XR100 (Cheap) Tire Choices

[Kestrel]

Hi all - my XR80 front wheel arrive earlier this week. I've been using my DR350SM at the local kart track, but it's a little fat at around 300lbs, so I'd like to put our XR100 to work.

I know the hot ticket for the XR's 16" wheels are the Bridgestone BT45s, but I'm finding it hard to justify dropping $200 on tires for that thing when I'm only going to ride this thing at the kart track less than a handful of times per year.

I know there are cheaper options out there - Pirelli ML75, Shinko SR714, and so on have been recommended to me. Have any of you run those tires, or know those who did? I'm pushing decently hard these days. This last time out, I was getting used to the front end sliding, and what it took to bring it back in line. Never thought I'd be saying that, but perhaps all this off season dirt biking is paying off :laughing

Given that, (and while the answer is probably yes) would I be setting myself up for disappointment with some of these cheaper tires? Are cheap tires a limiting factor on something like an XR100, or does the chassis itself give up before that?

People who have beaten the shit out of these things, please advise! Less money spent on tires means more money spent on kart track days, but if I'm going to hit the wall with a cheap tire on day one, then I guess I'll have to suck it up : |

 

[ToraTora]

Check with Treats. They have great pricing on things, and are an SF company!

They are mostly for Mopeds, but they carry a lot of stuff for the small bikes.

 

[Kestrel]

Check with Treats. They have great pricing on things, and are an SF company!

They are mostly for Mopeds, but they carry a lot of stuff for the small bikes.

Have you personally run the Heidenau K56? (Maybe? I see you post on a few small bike forums.. Moped Army, Aprilia etc.) If so, thoughts and comments? Will these things take what I'm looking to throw at them?

Edit: Nevermind - I thought the K56 was available in 16" sizes. It is not.

Have you personally run any of the 'popular' tires, like the GP1? While they get discussed here and there on the MA forum, it isn't necessarily what I'd consider 'quality' feedback. There aren't too many guys (to my knowledge) dragging knee on mopeds, however, so perhaps I'm barking up the wrong tree.

 

[ToraTora]

I run the K56's on my moped in a 17". They are fantastic street tires in that size. For slightly larger 17s I really like the Sava MC18s. Those are truly amazing tires for things like the Derbi GPR(with 17s), and Aprilia RS50. And for even yet slightly larger for say an 05 GPR50 the Sava MC50s are the way to go. You can also get them in soft compounds.

Finding good 16" tires is hard. The Pilot Sporty is a good street tire for 16", but it's far from cheap.

I've never run the GP1 because I live in California. Here we have roads with grooves dragged into them to deal with rain. If you have a tire with a center groove it will track really weird on the grooves in the road. I have heard good things about the GP1 tires from some moped people, but I would never use them for the above mentioned reason.

Sava use to make slicks. The folks that race mopeds would run two front slicks on their peds. But it's really difficult to get the front tires anymore. I run the Sava slicks on my GPR track bike. They are great. Way better than running 125GP tires because the little 50's just can't generate the forces to heat up the 125GP tire, but with the Sava slicks you are good to go.

What tire size are you trying to find? There might be a Sava tire in 16" for a reasonable price that might work for you.

 

[NCSM]

Shinko golden boy dual sport tires

30 bucks

 

[Kestrel]

What tire size are you trying to find? There might be a Sava tire in 16" for a reasonable price that might work for you.

XR wheel size is 1.4 x 16 up front, and 1.6 x 16 in the rear. Yep - tiny.

People typically run 100/90-16 up front and 110/90-16 in the rear with respect to Bridgestone BT45s. Yes - they look like ridiculous balloon tires, but it's still the stickiest setup readily available from common motorcycle vendors. Proven to work. Dumb and overweight with wasted sidewall like nobody's business, but very well proven. But.... that's $200 on tires that I'm going to ride for a sum total of probably <15 hours per year. Not a good value, IMO.

That said, I might have to choke it down and just go with them, anyway. I've run the BT45 at a silly pace before, and it sticks amazingly well for a bias ply tire.

Here's some random dude on that setup.

 

[ToraTora]

How about the K55, MC2, or MC26? And of course the GP1s are cheap enough that it wont break the bank to try them. Those four options ought to provide something that will work.

And if you want more options Treats also has the ML75.