It’s amazing how fast things change but if you’ve been watching the custom motorcycles showing up at the bike shows, created for the build offs and featured in the magazines, you’ll notice the rear tires are getting narrower, a LOT narrower. In the same way that someone finally noticed you couldn’t actually ride a bike that’s over ten feet long with some ridiculous rake, it’s also becoming apparent it’s pretty tough to ride those 360 rear tire customs. Sure, if you never have to turn and you want to go fast in a straight line, they might work, but if you plan to use your motorcycle on real roads where you might run into some twisties, that super wide tire will get pretty annoying. There’s also the danger those wide tires are going to make your bike look really dated which you may want to keep in mind if you ever plan to sell it. Interesting.
Mark Savory says
A lot of the difficulty with the 360 series rear tire is the traditional rounded front tire profile itself and tall sidewall. After much experimentation a friend has discovered that a low profile 160+ series rear tire mounted on a wider front rim and used for the front tire itself makes the bike easier to corner. I think most of this is due to the changed tire profile itself. Not a great solution — but it makes the bike somewhat more rideable.
RY says
Actually I am building a couple of bikes now and I have just finished my own.
I always talk my customers into keeping the stock or close to tire size in the back . However I drop them down so low that a hard lean into a corner is followed by some cool sparks! I also agree the big tire fad is coming to a abrupt end.
chris says
impractical as they may be, i still think they look cool. . .
Spaceweasel says
Of course, the reaction is to swing the pendulum in the opposite direction: old school chops with tiny 2.5″, square edged rubber. Unfortunately, cool never equals sensible.
Sean says
Lies and blasphemy; cool CAN equal sensible. I mean, we all ride motorcycles, don’t we?
Clive M Sanders says
absolutely, sean. i ride a monster. 🙂
xbob says
so whats the ‘acceptable’ wide tire going to be? 260? 240? or is that even to big? I like the look of a 240 tire, but the 300’s and 360’s were just too much.
kneeslider says
Acceptable is whatever works, there’s no set size. As Mark said above, there are some ways to make a 360 somewhat rideable and it also depends on what you consider “rideable.” Big looks cool so there will always be different opinions. It’s just interesting that the trend is shifting so fast.
Curt Winter says
Sometimes in road racing you might install a wider rear tire to achieve different tracking characteristics. Maybe a 190 in place of a 180, the wider rear tire alows greater cornering clearance and also changes steering geometry. Anything bigger than that is cartoonish and completely pointless. Imagine a centerline that travels through the center of the bike, and one that travels through the center of the tire contact patch from the front tire to the rear tire. If you have two evenly matched tires, the center lines will stay very parallel and that makes for a well balanced lean. A wide rear tire throws that out the window. As you lean, the center line moves away from the bike and to the inside of your lean, which makes the bike heavy on the outside, making for a bike that is very scary in the corners, add to that a long frontend and a 45 degree rake, no wonder the trend is fading fast.
Dane McCray says
ok the big 360 tire crap is finally coming to and end but I do think the big tire look has a place in this world but I am talking about a tire size that is good for both the look and functionaly of what makes a good motorcycle.
Sean says
My rear is a 100, my front an 80, and the bike is very agile. Tyre width is important, but so is tyre size, frame, the list goes on. In this case, the Honda CBX 250 I ride has an 18 inch rear and a 16 inch front. I’ve often wondered how the handling would change, were I to bring both wheels to the same size. In terms of looks, it really does depend on the relative sizes of things. If you were, say, to install a 120 wide on a pitbike, then it would look relatively huge. No idea what the handling characteristics would be like, (I saw a guy take a spill on a sport bike looking pitbike, right into his mate on a Harley style pitbike. Very dangerous stuff, and even though I won’t be wearing the shorts and a tshirt these guys were, I’ll not bother with ’em) but it might look “cooler”. What are the sizes on a 999R, I’ve always thought they got the width right for that bike.
Frank says
Here is why I think the trend is shifting so fast. You have a long front end, 45 degree rake, and an over size tire that adds up to make a bike that takes 2 days to turn a corner……a wide corner at that. Next, you take the fact that on any motorcycle you have the added risk of no protection that a car will provide. Now for the kicker……you have bozo the clown automobile drivers out there that don’t see bikes. My guess is that a few of these guys have had a scare or two and decided that they want a little more handling in their bikes.
BTW, I think the bikes look cool whether they are functional or not functional. Me personally, I’d rather have a bike that handles well. I LOVE my sport bike.
Bob says
Those fashion trendy long and wide choppers look great on TV, or at bike shows, or in your garage … but have you ever tried to ride one in traffic? I won’t be caught with wide-tired, $60K, 14′ long chopper on my garage floor … not because I don’t like them … but because of little hope of resale down the road.
I think the latest trend of custom, drivable hi-performance street fighters (bobbers, old speak) and also custom sport bikes, will grow fast and equal the maturing custom chopper industry very soon.
Of course, these are different bikes for different people … but look at what happened to the ‘hot rod car’ hobby when the younger drivers opted for small imported cars and not ’57 Chevies or ’70’s muscle cars.
Trends are trends only when everybody catches on to the idea.
guitargeek says
Choppers are not about good sense and what works best. They’re like a two-wheeled version of lowrider cars. Typical features include a 45 degree rake, super long fork, no rear suspension, no front brake, no front fender, suicide clutch and jockey shifter… all kind of retarded if you ask me. Almost all of the main strengths inherent in motorcycles are negated by these features.
360Scott360 says
I agree that a really wide tire on the back unbalances the bike when cornering when used with a narrow, read normal, tire on the front, but what if both tires were really wide and the rake was not so rediculous……?
curt winter says
360, you would still have a balance issue. The bikes weight would shift to the outside of the turn and would make the bike want to stand up, you would have to counter steer through the entire turn. The bike would give you the sensation of always wanting to go straight.
Joe Mielke says
Live life around 180-190mm and you can’t go wrong. There’s a reason for it, reasons in both aesthetics and physics. We have done bikes with wider tires, we have not touched a tire over 300. There is just no good reason to run anything over a 200. Unless your working on a bike where buoyancy is a necessity. For the most part we like the 180 as a rule.
Peace
360Scott360 says
Thanks to Curt for the comment on counter steering through the turn. I will keep that in mind on ‘test day’. I can’t help but feel this deserves an attempt at least, and I think it might be good to have a bike that wants to stay straight, at least somewhat, as opposed to a bike that wants to turn further into a turn. We will see soon. Physics aside, I feel the astethics is in the eye of the beholder, the physics will prove itself in testing to be sure. The is never any reason to do something different, other than to try it. Innovation comes from pushing back at standards and looking in different directions even when others do not see things your way. I will stand up and say that a pair of wide tires don’t work ….. but not until I give it a good attempt or two.
Diesel says
I have noticed that there is a new movement in choppers to use dirt tires(knobbies). What are your guys thought s on that?
your all poor and jealous says
the 360 is here to stay, as well as those skinny wimpy bikes. Why can’t there be a place for all appearances. We all don’t have to like Britney spears. Besides I have a feeling most you chislers can’t afford a 360 bike. Mine was $25k and it rides smooth with air ride and turns just fine. Sure it’s not a sport bike, but every a-hole can buy and afford one of those. My bike is big, loud and the paint is downright evil. Take your nobby tires and your cheap old time bikes. Nothing compares to a 360 bike built right. I never worry about swerving out of the way anymore than the next guy on a bike. I think you guys just couldn’t afford these big bikes, that’s all. Most can’t, especially with wives wearing the pants.