80/20 Tires for '15 Versys

[Heywood]

I may be riding back from CO next month if I can swing it and will be taking the scenic route, about 1/3 to 1/2 dirt and primitive camp. I've got really good street tires on it now but was thinking I could swap on a pair of 80/20's for the trip which might give me a bit more confidence through the unpaved sections. I don't think anyone makes an 80/20 in a direct fit, so what could fit?
Stock sizes:
FRONT TIRE:120/70-17
REAR TIRE:160/60-17
Thx!

 

[Gary856]

Avon Trailrider is available for your size. Good tires, had them on my GS and 690.

 

[Heywood]

Avon Trailrider is available for your size. Good tires, had them on my GS and 690.

Thanks! After some more research I do see there are some direct fit options for me out there that I must have overlooked previously.

 

[davidji]

80-20 in back, and either 80-20, or something more aggressive in front (like the TKC-80) might be good.

Pretty sure TKC 80 is available in your front size, if you want a more aggressive tire in front.

Pirelli Scorpion Rally STR is in between a knobby and a block tread type tire, and comes in your front size as well. It looks more aggressive than block tread 80-20 tires, though I can't say how they compare side by side on loose dirt & gravel. I think my front wore out on the street before I ever got it on dirt--beyond maybe a few miles of dirt road.

In addition to 160/60-17, as I recall some use 150/70-17 on the rear of the Versys. Not many choices in the stock rear size.

MT60RS fits both ends.

 

[ScottRNelson]

The TKC-80 is available in a 150 or 170 for the rear, unclear why they didn't include a 160. I totally wore out one of those in 3200 miles on my KTM 1090R.

The MT60RS looks like a good choice for what you want.

I haven't really thought about what you can get for 17" rims front and rear, since I've been on 21"/18" for the past ten years. There don't seem to be a lot of good choices.

My next set of tires, coming soon, will be the AX41 from Bridgestone. That one also has 150 and 170 rears with no 160. I was curious about the speed rating on that tire, and it's P - 94 mph. I know I occasionally go faster than that, like just yesterday. That's not as fast is it sounds with the 80 mph speed limits around here. Current tires on my KTM (Karoo 3) are "good" for 106.

 

[Critter]

Shinko 705s...GO FORTH!

 

[ScottRNelson]

Shinko 705s...GO FORTH!

Except that they don't have the right sizes.

Front - Needs 120/70-17, closest Shinko is 120/90-17
Rear - Needs 160/60-17, closest Shinko is 150/70-17

The profile is different enough that it really wouldn't work very well.

 

[Mellowtonin]

Dunlop Trailmax Mission's

I may be riding back from CO next month if I can swing it and will be taking the scenic route, about 1/3 to 1/2 dirt and primitive camp. I've got really good street tires on it now but was thinking I could swap on a pair of 80/20's for the trip which might give me a bit more confidence through the unpaved sections. I don't think anyone makes an 80/20 in a direct fit, so what could fit?
Stock sizes:
FRONT TIRE:120/70-17
REAR TIRE:160/60-17
Thx!

https://www.advpulse.com/adv-bikes/dunlop-trailmax-mission-review/


youtu.be/DWyJtSBDYb4

Loving my set right now :thumbup

 

[ScottRNelson]

The Dunlop Trailmax Mission has the same size issue as the Shinko 705. :x

 

[Mellowtonin]

The Dunlop Trailmax Mission has the same size issue as the Shinko 705. :x

:laughing

I've always thought that it's okay to run tires slightly different from stock sizing as long as there are no clearance issues. On some models manufacturers (Ducaca for example) pick wider rear tires mostly for aesthetics anyways, IMHO one size narrower may help improve the handling.

But it's up to the OP, his options are limited if sticking to OEM...@Heywood talk to a tire guy if you have one!

 

[Farmer John]

Continental TKC 70 is an excellent tire & 120/70 & 160/60

 

[ScottRNelson]

:laughing

I've always thought that it's okay to run tires slightly different from stock sizing as long as there are no clearance issues.

There is quite a difference in height between a 120/70 and a 120/90.


And now I have to share my story related to that... :afm199

Back in 1985 I had an RZ-350 which took a 110/80-18 rear tire. Once that was worn out the guys at the Yamaha shop talked me into a 120/90-18 rear. It's just one size bigger in each dimension, right?

So when I'm on the freeway it won't go over about 65 mph and there's a bunch of smoke behind. Oh well, it's a 2-stroke, they smoke right? After a week or two of that I realized that at speed the tire was expanding and hitting the swingarm. The faster I tried to go the more it expanded and "put on the brake", so to speak. By the time I realized this I had already worn about a 2" wide flat section into the tire and where it was hitting the swingarm you could make out where the center groove was, because the paint and metal hadn't been worn down there.

Eventually the tire was worn enough for it to no longer be an issue, but I felt pretty stupid about it.

So when you're considering a bigger tire than the manufacturer recommends, there are multiple reasons why going bigger by more than one size might not work. Somebody recently wanted to put a 150 rear on an XR650L which comes stock with a 120. You can get away with a 140 on some tire brands, but others even at that size will hit the swingarm.

 

[Mellowtonin]

There is quite a difference in height between a 120/70 and a 120/90.


And now I have to share my story related to that... :afm199

 

[senpai71]

I just bought some Pirelli Scorpion Trail II tires for my Versys, and @lucytriple is fitting them next week.

I'm doing a week-long ride in NorCal and Western Oregon - mainly road, but some (slightly) offroad - fire roads and such. They don't seem particularly knobby, but apparently that's what they put on the ADV bikes at Dubbelju, and I trust their judgement.

 

[ScottRNelson]

I just bought some Pirelli Scorpion Trail II tires for my Versys...

I wouldn't go anywhere with loose sand, mud, or deep gravel with those. I had a set of Continental Trail Attack (before the 2 or 3) tires on my KTM 990 Adv back before I started riding much dirt and they were fine on packed dirt roads, but not much good at all on loose uphill stuff. You just have to consider your tires when leaving the pavement.

 

[Guoseph]

Except that they don't have the right sizes.

Front - Needs 120/70-17, closest Shinko is 120/90-17
Rear - Needs 160/60-17, closest Shinko is 150/70-17

The profile is different enough that it really wouldn't work very well.

It's not well known but Shinko has started to make the 120/70 -17 Tires

https://www.revzilla.com/motorcycle...lMfMrC2kz6J6AFv9Z2wQWqJt49SpuuU4aAiPEEALw_wcB

Select Wheel Location : Front and you'll see the 120/70 pop up as one of the choices.

 

[Guoseph]

@OP check out the Pirelli Scorpion Rally STR, these will be going on my supermoto next. It's the stock tire on a Ducati Desert Sled (17/17)

https://www.revzilla.com/motorcycle/pirelli-scorpion-rally-str-tires

The new Yamaha T7 also uses these but they are 21/18

 

[senpai71]

I wouldn't go anywhere with loose sand, mud, or deep gravel with those. I had a set of Continental Trail Attack (before the 2 or 3) tires on my KTM 990 Adv back before I started riding much dirt and they were fine on packed dirt roads, but not much good at all on loose uphill stuff. You just have to consider your tires when leaving the pavement.

Good to know - thanks for the advice!

I'm primarily an aging road rider, so if my dual-sport buddy suggests something that I'm not comfortable with, I'm happy saying no.

 

[ScottRNelson]

Good to know - thanks for the advice!

I'm primarily an aging road rider, so if my dual-sport buddy suggests something that I'm not comfortable with, I'm happy saying no.

The problem is that they'll suck you into something that will make you uncomfortable by starting out with something easy, then it gets a little more tricky, then you realize you really want to turn around and it's already super difficult to get your heavy bike pointed the other way. Or nearly impossible to get back out altogether.

Make sure, before you start following them, that they're all committed to helping you get your bike back out if they take you anywhere inappropriate. Get that commitment after they commit to not taking you somewhere inappropriate in the first place.

 

[davidji]

I just bought some Pirelli Scorpion Trail II tires for my Versys, and @lucytriple is fitting them next week.
...
They don't seem particularly knobby, but apparently that's what they put on the ADV bikes at Dubbelju, and I trust their judgement.

It's a grooved-tread street tire. I'd love to see a side by side test vs a street tire where the Scorpion Trail or Trail Attack has any advantage at all on dirt or gravel roads. They might come in more adventure bike sizes, but Versys uses street bike tire sizes.

Block tread tires like the aforementioned 705 give a bit better dirt/gravel grip, while still performing well on paved roads. As you get more aggressive you start to give up pavement performance.