Replacement tires for the M50??

[nativenyerintexas]

I was wondering what are a good set of replacement tires for the M50. A friend of mine told me to go with Dunlop Elite IIs but according to Dunlop's site they don't make them in the sizes needed fgor the M50. Then my friend said I should go with a set of Metzelers. He went on to say they're even better than Dunlop. Ihave a lot of life left on my OEMs but I'm just curious as to what's out there. I'd much rather have long life tires than better traction. I had a Michelin hoop for my Reflex once and I got only 2,500 miles out of it before I was down to the wear marks.

Also, what air pressure do people use normally? Do people use what's recommended or do you use more or less and why? What are the chances of something bad happening using more tire pressure, say 41psi front and rear as opposed to the manual's recommended 29f and 36r?

[JmalB]

Do a search for Metzelers on here. I think quite a few went to those with good results.

[Apertureguy]

Try not to go too cheap either.



I went with a set of $100 Bridgestones. Don't try this. Freaking rear end slides out all the time, slides bad on a fast stop....and is really bad in the rain.

Although, for a $100...I'll suffer through the rest of this year, but next year I will purchase a much better set of tires.

[Copronymous]

DennisKirk.com - Metzeler ME880 High-Mileage Cruiser Touring Rear Tires

As for pressure, read the sticker on the bike. That gives you Suzuki's recommendation.

[GeorgiaRoller]

Has anyone been able to go wider than the 170 on the stock rim?

[Copronymous]

200 with the Metzeler. Search Metzeler 200...there are hundreds of threads.

[Trigger1985]

I was coming back from a long trip, it was hot, the road was hot and I was having to do a lot of steering around cracks, and tar lines that were bleeding out of the road. I get off the highway and get onto normal roads, and was heading to the gas station, it felt like I was running on ball bearings, and incredibly unstable. I checked the air pressure, it was up to 48 on the rear, I remembered that I had refilled my tires that morning, when the temperature was 50 degrees cooler so I let my tires cool while I got some Monster and Nictotine in my system, dropped to recommended pressure and clicked my rear brake a few times to loosen up in case that was the issue, and I was running fine again.. Glad I checked, who knows when it would have failed and blown out up that high and running that hot and fast.

[nativenyerintexas]

Originally Posted by Copronymous

DennisKirk.com - Metzeler ME880 High-Mileage Cruiser Touring Rear Tires

As for pressure, read the sticker on the bike. That gives you Suzuki's recommendation.

Thanks for the link. I haven't seen the sticker on the bike but I'm sure it would say exactly the same as it says in the manual. That states 29 front and 36 rear, either solo or two passenger or solo with heavy load.

[Copronymous]

Originally Posted by nativenyerintexas

Thanks for the link. I haven't seen the sticker on the bike but I'm sure it would say exactly the same as it says in the manual. That states 29 front and 36 rear, either solo or two passenger or solo with heavy load.

Yessir...it sure does!

[05HDRAM]

Originally Posted by Trigger1985

I checked the air pressure, it was up to 48 on the rear, I remembered that I had refilled my tires that morning, when the temperature was 50 degrees cooler so I let my tires cool while I got some Monster and Nictotine in my system, dropped to recommended pressure and clicked my rear brake a few times to loosen up in case that was the issue, and I was running fine again.. Glad I checked, who knows when it would have failed and blown out up that high and running that hot and fast.

Air pressure always increases with heat, that is why you always check it cold. I got off my bike last week after a ride in 90 degree temps, and the tire was hot. I did not check the pressure, but I know it was up. After it sat overnight, I checked and it was right on. When the bike and tire manufacturers recommend tire pressure, I am sure they take the heat buildup into consideration, that and speed ratings. Were you traveling at a higher speed, or carrying extra weight ? These will also contribute to higher temps.

When I shop for tires, I never bargain shop. The stock tires are usually a compromise between performance and wear. I have always had good luck with Metzlers or Dunlops.

[Petcop]

I wondered about the dangers of too much air pressure too. Never thought to check the tires after a recent servicing, though I should have because I didn't like the dealer AT ALL. Rode a week at all kinds of speeds before checking them and found they had overinflated the front by 10psi and the rear was 12psi over! And yes I checked them cold...always do. I had the same riding experience, the bike was like a frisky colt! Not the smoothest handling

[boooya]

You might want to consider using Nitrogen in your tires, its not affected as much by heat up and cool down like air is. I have been using it for over a year now and my tire pressures don't fluctuate at all. Nitrogen molecules are bigger and denser then air molecules so they also don't seep thru the rubber causing low tire pressures and rubber fatige (small cracks).


Plus I read somewere that it makes your bike faster due to it being lighter then air. U know like the color Black.

[nicocorea]

Originally Posted by Copronymous

DennisKirk.com - Metzeler ME880 High-Mileage Cruiser Touring Rear Tires

As for pressure, read the sticker on the bike. That gives you Suzuki's recommendation.

Wrong. The recommended pressure in the manual and on the sticker are for the stock tires. One you switch to any other tire, that recommendation is no longer valid (but I should also add that it's not necessarily INvalid either...). Go look at the sticker. Notice the bottom row. It says:

"Type | IRC | GS-23F A | GS-23R A"

So if you're running anything other than IRC model "GS-23F A" on the front or IRC model "GS-23R A" on the rear, the sticker/manual recommendations don't apply to you. Get on your tire manufacturer's website and find out what they recommend. Metzeler recommends 40 front and 44 rear for its ME880 on an M50, if I recall correctly.

[Ray Nielsen]

As for tires, I can recommend Kenda Kruz K673 tires. I've had them on for about 1,000 miles now and feel they are better than the original IRCs. I'm running them at stock pressure 29/36 PSI front/rear. They might be just a tad stiffer riding than the stock tires, but they're very sure footed during braking and cornering although I'm not a fast rider.

Got them from American Motorcycle Tire <www.americanmototire.com> for about $117 a pair delivered to MN. I bought two sets since I've got lots of miles planned this summer and at least a couple of riders on the Intruder Alert site report 13-14K miles on them.

Ray Nielsen, in Minneapolis and going for a ride tomorrow!

[Copronymous]

This is when I leave the topic and don't return...

[nativenyerintexas]

Originally Posted by nicocorea

Wrong. The recommended pressure in the manual and on the sticker are for the stock tires. One you switch to any other tire, that recommendation is no longer valid (but I should also add that it's not necessarily INvalid either...). Go look at the sticker. Notice the bottom row. It says:

"Type | IRC | GS-23F A | GS-23R A"

So if you're running anything other than IRC model "GS-23F A" on the front or IRC model "GS-23R A" on the rear, the sticker/manual recommendations don't apply to you. Get on your tire manufacturer's website and find out what they recommend. Metzeler recommends 40 front and 44 rear for its ME880 on an M50, if I recall correctly.

Thanks for clearing that up. When I had my Reflex and put on a non-stock Michelin hoop on the rear, NY Honda/Yamaha didn't know which recommendation I should follow, the manual's or Michelin's. The Reflex come with BF Goodrich hoops. After a short debate amongst their service employees the consensus was I should follow the manual. That's probably why I only got 2,500 miles on it.

By the way, I wouldn't recommend NY Honda/Yamaha to anyone ever since they were bounght by new owners in the Spring of 2005. If anyone wants to know details, feel free to leave me a private message.

Originally Posted by Ray Nielsen

As for tires, I can recommend Kenda Kruz K673 tires. I've had them on for about 1,000 miles now and feel they are better than the original IRCs. I'm running them at stock pressure 29/36 PSI front/rear. They might be just a tad stiffer riding than the stock tires, but they're very sure footed during braking and cornering although I'm not a fast rider.

Got them from American Motorcycle Tire <www.americanmototire.com> for about $117 a pair delivered to MN. I bought two sets since I've got lots of miles planned this summer and at least a couple of riders on the Intruder Alert site report 13-14K miles on them.

Ray Nielsen, in Minneapolis and going for a ride tomorrow!

Anyone else use these tires? The price seems attractive but I've never heard about their reputation. I'd like to know good and bad stuff about these.

[MotoJPizzle]

I always thought that if the replacement tires were the exact same size, the pressure reccos were the same.

[DaveAlvarado]

I personally run a little overinflated. I go to 41 when I fill them, I just like the handling better. 12k miles and no blowouts, and that's in the Texas heat.

[nativenyerintexas]

Dave, that's the reason i asked the question. I remember you telling me what you do on your M50, I just wanted to see if anyone else does and if they've had any problems.

Are you stil using the stock tires?

[1badbaker]

I've got the Metz ME880 on the back and am running that at Metzeler suggested psi, the IRC is still on the front (for another week or two and then that will be an 880 too) and that is at the recommened stock pressure. When the 880 goes on front I will run that at Metzeler suggested psi.