front wheel conversion advise for a noob

[groome]

hi all,

Im in two minds at the moment as i have taken my 89 fj off the road for winter for some loving. i have just ordered all the parts to fit a gsxr rear wheel    I have been reading on the front wheel conversion and have been wondering as my 89 already has a 17 front rim would i be better putting a 110/70 tyre up front or doing the fzr1000 front wheel conversion??? i have read about peoples views on each but there is no real 'this is the better option'
any help is greatly appreciated.
cheers simon

[FJmonkey]

Good question. Are you likely to really lean your FJ over and carve the corners? I ride with Steve (Moparman) and he can out run me on his 3" wide front with 110 x 17" front. The only issue I see with the 3" wide is fewer tire choices. However, you get many more in 17" than 16". You are not getting a large increase in contact patch between 110 and a 120, 5 MM per side (or less than a quarter of an inch). Save your money and improve your brakes and suspension. 

[aviationfred]

IMO, don't fret over the FZR front wheel. As has been said recently on another thread covering this same issue. Concentrate on upgrading the forks internals, i.e. RPM fork valves and new bushings. The GSXR rear wheel and the OEM front wheel will allow the use of the standard sport bike rubber. 120/70/17 and 180/55/17 radials of your choice.

Have patience with looking for the FZR wheels. They are out there. If you have a local motorcycle wrecker facility, have them do a nationwide search. Beware of wreckers not knowing the difference concerning the years. A key to determine that the wheel is exactly the one you are looking for, is the F42 cast into the wheel. Also the stock colors are either white or red.


Fred

[groome]

Good question. Are you likely to really lean your FJ over and carve the corners? I ride with Steve (Moparman) and he can out run me on his 3" wide front with 110 x 17" front. The only issue I see with the 3" wide is fewer tire choices. However, you get many more in 17" than 16". You are not getting a large increase in contact patch between 110 and a 120, 5 MM per side (or less than a quarter of an inch). Save your money and improve your brakes and suspension. 

thanks thats the answer i was after i didnt believe there would be a significant difference but always good to check. 

IMO, don't fret over the FZR front wheel. As has been said recently on another thread covering this same issue. Concentrate on upgrading the forks internals, i.e. RPM fork valves and new bushings. The GSXR rear wheel and the OEM front wheel will allow the use of the standard sport bike rubber. 120/70/17 and 180/55/17 radials of your choice.

Have patience with looking for the FZR wheels. They are out there. If you have a local motorcycle wrecker facility, have them do a nationwide search. Beware of wreckers not knowing the difference concerning the years. A key to determine that the wheel is exactly the one you are looking for, is the F42 cast into the wheel. Also the stock colors are either white or red.


Fred

I have found a few fzr1000 wheels available but i couldnt work out he pros and cons in my head. i have a 120/0 metzeler on the front which was already on the bike when i got it but the tyre hasnt got the standard rounded profile youd see more pointed thats why i was asking about the 110/70 in case it wiould resolve this.

[FJmonkey]

thats why i was asking about the 110/70 in case it wiould resolve this.

I have posted on this subject after checking many tire manufactures recommendation for a 3" x 17" wheel and the 110 is the proper size.

[ribbert]

thats why i was asking about the 110/70 in case it wiould resolve this.

I have posted on this subject after checking many tire manufactures recommendation for a 3" x 17" wheel and the 110 is the proper size.

I am no tyre expert but tyre sizing does not appear to be an exact science. Just look at the difference in 180 rears that do and don't clear the chain.
I run a "narrow" 120 on my 3" wheel and it is noticeably narrower than some of the others I have used. That has nothing to do with my choice though, it's just an observation.

Given my tyre expert recommended I do put a 120 on my bike, and that's all I've ever fitted, has anyone here ever posted why you shouldn't and what nasty things will happen if you do.

I, for one, would be interested to know why not with so many people using them, and as someone mentioned, does it really matter or is it just hair splitting.



Noel

[stua1959]

Ì recently replaced my 120 Avon Azzarro with a 110 Bridgestone BT 023. The Avon did 16000 km which included a track day. Even though I am not a super fast rider, I do like to get it cranked over but the chicken strip on the Avon was still about 1cm. After one week on the Bridgestone scrubbing it in on a few big roundabouts, my chicken strips are only a few mm. This indicates to me that the sidewalls on the 120 were being pulled in by the narrower wheel and therefore I was not using all the available tread. I feel more comfortable now that I am using that part of the tread that is designed to be used at those lean angles.

[ZOA NOM]

That's the same thing I noticed with the 120 on the 3.5" rim. It's spread out better, letting the lean angle utilize more tread.

[movenon]

I did convert to a 3.5" rim but my old stock 3" rim had a 120 on it and it looked and seemed to work fine.  Without going out into the shed it was a Dunlop tire.
Currently I am running 120/60 ZR 17 in the front and 180/55 ZR17 in the rear.  FZR front rim and GSXR rear rim.

In the fine tuning of things next tire change I will probably adjust my sizes a bit to 120/55 17 and 170/55 17.  Not unhappy the way that it is, just tweeking.  It's a better bike than I am a rider. .  Writing this as I am looking at snow on the ground.....

George

[Pat Conlon]

Hey George, did you see that the 55 series is available? I'm not aware of that size.

Most common are the 120/70 and the 120/60 sizes. The shorter sidewall of the 60 series absolutely need a 3.5" wide rim.

[Bones]

Ive got a 120/70/17 tyre on the stock rim and find/have no problem with it at all. What's the profile on the 110's Stu, are they an 80, 70, 60... Just wondering because George mentioned about going to a 55 profile, but wouldn't you be more prone to get a bent/cracked rim hitting potholes with a low profile tyre like that against a high profile of a 70, 80.

I was thinking of fitting a 110 on the front at the last tyre change, but the list the tyre shop had recommends a 120 for the FJ, and I figure the people who puts these lists together would have more of an idea than me, so that's what I got.

[stua1959]

It was actually a Avon Storm ST 2 120/70 on the front not an Azzarro . I will post some pics when I get organised.
I wouldnt go to a 60 or 55 profile as even sports bike riders report handling and ride problems with these. Probably ok for track bikes

[movenon]

Hey George, did you see that the 55 series is available? I'm not aware of that size.

Most common are the 120/70 and the 120/60 sizes. The shorter sidewall of the 60 series absolutely need a 3.5" wide rim.

Sorry I went the wrong way Pat,  I would like to have a little more side wall height in the front tire due to crappy roads.  In the past (not with the FJ) I have badly bent a front rim and the shallow side wall bothers me.  

I would like to comment that last summer I spent a lot of time setting up my forks and now with a good amount of travel, sprung and valved correctly for me that the front tire is not taking as much abuse.  I just went out and measured my total used travel with the bike while on the center stand and with the hardest riding I have done my total travel is at about 4 3/4 inch's.  Leaving about 1 1/8 " before bottoming out (that puts the fork leg right at the bottom of the tripple clamp).  That's as hard as I ride plus practicing some maximum cramming of the brakes at mid speeds trying to get it to bottom out.

I have plastic wire ties attached to each fork tube. The left side I leave alone and the right side I will occasionally reset down to the dust seal, it gives me a good indication of fork travel. The one on the left just tells me the maximum travel I have ever used. A quick visual measure.

Sorry I got side tracked there. The short is I am happier now with more controlled travel in the forks and I think it helps with the low profile tire.  But the roads are still crappy...

George

[Mark Olson]

hi all,

Im in two minds at the moment as i have taken my 89 fj off the road for winter for some loving. i have just ordered all the parts to fit a gsxr rear wheel    I have been reading on the front wheel conversion and have been wondering as my 89 already has a 17 front rim would i be better putting a 110/70 tyre up front or doing the fzr1000 front wheel conversion??? i have read about peoples views on each but there is no real 'this is the better option'
any help is greatly appreciated.
cheers simon

Simon , you have stumbled into a highly debated topic that will end in you simply making a personal choice about what is best for you. With all the different tires available in the respective sizes behaving differently although the same size it can be quite confusing. Use the chart below to answer your rim question. BE HONEST.

How do you ride ?
1.conservative and sensible =obey speed limits and never pass on a double yellow.   
2.Aggressive and challenging = push yourself and your bike a little more for a thrill.
3.Hooligan-ish = Ride very fast everywhere you go and will" pin it" on a great sweeper in 3rd gear.
4.Squid         = Full Hooligan Mode , scary guy to ride with , people wonder why you are not dead yet.

For 1&2 use the 3" rim.
For 3&4 use the 3.5" rim.

Now if you want better grip use a soft compound tire. the dual compounds work nicely too.
If you want millage use a harder compound tire.

Your next Question will be a land mine when you ask "whats the best tire" . 

 

[stua1959]

Avon Storm ST 120/70 16000 km


Bridgestone BT 023 110/70 500 km


Bridgestone rear for comparison 500 km

The only other possible reason for this , is that I now have a 17" rear wheel and I raised the rear by about 1 inch - but I also think the flatter profile of a 110 tyre on a 3 inch rim allows more of the tread to be used.
I also concede that different brand tyres, profiles, compounds,sizes and rider styles will not all perform the same and it is a matter of finding the combination that suits you