I am setting up my 98 R1100GS with a Ural from Dauntless motors... the tires i currently have on the bike are shot (Metzeler Tourance - cupped) and i need to replace... I have read a lot about the Michelin Anakees ... does anyone have a recommendation? the Anakees come in radial or bias for the front .. as well as HR or VR rated... Anyone using the Anakees on a GS and pulling a rig?
I am open to any tire suggestion (except the Tourance) ... and any setup suggestions as well...
advice appreciated...
If you opt for the Michelins, the bias ply tires will offer more sidewall support. Radials more tread support. For the best handling it is recommended not to mix radial tires and bias ply tires on the bike. Both should be of the same construction.
Lonnie
Hal Kendall says that a sidecar tire needs a "flexible sidewall" ... so i assume you are recommending the radial tires?
I also called Michelin and talked to their Tech Support - the guy was actually fairly familiar with sidecar applications and Trikes... he felt that the radial would be an easier steering tire...
you can only buy the rear in a radial ... so i am assuming you would recommend a matched pair of radials front and rear?
the Michelin guy also felt that i had no need for the VR rated tires...
he also said that i could run a bias upfront and radial in the rear... everyone has their own opinions...
what do you think?
thanks again
Twintwin E Mailed me about your post... which I would have seen at some point... same rig here... GS96 with Ural from Jay... and most important... torsion bar from Claude...
I am in the same predicament as far as tires... I have always ran a Tourance rear and Anakee front... Anakee is a softer tires and as I have been aggressive (on two wheels that is...) in the twisties it has always handled very well... I am myself looking into replacing the set with one that will last longer... but to no avail... the sizes are not very popular in any brand!... I am going for longetivity... however now I am thinking... first of all... how many miles the set will last (much less than on two wheels obviously), will I miss the handling with the car if I happen to find a set with harder coumpound?
In the meantime, I just got a new rear Tourance the other day... in lieux of anything else... and my Anakee after over 2000 miles with the car does not seem to show much wear... Time only will tell the wear...
Stay in touch... and be well.
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Ara
Ara wrote:
>>Twintwin E Mailed me about your post... which I would have seen at some point... same rig here... GS96 with Ural from Jay... and most important... torsion bar from Claude...<<
Swaybar..swaybar swaybar....not one and the same as torsion bar 🙂
Hey Ara..if you do want a tosion bar 'suspension' on that rig too call me..they work great..lol.
but the big question still remains .... bias ply or radial?
I notice that the Metzeler Marathon ME 880 make a bias ply front at 110/90-19 or 100/90-19 ... they don't have a Marathon that fits the rear ... but i could always use a Tourance...
supposedly the Marathon has "reduced curvature" and is a higher mileage tire... it probably is a harder steering tire though...
which begs the question... bias or radial...
Thanks for the clarification Claude... read your other post also in "Torsion Bar"... Ignoramus... what can I say... Yes... will have to address that too (torsion bar) some day when I can get away and come up...
I think at this point... as my research is still fruitless... I will stay with a Anakee front... it grabs real well... and the more I think about it the more I feel that the "grabbing" of the tire, even more so probably on 3 wheels is very important... that combined with not much front wear... till a better solution... it is always a compromise... right?
Be well... Ara
Ara,
Yes, everything is a compromise to a point. Please keep us posted on the tire situation. Does anyone have input on what tire, maybe auto tire, will work on the rear os a GS Oilhead stock 17" x 4 1/2" (?) rim?.
Note that we can do a 15" auto rim conversion for these but many prefer to retain the spoked wheels. Just did a 15" conversion for an airhead GS and also converted the rear to a disc brake setup.
In testing out twin twin's rig after his swaybar conversion on wet roads I found the front or rear could be broken loose at will if pushed a little in the twisties. It was very forgiving though and quite controlable. I am not sure what tires were on it but the rear is worn quite a bit.
