enduro or on off road tires

[Paul.1478]

Looks like right out of Mad Max to me.

[ribbert]

I am daring to put some dot approved on / off road tires on my 1986 fj1200 has anyone out there every tried this? I need some input before trial and error. I just want to ride down some dirt roads. Obviously not the best use of fj 1200.

Drop your road tyres to 20 psi. This will take you anywhere you can get the FJ as well as dual purpose tyres will. The FJ makes a great dirt road bike, it's small physical size, low height, it's grunt straight off idle and all round low down power and gearing make it an excellent choice for some back country exploring.

As some might remember, I have reported many of my off road FJ trips here over the years. I have done many thousands of Km's on dirt ranging from clutch slipping first gear rock climbing, creek crossings, floodways, 100mph gravel to being stuck on logs, sticks jambed through wheels and bogged in sand.

I remember rolling into an outpost of sorts late one afternoon on the FJ, nothing but serious 4WD's and a dozen adventure bikes there and the look on the rider's faces was somewhere between crestfallen and disbelief, the appearance of a road bike in such a location had diminished their achievement. They had ridden through 3 States and 2 consecutive days of dirt tracks and terrible unsealed roads to get there and to then see a road bike casually turn up, well.......

I honestly felt a bit sorry for these guys, they were city slickers and this bucket list trip had been in the planning for years. I suspect none of them would ever do such a thing again but rather dine out on this one expedition for the rest of their lives, a testament to their adventurous spirit and youth. While they may have looked the part, they did have a couple of support vehicles with wives, girlfriends and all the creature comforts for the end of each day. I suspect there was more than the odd tube of lip balm and skin re hydration products in there.

I would be surprised if you planned on taking the FJ anywhere that road tyres wouldn't be dandy. The trouble with dual sport tyres is where you inevitably spend most of your time, the bitumen.

Somebody mentioned Metzeler Tourance tyres (dualsport) I just happen to have a 1200 in the garage with Tourance tyres F&R (not my choice). I find it difficult to notice where they are any better off road than the FJ's road tyres (Metzeler 01's) However, on the blacktop, it's easy to exceed the tyre's limits.

You can't out lean good tyres on an FJ but you can out lean duallies.

I have the rear raised and an RPM shocker set hard, 17" wheel, oversize tyre ( ) and centre stand removed, the lean angle is limited by the gear lever, brake pedal, belly pan (chin fairing) mufflers etc scraping, the amount of power or braking I can still use at those angles is amazing. Unless there's something slippery on the road you're never going to out lean good modern sports/touring tyres.

When dirt road riding though, speed is never the goal, you are just cruising so having a tyre that provides 10/10 for those conditions isn't warranted, or even noticed.

I can honestly say, fanging down a dirt road, I cannot feel better traction with the duallies than the road tyres.

The bike that has the Tourance's fitted makes about 20 HP less than the FJ and the traction control kicks often in the wet where the FJ on 01's would never break loose.

Buy a compressor and let your tyres down when on the dirt, it's cheaper.

http://www.fjowners.com/index.php?topic=17020.msg171533#msg171533

Noel

[Tuned forks]

A really good and helpful report Noel.  Some useful information there.  Welcome back.

Joe

[Mike Ramos]

Good evening,

Yep, no special tires needed for "off road" use - as Noel mentioned, the dual sport tires limit the on road capability of the FJ.

Here is a video from January 2012 when this topic was discussed way back when: "Did Someone Say Dual Sport" http://youtu.be/atj2XleubZg


And here is a quote from the post "Paean to a Sport Tourer" from January 2015.  About the last minute or so of the video is some "off road" riding up in Idaho along the Snake River and part of California, far northern.

"When there is a discussion about dual sport riding, if tooling along is not your cup of tea, simply be judicious with the throttle and you will not tear up the tires nor fall off the 'edge' of the earth."   https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FAObr8z9Vr0&feature=youtu.be

Ride safe - both on & off road!

Midget

[ribbert]

....  Welcome back.

Joe

Thanks Joe.

Noel

[beanbagsj]

You can get dualsport tyres in 17'' sizes Im running a metzler tourance on the back of my 3xw this is the 2nd one Ive had on it grips great ,I might add thats why I swapped the rear 16'' to a 17'' wheel for better choices of tyres also has a pirelli scorpion trail front tyre fitted in the pic

what rim do i need for the front?

[Pat Conlon]

To get a 17" rim on the front you will need to change your forks over to the '89-93 forks, or use your existing forks and get special caliper brackets that you will need to fit the 17" rim.

Then you can fit the 1987 or 1988 FZR1000/750 front rim that's 17" x 3.5" wide.

[Millietant]

A couple of wheels and tyres on my other bike here that you could borrow   

[Tuned forks]

Oh my gosh Dean.  If that's a Honda mini bike from the sixties then that's what I learned to ride on.  That tank and logo bring back some fond memories.  Thanks for sharing.

Joe

[Pat Conlon]

That Honda is a very fancy first bike.

Here's what I learned on:


Taco 22's rock! Especially with your dad's Briggs & Stratton edger engine on it....he never missed it.

[Millietant]

Sorry Joe, it's just a 2019 Chinese-made copy (there are a lot of them about over here!), with Honda stickers - looks very authentic though  

I first rode a Fantichino Pat (obviously an Italian Fantic Motors product), pull start with a string, automatic, solid rear end - brilliant for a kid.

Not ours, but the same, without the collapsed seat...

[oldktmdude]

That Honda is a very fancy first bike.

Here's what I learned on:


Taco 22's rock! Especially with your dad's Briggs & Stratton edger engine on it....he never missed it.

That brings back some memories except the one I learnt to ride on had a 2 stroke 125cc Victa lawn mower engine.   
   Regards, Pete.

[racerrad8]

I still have the one I learned on.

It is also the one my kids learned on.

Now, planning on getting it out for the 9 year old nephew for him to learn on very soon.

Randy - RPM

[Flynt]

I just picked up Honda Enduros...  XL100 and XL125...  for Diane and I to play with on the BLM and Cove Palisades land we are next to...  Turns out you need plated vehicles to go on anything they consider "double track" (damned Feds!), so ATV permit won't get you there.  Gave me a good excuse to get Diane on her own machine!



Crappy pick in messy garage, but I wanted to get some actual Enduro (tire) content into the mix here!  I loved those mini-bikes, but the Yamaha 60cc Enduro is what I cut my teeth on...



paid $200 out of my savings at that point for a pretty beat version (photo is not mine) and beat on it some more, then the mix oil pump failed and had to push it home seized...  Dad was not impressed, but he helped with parts so I could rebuild the top end.  Great times...

I'm pretty sure none of the Chin-Sheng tires on these rigs would hold up well on an FJ...  

Frank

[FJmonkey]

Classic Randy, springer front end.