Rubber Choices for the 990 Adventure?

[R Doug]

So, I've been looking for tires to replace the SCORPION MT 90 A/T that came on the 990 Adventure.  I'm only going to get about 3,200 miles on a rear MT 90 A/T.

Here's the kicker, most of the other choices that fit the KTM are more aggressive off road tires.  There are no other street tires available for the rear (150/70 18).  The only other 150/70 18 tires out there are cruiser tires.  No thanks.

For front tires, there are a few road worthy 90/90 - 21 sizes out there.

There is the Scorpion MT 90 S/T and the Scorpion Trail.  

For the MT 90 S/T, the 21" is the only tire made.  There doesn’t appear to be any other sizes available.  Does that make any sense?    For the Scorpion Trail, there is a 21” which fits the front but there's one 18" rear and it's the wrong size (100/90).  

I would really like to try the Michelin Anakee 2 Adventure tires, but they don’t come in any size which fits the KTM.

Am I missing something?  Does anyone have any recommendations for a more street biased dual sport tire which fits the Adventure?

[R Doug]

PS... I've searched over on ADV and could only find threads about more off road worthy choices.  That's fine, it's good information.  But, I'm looking to tour with the Adventure this year and would like to have rubber that will make the entire trip.  

[R Doug]

So far, this is what I have found:

Front (90/90 21") & Rear (150/70 18") matching sets

Scorpion MT 90 A/T

ContiTrailAttack  (this is most likely my next tire choice ORDERED A SET!)

Front tires (90/90 21"), with NO matching 18" rear  

Scorpion MT 90 S/T

Scorpion Trail.  

ContiEscape

Metzeler Tourance

Metzeler Tourance Exp

Avon Distanzia AM43

Avon Gripster AM24



I find it odd that all of the above manufactures make a 21" with no matching 18" rear for the Adventure.  For now, it appears there are only two choices for street biased dual sport tires made for the KTM Adventure.  

[kurtw]

ContiTrailAttack  (this is most likely my next tire choice ORDERED A SET!)

Those look perfect! The wide rim and tire spec for the big KTMs limit the options considering that most 18" rears are for small dualsport bikes.

[R Doug]

 The wide rim and tire spec for the big KTMs limit the options considering that most 18" rears are for small dualsport bikes.

That makes sense.  Bummer there aren't other bikes with the same rear tire size as the 990 Adv.  We could have more choices if there were more bikes with similar tire sizes.  

Regarding the ContiTrailAttacks, I believe they'll meet my criteria.  I would like a touring tire similar to the Metzeler Tourance which I can get around 6k miles out of a rear.  Time will tell.

[BobW]

Funny (not in a ha ha way) how some great bikes get very little offered, yet some true odd ball sizes still are carried on most of the major tire company web sites.

I am having a "same only different" tire limitation on the Stelvio. I like the original equipment Scorpion Syncs, but wanted to look at other possible options. There are a ton of 110/80-19's in all the popular tires, but with a 180/55-17 rear tire, there are just the sport and sport touring tires. The new Scorpion Sync Trail looks like a great option for mine, but they list a 150 rear and then skip up to a 190/55   maybe it's sized for the new Ducati MS?  I can get a Pilot Road front and matching rear, but not a front PR2, etc.

Interested to read how the Conti's do for you. I've run several sets of Conti Sport and Road Attacks with good results and I know the new ones you have ordered did very well in recent tire testing!

Anyways, did a nice 200 mile loop South into SC today as it was 61 degrees with no new snow or ice for the first time since mid December. So nice to ride w/o wet, sand, salt and ice crap all over. Spring is almost here  

[R.Markus]

Avon Road Riders come in a size that'll fit the 990. I had a set on my 640 and I believe the rims are the same size, in fact I got them from a guy who had them on his 950. Good tires that made the 640 a completely different bike on the street.

Link to Avon site.

I can't comment on the longetivity of the tire, though. I only had them on for a couple weeks before the Teraflex went back on.

[garry]

Have you considered getting a set of 17/19 wheels for street duty (shod with Tourances or Anakees) and put something dirt worthy on the stock 18/21 set? Then a simple wheel swap will let you pick the rubber for the days adventures. Considering that you want to use one bike for multi-day street rides as well as exploring nasty jeep paths/etc, that might be the best option.

EDIT: Here's a link to a post from Woodys Wheel Works (highly regarded) on the 19/17 conversion for Adventures:

http://www.advrider.com/forums/showthread.php?t=439443

[R Doug]

That is a brilliant option.  I could have something more aggressive than the M90 ATs on the stock set of wheels and have something more street worthy on the other set of wheels.

I'm going to ponder over that one for sure.  Thanks.

[R Doug]

For the price of the new wheels, I could almost purchase a tire changer for my garage (which I've been considering).  

The major advantage of owning a separate wheelset would be the increased number of tire choices and a quicker change of tire type for different riding scenarios.  

If I purchase my own tire changer (e.g. No Mar system), I'd still be able to switch out tires types for different types of rides and I'll end up saving myself money in the long run by doing my own tire changes.  The downside of this, of course, is the limited amount of street tires available for the Adventure's 18" rear wheel.  

Decisions decisions.  

[garry]

Swapping wheel sets is better than swapping tires since you have to take the wheels off the bike regardless. Plus you have better rubber choices. Besides, you already have access to a tire changer. I ran Tourances on my Wee Strom and it handled just fine on WV twisties and then hit a bunch of dirt roads (LH100 stuff) on the way home. That 17/19 pair with Tourances/Anakees will take you a lot of places in the dry.

I've been pondering replacing the SMR and DRZ with a loaded 990 Adventure R with two sets of wheels. $20K for the bike plus all the goodies (at list prices).  Ouch.

[R Doug]

You will need to take out my Adventure for a day to see what you think.  I am pretty impressed with how fun it is in the twisties w/ 21"/18" MT90 A/T tires on it.  

You plan the day and bring the SMR for me to ride.  

[R Doug]

So far, my Adventure is working out to be the perfect bike for me.  It has comfortable ergos (especially with my aftermarket all-day-long seat), it has great luggage capacity, it has very good on-road and excellent off-road suspension, and it has a vibrant motor.  

It’s Achilles Heel has been the stock 20” front / 18” rear dirt bike oriented wheel sizes.  Because I plan to do more on-road than off-road travels with this bike, the stock wheel set really limits on-road tire choices.  

I have been considering ordering a 19” front / 17” rear wheel set for this bike which would open up hundreds of tire options.  There are several spoke wheels out there which will fit this bike, but I have been holding out with the hope a good tubeless spoke wheel would come on the market.  Why tubeless?  To me, the advantage of a tubeless wheel is (1) less to carry on long road trips for potential tire repairs (e.g. bead breaker, extra tube, and tire irons) and (2) cuts the length of a potential tire issue repair in half.  

After months of testing, Woody’s Wheel Works has officially released an Aprilia tubeless wheel set (with BMW spoke tubeless technology) with KTM 9X0 Adventure hubs.  In addition to being tubeless, the other plus to this wheel set is the fact I can use my existing brake rotors and calipers with no modifications.

After I have my tax returns sorted for this year, there’s a very good chance that I’ll acquire these wheels.  Once on my bike, it will transform this “nearly-perfect” bike into the ideal bike for me.  

Yea for me!  

[DogBoy]

You're going to love that set up. Can't wait to hear more about it.

[R Doug]

You're going to love that set up. Can't wait to hear more about it.

Thanks.  I received my quote from Woody's today and plan on ordering tomorrow.  

I'll be upgrading to the billet hubs in orange (of course).  

[BobW]

Sexy, expensive sexy even!, but very sweet indeed.

Good luck

[R Doug]

The order was officially place today.  I even added a set of brand new Metzler Tourances which is a tire that I could have never purchased under my current 18" rear 20" front setup.

I can't wait to get the new wheels and tires on and go for a nice test ride!  

[bubba zanetti]

Wow that is quite the setup Doug !!  

Likely unobtanium for me but I like the idea. I do have a tire machine ( harbour freight that I modified) so changes are easy but having the ability to swap dirt or street wheels would be wonderful.

Hope to see your setup in Custer and pics here as soon as you are setup !  

[Cablebandit]

The order was officially place today.  I even added a set of brand new Metzler Tourances which is a tire that I could have never purchased under my current 18" rear 20" front setup.

I can't wait to get the new wheels and tires on and go for a nice test ride!  

Regular Tourances or the EXP's?  I'm assuming these are the "street tire" set of wheels.

[R Doug]

Bubba, I'll have this rig in South Dakota.  You'll have to take a closer look then.  Perhaps you can even test ride the less smoother of the two Adventures.  

Chris, I purchased the regular Tourances.  And yes, these wheels will be used for 70 / 30 on v. off road riding.  I'll equip my stock wheels with more gnarly tires and they'll be used for big dual sport weekends in the dirt.