I want to put something on like a D606 (doesn't come in a 140 width though) and was just wondering what others were doing. I can't be the only one who's not crazy about the saharas...
Will a Motoz Desert HT fit a TR650? It's DOT legal and comes in 140 widths.. (Picture stolen from Kelly, lol)
I get my Terra this week after waiting forever...among other goodies I will be putting Pirelli MT21's on it. They make it in a 140 and I seem to always get more miles out of them compared to the 606. Both are great tires. But the Saharas ain't my style.
That is good to know about the Desert HT's Tinken, but I ordered the Dunlop 908 Rally Raids for both front and rear. Got to see them in the shop today. I guess a lot of people say to use a Dunlap 908 on the rear and a 606 on the front. I guess the 908 on the front is slightly unstable. I will make that decision for myself. I agree that the Sahara's are pretty useless. They even brake loose too quick on the street. I told Big D Motorsports that when my new bike comes in I don't even want to see it until the Rally Raids are on it.
The 908 is Dunlop's signature race tire. I had quite the conversation with Alex Smith about that tire. Dunlop is pretty proud of it. A little too heavy for my 511, but should work great on your Terra's.
Haha. Those are the tires the teams used to run across the Sahara desert, it's a very stiff, tough tire, flat resistant, meant to handle upwards of 100 hp and a heavy bike. It's slightly softer than the Motoz desert, wear is about the same tire to tire, but will offer a much better ride on the street due to its dead center chevron stripe. It kind of reminds me of the massive cheng shen big knobby we used to run back in the eighties. 1500 to 2000 mile life on the 908 depending on bike weight and how much street usage. Alex told me to buy the Motoz for my bike, but the 908RR may be better suited for the TR. I think both tires would work great.
I have never been a fan of the 606 or the 908RR. I really like the pirelli MT21's though on big thumpers that take a 140 rear.
I ordered a set of the continental twinduros. I'll let ya know what I think next week if it gets above freezing here.
The Motoz Dez HT is a good DOT tire. IMHO it is for people who do a good bit of off road as it will wear faster than I like on the road. It is a very good off road tire in fact I use it just for that on a few of my bikes. For all around DS use that includes a lot of dirt I like the Motoz Enduro IT front and Dez HT rear in the NW. For more road stuff I like the Pirelli MT43 rear. I actually like the stock tires on the TR650 as mine will see 90% road and gravel and they seem fine there. I have limited needs for that bike cuz if I am going to do anything more serious I'll take my TE511.
I like the rear too but I think this post is about the TR650 and that is an aggressive odd road tire where the HT will last a good bit longer pressed into DS duty and provides a better road ride.
The pirelli MT43 is a great tire for DS, but I am unsure how much weight it will handle. I'm sure it could handle the TR no problem. It would work great everywhere except in the sand, for example the barstow to vegas run and I could definitely see running that on the TR.
trails tires work surprisingly good in the sand too. Obviously not the best sand tire but better than I thought they would be.
Missed to 650 part Still like me some Enduros though! Gonna burn the last set you sold me off at Jimmy Lewis's this weekend.
I'm thinking of the TKC80 front too, to go along with the stock rear. It should be good on the road and OK on the not too rough non paved roads I'm liable to do with this bike. Just try to stay out of the mud and deep sand. In March I'll be heading to Death Valley for a week or more of riding with the 650 and 630, but for the "good" stuff it will be the 630! Titus Canyon, etc., will be fine on the Terra.
The TKC80 has always been my go to tire. I just wanted to try something different on this bike. You may be surprised with the handling for those of you that choose it and are not familiar with it. I think you will find better performance on the street too. Looking at the tread design you wouldn't think so, but they stick really well in the corners.
I've got plenty of street bikes, but when this bike is on the street- I hope it'll be headed towards some trails. My aim is to give it some traction, give it some protection, and give it some more low end grunt. I'll be happier than a pig in slop roaming around the north woods of Wisconsin. Speaking of grunt- where can I get a smaller countershaft sprocket?
