Crazy tire idea

[Broz]

Michelin Commander II Cruiser Rear Tire
200 55 17 Radial    They say grips well lasts a long time 2 compound tire,  next year I plan on putting one on I have lots of miles left on my P3 190 50 and a new 190 55 waiting to go on.

Are you guys doing burn outs ? only 3,000 miles and cords ?

Never 1 burnout. I think the road surface on a lot of the country roads going thru foothills toward the mountains ( very coarse abrasive does not look very well packed) and the twisties in the mountains have a lot to do with it + my speed in the turns. The guys I ride with are getting similar wear results on a GS1200 so I know it's not the bike.

Does the Commander II not come in 190?  Would a 200 fit?

[curly]

I would echo that it's not a good idea. Not only that but have you ever hoisted one of these cruiser designed tires?

I deliver them all the time and they weigh as much as a car tire does. HEAVY!

[Riverszzr]

 I have plenty of customers on all sorts of bikes with Metzeler Marathon touring tires on their bikes.

 Some ride very aggressively wearing away hard parts on their bikes in a single season. I think the premise that the ME880 (or the newer ME888)is any lessor of a tire than say most sport touring tires is flawed. Especially when you are looking at bikes in excess of 650 lbs empty.

I imagine if you are riding at the ragged edge of traction then, maybe the slight difference (and I mean slight) may put you over that edge where you are in more peril of crashing. But seriously unless you are going to a racetrack and trying to keep up with the sportbike guys you have little to worry about by running the best selling top of the line (has absolutely been the best touring tire for a couple decades) Metzeler Marathon...yes I like and sell Metzelers....as well as Michelin, Dunlop and Bridgestones

That said, I checked once and it did not come in a 190/55-17 and I doubt the ride characteristics of a 200/50 profile is going to do anything good on the Concours.

 Ride on what you want though, if it makes you feel safer and more secure that means you are not spending any of your energy or concentration worrying about the tires and grip, which means you can focus more on other aspects of your riding.

[lather]

I the mid 80's I raced a Ninja 900 with WERA and also made a couple cross country trips on the same bike. I had two rear wheels, one had the softest Michelin available and the other had the Metzler Marathon. I never had any worries with the Metzler.

BTW, I did consider  the 888 for the C14. Not sure whether I would have gone with one since the point was moot with the 190/50 not availbale. I think the 200/55 would be too tall.

[Cuda]

200 55 17      55 not 50

Commissioned third-party tests* show that the MICHELIN® Commander® II rear tire lasts almost twice as long its nearest rivals
Innovative technology

Amplified Density Technology: A highly dense, more-rigid tire casing, which helps deliver excellent feedback and handling.
   Conventional
71-thread ply
   Commander II
90-thread ply is
25% more dense
than conventional
plies

Aramid tread plies on the rear tire resist centrifugal growth, reduce weight and provide excellent stability.
All-new rubber compounds for remarkable wet grip, without compromising durability.
Square bead-wire package improves handling and ease ofinstallation.

[Riverszzr]

 Sorry, I thought someones post said it was a 200/50....I didn't look it up before posting

 I have customers on those Michelin Commander II's also-so far they haven't been lasting any longer and in 2 cases not as long as the ME880 for their bikes, how they ride and where they ride. The Elite III has (for a couple of these guys) outlasted the commander and almost matched or matched/slightly surpassed the mileage of the Metzeler, but they didn't have the same feedback and confidence inspiring feel (so say the customers.....I do not have a bike that would take any touring tire to go test myself, or I would.....I have run about a dozen different brands/models of tires on my bike and did a write up on website of each one, most of them I ran atleast two sets for a better overall comparison, of course they were all sportbike tires...)

 Anyways, Michelin makes an excellent tire. I have no doubt you will find it to be of exceptional quality

So while I have no doubt some "3rd party" test will show they are something phenominal......It is akin to looking at tire threads where some people profess to get 15k out of the excact same tires others only get 5k out of....IMO

[Riverszzr]

I the mid 80's I raced a Ninja 900 with WERA and also made a couple cross country trips on the same bike. I had two rear wheels, one had the softest Michelin available and the other had the Metzler Marathon. I never had any worries with the Metzler.

BTW, I did consider  the 888 for the C14. Not sure whether I would have gone with one since the point was moot with the 190/50 not availbale. I think the 200/55 would be too tall.

Michelin HiSport I bet....

I ran the Metzeler CompK (ME33 front and ME99 rear) in most of my racing days of the 80's, but I did occassionally run the Hi Sports, they were better in a certain temp range on certain tracks, but didn't fair as well below 75* or above 90* temps...Atleast that was my finding compared to the comp K's. And the comp K's had 100 times (exaggeration) the traction in the rain.


The 200/55 vs the 190/55 (what I see many loving instead of the 190/50)...well apples to apples it should only be 5.5 mm taller--but profile and actual build dimensions will make a huge difference in what the actual numbers are.
 Dunlop Q2 180/55 is only 2mm shorter than Dunlop Q2 190/55 (just as an example)--their 180 is also the widest 180 of any manufacturer that I have seen and used coming in at only 2mm narrower than the Q2 in a 190/55 (when the 180 was on a 5.5" rim and the 190 on a 6" rim)

[Cuda]

The 200/55 is one of the few Commander 2s that are Radial and V rated ? Why they would build anything but a radial ? 

[lather]

Michelin HiSport I bet....

I ran the Metzeler CompK (ME33 front and ME99 rear) in most of my racing days of the 80's, but I did occassionally run the Hi Sports, they were better in a certain temp range on certain tracks, but didn't fair as well below 75* or above 90* temps...Atleast that was my finding compared to the comp K's. And the comp K's had 100 times (exaggeration) the traction in the rain.
than the Q2 in a 190/55 (when the 180 was on a 5.5" rim and the 190 on a 6" rim)

Yes, HiSports on the Ninja.  I ran Bridgestones on my GS450. But I was not good enough to tell one tire from another. I was crashing on all of them.

[Skinny]

I ran Metzler 880's on my heavy Yami RSTD with no issues.  I think they got a bad rap with folks loaded down heavily only airing up to the bike's specs on PSI. (40 for yami) <<< too low.

Best to Air up to the tire manufacture's PSI recommendations, for me with the M 880's that was 48 rear, 42 front.

I go by tire heat also.