I was talking to my little bro today about doing some miles over the holiday weekend when he mentioned he is starting to look for a new rear tire for his '99 FXSTC. Out of the kindness of my heart I said I'd create a thread and ask the folks on HD forums, (plus he is still on dial up).
Any and all input is appreciated thanks for helping little bro, ( he needs it some times ),

Talon

BTW:
The stocker is the Dunlop Touring Elite II MT90 B16 74H, (130/ 90H- 16). What would be the max size he could run with the stock rear wheel, fender, swing arm etc.

 

I switched from the stock Dunlops to the Metzler ME880's a couple seasons ago and couldn't be happier with them. Comparatively, the Dunlops are complete crap. Sure, the Metzlers won't last as long (softer stickier tread) but to me it's worth the extra piece of mind on the twisties. The bike just loves to turn now, and rear slippage when powering out of corners is gone. Not sure of the max size you can run, but the metzler site has a fitment chart here that may suggest an upsize for ya (they had a 160 to replace my 150). Hope that helps, and good luck!

 

I had always ran Dunlops, but got tired of only getting 5K miles out of them on my RK and now Heritage. I am running my first Metzler 880 now and it has a little over 5K miles now and I am guessing I'll get around 7K. The price was a little better than the Dunlops. As for handling, I am not as convinced as to the superior handling as other people say, but I don't ride that agressively. It seems a little slicker to me as I have locked it up twice during a couple of oh **** moments and it seemed to come a little quicker than the Dunlops. That said, the handling certainly isn't bad. I'll be watching this. I am think about trying a Michelin next tire for grins. Good luck, choosing a tire is like choosing oil.

 

Quality tires are well worth the money in my opinion. Besides the fact that they are what attach you top the ground, you don't know what you are missing until you ride with a good tire. Metzeler or Avon are far better than the stock Dunlops. They need to be run at a higher pressure. I get 10K out of my rears with either brand. Use Dyna beads to balance them. Check pressure regularly. On a 99 I'd say 150 would be the max.

Drew

 

I have had zero problem and like the HD Lops I've used on our bike. Now ready for the 4th rear one, its a 401 in a 150-80-16. So far I have gotten 10k- 10.5k on all of the rears. Only one front so far and I changed it at 21k and it wasn't to the wear bars yet

If U want a good wearing and handling tire, look into the Dunlop touring Elite 3's..They're reported to get from 12-18 k by members in here and get great reviews.

http://www.dunlopmotorcycle.com/tire...tire.asp?id=86

U could probably go to a MU90B-16 without issues..


Heres the site I buy my tires from... Others claim their prices are lower, but I have found there not.. Also Dennis Kirk is one of our Sponsors.
http://www.denniskirk.com/jsp/produc...utm_medium=cse

The Met's may be better for some members as stated above, but we all don't ride the twistes and accel out of corners like we're racing.




.

 

I'm pretty sure that is what comes on that bike. 130mm wide.

Drew

 

Agree with ya drew...
IN the Elite 3's, heres the width of each tire.
the MT90 is 5.15 inches wide
the MU90 is 5.57 inches wide
the 160-80-16 is 6.10 inches wide.

The MU90 is alsomst 1/2 wider than the MT90 which most bike can handle that without rubbing.

The Elite in a 160-80-16 is almost 1'' wider and probably will rub the belt..
Also in the 401's the one that stock on my bike is a 150-80-16 and its 6.15 wide. So it'd probably rub also...

The Elite 160 is also almost 5/8'' taller than our (401)150 and its what I am thinking of going to. but it's be IMO to much for the 99 that the OP has.

Just found the elite 11 in a MT90-16 and its 25.7 tall and 5.2 wide.
So again IMO the Elite 3 in a 160 and also the 401 in a 150-80-16 would be too much tire without some mods...

Still think the Elite-3 in a MT90-16 at 5.57 will work fine...

 

I've never had a problem with the Dunlops. They handle fine, and I avg about 12K on the rear, and about 15K on the front.

And no, I don't run them bare, I change when I hit the wear bars.

 

tire pressure is definitely important, especially on the Metzlers if you have followed any other threads. I have kept this Metzler at 50, in line with what they say. I had great results with Dunlops on 2 Dynas I owned--15K, not so much on the RK and the Heritage. Loved the Avon Venoms I put on a Super Glide as far as handling, but sold the bike before I could see how long they would last. I need to ride with oct1949 to see how gets 10K out of his tires--not doubtin' man, just wanna see what I am doing wrong. I suck when it comes to tires.

 

After hitting some rain grooves on my stock Dunlops, it reminded me why I like Metzelers so much better ...