Tire choices available to the classic 650 owner are quite limited compared with those for modern motorcycles.
Firstly, there are relatively few classic style tire offerings.
Secondly, skinny classic Triumph 650 tire sizes (rear 4.00 x 18 and front 3.5 x 19) severely limit choice among fat modern tire offerings.
The choice between classic and modern tires could be seen as dependent on three criteria:
Resources
TriumphRat.net "Want aggresive rear tire for my 79 Bonneville" Tires for dirt and gravel roads.
TriumphRat.net "Michelin Road Classics tires" Watercooled, 12 posts.
Britbike.com "Tyre(Tire) advice" Avons, Dunlop,Conti Classic Attack, TT100, K82,RoadRunners,Mitas,BT45 (BT-46 Battlax)
TriumphRat.net "What tires do you run on your classic bonneville?" 40 posts 2020. RoadRiders, Contenental, K657,K81, rubber tubes.
The comments below have been digested from the links above.
It will be noted that as with anything in life opinions about motorcycle tires vary widely.
Want to give your opinion? Email it. See "About" for address.
Dunlop K70s are unmistakably classic tires. They were the original rear tire for all three of my 1960's Triumphs. I think of them as dual-purpose tires whose lugs perform best on loose surfaces.
Kevin: "If you're into dirt roads, the old K70s are hard to beat."
rambo: "The one time i used the Dunlop K70s, the bike would slide a front wheel even on dry roads until i eventually collided with a car and wrote the bike off so not a good experience with 4 years recovering. I would compare the grip with a wheelbarrow tyre."
Don: "I use K70 because they look original but are only available in 3 sizes. K70 don't last long. The feel ok to me in rain & on dirt roads. Seem to corner ok, but when riding similar bike Roadriders feel like I can corner faster & feel safe."
Hermit: "I do lots of miles on gravel roads and the Dunlops give me confidence in the slides. Less so on pavement, especially wet pavement. In over 100,000 miles on four Triumphs I've only ever had K70s so I don't have any comparison, but to their credit they've always kept the shiny side up even when I was being stupid."
AllanG: "They [K70s] are good, but not great. But this can be said for any of the classic profile tyres".
rambo: "i had used Dunlop TT100s for many years and they were great tyres.. 10 out of 10."
TJD: "I used to run TT100s on my '68 Trophy and liked them but did find that the front tended to turn in a tiny bit quick for my liking. Stable and responsive though. Changed to K70s front and rear and found that the steering was more neutral and more stable in a straight line plus with the rear tyre being a higher profile it gave slightly higher overall gearing as well, a few less revs at cruising speed."
Redmoggy: "TT100's, if they was good enough for Malcolm Uphill they good enough for me."
HawaiianTiger: "Dunlop D404 and a Duro in 18 inch are OK, but the Avons handle a bit better."
duc96cr: "The Shinkos are fine on both dirt roads and pavement, very stable on both. Braking is much superior to the Continentals, but they were old and hard . I haven’t put a ton of miles on them, but they seem to be wearing well. I know they were probably not expensive, but I’d have no issue buying them again. They were kind of heavy and stiff , but once mounted, no problems."
Adam M.: "I use K 81 on my Trident with no complains yet, but used Shinko SR 712R in my BSA A65 and as duc96cr was pleasantly surprised with their behavior on dry and wet pavement. I was in more than couple downpours on them and to my surprise bike acted as stable and predictable as on dry pavement."
CRH - They offer a wide range of classic patterns but objective information and reviews on the quality and performance is very scarce. Also as I said before they are worryingly inexpensive. We all like a good deal, but..
Dave - " Chris a mate of mine fitted a pair of Mitas on his 68 bonnie and swears by them.I too thought that the low price a bit concerning regards the quality but i fitted a pair on my bonnie and cannot fault them.Have now fitted Mitas to both my Kettle and GT550 IMO they are a great looking period tyre and handle extremely well."
Truckedup: "When I got my T140D it had K81's, I believe they were about 6 years old and rode an handled like crap despite having a lot of thread depth..Replaced with Bridgestone BT 45 V rated tires. These tires have a good ride and stable predictable handling to the limit of the bike...I see no point to using anything less than the most secure tire for the type of riding you do.
HawaiianTiger: "Dunlop D404 and a Duro in 18 inch. Will run probably an Avon on them when these wear out. They're OK, but the Avons handle a bit better."
rambo: "Avon Roadrider 8 out of 10. Spoiled by its heavier construction."
rambo: "i had used Dunlop TT100s for many years and they were great tyres. I swapped to Avon Roadriders as the Dunlop price soared. The Avon was much harder to fit onto the rim and also much heavier but i got used to them. I preferred the Dunlop as the weight was a lot less so suspension worked better. Neither of them are bad in wet or dry and never had a slide except when crossing a ford with algae on the concrete which made it like ice skating. Both types last around 3500 miles on the rear at a fast riding pace. Fronts, i never wear out and after 9000 miles are less than half worn.
HawaiianTiger: "Ribbed Avon tire. I can ground bikes parts in the corners with them and they look the part."
Peg: "Avon Roadriders fell a little behind in the last few years, but they have just released a Mk 2 version with improved sidewalls and sticky silica compound. I have not tried them but I hear from people that have them that they are very good, especially in the wet, (The mk1 version was a little under par in the rain)."
Daveforty: "Roadrunners were the original tyres on my bike, and they worked a treat - then they were discontinued. The 'new' replacement Roadrunners were terrible, worst tyres I ever had, AM21 & 23? couldnt wear them out quick enough.... I have been using Metzelers ever since.
Don: Avon Roadriders "are nice, corner well, wear out fast. To me feel funny in rain & on dirt roads. I didn't know they make Roadrider MKII. I've not seen these. Very tight fit on rims. Often have to use furniture polish to seat bead."
Triumpt120rv: "Kenda K657's only because they're the only tires I can match on stock 19" front wheel and non stock 16" rear wheel. Otherwise I would try a "better" tire like Rancidpegwoman's suggestion. I usually ride year round so a softer tire would be ideal for me."
Rusty1: "I've just fitted the Continental RB2/K112 combination to my T100R. I've only done about 150 miles on them so far but they feel secure and suit the bike, they do squirm a bit when crossing white lines though."
Choice of vendors is more or less random. Prices are not necessarily representative. Online tire prices can vary significantly from site to site and from one time to the next.
Illustrations are for the purpose of tread comparison. Images are not necessarily to the same scale as others around them so should not be used to compare relative tire size, shape, or other characteristics.
