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Tire Weight Rating question??

BuddyK

BuddyK

Member
I'm looking at putting an 18in front wheel on my '04 ElectraGlide which presently has 16in wheels on it. I'm 5'3" tall with short legs so I have lowered the front end 1 1/4in, the rear 1 1/2in and put on a low profile seat to get close to flat footed while riding. I have looked for an 18in front tire that is the same height or real close to the stock 16in tire (MT90B16) so I don't lose what I gained by lowering the bike.

I am presently running Avon Venom tires and would like to stay with them if possible. I have found a Avon Venom AM41 130/70B18 that is only 3/16in taller than the stock 16in.

The issue is the weight rating for the tires. The stock tire is a 72H (783lb and 130mph) but the 18in Avon is a 69H (716lb and 130mph). Will this lower weight rated tire be a safety issue on this bike?? Or is the weight difference close enough to not matter. I'm 175lbs and mostly ride solo. The wife only rides with me maybe 2-3 times a year. She is 135lbs.
Any Thoughts on this would be greatly appreciated.
Thanks
 
I don't think it will make any difference at all. most of the weight of your bike whit rider is on the rear half of the bike plus you are only talking about 57Lbs difference I very much doubt you would ever have your bike loaded to max allowable gross weight.
 
I wouldn't think that 67# would be much to worry about. Seeing as how you ride solo most of the time.
tourbox
 
I on the other hand believe that the 67 pounds of difference is critical. For not only is it a weight carrying deficiency but what is the reduced heat dissipating capability, and is it going to cause and what negative effect will it have on the performance of the tire??
 
The only way the lower weight rating matters is if the load placed on the tire exceeds the rating. An Electra-Glide weighs somewhere around 850# wet. Add in the weight of rider(175#), passenger(130#), and any gear(55#), and you have a gross weight of approximately 1110#. I am not sure what the front to back weight distribution ratio is on our touring bikes, but even if it is 50-50, that means the from wheel is only carrying 555#. That is less than 80% of its rated capacity. I think a 20% safety margin is sufficient in this application.
 
Jennmarr said:
The only way the lower weight rating matters is if the load placed on the tire exceeds the rating. An Electra-Glide weighs somewhere around 850# wet. Add in the weight of rider(175#), passenger(130#), and any gear(55#), and you have a gross weight of approximately 1110#. I am not sure what the front to back weight distribution ratio is on our touring bikes, but even if it is 50-50, that means the from wheel is only carrying 555#. That is less than 80% of its rated capacity. I think a 20% safety margin is sufficient in this application.
Click to expand...

This is the way I was taught to look at tires and ratings. Nice job Jennmarr.
 
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