just a thought

[spanks100]

On Supermotojunkie.com there was talk about a guy who put Suzuki Bandit 600 wheels on a DR650 and according to one of the post (you can't believe everything you read on the internet) it was a direct bolt-on. Well..............................., I was thinking.............................. maybe Lifan Sport bike wheels(LF200) would fit on the GY-2 and/or GY-5. It wouldn't be a true motard since they're not 17" wheels but it would be something different. I figure since they're both China bikes, cost would be kept down and it might be a direct bolt-on. Ofcourse I am very new to the scene and I could be totally wrong but hey it was just a thought.

[Ferrit]

Definitely worth investigating. Maybe one of the dealers with some time on their hands could mosey out to the warehouse and see if they fit.

BTW--Do they still light the castle sometime during the winter? They used to put on quite a show there.

[spanks100]

You mean the "Castles on Fire" ? Yes they do, if I'm not mistaken it is to celebrate when the French came and destroyed it. Don't know why anyone would celebrate someone coming over and destroying your castle and city but who am I? When were you here?

[Ferrit]

Hey, it's Germany--any excuse for a party! I was there back in the dark ages, 88-90. Retired in '92. Seems like a lifetime ago.

Back on the topic of your thread--I'd like to be able to swap wheels for street during the week and knobs for the weekend. Knobbies have a very high wear rate and can be gone in days if you run them hard on the street. I think in the long run I would save money by getting a second set of wheels.

[pobiker]

do they still make road & trail tires, they are knobbies, but not so agressive, I ran them on a yamadawg DT360, good on the road and ok in the dirt, but that was 25 years ago

[Ferrit]

JC Whitney to the rescue:

http://www.jcwhitney.com/autoparts/P...014316/c-10111

The other option that is a bit more pricey are the German made MEFO MFE 99 tires:

http://www.angelfire.com/ut/moab/parts_frames.html

Mefo tires can go 10-12,000 MILES on a KLR so they should be good for 25K on a GY. Less weight, less power should equal longer life.

[FMYStreetRacer]

style 2 looks just like what my bike has on it now. i'll have to remember that when it comes time to replace my tires. i might make her into a supermoto bike though by then.

[blimpman]

You would have a hard time finding MEFO tires for the rear wheel of your bike. I have heard of other sizes being purchased but mostly only 4.60x17. I'd sure be interested if you find an 18 in version to fit a China Bike.

I have them on my KLR650 and They are 1/2 gone at 3500 miles. Great 50/50 tire though!!

[Ferrit]

What pressure are you running them on the KLR? That seems awfully low miles from what was being bantied about over at KLR.net.

Fred at Arrowhead has the 120-18 on his website. See the linky above.

[spanks100]

Hey Ferrit, were actually stationed in Heidelberg? It's actually my second time while enlisted and third overall(my dad was stationed in Schweinfurt). I was here back in 2000 but I was at Wiesbaden. It's been enough for me, I'm ready to get out and come back to the states.



And check out the Dunlop D404, they're street tires and I think they fit.

[Ferrit]

I had 2 tours--one in Mainz and one in Wiesbaden. I really liked the airfield at Wiesbaden, small and out of the way. We lived in the old officer queaters downtown across from the thermobad. Just up the street from the public swimming pool. I really want to go back as a civilian and tour some of the old haunts.

Back on topic--AdvRider has had a dialogue going on these last few days about the ultimate dual-sport and one of the points thaey brought up was that we currently define our bike by the tires that we put on it. Tires run the gamut from pure dirt to pure street with every fraction in between. There seems to be a tire for every purpose but very few that are good at everything.

[blimpman]

Originally Posted by Ferrit

What pressure are you running them on the KLR? That seems awfully low miles from what was being bantied about over at KLR.net.

Fred at Arrowhead has the 120-18 on his website. See the linky above.

Must be new on Fred's site.... He only had the 17in & 21in before. I bought my MEFO's from another vendor that was much less than Fred's price. I buy alot of stuff from him. He ships real fast.

I run anout 20-24 in the back and about 24 in the front for back and forth to work, especially this time of year. A little more if I have a load on the back. If I plan on a lond trip on the slab, I bump up the front to 30 and the rear to 28.

Off road I set the rear at 18 and the front to 20. Can't run high pressures on gravel roads and expect to get traction.

I've seen guys run high pressures and the tire is squared off pretty quickly. I am getting good wear patterns. Many guys get alot of cupping on the front tire with MEFO's. I think it is because of using the front brake hard all the time. Should not be a problem with a lightweight bike like a Lifan.

Weekend before last I was riding my mule all over southern ohio on the old township roads with a large load strapped to the back. 20 in the back and 22 in the front was fine. Bottom line is that the MEFO's are the best tire I have put on a bike yet for 50/50 riding.