tires what size for 92 750

[gronate]

hello to all i am new here and new to the bike world i own a 92 katana 750 and i need new tires for it real bad i have looked and decided on conti road attacks but was wondering if i could go any wider in the rear with out doing any adjustments tire size now is 160/60zr17 thanks

[JokerZwild]

Newp 160 is the very max Id ever go in a 3.5 rim. And thats not even reccommended around here. want wider?....... gotta get a wider rim. And yes you'll need to make a few adjustments to make it work.

[HS2020]

160/60 is the widest you can go on a pre98 rim. Some will say you can not do it or it is dangerous. I have been running a 160/60 on my bike ever since I bought it. I ahve had the bike now for almost 8 years. It handles just fine. You do have to watch what tire you put on there though. The sidewalls must taper in more than other tires. The Contis should be just fine. I plan on putting them on my bike here soon.

[ATOMonkey]

I got my tires from Ron Ayers.

$252 shipped to my door.

120/70ZR17 - $112.79
150/70ZR17 - $115.65

Installed and balanced them myself. They stick to the road better than I can ride.

IMO, the shape of the tire is more important than the width, as far as handling goes. You can get a lot more usable tire out of a narrow tire where the tread comes way up the sidewall, than you would out of a flatter shaped fat tire.

On the other hand, big fat tires look really cool on pretty much so anything.

[Kreylyn]

To save myself some typing... this is a repost from thread http://katriders.com/vb/showthread.php?t=98766


Going 160/60 on a 3.5" rim will DECREASE the contact surface of the tire on the pavement compared to a 150/70.

I'm a pretty agressive rider, and have no issues with putting the bike over. The area I live in it's near impossible to find straight roads, and most places I ride are pretty seriously curvy. That said, this is the wear on a dunlop 160/60 riding hard in the curves....



You will notice the last 1" of the tire edge never saw pavement. I don't ride nearly that aggresively now days, and I still have less than 1/16th of an inch strips now with properly fitted tires. Oh, yes.... both sides look the same.

Most 160/60 tires are a little wide for the 3.5 rim, causing the tire to deform and the edges are pulled in. The effect of this is that you can't use the sides of the tire like it was desigend, without being so far over your scraping plastics....

I ran 160s for over 10 years myself before I saw the light. I'd be willing to say that general safety is fine, your still with in the limits and the likely hood of tire failure is really slim. Performance on the other hand IS decreased. Less contact surface all around due to the tire being mishapen, increased wear (small contact, more wear in general... ).

Your decision, but overall you will see better results from sticking with in the 150 size range.

Last note... a 160 once fitted onto the rim, is not going to be any wider really than a 150 fitted. The rim pulls the edges in.... If your looking for a wider tire, increase your rim size first.

Krey