74 FLH tires

[otis71]

Any recommendations for FLH tires that handle well, look period and don’t cost a fortune?

[joe fxs fxr]

Pick two of those criteria. LOL

[otis71]

Ok, how about handle well and look period correct. Cost doesn’t matter as much.

[T. Cotten]

Got a stack of early '80s Goodyears, Otis!

Handle bad, look 'period' for even more years if you grind off the double-white center line, need cleaning, but reasonable if you dig them out of my "Pit" personally.

They wear like iron, which only matters to sidehackers.

...Cotten
PS: Anybody else remember when the Dealerships liquidated Goodyears with "blem", burnt into them?

I stocked up a lifetime supply.

[otis71]

I appreciate the offer but I’m trying to get away from the Goodyear Speed Grips. They corner like your riding on a square box. I do remember blem branded in the sidewall.

[indian301]

500 16's? Avon Mark 2's

[Architect]

I put a set of Dunlop American Elite's on my 1970 FLH, with the skinny white wall. Excellent tire and looks the part form 10' away. I tried the Shinko's that look like the Speed Grips, absolute garbage, stay far away from them.

[otis71]

The earlier style Shinko that looks like a Firestone that I run on my pan aren’t bad but I agree the Speed Grip knockoffs Shinkos are terrible.

[vph-d]

If you want to ride the bike, get some modern Dunlops and be done with it. The Conti k112, and Avon Safety Mileage tires look correct, but neither like rain grooves. I have Coker Super Eagles on a 65, and it handles like 1965.
VPH-D s

[otis71]

Not a fan of Cokers. I bought a set of Shinkos that set me back a whopping $180. They look similar to vintage Goodyears, ride smooth and corner well enough to scrape my floorboards. Overall I’m pleased with them.

[exeric]

Just throwing this out there. It's the front tire that wags the tail of the dog on motorcycles with handling I've either liked, or hated. I'm talking regular riding, not sport riding. So, perhaps taking advantage of the 'inter changeable' wheel feature of H-Ds, and tire pressure may give you a ride you like. I had a good friend that raced semi-pro and he often said, "There's no such thing as a perfect tire".

[droptopford]

I bought a set of Shinkos that set me back a whopping $180. They look similar to vintage Goodyears, ride smooth and corner well enough to scrape my floorboards. Overall I’m pleased with them.

I put a set of Shinko SR777Fs white walls on my Shovel a couple years ago. So far I love 'em. Great handling (for an FLH Shovel anyway) with a nice round profile. They look and handle a lot like the Dunlops on my Road King.

Agree with Architect (and others) above. The Shinko 'Speed Grip' copies suck. But then the actual Goodyear Speed Grips pretty much sucked so I guess the Shinkos were an accurate copy.

[Lyle Manheimer]

My experience, Shinko's are for the man who enjoys changing tires, frequently. I don't. I like Avons, have run them on my Pan for many years. No they do not handle like the Shinko's but I am not carving any canyons on a'64 Pan. The drawback is handling on rain grooved roads and open grates on bridges.

[otis71]

Having multiple antique bikes and a modern bike also, if I put 1500-2000 miles a year on an antique it’s a lot. An hour in the garage changing a tire isn’t an issue for me. A friend of mine swears by the Avons for handling.

[ChiefTwoKicks]

Otis- I see you picked the 2 out of 3 choices as "handle well and period correct". I'm not convinced you can achieve both, and for that matter the 3rd choice (cost a fortune) either !!
If you're not too fussy about the "period correct" criteria as a deal breaker, then I would recommend the current Dunlop 401 (16"... 404 for the 18") tire. Harley uses this tire as standard issue equipment, as they have researched the proper tire for the most popular types of riding. Admittedly, the 401's don't look period correct, but I believe this tire will give you the best results for all around use, usually better mileage, weight and load requirements and overall performance. As far as cost, ALL motorcycle tires are expensive !!

I have the Dunlop 404 (18") on my bobber Chief (very high mileage), and Universal Vintage Co.(universaltire.com) Firestone Ans 18" tires on my heavier skirted Chief, as well as my other rigid frame Chiefs. The Firestone tires look pretty close to "period correct". Without a doubt, the Dunlop tire outperforms the Firestones in every category.

An any case, there are trade-offs, you can't everything !! I'll take the modern tires every time, when it comes to MY exposure to the elements, safety, and performance when on TWO WHEELS.
For the amount of exposure on a bike I ride only occasionally ( the fully correct bikes in my quiver), I want something that gives me a better safety margin than something that "looks" correct. I will sacrifice the difference for the few miles I actually ride my correctly restored machines. I want to feel comfortable in every aspect, when I'm riding my own bikes that I'm not everyday. The difference is certainly dramatic, when I ride the various bikes in my collection back-to-back. If I constantly ride one bike or the other, on a regular basis, then "difference" seems to vanish as I get used to riding a specific bike... the old "I'll get used to it" factor becomes a part of the equation in just a few rides. But if you ride multiple bikes back to back, you'll see what I talking about real quick. I put alot of miles on my bobber, 10-15K. On the others, only about 2--3K depending on which runs or events I use them. Handling and performance are the key issues with all of them.
Rain grooves aren't too big an issue, its the cornering and stopping power that most effect my decisions. The looks, not so much. Besides, who else, besides the AMCA judges, cares a flip about what tires you have on your bike ? The ONLY people who have ever asked me about my choice of tires has been a fellow antique rider, wanting to know why I have Harley tires on my Indian.

Which tires you choose is like asking which oil do you like. The choice is a personal decision. All of them work, which is best, depends on who you ask... you'll get a different answer every time.

C2K