Radial Tires

I have a friend who has a '98 V Max. I have the '06.
He wants to trade his radial tire setup (wheels and tires) for mine because he's selling the Max.

I have 2k Metzler 880's on mine which I am very happy with. These look like they will last at least another 5k and I have a lot of cornering confidence in them.

So here goes---Does anyone have a comparative experience between them? This could be a vast handling improvement (according to him) or it could be insignificant and a lot of work for little gain (if any).

Are there any radials for a stock Max wheel that I could try when renewing?

Thanks for the (as always) great advice.
Stan

Well radials will fit on the stock front wheel, but for radials on the rear wheel, you have to change rims as there are NO 15 inch radials.

I have an RC 18 inch wheel on my Vmax, and have a radial wheel on the stock front rim. HUGE difference. Before that I was running shinko's....front and rear. I had a LOT of confidence in them, but I like the radials more.

Its a huge difference & very noticeable. IMHO its the best mod you can do for your max

OMG, I'll send him two stock wheels and tires if he'll send me his!

You better do this. It's the #1 best thing you can do to make your VMax handle better. If he has the stock front wheel w/a radial tire on it, you don't need to do anything except switch-over your tire/wheel for his, if it's some sort of upside-down fork and wheel from another bike, it gets more-complicated. Then the best thing to do would be to swap the entire front end, not a hard job, since he's already got it modded to the VMax. The rear wheel if it's 170 or larger could require at least the 'washer swap' and possibly a widened swingarm. If he does have a 180 or 190 on the rear, I am pretty-sure you will need a widened swingarm, whether it's a 17" or 18". For the rear, it depends on the wheel offset if it will fit. Zero offset, I don't think the 17" will fit a 180+ w/o at-least the washer swap. The 18" rear & zero offset, I'm pretty-sure needs a widened swingarm.

Post up exactly what wheel/tire sizes & brand of tires he has and we'll better know.

If he's offering to allow you to swap-out no $ this is a great deal. Like I said, if you don't want them, send me his contact info. I'll ship him what he needs!

Wrinkled Wrider said:

I have a friend who has a '98 V Max. I have the '06.
He wants to trade his radial tire setup (wheels and tires) for mine because he's selling the Max.

I have 2k Metzler 880's on mine which I am very happy with. These look like they will last at least another 5k and I have a lot of cornering confidence in them.

So here goes---Does anyone have a comparative experience between them? This could be a vast handling improvement (according to him) or it could be insignificant and a lot of work for little gain (if any).

Are there any radials for a stock Max wheel that I could try when renewing?

Thanks for the (as always) great advice.
Stan

Click to expand...

This almost sounds to good to be true. He wants to trade his rims that fits radial tires for stock rims. Is this a straight up trade? What kind of rims are his?

Sounds like a no brainer to me. Trade him your stock rims as fast as you can, before he changes his mind.

Mike

maxcruiser said:

This almost sounds to good to be true. He wants to trade his rims that fits radial tires for stock rims. Is this a straight up trade? What kind of rims are his?

Sounds like a no brainer to me. Trade him your stock rims as fast as you can, before he changes his mind.

Mike

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+1, the radials changes the bike for the better! Better braking, ride and cornering. If someone offered this deal to me I would have thought I was in a dream!

Do it. I'll give you FIFTY US DOLLARS and my stock wheels for them!
Then I woke up...

I'm gonna be a naysayer on this one--while radials theoretically ought to be an improvement over bias ply tires, I don't think it's nearly as much of an improvement as others have stated. My '98 had Avon bias ply tires and, aside from the flat profile rear (less contact patch when cornering) and wore-like-iron-and-gripped-like-wood front, I felt like the bike handled well for a 650lb cruiser. My '06 has a Bridgestone 110/80 radial front on the stock wheel and a Bridgestone 180/55 rear on a UFO 18x5.5 and, while it's been a few years since I had the '98 for comparison, the '03 doesn't handle markedly better.

That said, trading stock wheels/tires for radials is a no brainer, if for no other reason that a radial-tire-compatible-sized rear is worth a lot more money than a stock rear. Your buddy is doing you a big favor if he's trading straight up--he could buy a stock set of wheels and tires on Ebay and sell his radial wheel and tire set for a decent profit.

Wow!!
Sounds like if all the mods are straight , I should jump on it.
It is an even swap , so that makes it a "no brainer".
As I 've said before Great advice here.
Thanks again , Bros.
Stan

Go for it quickly !

I went from brand-new bias-ply tires to new radial tires, and there was no doubt to me how much-better the bike handled, especially as speed rose. The steering precision alone was worth the expense, and the top-end feel was much more confidence-inspiring. I had a fresh front fork rebuild, fork brace, Progressive Suspension rear shocks, and new steering head bearings, so I started from a known-good components place. Since I literaly rode them back-to-back, my opinion is there's no-better mod to a stock bike than going w/quality radials, properly-sized. Keeping in-mind it's the street, I corner fairly-aggressively, and the radials allow you better peace-of-mind in a corner. Your results may differ...

TheFleshRocket said:

I'm gonna be a naysayer on this one--while radials theoretically ought to be an improvement over bias ply tires, I don't think it's nearly as much of an improvement as others have stated. My '98 had Avon bias ply tires and, aside from the flat profile rear (less contact patch when cornering) and wore-like-iron-and-gripped-like-wood front, I felt like the bike handled well for a 650lb cruiser. My '06 has a Bridgestone 110/80 radial front on the stock wheel and a Bridgestone 180/55 rear on a UFO 18x5.5 and, while it's been a few years since I had the '98 for comparison, the '03 doesn't handle markedly better.

That said, trading stock wheels/tires for radials is a no brainer, if for no other reason that a radial-tire-compatible-sized rear is worth a lot more money than a stock rear. Your buddy is doing you a big favor if he's trading straight up--he could buy a stock set of wheels and tires on Ebay and sell his radial wheel and tire set for a decent profit.

Click to expand...

Radials with a stock front wheel, made a big difference for me. Then going to a wider 17" in front was another leap in the way my old Vmax handles. Shifting some weight to the front was a benefit of the wheel and the riding position with drag bars. Fork springs and shocks highly recommended if your spending for the wheel anyway. Like Phil mentioned, head bearings and wheel bearings, a tight swing-arm, all are part of it.

Well guys, I went ahead and did the swap but it did cost me $400 - somewhere the communication of money exchange broke down in the beginning of the deal.

The handling seems to be lighter; less effort required although it was pretty good with the Metzlers.

I will put on a slightly smaller (170 vs the present 180) rear and go up to a slightly larger front ( now a 110/80 r18). I'll probably do this early next riding season.

Thanks,
Stan

Wrinkled Wrider said:

Well guys, I went ahead and did the swap but it did cost me $400 - somewhere the communication of money exchange broke down in the beginning of the deal.

The handling seems to be lighter; less effort required although it was pretty good with the Metzlers.

I will put on a slightly smaller (170 vs the present 180) rear and go up to a slightly larger front ( now a 110/80 r18). I'll probably do this early next riding season.

Thanks,
Stan

Click to expand...

I thought a trade straight up was the deal , as that would have been a " no brainer ". No matter now that you have the upgrade. Keep your original wheels , tires , etc. and put 'em back on if you decide to sell your max down the road , or sell 'em now while the iron is still hot to make up some of the difference unk:.

Do not go to a 120 in front. The wheel really isn't wide enough for the 110. Your handling will not be better w/the bigger 120.

Wrinkled Wrider said:

Well guys, I went ahead and did the swap but it did cost me $400 - somewhere the communication of money exchange broke down in the beginning of the deal.

The handling seems to be lighter; less effort required although it was pretty good with the Metzlers.

I will put on a slightly smaller (170 vs the present 180) rear and go up to a slightly larger front ( now a 110/80 r18). I'll probably do this early next riding season.

Thanks,
Stan

Click to expand...

What kind of rims did you get? do you have pictures of them?

Mike

I don't have a pic . I'll try to get one.
Yeah, the cost was a shock to me.
Since I was verbally committed , I went for it.
I do think the front is a stock wheel.

Stan

There are plenty of guys with a stock front wheel running radials, though. Post pics when you get them, though. We always love new (to whoever) bikes.