Need to put new tires on my 83 V45 magna. It has 110/80v18 ME33 on the
front and 130/90V16 ME99A on the back. Honda wants to put Dunlop 404s
on. I have heard Metzlers are great followed by Bridgestone S11's.
Anyone have any feedback.

I also am having trouble finding a 110/80v18. Will a 110/90v18 fit the
83 V45 magna?

Thanks,
Y. Limor

On 12 Jul 2005 16:23:40 -0700, "ylimor" > wrote:

>Need to put new tires on my 83 V45 magna. It has 110/80v18 ME33 on the
>front

It has the wrong size on the front. You have a lower profile on the
front. The original front tire size is 110/90-18.

>and 130/90V16 ME99A on the back.

You have good tires if you want to replace them with similar. Any
Metzeler of the correct size is a good tire. I ran some ME88s on the
rear. I don't know if you can still get them now, but the Metzeler
ME880 is an excellent tire if you can find it in your size.

> Honda wants to put Dunlop 404s on.

I strongly suggest that you don't put Dunlop Qualifiers on it. They
have good cornering traction but very poor braking traction.

> I have heard Metzlers are great followed by Bridgestone S11's.

I have run all of the above on my old 83 750 Magna. I liked the
Bridgestones best. I usually got about 5,000 miles from a rear tire
and about 7,500 from a front tire, and I usually went through two to
three sets per year.

>Anyone have any feedback.

Don't be tempted to put a 140/90-16 on the back. It will fit
initially, though you must deflate it to get it back into the
swingarm. It will clear the drive shaft tube by about 10mm but at
highway speeds it will grow in diameter and will rub the front of the
swingarm. This will tear chunks out of the center of your tire and
drastically reduce your tire life. Ask me how I know...

>I also am having trouble finding a 110/80v18.

You shouldn't have any trouble, that's the stock size for a Honda
ST1100 and several other bikes.

> Will a 110/90v18 fit the 83 V45 magna?

It came from the factory with one.

See http://www.sabmag.org for much more information about these fine
old bikes.


--
Jack

Jack,

Thanks, I had a feeling the front tire on the bike was the wrong size.
I have found a few places online to get the me33/55 combo. Did you like
the Bridgestone S11 better? Thanks again for all the help. I have been
to the sabmag website and it is great.

Y. Limor

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On Wed, 13 Jul 2005 04:12:24 GMT, ylimor > wrote:

>I have found a few places online to get the me33/55 combo.

That is a good handing, long mileage combination.

> Did you like
>the Bridgestone S11 better?

The Bridgestone S11 has similar handling, slightly shorter tread life,
but quite a bit cheaper. I ran more S11 tires on my Magna than
anything else. My wife ran them on her 1100 Magna and had very good
results with them.

For the last few years I've been running exclusively Metzeler ME880
sport touring tires. I don't know if you can get a rear tire in that
model that you can use on your Magna, but it won't hurt to look. A
140/80-16 would probably work OK, but a 140/90-16 will hit the
swingarm at highway speed.

Other models I've used with good results include the Dunlop D205
radial. You'll have to use the 80 profile, because the 90 profile is
not available in the 205 radial. You're already using an 80 profile
on the front.

--
Road Dog
IBA#12795
'99 ST1100
http://www.huntslodge.com

Hey Jack,
Is the LaserTech a replacement for the ME33, it looks the same. I
found a place locally that can get me the lasertech and a ME77 for the
rear which from the picture looks like the 99 on the bike now. The set
would only cost about $30 more than the S11s. Know anything about the
lasertech and 77 combo?

Thanks,
Y. Limor

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Any info on the Metzeler LaserTech on the front and ME77 on the rear.
The treads on both look identical to the ME33/99a combo.

Thanks,
Y. Limor

On Wed, 13 Jul 2005 14:02:32 GMT, ylimor > wrote:

>Know anything about the lasertech and 77 combo?

No, but if you'd subscribe to the sabmag mailing list, I'm sure you
could find someone there who knows something about them.

As I said, the only tires I've used for the last 3 or 4 years have
been Metzeler ME880s. I haven't been keeping up with the others since
I found this combination that works for me.

But I'll say this much - you can't go wrong with a Metzeler tire if
it's the right size. Run a set and see how they work for you. What
works for me may not work for you. Riding style makes a huge
difference.

--
Road Dog
IBA#12795
'99 ST1100
http://www.huntslodge.com

Thanks Jack,

I think I'll try them so others can benefit from it. I used to be on
the sabmag list but changed emails and it did not get transferred. I
need to get in there again.

Thanks again,
Y. Limor

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