Welcome to the DARKSIDE

[West Coast Struttin]

After getting only 6000 miles on my rear Shinko 777 tire, i just ordered a Firestone 175 / 60R / 16 and will be joining a couple buddies on the darkside. Did all the research but mostly convinced by two guys in our group that are doing it. One has over 35K on the rear and it looks about 65% left. He also runs one on the front but im not going there. They both said for the first 15 minutes they noticed a very small difference and after that they forgot all about it. We do about 120 to 175 miles per Saturday trip and most is the twisty stuff. Never noticed them not keeping up. Should be interesting when i get to test it out. The tire is about 1/3 the cost of a decent motorcycle tire and would work well on a west coast to east coast and back trip i have be planning for a long time. Wont have to change the rear at all.

 

[BillyBob]

Yes, tires have gotten very expensive here.
I think any money you can save is great!

Let use know how it goes.

 

[West Coast Struttin]

Will do ! The first tire i bought was a 185 size and it was a hair too wide, possibly could hit the drive belt. Although a tire size is stated (185 mm in that case) that doesn't mean it is the nutz on dimension. In that case actual size measured 200 mm. Just depends on the brand. So maybe the 175 will be accurate or slightly wider which should work. Like everything lately shipping is delayed. More info as i go.

 

[West Coast Struttin]

The Firestone never showed up. Cancelled and got a goodyear in the same size. Looks like a perfect fit. To the tire shop i go .

 

[BillyBob]

The Firestone never showed up. Cancelled and got a goodyear in the same size. Looks like a perfect fit. To the tire shop i go .

Good to hear!

 

[West Coast Struttin]

UPDATE: Have about 150 miles on the tire. Here are the issues so far: Started at 45 PSI and had a bad wobble changing lanes at 80 mph. Lowered pressure to 30 and the wobble now appeared at 90 mph. Research says to INCREASE the pressure to take out the wobble. Going to experiment with pressures to see if the wobble can be eliminated. At this point i would say you need to ask yourself if you want to fiddle around with air pressure to make the tire work or just buy a motorcycle tire and be done with it. All other handling characteristics seem good.

 

[BillyBob]

UPDATE: Have about 150 miles on the tire. Here are the issues so far: Started at 45 PSI and had a bad wobble changing lanes at 80 mph. Lowered pressure to 30 and the wobble now appeared at 90 mph. Research says to INCREASE the pressure to take out the wobble. Going to experiment with pressures to see if the wobble can be eliminated. At this point i would say you need to ask yourself if you want to fiddle around with air pressure to make the tire work or just buy a motorcycle tire and be done with it. All other handling characteristics seem good.

Yes, I had a wobble on my Metzler tires and had to get rid of them.


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[theheder]

I'm very happy with the 2 sets of Michelin Commander II tires that I have been using on my 2008 Streetglide. I have 12k on the current set and they still look great.

 

[West Coast Struttin]

I have tried 42, 30, and 33 PSI. Still have the wobble. Going to try 50 next. Then 25. I will be done if i cant get a good ride. Maybe the darkside wont work on the SG but fine for other bikes, duno....

 

[hulkss]

A flat profile tire will never handle well. OK for some people, maybe. As soon as you start to lean, the contact patch shifts to an edge. Also, the side walls are very flexible on a car radial tire. Harleys ride best on reinforced bias ply motorcycle tires.

I'm running Metzler Cruisetecs. They use a dual compound rear tire for longer tread life and have some other nice design features.