Has anyone tried to throw a bigger rear tire on their Nightster? Its got a 150...I think, I was thinking a 180-190 would look pretty sweet, but I don't know up sizing on motorcycles. I would imagine one or two sizes would be ok, but can the rim hold a 180? Will it fit in the swing arm?

 

fat tires increase unsprung weight and attract mid-lifers

 

I think you need a new swing arm if going over the Metz ME880 160. probably would need a ner rim as well - the tire specs will tell you the rim width needed.

 

Wouldn't a wider tire like that negatively affect the great handling Sportsters have, particularly on twisting, turning roads?

 

im in the process of doing this i just got the rim and will be putting it on hopefully by the end of the week. i did a chain conversion though. not to hard or expencive. i will try and post some pics and do a write up if everything goes ok.

 

My nightster doesn't handle very well in my opinion, but I have ridden Hondas, soft-tails, and dynas....the suspension is way too stiff, it doesn't naturally get into the counter steering, I feel like I kinda have to force it...acceleration is better than most Harleys though...its lighter...

And no I don't think increasing the tire a couple sizes would adversely effect the handling, or performance. If I tried to put a 300 on the back, then maybe....not to mention you should shoot me for insulting the bike....

 

my ducati has a 190 and it looks great, it really does, wide tires look amazing. but it feels less stable than my harley when you are wringing it out in the mountains


and its a DUCATI, with a race bred chassis meant to be stable up to 200 mph.


the nighster is not a chopper, and its not a race bike, or a canyon carver. its totally unique, it calls upon many different styles of bikes (flat trackers, cafe racers, and bobbers to name a few) but a big rear tire would definately subtract from its great looks.

 

I like wide tires on the Sportsters. You might want to try to look this guy up on xlforum. His name is mrjonjon and see how his handles. He bought the Bros Mfg 250 kit. I think it looks sweet myself but a lot of people don't like the wide tire look.

 

I would be the first to say that wide tires look b*tchin...on certain cars or bikes. But this just does not flow with the rest of the bike. The bike looks like it needs to be longer. With the wide tire, it looks like it was slapped in the *** and now its all swollen...

The nightster's stock tire, IMO, is the best looking. Not too skinny, not too fat. Its a bobber style bike...not a chopper. With that fat tire, you need to more rake on the front end.

But to each his own.

 

papadop88Quote:
Originally Posted by HDRider69
I like wide tires on the Sportsters. You might want to try to look this guy up on xlforum. His name is mrjonjon and see how his handles. He bought the Bros Mfg 250 kit. I think it looks sweet myself but a lot of people don't like the wide tire look.

I would be the first to say that wide tires look b*tchin...on certain cars or bikes. But this just does not flow with the rest of the bike. The bike looks like it needs to be longer. With the wide tire, it looks like it was slapped in the *** and now its all swollen...

The nightster's stock tire, IMO, is the best looking. Not too skinny, not too fat. Its a bobber style bike...not a chopper. With that fat tire, you need to more rake on the front end.

But to each his own.



I completly agree with him.