[MeanieMal]

Hi all, about to take delivery of my new to me, 2002 Mean Streak 1500.

I want to fit new tyres when I get it, along with full service, just something I like to do.

But I'm confused about tyres for the Meanie?

My riding will be fairly sedate, mostly just me (140kg)

My main requirement is good grip when cornering, tread life isn't a concern as I will probably only be doing a few thousand km each year.

So: Can I fit sport bike tyres like the Pirelli Diablo to the meanie? here in NZ these are by far the most common tyres, can find sport/touring, but no cruiser tyres in the sizes I want. 120/70/17 front and 180 or 190 rear.
I figure even sportbike tyres will do 5000km of riding on main roads.

What do you guys think? Its mainly Diablo/Bridgestone/Michelin/Shinko here in NZ.

Cheers all

 

[Ozninjaguy]

Shouldn't be a problem. Why not go Dunlop Roadsmarts. Good mileage and good handling. I used Shinko back in Oz many years ago, a good tyre for the money, but mileage wasn't very high.

 

[Obo]

Any tire that meets the specs will work. Pay attention to the size AND the load/speed rating that the Meanie needs.

Online it says:

TIRE,FRONT,130/70R17 62H
TIRE,REAR,170/60R17 72H

62H & 72H are the load and speed ratings in case you were not familiar. You can use a tire with a higher load and speed rating without issue. You just don't want to go lower for safety reasons.

 

[MeanieMal]

Thanks guys, maybe I'm overthinking it, but there seems to be very little room for error with the load index required for these Meanstreak tires?
I live in New Zealand, so very limited choice for tyres. Certainly nothing like the range you could get in the USA. I can get a set of Michelin Pilot Power 3 tyres, or Road 6, Bridgestone Batalax etc..vast majority are sports tires, but my concern is load index. These tyres are all quite similar with this.
Okay. Meanstreak weighs 290kg dry. Say 310kg ( or 680 lbs) add me, at 135kg (297 lbs) and we have an all up weight of 980 pounds give or take a few. To me this is pretty damn close to tyre limits?
Am I overthinking it? Do tire manufacturers quote much lower weights than their tires will cope with?
I would have to order 'heavier duty cruiser tires" in from overseas as NZ has a small motorcycle tyre market, we only have 4 million people. That would make tyres horrendously expensive. As it is a set of normal sports tyres will set me back approx $600 without fitting.
Cheers

 

[Obo]

A lower load rated tire will wear much faster as best and may actually fail at worst. There's usually some play with size as well as speed rating (as you can control that) but the load rating is usually non-negotiable.

I know my Honda requires a 72 load rating and I think that's the max motorcycle tires go.

There's an option to go to the Darkside on the Meanie, but that's not for everyone.

For those that think this is a Star Wars reference, think again. It's the term used for putting a car tire on a motorcycle. You can get car tires that have higher load (and speed) ratings. They handle different but last much much longer.

There are pros and cons to Darksiding and those riders that swear by this and those that say you'll crash and burn in Hell if you do it. It's done on many motorcycles, just not "officially."

Here's at least one link for the topic being discussed in the forum. WELCOME TO THE DARKSIDE

Anyway, it's another option that may be easier to find for you if you end up being "turned."

For what it's worth I think my next rear tire change on my Honda will be to the Darkside.

 

[Obo]

Here's a little Darskide video done by Ryan F9 explaining the [physics etc.

 

[MeanieMal]

Cheers, most rear tires seem to have approx 350KG rating it seems, been looking at the Shinko 777 for cruisers, but they seem to have pretty poor reviews/high failure rate. A sport tourer tire will probably be what I purchase, like a Battlax etc,here in New Zealand we have a strictly enforced 60MPH speed limit, and low footpegs, so the tyres won't be getting worked hard. Can get a Metzeler 888 here for just on $600 for rear tyre only, pretty expensive. I'm not interested in fitting a car tyre, longevity isn't really important..just seems strange about weight limits, there must be thousands of heavy cruisers worldwide running on the limit of their tyres...thanks

 

[MeanieMal]

Avon Storm 3D X-M They say these are for GSX1400 etc etc, so should cope with Meanstreak okay, may be a good option. None in original size but can go the 120/180 or 190 route

 

[EJay]

Hi all, about to take delivery of my new to me, 2002 Mean Streak 1500.

I want to fit new tyres when I get it, along with full service, just something I like to do.

But I'm confused about tyres for the Meanie?

My riding will be fairly sedate, mostly just me (140kg)

My main requirement is good grip when cornering, tread life isn't a concern as I will probably only be doing a few thousand km each year.

So: Can I fit sport bike tyres like the Pirelli Diablo to the meanie? here in NZ these are by far the most common tyres, can find sport/touring, but no cruiser tyres in the sizes I want. 120/70/17 front and 180 or 190 rear.
I figure even sportbike tyres will do 5000km of riding on main roads.

What do you guys think? Its mainly Diablo/Bridgestone/Michelin/Shinko here in NZ.

Cheers all

Hello MeanieMal, maybe you can go this route:

Avon Sprit ST

Spirit St Ultra high performance sports Touring tyre Highly loaded silica compound combined with state of the art polymer technology for excellent wet and dry traction and handling Interlocking three dimensional points hidden in the sipes to improve stability and grip, limit tread flex and allow...

dold.co.nz

Avon Roadrider

Ideal for mid-range bikes Large contact patch for excellent grip at all lean angles 149mph=240kmh speed rating across the range Central tread groove to resist 'white-lining' Comprehensive range of sizes When you rely on your bike as everyday transport, you want tyres that combine outstanding...

dold.co.nz

The Avon AV76 Spirit ST 170/60/17 is reportedly in stock.

The availability of the front tire Avon Roadrider 130/70/17 must be requested.

In case you are not obliged to use original dimension tires have a look at the 120/80/17 instead which is pretty close to the original tire and reportedly in stock.
It is about 5mm taller and should not cause a problem.
If you opt for the latter, you also benefit from a bit more lean angle clearance .

DOLD doesn't specify the tire version. As you can see below the Avon Roadrider MK II is listed with a load/speed index of 61V. So you would be on the safe side. (A TÜV engineer would have been willing to enter a tire with a minimum load index of 60 for registration in the vehicle documents here). You may want to check the tire age before ordering.

ROADRIDER MKII

Designed for motorcycles of all ages, the Roadrider MKII provides a step forward in performance and reliability over its predecessor.

www.avontyres.com

Avon Spirit ST - Avon Tyres

Official website. Avon Spirit ST is our new high-performance sport touring tyre, that is highly loaded with silica compound and state of the art polymer technology with 3D Sipe Technology.

www.avontyres.com

Note: I don't know anything about DOLD and neither about the Avons.

So long and good luck.

 

[Way]

Thanks guys, maybe I'm overthinking it, but there seems to be very little room for error with the load index required for these Meanstreak tires?
I live in New Zealand, so very limited choice for tyres. Certainly nothing like the range you could get in the USA. I can get a set of Michelin Pilot Power 3 tyres, or Road 6, Bridgestone Batalax etc..vast majority are sports tires, but my concern is load index. These tyres are all quite similar with this.
Okay. Meanstreak weighs 290kg dry. Say 310kg ( or 680 lbs) add me, at 135kg (297 lbs) and we have an all up weight of 980 pounds give or take a few. To me this is pretty damn close to tyre limits?
Am I overthinking it? Do tire manufacturers quote much lower weights than their tires will cope with?
I would have to order 'heavier duty cruiser tires" in from overseas as NZ has a small motorcycle tyre market, we only have 4 million people. That would make tyres horrendously expensive. As it is a set of normal sports tyres will set me back approx $600 without fitting.
Cheers

Hey Mal,

You won't go wrong with the Pilot Power 3s. Amazing grip in the wet, good sports tourer tyre that the Meanie will enjoy. If you have to go slightly higher profile, this would raise the gearing very slightly and as has been mentioned give you a little more ride height - again marginally.

They seem a little low in weight handling and the Michelin Road 6 rear seems to have the weight handling but not profile (around 60 in a 170 width)

The Metzeler ME888 Marathon Ultras are good tourer/cruiser(?!) tyre that Harley guys rave about as an option. You can get some sizes in whitewall too.

Good luck with it - many bike shops in Oz will ship to NZ (if you can afford it)

 

[MeanieMal]

Well ended up buying a Michelin Road 6 in 190/55-17, and a Bridgestone radial they use for Goldwings for the front. Not fitted yet, because they wanted $200 to fit them, and that's with just the wheels and no bike! Will post a pic when they are fitted. Cheers guys

 

[Obo]

It's not really difficult to fit your own tires if you have a few simple items. 3 tire levers, some tire lube, a bag of zip ties large enough to go around the tire, a homemade bead breaker and some balancing beads.

If you're interested in the details you can either look it up online (lots of youtubre videos) or you can ask here