New here, looking at potential options

[DatBoi]

So I recently picked up a 92' GS500E for 1250$. "Just needed a battery", but ended up that the stator wasnt charging, so I cleaned all contacts and everything has been solid.

I am starting to rack some miles on it to make sure it's a reliable bike, and I am seeing a few things that need tweaking. For one, touring tires on a 370lb bike is no fun. LOL.

But Carbs need rebuilding (cause it's 24 years old and I'm sure it was never performed) and small things like fork oil being changed and so forth.


What size tires can I run on the front? I know on the rear I can run 140/70 without modifying the rear brake brace or 150/60 with modification. Looking into Battlax's (my buddy who pushed me to get back on a bike has an FZ09 with these) or Q3's.

[gsJack]

I've run 110/70, 110/80, 120/70 front and 130/70, 130/80, 130/90, 140/70, 140/80, 150/60, 150/70 rear tires on my GSs on the stock 3.0 and 3.5" wheels.  All of the tires I've run have been fitments approved by the tires maker except the 150/60 rear.  I've run bias, bias belted, and radial tires.  No alterations are required to the bike for any of these sizes on stock wheels except the 150/60 and 150/70 which come close to or touch the brake rod and may require bending the rod a bit.

Tires I've run on my 97 and 02 GSs:

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v443/jcp8832/GS500tirelogs_zpsoxtnjzsi.jpg

[Watcher]

Forgive my ignorance, but what about touring tires doesn't work well on the GS?  I could see issues with knobbies or dual-sport tires, but touring tires?  They're basically the moto equivalent of "all weather" tires for autos.

Also, if I remember correctly, the Bridgestone Battlax is considered a touring tire...

[gsJack]

I had 4 Hondas I put about 230k miles on before the 2 GSs that I put 180k miles on.  I ran Dunlop rear touring tires mostly on the Hondas and liked them.  So early on I tried rear touring tires on my first GS and didn't like them, they were breaking loose constantly in the corners.  Seems the little GS wanted to go around corners faster than the tires did.  On the plus side I did learn how to catch a breaking loose rear end.

There are many different kinds of Bridgestone tires with the Battlax name on them ranging from touring to supersport types.

[Rallyfan]

I think the S20 EVO I run in the rear is labelled Battlax just like the BT45 front.

If/when the front wears out I'm putting a sport radial up there too. I really like the S20.

[DatBoi]

@watcher: I've already experienced these tires not liking to stick. Haha. I track Miatas and I'd rather not ride the limit of grip on two wheels rather than four.

[The Buddha]

But Carbs need rebuilding (cause it's 24 years old and I'm sure it was never performed) and small things like fork oil being changed and so forth.

Why do 24 yr old carbs "need rebuilding" ... and WTF is rebuilding anyway ?

It could need - Cleaning - may be but usually not if it starts and idles fine, new O rings - possibly, but again not if its not leaking oil, may need a adjustment especially of floats.
It could need a rejet, but again need the circumstances when its acting up, as well as a plug pull.

If its leaking gas, find where from.
If its running poorly, find out under what circumstances (as in @ 1/4hrottle when cold etc etc).

Chances are it could need a little adjustment and be 100%.

Cool.
Buddha.

[gregjet]

BEST tyres for the road I have ever used are Michelin Road Pilot 4 ( note the "4", I don't think the same of previous models). All temperatures all conditions. Did a 7000km trip on them in conditions as low as 1deg C ( 34deg F) and raining and 44degC (110degF) and brilliant grip all times. All in two weeks. Got to love Aussie climate.
They roll with a soft grippy feel. NO harshness ( if you are a Dunlop fan these will feel too soft). Grip at all angles.
Now the con for the GS500. The smallest size they make for the back is 150/70. That is actually the size I used for the trip 0n my Husky TR650. So you will get a tyre that is 14mm higher radius on the GS AND you will have to mod the rear brake arm. I have a 150/60 Bridgestone S20 on mine because I had a relatively unused one laying around from a DRZ400SM project but It would have been a Michey RP4 if I hadn't.

[yamahonkawazuki]

i ran bt45s on about all of my GS' ( had 6 one of them twice) anyhoo welcome to the nuthaus. gsjack is the go to tire guy here. he knows his stuff. buddha is our carb guy. the gs holds its value well. you could ride the piss out of it and usually sell it for what you paid for it or even more.
i bought my first, a 97 needing forks which i got here.
(let me introduce frankenbike) my first post in 03. counting what i put into it, a carb overhaul it was sitting for a LONG while. along with tires, and sold at a profit. its STILL on the road. ( i want to see if i can re acquire it lol) anyhoo forgive my long winded postwhoring lol. btw if you need parts, check the FS/FT section, and post pics Eh? again welcome.
p.s. if you ever need to rant, go to the tard farm ( a rant thread there. we all need to rant sometimes lol
Aaron

[DatBoi]

Alright. How do the 150's feel on the rears? I have no issues picking up a rear brake brace to just hack at and install so I can run more meat. From some posts I've seen on here people don't like the feel or argue that's too big for a 3-3.5" wheel.

So far, even with my gear included... I know I could sell the bike itself for more. Haaa!

If I can run a 120/70 on the front and a 140/70 on the rear, that would be a perfect match. A tad more meat, more stick.

[lucas]

...

If I can run a 120/70 on the front and a 140/70 on the rear, that would be a perfect match. A tad more meat, more stick.

It is a myth that wider tires give you more grip.  It is the compound you should be concerned with.  Contact patch size is one of those conventional wisdom things that isn't actually true.  Tire companies go ahead and take advantage of that to sell bigger tires.

The force of friction is equal to the weight of the object multiplied by a factor that is determined by the two materials (tire and asphalt in this case).  The area of the contact patch is not used to determine the friction forces that accelerate, brake, turn, and resist skidding.

I'm not trying to be a smart ass, if your concern is with getting good traction then get a sticky tire compound.  If you want to look good, get a wider tire.  If you want both, do both.