Well for those who don't know you can! Its simple, go to Amazon and look up a shinko 777 here are some details:

Shinko 777 Series Tire - Rear - 170/70-16

Zero modification! Fits greats and rides better then stock. Boom I'm done and here are a couple pics.

 

I run the 777 too, not the 170 but it is the best tire I have ever had on a sportster. Dry wet, and even on snow, never had a tire that had better grip.

 

sweet looking tire i'm goin to get that same tire when its time to replace mine looks awesome

 

Wonder how the width compares to my Avon 160/80-16. Mine definatly required modification on my bike, based on height not width. But I was looking for a reason to dump some money into rear suspension and get rid of the struts.

 

Man that looks nice, makes me want to buy a new tire damn you.

 

The cautionary note I will sound is that a 170 tyre is very wide on a stock 3" rim. Most brands recommend a 150/80 as the widest for that size rim. I use a 4.5" rim for the 160 I run on my Glide.

 

Do you have any examples of something that happened from running a 170/70-16 Shinko on a rubber mount stock rear wheel? I hear this on this forum a lot but no actual signs anything bad has happened from running the 170.

 

I was wondering this as well. I would love to hear of an actual case or cases of a failure running this combination. I am contemplating running this tire.

 

As an engineer I evaluate the wisdom of doing some of the stuff we read about on forums like this. Your question is similar to those posed by the advocates of using car tyres on bikes! Would I fit a car tyre on my bike? No. Would I fit an over-sized tyre? Same answer.

People like me design and manufacture tyres for vehicles and set the parameters for their use. They are tested and developed at great expense to verify that they will work as intended. Just blandly saying that something used outside their intended design parameters is 'fine' isn't a very sensible or responsible attitude to take! Each individual should consider that in their own right and not follow the herd.

According to their website, the recommended rim width for the Shinko 777 in 170/70 is 4.5", they do not mention 3". Now if you have contacted them in person and asked the direct question......

 

There is none. I know more people in real life who run the 170 Shinko on sportsters than anyother non stock size tire than are running it here. We aint no flower sniffers on rides and the performance upgrade and the speed we take curves would have a stock tire sliding out on you.

If anything that tire and size is a safety upgrade from what I have seen with it in action. That said I am not a fat tire fan but the shinko 777 looks as good as it performs, in any size. I run the 130/90 16 and that is specified for a 3" rim, the 150mm 777 is even specd for a 3.5" minimum and I am sure there is even more 150s on these rims than the 170 with no issues.