Tyre Recommendations for K100RS?

Strappy

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What tyres would you recommend for a 1986 (8v) K100RS? Usage is mainly commuting and pleasure, occasional trips with luggage, very rarely (almost never) two-up, reasonable pace while not breaking any records but I am a fat knacker (20st). Bike is used in all weathers on a 50-mile commute, mix of motorway and country roads, so I want good grip and reasonable longevity.

It's got Michelin Pilot Active at the moment that were on when I bought it; the front's almost on the wear markers, the rear still has good tread though it's flat across the middle. I'm thinking of replacing them as a pair anyway as the rear is dated 2006 so it wouldn't hurt to match it to a new front (the date code on the front is for 2000 so it's probably due to be replaced by now anyway...)

Second question, Haynes lists the tyre sizes as 100/90/18 and 130/90/17; are those correct or are people running different sizes?

Finally, should I go for V-rated tyres or are H-rated sufficient? I haven't exceeded 100mph on the bike so I can't see myself needing the V rating unless they'll perform better than the H's given the weight of the bike and rider. There's only a few pounds price difference for the tyres I've checked so far so I'd rather get the right tyres than save a couple of quid.

TIA :)
 
Some people seem to go up to a 140 on the rear but IMO an extra 10mm isn't worth it.

Best I've found recently have been Pirelli Sport Demon. Probably the best bias-belted tyre I've ever found.
 
Thanks, Mike. :thumb2

I didn't know that Pirelli made tyres in those sizes, very handy and added to the comparison list.

The Haynes book says that if you're fitting a 140 rear, you need to replace the standard spacer with a thicker one (2mm -> 3mm) to avoid the tyre rubbing on the swingarm. I wonder if anyone has ever done that...

The Pirelli tyre finder page gives these sizes for a K100:

110/80 - 18 M/C 58V TL - 2.5 BAR
140/80 VB 17 M/C (69V) TL - 2.9 BAR

I'm not doing the maths regarding the comparative heights but I think the slightly wider tyre would probably result in the same or a very similar profile to the sizes from the manual.
 


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