/80. This is the first good ride I have taken with the thinner front tire. Rode to Hot Springs AR for a Rally. We rode HWY 7 which is a really nice rode and to Mount Magazine State Park which is the highest peak in Arkansa. On the way home took HWY 270 to Mena AR and then rode the Talihina Scenic Byway into Oklahoma and then back home to Texas. lots of good twisties and switchbacks on these rodes. I have ridden both Hwy 7 and the Talihina Scenic Byway before with the stock Elite 3 front tire. I could tell a huge difference in handling all the twisties on both of these roads. Did not feel like I was fighting the front end anymore and at times almost felt like I had added power steering. Could take the turns comfortable at higher speeds. Was very satisfied with the way it handles so far.
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im starting to get cupping on the rear tire any ideas of what to look for to fix :confused24: -
Just finished an over 4k mile trip on the 05 Midnight. Started out on an Iron Butt Border to Border from Laredo, Tx to Emerson, MB, Canada. Ended up riding almost all of Texas in the rain. Then I had the rear tire started to go down west of Topeka, Ks on the Turnpike at midnight. It was several hours before I had the tire plugged and back on the road. By then with the rain and the tire, the B2B was going to be a DNF. After a few hours sleep, checked my phone and DaveZipcode here in Houston was following my Spot Tracker and wanted to see what went wrong. He then got me info on VR members in the Sioux Falls area that I could contact. Since I was sure I could make it to Sioux Falls where I was to meet the wife to start a trip to the Black Hills after the B2B run. I contacted member EZRALE (Ezra) who lives in Dell Rapids north of Sioux Falls. Explained my situation with the rear tire and needing a dealer to get a new one. I didn’t want to ride a long trip with the wife on a plugged tire. He gave info on a Yamaha dealer and some other choices for repair, Yamaha was just a stones throw from the motel I was planning to stop at and meet the wife who was flying in on Tuesday. That Tuesday morning got the bike over to the dealer and they had one rear tire for the Venture in stock. They had me fixed up in about 2 hrs. After picking the bike up, Erza came by the motel on his 97 RSTD to meet and we talked for awhile and then went for a ride around the Sioux Falls area out in the countryside. We had a great time chatting and then found out we are both in the Broadcast business working for TV stations. What are the odds? Erza had just joined VR in August and put down on his profile VR assistance, but thinking it would be a million years before he would get a call. You never know. Thanks Erza. Picked up the wife at the airport and we started our trip the Black Hills area, had a great time riding in South Dakota and will be back. Then we headed to Denver to see an old friend there. While there noticed a small coolant leak coming from #2 cyl. Immediately got on the VR site to search, and found out about the dime fix on the drain plug. Worked like a charm. Its still there. I, like most everyone on this site really enjoy the having this group of people who freely give help and knowledge for all to use. There isn’t another group like this I am sure. Thanks again to Dave, Ezra and my wife Mollie who brought a spare tire on her flight just in case the dealer didn’t have one. Here are some pics of the trip. PS. With over 97500 miles on the Venture, I know she is just getting broke in. Love to ride it and do. Perry
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My rear tire has worn out, no big deal there. However, on the edges beyond the almost bald center the remaining tread has a patter worn with the leading edge of the tread being higher than the trailing edge. I noticed that I was getting noise in cornering that got louder as the tire wore down. Overall, not a big deal but I am wondering if this is an indication that my rear shock is starting to misbehave. I see no signs of leakage and with 40 psi in the shock, the bike handles okay. Any advice would be appreciated. R. -
I posted this else where and thought this might help someone else to. So copy and paste and add a little and here it is. I like doing my own, I know it is done to suit me. I changed my rear tire today. Here is how; http://venturerider.org/forum/showthread.php?t=555 #1. Mark the axle position at the side with the pinch bolt line, make a line with the corner edge of a flat file and you will always have it there. Remove the rear wheel. The axle will come out easily if you turn the axle at the Allen head side (rotor side) and pull at the same time. #2. Take the valve out of the tire. Mark the valve placement with the tire location on the old tire and the new tire for location. Make sure you get the tire on in the correct rotational direction. Motorcycle tires are rotational oriented. They have arrows showing the direction of travel. If you have tires that have the balance dot, then if this is the case, the balance dot should line up with the valve and supposed to be balanced. #3. Put the wheel on some small pieces of 2" X 4" or 4" X 4" works best, one on each side of rim in a place that you can back a pick up or some vehicle up to it. #4. I used a 8' long 4"x4" and a 8" inch piece of 4"x4' to put onto the tire edge close the rim, 1/2" or so on tire edge and from the rim. Back a vehicle up to the tire location. I used a pick up with a ball hitch on it and pried under the ball mount stinger. There are tools made for this, but I do not have one yet. I am thinking of adding something to the side of my garage wall and have a friend weld me up a tool for this. #5. Put the long 4"x4" on top the short piece of 4"x4" and under the vehicle/hitch,bumper or what ever to get leverage. #6. Pry down and the tire will brake loose from the rim fairly easy on the first or second try. #7. I use a cheap set of tire irons from JC Whitney. They are 12" long and come with rim covers to keep from damaging your rim. Two sets are nice to have. Only about 10 -14 dollars a set. Remove the tire while the rim is still on the 4"x4" short pieces you laid your rim on. ( The back side is a little tricky, but will come off. I laid my tire with the brake rotor down for this part.) #8. Once you have the tire removed, use a fine wire brush to remove any black junk from the inside rim edge and inside the rim. I used a copper pipe cleaning tool. Then I used WD 40 & PB Blaster to spray on a cloth and wipe the inside of my rim. Cleans it very well after you brush the rim edge and rim on both sides. If you have a plastic 50 gallon barrel, it works great for a bench to work on the new tire and rim. #9. Now orient your tire in the correct direction of travel according to the arrows on the tire and your rim direction of forward travel. #10. Have your self some dish liquid from the kitchen (or regular tire liquid from auto store) to put on the tire edge and the rim edge. Only put the liquid on one side of the tire at a time. Start the tire on and apply pressure to a point that you will need to put the rim protectors on the rim and begin prying the tire on. Only 2-3 inches at a time. Just takes a 3-4 minutes and if you cleaned your rim and lubricated the tire and rim, no problem at all. I can put the front tire on with my bare hands and no tools. #11. Now that you have the tire on, very important to align the tire in the corect spot according to your marks or dot on the tire. Pay close attention to this as you proceed to the next step. #12. Have yourself a small ratchet strap. Put the strap on the tire in the center of the tire and cinch it up tight. Also align the tire edge and rim together as you do this. Pay attention to the markings to keep the tire in the right position. #13. Replace the air valve in the rim. Air the tire and see if it will take air, if not check for problem spot and fix it. Make sure tire is in right position. Make sure you get enough air in the tire to get it to pop onto the rim all the way (watch the fingers !). Check the rim once you hear the pop and make sure it is properly attached all the way around. If not add more air until it is. Set at proper air pressure, factory says 42 rear and 36 front. I personally go a little more because I weigh 278 lb. #14. Now clean and follow these instructions before putting the tire and wheel back on.http://venturerider.org/forum/showthread.php?t=13263 AND http://venturerider.org/forum/showthread.php?t=1705 #15. Check air pressure again and put the tire and wheel back on. Put the axle in at the mark you made and align all completely. A real good tech section on putting the wheel back on correctly is http://venturerider.org/forum/showthread.php?t=515 AND http://venturerider.org/forum/showthread.php?t=4660 Pay special attention to properly aligning the axle to the mark you made, filed my mark into the pinch bolt line, tightening the acorn nuts and aligning the wheel and dive link properly and getting the drive shaft aligned and inside the yoke. Not sure if there is a good tire removing thread in the Tech Library. I never found one with all the information in one place. Had to skip around. So if this works then ask Freebird to put it in there. He usually will not, unless asked and there is not already an existing write up. I am not sure about that. I have been wrong before, just ask my wife. Someone else may see something I missed to, so please jump in if so. Will not hurt my feelings at all. Just trying to help out and give back to the site that has helped me so much. Thanks all. Fuzzy
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My 84 came with a Kenda on the rear & a Dunlop 491 on the front. Both tires are in excellent shape & I have no issues whatsoever on the Interstate or the streets. I remember the p o told me he changed the rear tire but not the front because it was in good shape. Since the wife & I are planning to take longer overnight trips I decided to check the tire date codes. The rear was in fact replaced as it had a date code of 0711. The front although perfect is 8 years old with a 2304 code. SO... Although I am happy with the current performance of this tire combo, I was wondering should I match the the front tire with a Kenda as well? At least for the life of this set. Has anyone had issues with Kenda tires up front? I hear that Gen 1's are fussy about tires. The next full set I will ask you guys again for what would be top of the line, but for now I always like matching tires, but if the Kenda is problematic up from, I will just get another Dunlop 491.
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I tried looking for this specific question but could not. When I had my Suzuki Boulevard, I got new tires. I asked the tire guy about whether I should go by the pressure on the side of the tires or what was in the manual. He said always go by what the tire says. I had a new set of Kenda Kruz tires. Really great. I did 40 psi. front and back. So which is the correct pressure to go by? I have an 06 RSTD. Thanks in advance Dave
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After 21K miles on it, I needed a new front tire, and quickly, as we are leaving tomorrow for Savannah. I squeezed every millimeter of tread out of it, and it was time. My usual tire guy is closed on Mondays, so I called Mountain Powersports and they had the tire in stock (ME880), and had me come in first thing this morning to get it done. $146 for the tire and $60 for labor, with no add-on fees. They were professional, on time, offered me coffee and a computer in their awesome lounge to get some work done while I waited, and had the job done in 40 minutes, including a nice wipe down of the bike. No hard sell on anything else like brake pads or air filters, and a coupon for a free oil filter with any parts or accessories purchase over $30. Really a pleasant experience all the way around.
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Well I had the back wheel off to change out the tire. Noticed the fuel filter hanging out there under the rear fender. Thought to myself, it would be a convenient time to change it out. On my way to the shop to swap tires picked one up at Cdn Tire. Wow what a difference. Fired up the bike and it goes through the hole rpm range now with no stumbling at all. I was thinking it needed diaphrams and such. Been running seafoam and helped a little. Just wanted to pass it on. If your ride is running like SH*t, maybe the $4 fix, not the $100 one needed:) Brad
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