Author Topic: Front tire question (Read 5050 times)

NorEaster · **on:** July 30, 2015, 09:27:11 pm

Sorry to bother everyone; but should a 3.25 x19 tire fit on the front of a 2014 C5 Classic?
They list the K70 in a 19 at NFG.
I just put new shoes on my gal and she's wearing IRC GS-11's now.
http://www.irc-tire.com/en/mc/products/commuter/gs-11/
I'm finding that the indented area of my front fender, between the fork legs is just lightly touching the tire. I need to figure out how to get just a tad more space in there.

pmanaz1973 · **Reply #1 on:** July 30, 2015, 09:59:20 pm

I put some Dunlop K70's of that size on my 2014 C5. The gap was too tight in my opinion and I ended up taking the fender stays into a local welding/fabricating shop and they cut and welded a 5/8" piece into each one on the flat spot. I sanded them down and rattle canned them and all is well. The tiny gap that was there made me really nervous. The K70's are so much better than sock it is hard to believe- it did however, raise my bike an inch or so.

mattsz · **Reply #2 on:** July 31, 2015, 12:28:19 am

Nice to see you back, NorEaster!

If your bike has the 19" front wheel, then I think that should be the right size. I'm surprised you, and pmanaz1973, have had trouble - I thought your C5 and my B5 had the same front fender arrangement, and I have plenty of room for the 3.25x19 K70. Pmanaz, is your front K70 a 3.25?

Craig McClure · **Reply #3 on:** July 31, 2015, 12:34:21 am

The recommended size for a front tire of a 19" wheeled Royal Enfield is 3.25, the 3.50 is to fat, but ok for rear.. I have used IRC tires & K70's, liked them both fine.

NorEaster · **Reply #4 on:** July 31, 2015, 12:45:15 am

I ordered the IRC GS-11 3.25H10 front tire and the 3.50S18 rear. I based my choice off of what I have read here about the K70's. The clearance on the rear is fine but it's very close on the front.
I'm wondering if it falls back to the whole "handmade" aspect and that there are different specs on the fender from bike to bike.
I really like the feel of the tires and they handle the tar snakes in the road everywhere in these parts just fine. Much better handling than the stock.

pmanaz1973 · **Reply #5 on:** July 31, 2015, 03:05:00 pm

Quote from: mattsz on July 31, 2015, 12:28:19 am

Pmanaz, is your front K70 a 3.25?

Yes it is - and it was close, like 1/8" close. The work to lengthen the stays cost me $50 and I did the finish and painted them. Totally worth it. I have a lot of dirt roads out here that I ride on and those Avon tire were down right scary on dirt.

mattsz · **Reply #6 on:** August 01, 2015, 01:22:22 am

Quote from: pmanaz1973 on July 31, 2015, 03:05:00 pm

Yes it is - and it was close, like 1/8" close.

Huh. I've got more like twice that for clearance. Maybe the B5 fender is wider...

pmanaz1973 · **Reply #7 on:** August 01, 2015, 03:01:37 am

Quote from: mattsz on August 01, 2015, 01:22:22 am

Huh. I've got more like twice that for clearance. Maybe the B5 fender is wider...

Could be; or my fender stays were a bit more "unique" than yours. I had to bend them a bit to center the fender when I got the bike. Don't get me wrong - my tire never rubbed, but it was so close that when I picked up a rock in the tire tread it would bounce around in there for a bit before dropping out.

mattsz · **Reply #8 on:** August 02, 2015, 01:05:37 am

The fender stays do not affect the width of the fender at the "indents" - it's way too stiff. Centering over the wheel, yes, but I've got almost 1/4" clearance for the 3.25 K70 on my bike... but there's always the possibility that things are different between bikes...

GSS · **Reply #9 on:** August 02, 2015, 06:15:25 am

K70s in 3.5x19 front and 4.0x18 rear worked fine for my 2010. The original front fender had about 4-5 mm clearance on each side but I needed to fabricate longer stays......changed to a skinny old style 500 cc chrome fender last year and this would definitely give you even more space on each side. Thanks.

GSS

pmanaz1973 · **Reply #10 on:** August 02, 2015, 04:42:35 pm

I really wanted to run a 3.00X19 Front and a 3.50X18 rear, but I've been told Dunlop no longer makes these sizes. Either way, I could't find any on the web. The 3.50x19 front 4.00x18 rear works great. Really does improve the handling on rough and gravely road in my estimation. Looks good too.

hortoncode3 · **Reply #11 on:** August 03, 2015, 09:22:49 pm

I had the same issue on my 2009 G5 Military. The fender rubbed the K70 only on the one side. The dealer, Daily Rider out of South Burlington Vt , removed the fender and dremeled piece of the offending fender off. Problem solved and no one is the wiser. Never had that issue again. Still don't know what that was all about..

NorEaster · **Reply #12 on:** August 04, 2015, 03:36:17 am

After numerous inspections of my front fender, I feel that the scalloped areas behind the fork legs are much deeper than they need be. I took the front wheel and fender off and with a little tweaking made the inner space between the scalloped areas about 3/8" wider but still maintaining enough depth to clear the fork shrouds. Tomorrow I'll take her for a little ride up and down the driveway to get a feel for it and make sure it's going to work ok.

pmanaz1973 · **Reply #13 on:** August 05, 2015, 03:39:05 pm

This discussion got me thinking, so I called a buddy who has a 2012 C5 and we removed and measured his upper right front fender stay - sure enough, stock it is within a 1/8" of my modified one; the oblong mounting hole also appears longer. This would explain the extra height that some have from the factory.

In true form, the "uniqueness" of RE has to be figured in. Either way, wouldn't get rig of my K70's, just wish they made a thinner rear tire.

suitcasejefferson · **Reply #14 on:** August 05, 2015, 05:27:06 pm

I have always used the stock size tires on my bikes. On the Enfield I even intend to use the exact same tires that came on it, more for looks than anything else. I do not ride it aggressively. I prefer to just enjoy the feel and sound of the bike.

I am by no means a safetycrat, but using the wrong tires on a bike can sometimes even be dangerous, especially if you are an aggressive rider. Modern sticky tires might not be a good match for the Enfield's ancient and flimsy frame and suspension.

Craig McClure · **Reply #15 on:** August 05, 2015, 06:43:07 pm

Quote from: suitcasejefferson on August 05, 2015, 05:27:06 pm

I have always used the stock size tires on my bikes. On the Enfield I even intend to use the exact same tires that came on it, more for looks than anything else. I do not ride it aggressively. I prefer to just enjoy the feel and sound of the bike.

I am by no means a safetycrat, but using the wrong tires on a bike can sometimes even be dangerous, especially if you are an aggressive rider. Modern sticky tires might not be a good match for the Enfield's ancient and flimsy frame and suspension.

Hi Suitcase, The Stock Avons felt snaky & rather frightening on my 2010 G5 deluxe. I replaced them with the same size Dunlop K70's Front 19 x 3.25, Rear 19x3.50.
They ARE the correct looking vintage for the bike. The K70 tires & stiffer rear shocks make mine handle like a racer, & make me feel a lot more confident & secure. The Dunlops are much cheaper than the Avons as well.
Those rear AVON SM MKII tires make better sidecar rig tires than solo.

NorEaster · **Reply #16 on:** August 05, 2015, 10:07:39 pm

I noticed an immediate difference on my 1st ride over the stock Avons. In this area there is a lot of road crack repair done with the aerosol tar crack filler or "tar snakes" "road snakes" whatever one may refer to them as. On the stock tires I noted considerable wobble when crossing them. I don't now.

Richard230 · **Reply #17 on:** August 05, 2015, 10:44:58 pm

I like to refer to the stock Avon tires as track-masters. They track every groove in the highway. But, being a cheapskate, I still have them on and just try to avoid highways with rain grooves. I just try not to lean over too far....

mattsz · **Reply #18 on:** August 07, 2015, 11:39:58 am

Quote from: NorEaster on July 30, 2015, 09:27:11 pm

Sorry to bother everyone; but should a 3.25 x19 tire fit on the front of a 2014 C5 Classic?
They list the K70 in a 19 at NFG.
I just put new shoes on my gal and she's wearing IRC GS-11's now.
http://www.irc-tire.com/en/mc/products/commuter/gs-11/
I'm finding that the indented area of my front fender, between the fork legs is just lightly touching the tire. I need to figure out how to get just a tad more space in there.

So, where did you buy this tire?

Do you have any mileage info on it? I'm only getting a few thousand miles on the rear K70's, and I'd like something reasonably safe that looks the part, but with a little more longevity...

NorEaster · **Reply #19 on:** August 07, 2015, 08:37:52 pm

Mattsz,
I got the tires from Central Maine PowerSports. They were about 60 something for the front and 70 something for the rear... or vice versa. I had mentioned these tires a while back and one of our forum buds... Craig, I think, mentioned that they have used them in the past and were happy with them. I'll let you know about mileage... in a while

but if you google them there are a number of bike shop pages like Bike Bandit with numerous happy reviews. I didn't feel like spending a bunch right now and they have an old school look to the thread. They feel good.
Now I just need to figure out the best PSI to run them at for me and my C5. I'm think 20 front and 30 back? Not sure yet.

Craig McClure · **Reply #20 on:** August 08, 2015, 05:29:57 am

Quote from: NorEaster on August 07, 2015, 08:37:52 pm

Mattsz,
I got the tires from Central Maine PowerSports. They were about 60 something for the front and 70 something for the rear... or vice versa. I had mentioned these tires a while back and one of our forum buds... Craig, I think, mentioned that they have used them in the past and were happy with them. I'll let you know about mileage... in a while but if you google them there are a number of bike shop pages like Bike Bandit with numerous happy reviews. I didn't feel like spending a bunch right now and they have an old school look to the thread. They feel good.
Now I just need to figure out the best PSI to run them at for me and my C5. I'm think 20 front and 30 back? Not sure yet.

20psi is low inflation in front, I'd try 28. Rear is probably ok at 30psi, but I usually go 32 on mine.

johno · **Reply #21 on:** August 08, 2015, 08:32:51 am

I've gone with Mitas tyres after having a couple of nasty front end slides with Avon skidmasters. They still have the traditional look but are far better on grip and stability. Not sure if you can source them in the states though.
I run the front at 28psi and the rear at 32-35psi depending on the load, seems a lot better than the oem recommended pressures.

NorEaster · **Reply #22 on:** August 08, 2015, 01:44:40 pm

ok... just did the math run this morning. I set the air to 25psi in the front and 30psi in the back. Went for a good run to warm up the tires and checked the air while they were warm. Rear was at 33.5psi warm and front was at 26.5psi. This tells me I should probably run about 24-24.5 in the front and 29.5 in the back if I am doing my math correctly.

pmanaz1973 · **Reply #23 on:** August 10, 2015, 06:41:47 pm

I run 25lbs in the front and 30lbs in the rear - I weigh 180lbs

So far so good.

Bike is a 2014 C5 and I'm running Dunlop K70s front 3.5X19 and 4.00X18