dARKSIDE

[Bill O]

Well, I finally took the plunge. (with much advice from fellow 1200 Voyager riders).



Another item off of my checklist.

Bill O

[cushman eagle]

Please keep us posted on your results,I am interested to know how you like it.

[Barry]

Bill,
Take that tire for a test ride to WRR. I'm sure you will be pleased with it. I am with mine. Hope to see you there.

[gearheadfla]

you will love it, and after 7000 miles it will still look like this,

[Rick near Kansas city]

What is the make and tire size?

[Barry]

nexen 165/80R/15. The local motorcycle shop had trouble getting the bead to seat & took it to the tire shop where they put mine in a cage in case it blew up. Seating pressure for mine was 80 lbs! I hear they seat much easier on hot days when the tire is warm.

[Bill O]

Bill,
Take that tire for a test ride to WRR. I'm sure you will be pleased with it. I am with mine. Hope to see you there.

Barry,
Wish I could, but am heading to Oklahoma on a Genealogy Field research trip. Will be on the road for three weeks through AZ, NM, TX, OK, KS, CO, UT then home to Vegas. Was up to Tahoe for a week just last month.

I'm sure I will be pleased with the tire. I haven't heard a negative word from anyone, ever......

Bill O

P.S. Barry, where in Washington are you from. My ancestral stomping grounds are Auburn, WA.

[Barry]

Bill,
Sent you a pm

[OldKawDrvr]

nexen 165/80R/15. The local motorcycle shop had trouble getting the bead to seat & took it to the tire shop where they put mine in a cage in case it blew up. Seating pressure for mine was 80 lbs! I hear they seat much easier on hot days when the tire is warm.

Mine DID blow up! The mechanic had a welt on one hand and a cut on the other. I wasn't there. He said he only inflated it to 50#. I don't think he'll try another one!

[gearheadfla]

nexen 165/80R/15. The local motorcycle shop had trouble getting the bead to seat & took it to the tire shop where they put mine in a cage in case it blew up. Seating pressure for mine was 80 lbs! I hear they seat much easier on hot days when the tire is warm.

Mine DID blow up! The mechanic had a welt on one hand and a cut on the other. I wasn't there. He said he only inflated it to 50#. I don't think he'll try another one!

I think he had more than 50 in it to blow it, I have run mine at 50, down to 48 now.

[Bill O]

you will love it, and after 7000 miles it will still look like this,

Well,
Put wheel on bike a little while ago, (someone ask me how hard it is to put a Voyager on a lift by yourself....) I have a Hitch Doc receiver hitch, so wheel has to drop down to remove/replace.

Any hoo, got new wheel with new CT on the bike and went out for only a couple of miles. First....felt better than any tire I've used before (Dunlop, Avon, Metzler, Pirelli, etc). Did not feel any rear end wiggle or wobble unless I forced it and then it settled right back on track after I quit yanking the handlebars. Cruising was smoother than ever. Started my trials at 40 PSI give or take a pound, and it feels just right.

I knew I would eventually get to the Darkside, just wondering why I took so long.

Bill O

[debron]

Well,
Put wheel on bike a little while ago, (someone ask me how hard it is to put a Voyager on a lift by yourself....) I have a Hitch Doc receiver hitch, so wheel has to drop down to remove/replace.
. . . .
I knew I would eventually get to the Darkside, just wondering why I took so long.

I also have a Hitch Doc receiver hitch but I changed my tire on the center stand following Don Medina's instructions on the NorCal Voyagers "How To" video. The only issue I had was getting the left side muffler back into position so all the holes would line up!

I suspect I will go to the darkside eventually also. However, I have a new Elite 3 rear tire in the garage for the next tire change, after the Western Regional Rally next week.

[Bill O]

Well,
Put wheel on bike a little while ago, (someone ask me how hard it is to put a Voyager on a lift by yourself....) I have a Hitch Doc receiver hitch, so wheel has to drop down to remove/replace.
. . . .
I knew I would eventually get to the Darkside, just wondering why I took so long.

I also have a Hitch Doc receiver hitch but I changed my tire on the center stand following Don Medina's instructions on the NorCal Voyagers "How To" video. The only issue I had was getting the left side muffler back into position so all the holes would line up!

I suspect I will go to the darkside eventually also. However, I have a new Elite 3 rear tire in the garage for the next tire change, after the Western Regional Rally next week.

You'll have to explain to me how! My Hitch Doc receiver hitch is one piece that goes around from front of saddle bag to front of saddlebag, and up to standard hanging point. Only way I know of for changing tires with out raising bike is to completely remove hitch, witch is self defeating.... Is there any differences with Hitch Doc receiver hitches over the years?

[debron]

You'll have to explain to me how! My Hitch Doc receiver hitch is one piece that goes around from front of saddle bag to front of saddlebag, and up to standard hanging point. Only way I know of for changing tires with out raising bike is to completely remove hitch, witch is self defeating.... Is there any differences with Hitch Doc receiver hitches over the years?

Correct, the hitch has to come off, but my point was it can be done with the bike on the center stand. And a 2X4 or some such under the wheel makes it easier to get the wheel off and back on. Here's a YouTube excerpt from the NorCal Voyagers Rear Tire change video. The DVD was one of my better $10 investments!

[forplay]

It seems a lot of the wing riders are using a snow rated tire a Micheline Alpine. This tire is a 16" and fits the Mini Cooper. Has anyone tried this type of tire. And yes I realise our rim is a 15" not a 16"

[gearheadfla]

With our tire size (the same as the old VW Bug) we a very limited to tire types, shop around and see what's out there and go for it.

[Winddancer]

Just to pop my head into this conversation...
I finally changed my 1st cartire with a new one..
the grand total miles on that tire was 34,xxx..
I took pics of the old tire when I took it off the bike, but I have been so busy
riding and working I never get on the computer to up load them..
replaced it this time with a Nexen, and put 4,000 miles on it in a week to break it in properly.. :)

[joelcolletti]

I like it:

I met Barry from Washington state on a 87 XII who Darksided. Barry's bike took 1st Place in Custom Touring class at the WRR in Reno Nv. That tire had more groves on it than my Sebring's Michelin Primacy tires. I think I'd like to try them on my machine next round of tires. I still have new E3s on mine right now, and they preform well; just averaged 59.3 MPG on them.

One thing that concerned me though was Barry thinks he's getting 10% less on his MPG. We were trying to figure out if the .30 cents per gallon was worth it. How's your MPG been. Thanks for the 411.

Barry's is the XII farthest to the left; mine is the 3rd from the left - next to Ron's 95.

[gearheadfla]

I run a Nexen and get 50 mpg regularly, if anything it dropped my RPM's by a hundred or so, it is a bit taller than the E-3

[joelcolletti]

I run a Nexen and get 50 mph regularly, if anything it dropped my RPM's by a hundred or so, it is a bit taller than the E-3

Good to know: That's great! How does that dARKSIDE handle in the twisties?