Best modern tyres & head bearings

[vincent]

 Hi There What are the best modern tyres to fit on A10..and what is the widest section rear you can fit to standard 19inch rear.....? avon am21 .?any ideas.cheers..

[a10 gf]

Sme older tire posts here, http://www.a7a10.net/forum/index.php?topic=248.0 , would be nice with more about these important parts of the bike. Nearly anything that ain't punctured is good enough at low speed on a sunny summer day, then a rainstorm comes from nowhere and one has to get home asap...

[Brian]

I run a 3.25 x 19 Avon Speedmaster, ribbed type on the front and a Dunlop K81 4.10 x 19 [same as 3.50 x 19] on the rear and find these give good performance and wear. I had a Dunlop K70 on the rear of the plunger A10 to start with but only got 5000 miles out of it. I guess it depends wether you want to keep original looking tyres or are happy with modern tread patterns.   Brian

[LJ.]

The Avon speedmasters seem to be the way to go. I have these on my Blue A10 and will be swopping them over to the Red A10 simply because they do have a good strong and fairly hard wall which will be ideal for sidecar pulling, but they are no good for low cornering, I have found.

I had been using the Cheng Shins, they are good now inspite of their past reputation of being too hard, shiney and slippery in wet weather. I had got on very well with them this last summer, but they are no good if your bike is loaded up well. I found there was a lot of sideways movement and you can only pump them up so hard, this is where the Avon Speedmasters win again.

I would like to put some old type Avon Roadrunners on or Dunlop TT100s on the Blue A10 which I will keep for solo riding. So I will also be interested to hear of others opinions.

[groily]

I'm also with Speedmasters for all our sorts of touring trim bike - ribbed at front and SM Mk 2 at back. Have tried Roadrunner and K81 alternatives from time to time but always come back to the true and tested. Having said that I have a Michelin on the front of the A10 'cos it was there, not very new, and it's OK - but will replace with ribbed Avon when due. Speedmasters are quite OK in the dry but yes, they aren't great in the wet (and boy was this northern European weekend a good test), but not so awful either, and are quite cheap and longish-lasting. V good and quick service from Vintage Tyres, always. I also like the highish profile, which keeps the gearing up - the difference in overall profile of say a Roadrunner vs a SM Mk 2 on the rear is noticeable - worth half a tooth on the gearbox sprocket probably. Rounder sections are much better for serious scratching though, as the edges aren't 90 degree angles and you can feel what's happening before it hurts. So depends how you want to ride I suppose. Have to say I've become a relative wimp as middle age has taken hold. Pathetic really. Groily

[G/F DAVE]

I have a bridgestone 90/90/19 section on front of my A10 plunger & run a old style 4.10.19 road runner at rear handling feels good ( as good as you get on a plunger) also good in the wet , On my Tribsa I run Dunlop TT100.s 3.60.19 front & 4.10.19 on rear excellent handling ,you can push the odd japanese bike pilot to his/her limits on the B roads around here before you blast past them. As for combination tyres I have tried various types of tyres only Avon triple duty tyres are any use in the long term,much better feel & handling also they wear well compared to other solo types. Dave....

[BSA500]

Metzeler(sp) 3.25 block c at the front and Avon Roadrunner 4.10 at the back.Would never ever use the skidmaster mk II at the back again as when leant over it would twist about something rotten.My favourite tyre of all time was the Pirelli(sp) Phanthom a bit soft but so sticky.

[LJ.]

I notice some of you are using 4.10 tyres on the back... Would I have to change my 3.5" x 19" rims or will 4.10 go straight on?

I must admit the last few days the Avon Speedmaster really does deserve the name 'Skidmasters' the roads around here are terrible and with roller/taper steering bearings the bike feels ugly, makes me nervous riding I can tell you.

[a10 gf]

Avon Roadrunner universal 4.10-19 goes straight on the rims. If I am not very wrong, 4.10 = 3.50 for the mentionned tyres, just some different denomination. But I seem to remember the 4.10 RR looked smaller on the bike than the 3.50 SM.
The SM has better looks, the RR better grip. I'll stick to the modern design in this case.

[BSA500]

Ah so thats why the skidmaster felt weird the taper head bearings(still don't like that tyre).
Andy

[LJ.]

Ah so thats why the skidmaster felt weird the taper head bearings

It is amazing how one thing can have such an impact on something else! I think I may have mentioned before somewhere about the head bearings in both my 1961 A10s. One has taper/roller the other the balls in a race type. Both so TOTALLY different The Speed/Skid Masters are not so bad with the ball type steering bearings but with tapers!! ughhh! It could be that the taper bearings seem to give that feeling of... 'power steering' Whereas the ball type bearings the feeling is so much more 'fluid'

I must admit that Speedmasters are so popular among experienced riders and I don't know why they are so. Even in my local BSA group most of the guys have them. They do look good and classic, but this should not be the prime reason for using them.

[Pim]

hey there, i recentley got my '55 A7 parts back from the sander/painter, and i'm asembeling:) it's amazing how many tiny things to do you discover when you think it's a simple fit and screw job:) But anyhow I'm at the point that i can put tyres on the... i think it's called a "rimm" but not sure, lets say wheels. So this is my problem there are a lot of tyres to choose from... I have never driven a bike... actually I don't even have my licence:D but that's just a minor issue:) the bike isn't finished jet anyway. I don't really care what the look like, or what suposed to be on an a7 by tradition... they have to drive save and plesant. any tips form me?

An other thing i was adviced to fit the taper bearings in the stearinghead. But as LJ mentioned the ball type is more fluent... so any help on that would also be apericiated.

Thanks! Pim

[LJ.]

Hi Pim...

Your doing very well and will soon have that bike on the road to ride, Licence is highly reccomended though!  It certainly is suprising how many 'other' small parts one needs when building a classic bike, but the rewards are always good especially when you keep a bike for many years. The choice of tyres is a bit confusing and I hope you eventually find some that suit you well. 'rimms' or 'wheels' it does not really matter which word you use.

You'll find that the ball bearings for the steering head will be cheaper and can be purchased from a good classic bike shop in the Netherlands. http://www.petersclassicbikeparts.nl

Industrieweg 106
2651 BD
Berkel en Rodenrijs
Nederland
tel: (31)(0)105199210
fax:(31)(0)105199214

[Pim]

I've been there, and it's a nice shop. The owner told me that the ball bearings are cheaper, but the taper are more "fluent" so I'm not sure which to choose...

thanks .

[roadrocket]

Hi Pim

I have the tapered head bearings, and they have been great. My B40 has the originals, and require some adjusting from time to time.

Otto in Denmark