Think I screwed-up on the front tire..

[Dezeez]

A week or two ago I put a 170/80-15 Shinko on the back with a stock rim and swing arm. I was surprised how much clearance I had so I assumed the Shinko ran a little small compared to other 170's.

I wanted to order a front tire to match (even though I'm not ready for one yet) so I ordered the Shinko 120/90-18 instead of the 110/90 again thinking it would run a little small. Well, it arrived yesterday and it looks huge.

Is anybody running a 120/90 on the stock front rim? Did it clear the stock fender without any mods? I don't think bigger is better in this case.

 

[Rusty McNeil]

A week or two ago I put a 170/80-15 Shinko on the back with a stock rim and swing arm. I was surprised how much clearance I had so I assumed the Shinko ran a little small compared to other 170's.

I wanted to order a front tire to match (even though I'm not ready for one yet) so I ordered the Shinko 120/90-18 instead of the 110/90 again thinking it would run a little small. Well, it arrived yesterday and it looks huge.

Is anybody running a 120/90 on the stock front rim? Did it clear the stock fender without any mods? I don't think bigger is better in this case.

I'm on radials now but I went through several 120/90-18 metzlers on the front, it looked close but really there was about 3/8" at least from the top of the fender, never had any issues with it.

The clearance on the sidewalls to fender might have been a little tighter but nothing ever hit.

I loved the way the slightly wider tire felt on the front, little extra Gyro effect or something

 

[Lew L]

Hi De,
I also have a 120/90 on the front of my '98, and it's close but I like the look and the solid handeling. No problems at all.
Lew

 

[Rusty McNeil]

I even ran a 130/80-18 for a while on the stock front rim without problems but that narrow wheel really pulls the beads in and negates the extra width of the 130, sucking the sidewalls in also and narrowing the whole profile, I got worried about the extra stress on the tire due to the undersized rim and never did it again after the first one........

Rusty

 

[Dezeez]

Thanks guys, I'm glad to hear it will fit. I really like the Shinko rear I put on the back. I can get to 120 mph now with the wobble just starting to kick in.

I won't need to put the new front tire on until after Thunder and maybe longer.