Cheap Tires, man on a mission!!

[cowpuc]

I remember years ago the trying to keep decent tires on my race bikes.. Those of you who ride woods and have had time to experience the difference of sharp new nobs compared to rounded out suicide tires KNOW first hand of the importance of having new tires.. My 73 CR250M Honda would go thru a tire a race easily..

Back then, being forced by finances to try cheaper grade tires I ended up using Chin CHeng 760's all the time.. I could get them for 12 bucks a tire and they were really a pretty good nob..

Now I am looking at the same issue with my Venture.. Up to this point I have been very happy with Dunlop Elite 2's and normally wear out at least 3 rear and one front per season - at one time I had a stock pile of 40 tires built up, used to by at dealer cost for $45 each - those days are gone..

ANyway, Jjust wondered if any of you have experimented with the low cost skins for your rides? I am talking Cheng Shin,, King Tire, Maxxis or the like..

I can still get Elite 2s for 180 front and 210 rear but I refuse to go there.. INstead I am thinking of trying maybe a Cheng Shin Barracuda at 40 for ftonr and 60 for rear..

ANy thoughts on the matter???

'Puc

[Marcarl]

Just my thoughts:

When running in the bush and on the fields and only using the tire for a short time anyways, the dangers of tire failure and lack of traction due to poor rubber composition is probably not a big issue, like you said, the sharpness of the knobs is important.

When running on the highway at speeds in excess of 30mph the composition of the rubber starts to become very important to maintain all the traction you can get, in dry or in wet. If you would like to be a guinea pig and see what the cheap tires will do, I'll listen when you tell us, if you are able to post after you find out.

In my opinion you mostly get what you pay for and if the cheaper tire could be sold for more, they would put a higher price on it. This may not always be the case, but I become very sensitive when I see big price discrepancies.

[SaltyDawg]

Personally I wouldn't put a cheap tire on a big bike like the Venture. I prefer the Michelin Commander and from what I have heard from others who have switched to it they love it. I don't know what the front to rear wear ratio is but I have 19,000 on the rear and it looks as if I could get another 3 or 4 thousand out of it. The front looks new. BTW I never got more than 8,000 out of a rear tire and I tried them all the Dunlop, Metzler, Conti, Bridgestone, and the Avon Venoms.

[oldandcrotchety]

I have never had Cheng Shin tires on my venture, but I have had them on a couple of my Hondas without any problems.

[Blackjack]

OK, inquiring minds want to know!

 

"I have been very happy with Dunlop Elite 2's and normally wear out at least 3 rear and one front per season..."

 

I have to ask: how many miles do you ride in a season and how long is that season that you would go through that many tires?

 

Just Curious,

 

Terry

[juggler]

Personally I wouldn't put a cheap tire on a big bike like the Venture. I prefer the Michelin Commander and from what I have heard from others who have switched to it they love it. I don't know what the front to rear wear ratio is but I have 19,000 on the rear and it looks as if I could get another 3 or 4 thousand out of it. The front looks new. BTW I never got more than 8,000 out of a rear tire and I tried them all the Dunlop, Metzler, Conti, Bridgestone, and the Avon Venoms.

 

 

BTW: I'll be replacing my Dunlop 404's this spring. I was able to put about 12,000 miles on them before I hit a road hazard and trashed the rear tire sidewall. I'm not sure why others are getting so many mile less with their Dunlops.

[GeorgeS]

I once had a Blow Out going 75 on the San Diego Freeway. ( in the middle of LA, during Rush Hour )

 

Would you like to hear the details ????

 

I never want to relive that experience.

 

You have a Heavy Motorcycle, It has a 90 plus HP motor, You have One Life, Think about what you are saying.

 

Buy cheap gas, buy cheap beer, buy cheap anything, But I would never reccomend to anybody to buy Cheap Motorcycle Tires

[Squeeze]

....

You have a Heavy Motorcycle, It has a 90 plus HP motor, You have One Life, Think about what you are saying.

 

Buy cheap gas, buy cheap beer, buy cheap anything, But I would never reccomend to anybody to buy Cheap Motorcycle Tires

 

 

I agree 110 Percent.

 

How much is only your Bike worth ?? 2000 ?? 3000 ?? 4000 Bucks ??

 

 

Tires are the only Thing what keep the Bike and you on Track, if one of them fails, the Consequences can be fatal. Good Tires are the best Insurance for your Bike and your Life....

 

Not to mention the Bills for Medics and the Loss of Income on a crash ...

[whozleft]

I just bought a new Bridgestone from Iron Pony here in Central Ohio. They do offer many different brands though. Go to their website at www.ironpony.com, click on tires and do a search for the sizes. There is some cost savings on some of the lesser known tires, but I didn't ask about them.

 

I usually stick to what has worked for me. I guess my fear is that a less expensive tire wouldn't last as long anyway so the cost savings up front is a mute point. But I'm not sure if that's a valid argument since I have never tried one of the "off brand" tires.

 

Good luck in your search, but more than anything. Be safe!

[lawboat]

I'm still running Cheng Shin's on my Honda. 10,000 on the rear before I replaced it. Haven't had a bit of trouble with them. Good traction both wet and dry. Of course the Honda is not as heavey as my Ventyre, so I'm not sure I'd run them on it (actually.....I doubt that I would).

[yamahamer]

"I can still get Elite 2s for 180 front and 210 rear"

 

 

I BOUGHT FRONT AND REAR AVONS YESTERDAY FOR $246.13 SHIPPING TOO FROM AMERICANMOTOTIRE.COM THATS ONLY $36.13 MORE THAN YOUR PAYING FOR REAR? CHINSING TIRES ARE OK FOR SMALL BIKES BUT DO YOU WANT TO TAKE THAT CHANCE ON YOUR BABY?

[Thom]

i think we are stuck on name brands we know , most of us can only name 3 or 4 brands but world wide the US do not have that many bikes and we don't use that many tires , some of the tires we use are made by a tire co. we never heard of they just put a name on we know and charge us more . i have kenda krus tires that are sold in south amer. and in the far east and kenda sell a lot more tires over there . if a co. makes a 100 million tires they can sell them cheaper , the big 3 brands here in the US are really a small market compared to the rest of the world . i would like to know who is the largest m/c tire manufacture in the world is ? and what is the best tire is world wide . i don't care about name brands , i would just like the best .

[Condor]

All manufacturers have to play the traction vs wear game. Get a hard coumpound tire that lasts mega miles, and it doesn't have half the traction of a softer compound tire which only lasts 5-6K. I think any heavy cruiser bike tire that lasts 10K-12K is adiquate. Probably a happy medium. I don't know which compound cost more to produce.... maybe they're the same??.... but if I have a tire that will give me 10K and good traction on a cruiser I'm happy.

[wizard]

No matter what the cost of the tire is, if its not rated for the weight of the bike, or proper speed rating, it should not be mounted on the bike. If I found a $10.00 tire with the proper rating, I would buy it, and mount it. Sometimes, some of you guys make me wonder why you ride a motorcycle.

Leonard

[Condor]

Sometimes, some of you guys make me wonder why you ride a motorcycle. Leonard

 

OK Wiz ya wanna explain. I'm not sure where you're going with that statement?????????????????

[Tom]

No matter what the cost of the tire is, if its not rated for the weight of the bike, or proper speed rating, it should not be mounted on the bike. If I found a $10.00 tire with the proper rating, I would buy it, and mount it. Sometimes, some of you guys make me wonder why you ride a motorcycle.

Leonard

I ride because I like too,want to and because its fun.Does there really have to be a reason?Not trying to be a smart a$$ but I just DO IT !.WAIT...It does reduce my stress level! Tom

[wizard]

Sorry guys, that was just mean of me! I know why we all ride, and I know that we are just caring enough to try to make it safer for ourselves and our friends and still be able to enjoy the ride. You all are a great bunch, and I promise I won't post anything before my first pot of coffee anymore.

Leonard

[Condor]

I won't post anything before my first pot of coffee anymore.

Leonard

 

That explains it.........

[Stoutman]

No matter what the cost of the tire is, if its not rated for the weight of the bike, or proper speed rating, it should not be mounted on the bike.

Leonard

 

This is a good point (coffee deficit or not). I have looked at the cheap tires and found that most of them that do fit our bike do not have the proper load rating. That is what I like about the Avon. I push my bikes load limits (I'm a stout guy), and the Avon gives me a higher load rating than the manual requires. I don't have anything against cheap. Sometimes a low price is a manufactures marketing effort to get consumers to try their product. I do share the anxiety about the implied quality though. I'm reluctant to take any chances with my wife or daughter on the back .