Tires for my Sportster

[Monk]

Kids gave me some cash for Dads' day... went up to the kustom shop today and ordered a set of Dunlops...
I know they're not the highest end product, but the stock ones seemed to work well - good balance between longevity (the old ones have 12K on 'em and need replaced soon) and handling. The compound they use doesn't surprise me when riding from hot dry onto soaked roads, and that happens pretty often down here.
Ended up with the OEM D402 21" in front and a D404 instead of the standard D401 16" in back. The guy at the shop said the only difference is the 404 doesn't say "Harley" on it. 'Bout $20 cheaper.
They're goin' on on Friday... $310 out the door.
Feels fair.
Y'think..?


BTW - put this here 'cause I didn't know where else..? Maybe a "Tires" forum is in order, I'm sure there's lots to talk about.

[Dan]

Does the 310 include mounting and balancing and whatever else they do? It cost me I think 389 just to have the front done.

[Monk]

Yup. Couldn't afford the dealership.
S&S Kustoms in Palmetto is very popular with the bikers around here. They sponsor a lot of events and have a great rep...
Actually $307 mounted, balanced, drive belt properly adjusted, and core (disposal) charges. Complete.

Like I said, it feels pretty fair.

[Dan]

Sounds fair to me fo sure!

[Boss]

Wow....Just because it did not have the HD endorsement.....

[Monk]

Well, that was only good for $20 off... what is nice is they sell the tires for basically full list price (very comparable to what I could find online), but don't charge to install 'em.

They have Harley certified personnel to work on it so I'm pretty comfortable. Like I said, they've got a good rep.
Know more Friday afternoon. Can't wait!
:cool

[Osco*]

Cool deal Monk,,

Sounds like a fair deal and they do hav ta make money.
I don't mind payin for good stuff and my stock 401 lops are serving me just fine so far.

I got out with some sport bike riders and a buddy on a bmw motard.
We did some fast corner carving and my dunlops did fine. I took my
"Chicken strip" down just below 3/4" on the rear an a 1/2" on the front.
I was just past the last sipe edge on the tires and they tracked.
It was super hot and they got sticky. Had em at 38 psi rear n 33.5 front.
The twisties had nice straights and good 90 degree corners all showin 25 or 35 mph while
the straights were 45 n 55. We was tuckin corners somewhere round 45 to 60 , thats a gess cause
at that speed Its hard to look down at the speedo.
I only made one mistake on the second run, I chopped throttle mid turn.
Should have held maintenance throttle and leaned more.
I caused me to dive to the inside a bit.
I didn't drag any hard parts an felt like I had the roadster at 90%.
Now If I go in too hot by mistake someday I know what I can do in a pinch.
Was a Blast btw,,,
I'm glad you got new rubber Monk,,IMO you was pushin your luck a bit.

[Monk]

What?!? The ol' ones ain't slicks yet!

Yeah, I needed 'em. Goin' on in the morning...

[Monk]

New rubber!

They look great! Nice new tires, all shiny and with (get this...) tread! Who knew?
Also the profile is supposed to be round? My old ones were mostly flat in the center...

Rides great, handles a bit different.

He didn't add tax in the estimate, so it was $327 out the door. I'm good with that - feels like I got a deal.
Gonna get them to do the 10K maint checklist in a few weeks, maybe.

[MOTOCROSSER]

i`ve been checkin out new tires for my scoot,think i`m going to get the metzler ME 880 marathons!

[Monk]

Yeah,I hear great things about the Metzler products, fantastic handling, glue-like stickiness, super sensitive road feel... also that they won't last 4k miles on Florida roads.
Has to do with the fact down here we run into lots of varying surfaces, some (many) containing ground-up seashells and coral - Hell, the harder compound Dunlops only have a life expectation of ~8k.

I feel lucky, got 12k outta my last set.

I think the Metzlers are probably superior handling, but I can't afford to change 'em every six months.
:madcow

[vlade]

More to do with ambient heat I think

[Oiltrash]

I was told from a dealer that the HD tag does add a % to the price. Helmets are tha same way. On most, the tag or their site will tell who made it for HD and then check the vendors website. Just got a rear tire, Dunlop 17" around 200 driveout. They discounted the tire which is odd. Been getting 6-6500 on rear.
Have not figuredout the formula for increased wear yet.

[Monk]

Well, an update.
The rear D-404 (didn't say Harley) wore out pretty quick, so that compound is softer.
The front one (does say Harley) is just barely broken in lookin'. Doesn't need replaced yet.

Went back to S&S today and replaced the D-404 with a K-591 that does say Harley. Guy told me it had been designed for racing originally... but was now the preferred tire for all Harley "sport models". They're V-rated, instead of the H on the 404.

Anyway, I think it's a good tire, still lookin' for data.
Looks a touch wider at the tread, and I'm hopin' the compound is tough enough to hold up longer... like to be able to replace just the front next time.

Staggerin' is less $pendy all @ once.

[doorgunnerjgs]

So how many miles did you put on that rear tire?