Widest front/rear tyres for 2013 Iron 883 without any modifications.

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Widest front/rear tyres for 2013 Iron 883 without any modifications.

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micathia
5 years ago

thx for all replys.
I guess I 'd better start 160mm next time I change the tyre.

I use this bike for commute. On city road as well as country road depending on the day of the week.

I have slipped the rear tyre several occasions during in the rain. Having a bigger tyre without too much investment on it is my best try to increasing the traction (and safety).

It's not for looking, at least not the only purpose.

John.R
5 years ago

Ill guarantee a bigger tyre will not acheive what you're trying to solve. It doeant work that way. Best bet is to find a tyre that works well in the wet. Some are good and some are terrible.

micathia
5 years ago

Quoting John.R on 08 Dec 2018 11:23 AM
Ill guarantee a bigger tyre will not acheive what you're trying to solve. It doeant work that way. Best bet is to find a tyre that works well in the wet. Some are good and some are terrible.

thx. I will mention that to dealer next time too.

Krash Kinkade
5 years ago

Quoting micathia on 08 Dec 2018 11:11 AMedited: 08 Dec 2018 11:12 AM
thx for all replys.
I guess I 'd better start 160mm next time I change the tyre.

I use this bike for commute. On city road as well as country road depending on the day of the week.

I have slipped the rear tyre several occasions during in the rain. Having a bigger tyre without too much investment on it is my best try to increasing the traction (and safety).

It's not for looking, at least not the only purpose.

a bigger wider tyre, does not grip better in the rain.
normally a soft sticky tyre with a good tread would grip in wet condition's a bit better. but as soon as it's dry, the tyre that will work best changes ( less tread more contact ). you just need the happy medium & never trust any tyre 100% in the rain. as diesel fuel on the road, no tyre will grip.

micathia
5 years ago

Hi
Just to come back and say thank you for all suggestions. Today I finally put on the Shinko 777 Series 170/70-16 rear to replace the old 150/80-16. This should be a no brainer swap for anyone want to widern their Iron 883 rear withouth ANY modifications.

It is harder to fit the tyre onto the rim, as it is wider than spec. After the swap, my bike becomes noticeably stable/steady on the road. And noticeably better looking (though not perfect). And I don't feel any difference on lean angle.

Due to the super thin rim (3"), the actual width of the new tyre is not really 170, I doubt it is even 160mm, however, it is noticeably wider, thats all that matter.

The clearance has no issue at all. The clearance is more than 5mm at least from the upper and lower belt fender. Nothing needs to be modified to fit in. Given this 5mm+gap, I would bet 180/65-16 fit in too.

The most important number I need to look at is the circumference difference between 150mm and 170mm. 170/70-16 is the closest on paper (almost perfect match), next closest is 180/65-16. No 160mm tyres are better than this.

HOG63
5 years ago

The michelin scorcher 31 tyre at 180/70,16 (~$300) will just fit (less than 1% speedo diff.), but will need to be cut off the rim when worn out.

micathia
5 years ago

Quoting HOG63 on 23 Mar 2019 11:33 AMedited: 23 Mar 2019 11:35 AM
The michelin scorcher 31 tyre at 180/70,16 (~$300) will just fit (less than 1% speedo diff.), but will need to be cut off the rim when worn out.

Actually, according to here"
https://www.tacomaworld.com/tirecalc?tires=150-80r16-180-65r16

180/65-16 is a closer alternative, instead of 180/70-16.

HOG63
5 years ago

Quoting HOG63 on 23 Mar 2019 11:33 AMedited: 23 Mar 2019 11:35 AM
The michelin scorcher 31 tyre at 180/70,16 (~$300) will just fit (less than 1% speedo diff.), but will need to be cut off the rim when worn out.

Quoting micathia on 26 Mar 2019 03:42 AM
Actually, according to here"
https://www.tacomaworld.com/tirecalc?tires=150-80r16-180-65r16

180/65-16 is a closer alternative, instead of 180/70-16.

Even better!

JordanJames86
4 years ago

Quoting micathia on 23 Mar 2019 07:07 AM
Hi
Just to come back and say thank you for all suggestions. Today I finally put on the Shinko 777 Series 170/70-16 rear to replace the old 150/80-16. This should be a no brainer swap for anyone want to widern their Iron 883 rear withouth ANY modifications.

It is harder to fit the tyre onto the rim, as it is wider than spec. After the swap, my bike becomes noticeably stable/steady on the road. And noticeably better looking (though not perfect). And I don't feel any difference on lean angle.

Due to the super thin rim (3"), the actual width of the new tyre is not really 170, I doubt it is even 160mm, however, it is noticeably wider, thats all that matter.

The clearance has no issue at all. The clearance is more than 5mm at least from the upper and lower belt fender. Nothing needs to be modified to fit in. Given this 5mm+gap, I would bet 180/65-16 fit in too.

The most important number I need to look at is the circumference difference between 150mm and 170mm. 170/70-16 is the closest on paper (almost perfect match), next closest is 180/65-16. No 160mm tyres are better than this.

Hi micathia

Just jumping in and im new to the Iron883 mod world. Have you gone any bigger like trying the 180/65-16? and have you gone bigger on the front, that's my biggest bug at the moment as so skinny.

Thanks

micathia
4 years ago

Quoting micathia on 23 Mar 2019 07:07 AM
Hi
Just to come back and say thank you for all suggestions. Today I finally put on the Shinko 777 Series 170/70-16 rear to replace the old 150/80-16. This should be a no brainer swap for anyone want to widern their Iron 883 rear withouth ANY modifications.

It is harder to fit the tyre onto the rim, as it is wider than spec. After the swap, my bike becomes noticeably stable/steady on the road. And noticeably better looking (though not perfect). And I don't feel any difference on lean angle.

Due to the super thin rim (3"), the actual width of the new tyre is not really 170, I doubt it is even 160mm, however, it is noticeably wider, thats all that matter.

The clearance has no issue at all. The clearance is more than 5mm at least from the upper and lower belt fender. Nothing needs to be modified to fit in. Given this 5mm+gap, I would bet 180/65-16 fit in too.

The most important number I need to look at is the circumference difference between 150mm and 170mm. 170/70-16 is the closest on paper (almost perfect match), next closest is 180/65-16. No 160mm tyres are better than this.

Quoting JordanJames86 on 31 Dec 2019 10:15 AM
Hi micathia

Just jumping in and im new to the Iron883 mod world. Have you gone any bigger like trying the 180/65-16? and have you gone bigger on the front, that's my biggest bug at the moment as so skinny.

Thanks

Sorry to see your reply late. I came back to this thread to update some of my own findings.
In my previous post, I mentioned that I fit Shinko 170/70-16 into the stock 3" rim. The result was: 1) it look slightly bigger than stock, but the actual width is around 150+, not really true 170; 2) after having been riding for maybe 5000kms, the tyre started cracking along the mid line. Obviously it was squeezed by the narrow 3" rim hard. It might not be a problem for a while but for commuter, it will show the crack eventually.

Therefore I don't recommend putting 170/70-16 on 3" rim anymore.

Now I have put in a 2017 dyna fatbob's rear rim. It's 16x5" half solid black, 4kg heavier than stock 3". The mechanic who does it for me had to grind one of the spacer a little bit to fit. I still use 170/70-16 sinko 777. It is significantly wider than putting the same tyre on 3" rim. There is no squeezing effect anymore. No clearance issue at all.

I haven't put in a 180/65-16 yet, as 170 looks already big enough. Based on the clearance of 170, I guess if put a 180/65-16 in, both upper and lower belt guard have to be removed (belt itself wouldn't be an issue tho). Since I sometimes carry my wife for 2-up riding, removing belt guard is not an option for me. So I stick to 170 for now.

JordanJames86
4 years ago

Thank you that’s very helpful
Have you done anything with the front wheel?

micathia
4 years ago

Quoting JordanJames86 on 31 Jan 2020 07:39 AM
Thank you that’s very helpful
Have you done anything with the front wheel?

No. Mine is Iron 883, I love its stock wheel. Some people tried 21" 72 wheel on it, but I don't like it.
There is a thread on hdforum.com, you can search for it. A guy put dyna fatbob front wheel on his sporty 48. It is much harder work than rear.

Neale
4 years ago

Quoting noctm on 21 Aug 2018 01:51 PM
a shinko 170 rear will fit on your bike without any modification

Quoting micathia on 26 Nov 2018 01:58 PM
Hi,
Sorry for a late reply. Won't 170mm tyre scratch the belt fender? My 150mm tyre now does have some space, but it looks like longer than 1cm but shorter than 2cm (20mm).

many thx.

So wouldn’t a 170 mm tyre fit then?
It’s 20 mm wider, which is 10mm each side.
Yes?

HOG63
4 years ago

This is where it gets a little confusing as the actual width varies from brand to brand on the same spec size tyre. Also the width of the rim affects the actual final tyre width too.
Some guys I know have a 180 but had to notch the belt guard or remove it. Others have trimmed ~2 mm off the extreme edge of the tyre moulding with a crude cutting jig resting on the swingarm (for one rotation) on the belt side before refitting the belt guard.

micathia
4 years ago

Quoting noctm on 21 Aug 2018 01:51 PM
a shinko 170 rear will fit on your bike without any modification

Quoting micathia on 26 Nov 2018 01:58 PM
Hi,
Sorry for a late reply. Won't 170mm tyre scratch the belt fender? My 150mm tyre now does have some space, but it looks like longer than 1cm but shorter than 2cm (20mm).

many thx.

Quoting Neale on 21 Feb 2020 09:22 AM
So wouldn’t a 170 mm tyre fit then?
It’s 20 mm wider, which is 10mm each side.
Yes?

Shinko 777 series 170mm will fit on the tiny stock 3" rear rim.
After the change I rode around 5000k commute. But after several thousand kms I found that due to the tyre is squashed into the 3" rim, it developed several cracks on the mid-line of the tyre. So it is not recommended to install 170 straight on 3" rim. I am currently using dyna fatbob's 5" rim.

Again, since it is squashed into 3" rim, the de facto width is no way 170mm. It hardly reaches 160. Of course it will look wider since the original 150mm tyre is also squashed in that 3" rim anyway.

You want the true 170mm looking, you have to use fatbob's rim.

After all these shits, I spent 1500 including fatbob rim new tyre and labour etc. The new wheel looks beautiful but I wouldn't do it again.

I believe the cheapest and technically free option to solve the sportster skinny rear rim issue is, just change to white wall tyres next time due for a change. Coz people's (including your) attention will naturally refocused on the white wall, no one will look at rim anymore. :D

This is before rim change. 170mm on 3" stock rim.

This is the 2017 dyna fatbob rear rim. Unlike said on hdforums, my mechanic has to grind the spacer to fit since this is abs rim.

this is after rim change. after the rim change, the lower belt guard is scratching the tyre, so had to be taken off. The upper belt guard does not interfere but extremely/scary close. So a 1cm spacer is inserted at front screw to push upper belt guard outwards a little bit. fat bob rim is 4kg heavier. we tested it, no clearance issue. fat bob rim is around $900 new from HD dealer.

tussuck
4 years ago

I can see the engineering and research being fun, but I'm not seeing enough of a difference in the before and after to actually justify the spend. Perhaps the side shot does not do it justice.

micathia
4 years ago

Quoting tussuck on 14 Mar 2020 02:25 AM
I can see the engineering and research being fun, but I'm not seeing enough of a difference in the before and after to actually justify the spend. Perhaps the side shot does not do it justice.

Yes, I am too lazy to edit photo (wipe my rego) for rear shot.
It made difference. Actually the rim size plays a big part. 170mm on 3" rim, the actual width is just little bit wider than 150. On 5", it will be true 170mm.

Now side by side with my wide glide, rear look almost identical. Wide glide is on a narrower 4.5" rim.

So for people who want fatter looking, its not matter of whether a fat tyre will fit or not. It's all about spending money on wider rim.

But if do it again, I am not gonna spend that money lol. This is why I am now not interested in any 190mm 200mm on my wide glide.

PS: look the white wall. Before the change, white wall looks inward.

beaglebasher
4 years ago

If you want the fat tyre purely for looks and not performance there is a solution.
Just let some air out of the offending skinny tyres and they will instantly look fatter. Just leave a little in there in case you ever need to actually ride the bike.
About 10 psi should be good.

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Widest front/rear tyres for 2013 Iron 883 without any modifications.

Widest front/rear tyres for 2013 Iron 883 without any modifications.

micathia

John.R

micathia

Krash Kinkade

micathia

HOG63

micathia

HOG63

JordanJames86

micathia

JordanJames86

micathia

Neale

HOG63

micathia

tussuck

micathia

beaglebasher