Tires Megathread

[dmonkey]

If you want to run a 2.75" front and rear and run a similar tread pattern to the Shinko SR244 rather than the Shinko SR241 trials block pattern, there is the Vee Rubber VRM-022 which comes in 2.75". The rating for it is 47R.

It goes in and out of availability, same as the OEM tires have, so it may not be immediately available.

Vee Moto 2.75-17 VRM-022 Dual Sport Tire

Vee Rubber Brand Tube type tire in size 2.75-17 with VRM-022 all terrain 50/50 on road/off road tread pattern for a variety of small dual sport bikes.Perfect for Honda Trail 125 (2021+) and other small (650cc or less) vintage and late model trail bikes!

www.partsforscooters.com

 

[Alvin A]

If you want to run a 2.75" front and rear and run a similar tread pattern to the Shinko SR244 rather than the Shinko SR241 trials block pattern, there is the Vee Rubber VRM-022 which comes in 2.75". The rating for it is 47R.

It goes in and out of availability, same as the OEM tires have, so it may not be immediately available.

Vee Moto 2.75-17 VRM-022 Dual Sport Tire

Vee Rubber Brand Tube type tire in size 2.75-17 with VRM-022 all terrain 50/50 on road/off road tread pattern for a variety of small dual sport bikes.Perfect for Honda Trail 125 (2021+) and other small (650cc or less) vintage and late model trail bikes!

www.partsforscooters.com

I’m not in a hurry, so great option !

 

[kevvyd]

I'm pretty committed to getting a set of these delivered to the USA........Will keep y'alls posted.
And yeah....90/90 is what I'm trying on.

 

[Alvin A]

After reading through this thread and some FB Groups I belong to, I was really hoping to find some VRM-022’s in 2.75 x 17. Being that they are Out of Stock everywhere, I’m leaning heavily towards Shinko 244, 2.5 front and 3.0 rear.

 

[kevvyd]

I'm pretty committed to getting a set of these delivered to the USA........Will keep y'alls posted.
And yeah....90/90 is what I'm trying on.

Update 2/26/25
There was an issue with my order and it fell through. Dejected, I cooled my heels for a while on it.
The itch resumed a few weeks later and I got into International Purchasing mindset again.....

I guess it was a good thing because during that hiatus, I realized I'm going tubeless.....where my original order was for tubed-type.

Tonight I received a DHL tracking number for the Tubeless Swallow SB-117 Street Enduro/Dual Sport tyres; 90/90-17
From Indonesia. It's dumb expensive.
Might be right at the same time my BART Tubeless, GOLD, Excel velg arrive from Malaysia!....which are very much not dumb expensive.

I'll post up the money shots when I get it all together.

 

[ball_socket]

After reading through this thread and some FB Groups I belong to, I was really hoping to find some VRM-022’s in 2.75 x 17. Being that they are Out of Stock everywhere, I’m leaning heavily towards Shinko 244, 2.5 front and 3.0 rear.

I had VRM 022's 2.5F/2.75R on my old '22, and maybe it was my imagination, but they seemed skinnier than other tires. If I did it again I would go 244 3.0 front & rear, and drill out the front fender bolts to raise it up a bit for clearance.

 

[ol mike]

Anybody used the Kenda K760 TrakMaster Tire that's 90/10 dirt/street ?
If so what are your thoughts on it.

Thanks Mike

 

[hpcast]

3.0x17

 

[kevvyd]

Update 2/26/25
There was an issue with my order and it fell through. Dejected, I cooled my heels for a while on it.
The itch resumed a few weeks later and I got into International Purchasing mindset again.....

I guess it was a good thing because during that hiatus, I realized I'm going tubeless.....where my original order was for tubed-type.

Tonight I received a DHL tracking number for the Tubeless Swallow SB-117 Street Enduro/Dual Sport tyres; 90/90-17
From Indonesia. It's dumb expensive.
Might be right at the same time my BART Tubeless, GOLD, Excel velg arrive from Malaysia!....which are very much not dumb expensive.

I'll post up the money shots when I get it all together.

The Swallow SB-117 tires arrived. I even later ordered a 3rd, such that I'd have a matched spare on hand.
I've detailed the tires over on this thread.

Reinventing the wheel part Deux. BARTubeless x Takasago Excel Asia tubeless GOLD wheels bought and installed with Swallow SB-117 tyres!!!!

OK....so there's this thing. Its kinda a vintage Honda thing, but it still persists occasionally on the red HRC machines. That thing is GOLD Excel rims on a red Honda. I've always been a fan, lusted machines set up this way during all of my formative years. So here I am with a truly Red Honda...

hondatrail125.com

 

[RegularGuy]

I was thinking about trying this tire. It is available in 2.75x17 in a 4PR TT and 41P TT. What is the difference in the load ratings?

DURO TIRE

 

[dmonkey]

I suspect those are the same tire and they've just listed the characteristics on different lines, 4 ply rating and 41P.

 

[Micky]

For what it's worth .... if you don't go off road, I've just done 1,300+ miles round England, Scotland, Ireland and Wales on Continental Street tyres.
2.75 front 3.0 rear. The tread pattern resembles their Trail Attacks which I dearly love, but with narrower sipes!
Great on the road and much better than I had a right to expect on the very small back roads with grass in the middle and gravel everywhere. I'm no 'off-roader' for sure.

 

[Happy Campa]

For what it's worth .... if you don't go off road, I've just done 1,300+ miles round England, Scotland, Ireland and Wales on Continental Street tyres.
2.75 front 3.0 rear. The tread pattern resembles their Trail Attacks which I dearly love, but with narrower sipes!
Great on the road and much better than I had a right to expect on the very small back roads with grass in the middle and gravel everywhere. I'm no 'off-roader' for sure.

How does the rear tire hold up? How many miles or km can you get out of it? I do a lot of miles in the USA on paved farm roads. The Continental says their 3.0x17 is a rear tire specifically. I'm hoping it is a harder compound.

 

[Micky]

How does the rear tire hold up? How many miles or km can you get out of it? I do a lot of miles in the USA on paved farm roads. The Continental says their 3.0x17 is a rear tire specifically. I'm hoping it is a harder compound.

I've absolutely no idea Happy Camper, I've only just fitted them. I'm more concerned with how good they grip rather than how long they last!

 

[vintagegarage]

The OEM IRC GP-5 tires are size 80/90-17 which is already 3.0-ish. The 80 stands for 80mm or ~3.15".
View attachment 7654
Tire sizes are a bit arbitrary and knobs add to the external dimensions of a tire beyond the width of the carcass. The same tire's width will also vary based on the width of the rim it is mounted on. If you are looking to run a wider 80/20 dual-sport tire you may want to consider running wider rims than stock. Even then, you'll find that there aren't many options that are 17", wide enough for what you desire while being skinny enough to fit the CT, and reasonably available for purchase to the USA. The IRC GP-5 in 80/90-17 is an OEM tire for the CT125 and CC110 (Cross Cub, which even has them on tubeless wheels) and was likely designed specifically for those Honda Cubs due to a lack of dual-sport tires on the market sized to fit them. Common dual-sport tires like the Michelin Anakee Adventure, Pirelli MT60R, and Shinko 705 all run significantly wider even in their 17" front tire offerings.

A few CT125 owners in Japan are running wider rims paired with Timsun TS823 tires in 100/80-17.
View attachment 7655

AFAIK that brand isn't sold in the USA and because they are probably not DOT approved it would be a gamble whether or not they would make it through customs if you were to find a company willing to ship them. You might be able to get a shop that sells Dunlop tires to order the Dunlop D604 in 80/90-17 for you which looks slightly wider than the IRC GP-5.

View attachment 7656

[CT125 Hunter Cub] Equipped with wide tires (TIMSUN TS-823) for a wild ride​

 

[sweetinc]

Donkeythekidd, those tires look great. I plan to order them as well. Did you put the 2.75 on the front and rear? If you put the 3.00 on the rear, did you have any rubbing?

I viewed the Okie in Thailand video, but couldn't determine if he had any rubbing on the rear. I recall that he was running the 3.00 on the rear.

Anyone else have the VMR-022s and what success with the 3" on the rear?

Thanks

I have the VRM's. 3 in. front and back. No issues. I did drill the front fender and move it up prior to the install.

 

[sweetinc]

I do too. That's why I put these on instead of 244s. Also, the fact you can't get 244s in 2.75 and others have described rubbing issues with 3.00 on the front unless you raise the fenders. I expect these to wear out pretty fast because I'm on road more than off road, but as cheap as these are I may replace them with something else when that happens.

As expected, off road handling is significantly better. On road, I perceived only a minor time increase to get up to speed. On a short high-speed test I hit 59 mph on the speedo and GPS confirmed. I normally don't ride in the rain much but got caught in a shower the day I was doing the high-speed run. I didn't really take it easy or push it hard in the turns on the wet roads and handling wasn't the least bit squirrelly.

59mph?? How much do you weigh? I am 175 lbs and the fastest I've ever gotten my CT125 to on flat land is 53mph.

 

[Kuro Neko]

Thanks all for the contributions and comments on the range of tires available.

As a result, I changed my original fitments to IRC GP-22 80/90-17 front and rear, to better suit my off-road and trail riding.
Front fender lift-kit also installed.

I am very happy with both how easy it was to change and the massive improvement in off-road handling... with no discernible difference, other than a better turn-in for some reason, on-road.



The fender lift kit is great too, as it stops stones and sticks clanging about and getting stuck between the tire and the fender...

 

[alnvilma]

Those GP22s sure look nice.
Has anybody tried the Duro 307s or 308s?
so many choices!

 

[Kuro Neko]

Those GP22s sure look nice.
Has anybody tried the Duro 307s or 308s?
so many choices!

Their off-road performance is what I like; really stable and confidence building...