I have a lot of sand and gravel roads that I travel. Only problems had in the past were with street bike tires. So, was looking at getting a Rebel and knobby tires, like a trail bike has. Those tires really keep hold of the road with all that loose sand and gravel laying on the surface. Anybody run the knobby tires?
Knobby tires on a Rebel?
Handy Andy
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Speaking for the BMW R1200GS.. Pretty darn good. However it has primarily street tires. (Anakees) Knobbies are not going to work great in the twisties. I've heard good things about KTMs but have never ridden one.
Honda VT600 Shadows & CMX250 Rebels (various years for each)
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Somebody forgot to tell this guy:
Yeah, it isn't the best tool for the job. I had mine off road for a bit before chopping it and tweaked the upper motor mount. It wasn't any less fun though, but I'm sure if it was better suited to the task it would have been more fun.
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Honda VT600 Shadows & CMX250 Rebels (various years for each)
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True that is the first point of contact, the head pipes slung below the frame is not good for that environment (an open face helmet also isn't a good idea for that kind of riding).
It's an untitled bike. Can't ride it on public streets, so there's one legal option...
It's an untitled bike. Can't ride it on public streets, so there's one legal option...
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Did not explain myself well. Am 63 years old, and like to ride county roads. These roads have rock and sand for wet times. Road grader maintains roads often. Except when wet, they have loose gravel and sand on the surface. Live in rural Kansas, and have all my life. Have had several bikes in my lifetime, some street bikes, one enduro. Knobby tires are VERY helpful on these gravel roads. When the county adds gravel, roads are a bit loose, and people wreck. Have drove into new gravel, and nearly lost control, even at low speeds. Neighbor kids crash regularly in their cars. I am a bit careful, thus no casualtys. Street bike is fine for me, just need knobby tires. And I wear 29" inseam jeans. Like to be able to touch the ground on a bike.
Handy Andy,
I guess some readers have missed your opening statement and later clarifications. I don't know how this thread has devolved from gravel roads to boulder strewn canyons, but I understand your situation.
I also ride a lot of gravel ROADS, but have little trouble with the OEM tires. I do have trouble when riding on packed down, wet black dirt, as on a field lane. I have had the Rebel slip out from under me twice. In that situation, more grip would help.
Tires can be had from strictly street to very aggressive knobbies, with a pretty wide selection in between. When I replace the Rebel tires, I will go with mild grip tires, front and rear. These will go around a curve on a blacktop road just fine. I see no need whatsoever for different air cleaners or heavy duty batteries. I'm 65 and Andy is 63, so if all else fails, slowing down is an option.
I guess some readers have missed your opening statement and later clarifications. I don't know how this thread has devolved from gravel roads to boulder strewn canyons, but I understand your situation.
I also ride a lot of gravel ROADS, but have little trouble with the OEM tires. I do have trouble when riding on packed down, wet black dirt, as on a field lane. I have had the Rebel slip out from under me twice. In that situation, more grip would help.
Tires can be had from strictly street to very aggressive knobbies, with a pretty wide selection in between. When I replace the Rebel tires, I will go with mild grip tires, front and rear. These will go around a curve on a blacktop road just fine. I see no need whatsoever for different air cleaners or heavy duty batteries. I'm 65 and Andy is 63, so if all else fails, slowing down is an option.
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Same issues here Andy. I feel that a knobby is still too aggressive so I have been searching for a trials tire but nothing is available in 15". I have even gone as far as relacing the rear to a 16". Still nothing. I have found a Chinese co. that makes a 15" trials but the down side is I would have to buy 100 at a time and they are not DOT approved.
What I have done is put a trials tire on the front of the Old Warhorse and got the most aggressive rear street I could find, a Shinko SR734 130/90-15. Does quite well on wet rock and mud slick roads. We have allot of them here in the rain forest and even had to pull the ammo carrier monday through the rain rock and mud to get to the parade. No problem.
What I have done is put a trials tire on the front of the Old Warhorse and got the most aggressive rear street I could find, a Shinko SR734 130/90-15. Does quite well on wet rock and mud slick roads. We have allot of them here in the rain forest and even had to pull the ammo carrier monday through the rain rock and mud to get to the parade. No problem.
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Ohh i just noticed you are in Kansas. Famous for gumbo! I have no idea what you could do about that!!!
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Most of our roads are red clay with native rock mixed in, then county adds crushed lime rock and sand. Early days they had native gravel pits, then they were closed and they hauled sand, finally some white lime rock and they add sand cause it is cheap.
If your rear was laced to a 16in rim I would suggest the Vee Rubber VRM163 Dual sport. I run that tire on the rear of my nighthawk, it handles well and 40% of my riding is done on a loose gravel road. I have had it out on the paved road once or twice and it was very smooth. Lof8 ended up having his rear laced to a 16in rim so he could get a better tire on his rear.
Cheng Shen makes rear 15in offroad/dual sport tires, but they are almost impossible to find. Also I just came across this tire DOT approved dual sport Shinko SR241 it will fit a 15in rim.
Cheng Shen makes rear 15in offroad/dual sport tires, but they are almost impossible to find. Also I just came across this tire DOT approved dual sport Shinko SR241 it will fit a 15in rim.
I ride a KLR 650 a dual sport. It most typically is on pavement, but I do ride dirt roads. I don't have knobbies on mine but a milder tire that is a 80/20. It looks like this and does well on gravel. Maybe something like that will work for you. This is a Shinko 705
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Yes the shiko Sr 241 tire will fit the 15" rim but it is almost half the width of my shinko front tire. That's just not right.
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I rarely ride dirt or gravel roads, but I often ride on concrete with loose material on it. I would daresay that the stock Rebel tires are meant to be suitable for all applications, and as such are barely suitable for any particular application. I was astounded by the improvement in performance by switching to Pirellis, particularly on loose material over a solid base. I guess my point is that perhaps you could find a tire rated as suitable for a Rebel without going to the extreme of knobbies.
Gyro wow yea your right I didn't even notice the aspect ratio. I was just happy that I found something that might help, this forum provides so much help to me that I get excited if I might be able to pay the help forward. Ebay has some used cheng shens floating around, but I don't think they are DOT approved.
If it helps I agree with Fridgitator, I used the tires that came with my nighthawk for a year around my farm before upgrading to the dual sports. My front tire was bald and the rear was a tight tread road tire, they were not ideal by a long shot but got the job done on loose gravel and grass.
If it helps I agree with Fridgitator, I used the tires that came with my nighthawk for a year around my farm before upgrading to the dual sports. My front tire was bald and the rear was a tight tread road tire, they were not ideal by a long shot but got the job done on loose gravel and grass.
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Was looking on ebay today, found a Kingston dualsport tire, fits Rebel rear says it fits Chinese motorcycles like Zongshen. Tubeless. There was a Shenko 3.00-18, not sure how heavy tire they are. Still need to find thick tubes.
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Received a Shinko 241 for the front today. Got new rim strips,2 tubes, and a new tire for 69$. There was about 1/2" between the tire and front fender. Still waiting for the rear tire.
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The rear tire showed up today. It was raining, so good day for shop work. I put the tire on and replaced the chain. The Kingstone tire looks like it will work well on gravel roads.
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How about some pics?
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