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[Hoist!]

Howie, I'm having the same problem, what the *ell to do for replacement tires tires? I wanted to stick with these E3's but have been unable to find a dealer that has stocked them.

They didn't even stock em when they still made the front. Now they're discontinued. The rear is unchanged. I'm taking a close look at those Metzlers I posted about. Just trying to confirm that going 1 size up in the front will fit OK. We're a 130/70. They make a 130/60. It will lower the front slightly with a smaller aspect ratio, but I can't see it being enough to matter. But I'm not sure it won't rub. Anyone have an answer on this? If it fits, that's my next set. Metzler M880 Marathon V-Rated Radials!

Hoist!

[07 CVO]

Hoist,

I say go get some Pirelli Corsa Diablo II's I run them on my SuperSport Crotch Rocket and they stick to the road like glue. Plus if you don't like them they are gone in under 3000 miles anyway...lol

Mark

Just trying to help!

[Ghost Rider]

OK, screw the  on the wheels. WTF are we gonna do about tires on these things. Why no other options?

The 407 rear's OK, but that 407 front sucks. What was wrong with the original front E3 radial? Are there no good performance tires out there in these sizes?

Hoist!

Howie,

My bike goes into the shop this week for a new rear tire, so your thread got me curious.  At this point the only radials I have found in the standard SERK3 sizes are the Bridgestone Exedra G850F & G851R.  I don't know anything about them, they may be total crap, but they are the only matches I have found.  Also, according to the Dennis Kirk site, they still have some E3's in stock in these sizes.

I am curious to see what tire my dealer tries to get away with throwing on there.  Do you think they will try to get away with a bias on the back and a radial on the front?

[Hoist!]

Howie,

My bike goes into the shop this week for a new rear tire, so your thread got me curious.  At this point the only radials I have found in the standard SERK3 sizes are the Bridgestone Exedra G850F & G851R.  I don't know anything about them, they may be total crap, but they are the only matches I have found.  Also, according to the Dennis Kirk site, they still have some E3's in stock in these sizes.

I am curious to see what tire my dealer tries to get away with throwing on there.  Do you think they will try to get away with a bias on the back and a radial on the front?

Travis, Metzler makes the ME880 in our size, V-rated radials, for the rear. They make a 60 Series front V-rated radial in our size, but not a 70 Series. We have plenty of room inside the fender, and I don't think we'll be lowering it very much with this lower profile tire. I think they will be my next tire, unless someone comes up with V-rated radials in our size! Let me know what you end up doing.

See ya in 2 weeks!

Hoist!

[Serkcus]

Howie, wonderin if you went with the Metzlers? If so , how do they compare to the E3's?

[comfortablynumb]

I found that by adding air to the rubber smooths it out a bit.

[Hoist!]

I ordered new tires to be put on after the 2 trips I'll be taking over the next 2 weeks. About 3500 miles total between them, plus a Dynotune on the old ones. I hope they can last that long!

Ouch, those stock Dunlops suck. Not holding up to Hoist's abuse very well. Rear is cupping now, and the new front just sucks! I can make the Southern trip, but I'll definitely be done after the ME trip for sure. I hope I don't need the new one's for ME. I'd like to get thru the Dyno on these POS Dunlops, then get the new Metzler ME880 radials (actually Pirellis-they own Metzler, did ya know that? I didn't!) I ordered when I get back from ME. I did find they make a 130/70R-18 front, but not a VR rated one. I ordered it, and got a 170/50VR-17 rated ME880 for the rear. Front load rating is 600 lbs and the rear load rating is 843 if I'm not mistaken. Should be adequate for Cybil. So Metzler does make replacements for those POS Dunlops in the correct sizes. I've only used Metzler Lasertechs before, so I hope I like the ME880 Radials!

I'll let ya'll know what I think of em in a few weeks!

Hoist!

[Hoist!]

OK, let's try to get to the bottom of this once and for all! I've done about as much research as you can do on this issue. So here's what I came up with. In the end, we're screwed with regard to our options, but it is what it is!

SERK 3/4 Tires:

Front:
The SERK 3 came with Dunlop Elite 3 or HD Dunlop D418F, 130/70 R 18 M/C 63H, H speed rating, 600lb load rating.
The SERK 4 came with HD Dunlop D407F, 130/70 R 18 M/C 63V, V rated, 600lb load rating.

Rear:
The SERK 3 & 4 both came with HD Dunlop D407, 170/60 R 17 M/C 78H, H speed rating, 937 lb load rating.



The rear tire is still available as originally released for these bikes, only from HD, and I think it's a pretty decent tire. The front tire has been changed to the SERK 4's tire only, the D407F, which I happen to think sucks, even though it's a V speed rated tire vs. the E3 H rated tire.

Now I've checked with Avon, Metzler, Michelin, Bridgestone, and Pirelli. Not one of these manufacturers makes tires to match the specs of our bike's tires!

Metzler's the only one close. The ME880 comes in a 130/70 R 18 M/C 63H TL, which matches our front tire specs. But they only offer a 170/60 R 17 M/C 72V TL for the rear. It's a V speed rating, but only a 783 lb load rating! That's giving up 154 lbs of load handling capacity in the rear! Seems like too much to me!

No other vendor even comes close to the right sizes and load ratings for our bike's tires!

So it appears that we need to stay with the HD supplied Dunlop D407 rear tire. But according to Dunlop's site, they make an Elite 3 for the front. It's a Dunlop# 4080-78,  Elite 3 130/70 R 18 M/C 63H. If that tire is available directly from Dunlop, it seems to be the best choice for the front.

I don't believe in mixing tire brands and/or styles. I also don't want to give up over 150 lbs of load handling capacity. So I'd probably wind up staying with the Dunlops. But I hate that D407F. Would anyone mix a Metzler ME880 front with the Dunlop D407 rear? Has anyone obtained a Dunlop Elite 3 instead of going to Harley for a front tire? Is that Dunlop E3 tire even still available? I'm not liking our options here and hope the Elite 3 front might still be available to us thru Dunlop. What did ya'll find on your ends?

P.S.: If you find an alternate tire, please post the specs for it. (full sidewall number).

Hoist!

*Corrected front tire models

[Black Diamond]

Hi Howie

Been doing the same research with the same results. I am trying to track down the Dunlop Elite 3. I've even had a couple shops say they got em. Upon checking they are the wrong size. I've never mixed tire brands so I can't give any insight there. They have us on this one so far...

I let you know if I come up with anything.

JW

[skreminegul07]

OK, let's try to get to the bottom of this once and for all! I've done about as much research as you can do on this issue. So here's what I came up with. In the end, we're screwed with regard to our options, but it is what it is!

SERK 3/4 Tires:

Front:
The SERK 3 came with Dunlop Elite 3 or HD Dunlop D407F, 130/70 R 18 M/C 63H, H speed rating, 600lb load rating.
The SERK 4 came with HD Dunlop D418F, 130/70 R 18 M/C 63V, V rated, 600lb load rating.
Rear:
The SERK 3 & 4 both came with HD Dunlop D407, 170/60 R 17 M/C 78H, H speed rating, 937 lb load rating.



The rear tire is still available as originally released for these bikes, only from HD, and I think it's a pretty decent tire. The front tire has been changed to the SERK 4's tire only, the D418F, which I happen to think sucks, even though it's a V speed rated tire vs. the E3 H rated tire.

Now I've checked with Avon, Metzler, Michelin, Bridgestone, and Pirelli. Not one of these manufacturers makes tires to match the specs of our bike's tires!

Metzler's the only one close. The ME880 comes in a 130/70 R 18 M/C 63H TL, which matches our front tire specs. But they only offer a 170/60 R 17 M/C 72V TL for the rear. It's a V speed rating, but only a 783 lb load rating! That's giving up 154 lbs of load handling capacity in the rear! Seems like too much to me!

No other vendor even comes close to the right sizes and load ratings for our bike's tires!

So it appears that we need to stay with the HD supplied Dunlop D407 rear tire. But according to Dunlop's site, they make an Elite 3 for the front. It's a Dunlop# 4080-78,  Elite 3 130/70 R 18 M/C 63H. If that tire is available directly from Dunlop, it seems to be the best choice for the front.

I don't believe in mixing tire brands and/or styles. I also don't want to give up over 150 lbs of load handling capacity. So I'd probably wind up staying with the Dunlops. But I hate that D418F. Would anyone mix a Metzler ME880 front with the Dunlop D407 rear? Has anyone obtained a Dunlop Elite 3 instead of going to Harley for a front tire? Is that Dunlop E3 tire even still available? I'm not liking our options here and hope the Elite 3 front might still be available to us thru Dunlop. What did ya'll find on your ends?

Hoist!

Actually you got that backwards.  The '07 Front was D418F, '08 Front was D407 which then matches the tread on the rear tire for both years. 

I discussed the unique tire issue with the Dunlop rep at Laconia.  He said the non HD branded had a much lower load rating and that some dealer were putting those on as substitutions.
If Dunlop goes on strike or stops making them what to do?

[Hoist!]

Actually you got that backwards.  The '07 Front was D418F, '08 Front was D407 which then matches the tread on the rear tire for both years. 

I discussed the unique tire issue with the Dunlop rep at Laconia.  He said the non HD branded had a much lower load rating and that some dealer were putting those on as substitutions.
If Dunlop goes on strike or stops making them what to do?

Oops! Got em backwards!

Thanks for picking that up Phil!

The rating you get for the Elite 3 has the same load rating (63H) as the D418. The D407 is 63V. They're all good for 600 lbs.

But that still leaves the Elite 3 from Dunlop as the only other tire besides the HD D407! And that tire might not be easy to get, if at all! Unless we mix the HD Dunlop D407 rear with the Metzler ME880 front. I wonder how that would work?

Hoist!

[skreminegul07]

Howie, don't you care about the SPEED rating difference between H and V?

[hd-dude]

Howie, don't you care about the SPEED rating difference between H and V?

130 mph vs 149 mph....don't think there is that much time spent at those speeds......

On second thought this is Howie we're talking about

[skreminegul07]

130 mph vs 149 mph....don't think there is that much time spent at those speeds......

On second thought this is Howie we're talking about

Right on Jim!  Congrats again on your anniversary!   

[Hoist!]

Congrats on your 1 year anny Jim!

Phil, I started out looking to use V rated tires. Now I'm finding that I'll be lucky to find anything better that the D407's! I'd be OK with the H rated E3 for the front and the D407 rear. Not sure what to do if the E3 isn't available. The D407F really sucks. Might go with the Metzlers and give up the 150 lb load rating on thee rear. Not a good spot we're in regarding tire selection!

Hoist!