I am going to purchase a new front and rear tire for my 1990 gs500. Can anyone make a helpful suggestion? i have found that bridgestone/firestone make a battleaxe bt45 tire which fits the stock 130/70-17 (rear) and 110/70-17 (front)

Have you found that the bikes ride better on a different size? brand? what do you know about the bt45's?

Any help or comments would be appreciated

-Jordan

Welcome!

I had these and they were quite wonderful! Sticky, even in the rain. I got 12,000 miles out of mine (I'ma 125lbs, though). A definite    recommendation. Oh, don't bother with the V-rated ones, save your money. Do remember to keep up on your tire pressures (33psi front, 36psi rear), and check the pressures after you get them mounted (maybe go a little lower to help with break-in of the tire, usually just 1psi lower, remember, they'll be slippery for about 50 miles).

Hope this helps!

Yes very helpful thankyou

Hey scratch... do those tires make you confident, what are you using now, do you like them better, how often do you ride, what other tires have you ridden on, how do these compare?  how well does the bike handle with those tires, how do they feel?

Thanks, - Jordan

I also Love my BT45s  

Good tires.  Not race sticky, but great on the street.

what about compared to the pirelli sport demons??

sport demons are reported to be much better than the bt45's, which are a good tire. I have no direct experience.

stick with standard size up front and either stock 130 or up to 140 on rear.

Quote from: what?!what about compared to the pirelli sport demons??

Well, I just got rid of my BT45's and put on some Sport Demons.  Haven't had the bike out yet but when I get them scrubbed in I will post my review.

I've got a couple hundred miles in on my Avon AzaroST's and really like them.  I don't do a lot of spirited riding, but I've scrubbed them in edge to edge, and they grip well and have good feel when leaning into a turn.  They are a bit more expensive than the Pirelli's or the BT-45s, but they also supposedly have a longer tread life.

One note particularly for Jordan's benefit: the Avon Azaro's don't come in a 130/70 rear profile.

The 140/80 profile AV46's will fit (per gsJack's many treads on this) though they push the rear a smidge taller.  (Perhaps Jazzz will comment on rear fitment.)

Once my BT-45's are worn, I am seriously thinking about the Avon's.  Great tread pattern.   But then, the Pirelli Sport Demon's are a good looking tire as well.    But then, I find the BT45's are a great tire as well.  

Choices... Choices...

I've tried both the Metzeler Z4/Z2 and the Avon AV45/46 sport touring radials and got about 14k miles from the rears and a little less from the fronts.  Well worth the price in terms of miles per dollar.  Still think the AV45/46 were the best all around tires I have had on the GS's so far.  There are better sport tires if handling is most important without regard to tire life.

The AV46 in the 140/80 size will raise the rear about 3/4-7/8 inch.  I have no problem once on the GS, but it gets a bit harder to swing my arthritic hip up over the taller GS each year so I tried the new Avon AM51/52 bias ply tires in OEM sizes this year to lower the bike back down to normal.  Suits me for now, but I sure wish they made the AV45/46 tires in the OEM sizes. I've been spoiled by the radials.  

My first replacement tires on the 97 GS were the BT45s and lasted about 9500 miles.  Later I put another BT45 on the rear and then pushing the bike much harder the rear was half worn out in 2k miles when I put the first radials on.

The BT45s are good tires, but the tire life will vary greatly depending on your riding style.   :lol: Will be 73 next month and may have slowed down a bit, but still fast enough for me.  I've got over 100k miles on the GSs so far so I've been able to wear out a lot of tires on the GSs so far.   :lol:

Got over 4k miles on the AM51/52 bias tires so far and it looks like they will go 9-10k miles, a real bargain considering I got them for $125 US for the pair delivered to my door.  I think they are as good as the BT45s were, but it's been 5 years since I had the BT45s on my 97 GS and I was spoiled by 3 years of sport touring radials in between.

In about 330k miles of riding, I've never had a Michilin tire on a motorcycle and am now considering a change to the Pilot Roads next when the Avon bias tires are used up.  The rear 150/70 PR looks like it will fit the GS w/o alterations, but will raise the bike back up about 1/2 inch at rear.  If I stick with the bias OEM size it will most likely be the AM51/52 tires if they are still such a bargain.  Would also like to try both the new Lasertec and Activ bias tires in OEM sizes from Metz and Mich.  So many tires, so little time.   :dunno:

Quote from: JoChan23Hey scratch... do those tires make you confident, what are you using now, do you like them better, how often do you ride, what other tires have you ridden on, how do these compare?  how well does the bike handle with those tires, how do they feel?

Thanks, - Jordan

The BT45's made me very confident, expecially in the rain.

I am currently running the bias-ply Avon HKM's (I forgot the model no. Edit: ah, I see the AM51/52 mentioned above, that's what I got), as I want to try them out and see what kind of mileage I can get out of them vs. the BT45's. These are much stickier than the BT45's, but I'm a shade leary of how much mileage I will get out of these for the price I paid (less than the BT45's). So far, I like these better.

I am a daily rider, rain or shine, commuting, with at least a monthly weekend speed jaunt. Other than the Avons and BT45's, I haven't sampled any other tires, other than stock.

Handling is identical even though I went to a smaller profile front (BT45 110/80 front to Avon 110/70) and I raised my forks through the triples (to flush with the top triple, I used to have them down 2mm to rake out and stabilize my front end, not that I had any problems, but setting up your suspension properly sure helps).

The Avons feel more planted when cold, like in the early mornings when the tires haven't been warmed up yet. I've had the BT45 front kick out from me a couple times on cold mornings when the tire wasn't warmed up yet (duh!).

Another thing is that the BT45 rear got a visually noticable flat spot around 5000-8000miles; it didn't affect handling at all, I was just a little surprised (I'm used to getting 15,000 miles on my 250 and even then the tread wasn't worn, they were just cracking from being so old).

As Jack said, the Azaros raise the bike by just shy of an inch.  Makes it easier to get the bike on the center stand, but I'm a little nervous that the raise from the tires in combination with my plans to replace the rear shock will end up with me having to lengthen the side and center stands.

Also, how much is too much to get my tires mounted.  I have checked at a local shop and they wanted $20 carried in, and $65 ride in (per tire) how much is too much, and what should i expect?  

Thanks - Jordan

$65 is too much, but it is easy to take your tires off and bring them in. $20 is about right for that service.

Around here I found a huge variance in the "on-bike" mount price...  From abour $65 per tire down to $33 per tire...

As for "off-bike," from $20 per tire to $14 per tire to free (if I bought tires from them).

So let me get this straight... i can get myself a pair of bt45's 130/70-17 & 110/70-17... or for about 50 bucks less i could get myself a pair of am51/52 tires (same size) which from my understanding feel just as good, if not better, and also may last just as long?

Once again im a 20 year old commuter/joy rider who rides fairly aggressively whenever i can.

I like to be able to lean my bike over with confidence, but being a poor college student dont want to pay to much.  I can get the bt45's for $170.90 (for both) or i can get a pair of am51/52 for $119.90.

To me its a no brainer, save the 50 bucks and get a tire which is basically an equivelent.... but, im goin on what you guys tell me... am i correct to assume it is an equivelent?

BTW i love this forum, you guys are great.

-Jordan

I'm running the AV45/46's and like them so far.  I'm still very much a beginner, so I don't corner hard, but they have really changed the bike (changed from the stock, squared-off tires).  

I have a 140/80 on the back, and it rubs the brake "arm" after warming up.  Hopefully this doesn't mean I am going to die soon due to tire failure  :dunno:

Quote from: JoChan23So let me get this straight... i can get myself a pair of bt45's 130/70-17 & 110/70-17... or for about 50 bucks less i could get myself a pair of am51/52 tires (same size) which from my understanding feel just as good, if not better, and also may last just as long?

To me its a no brainer, save the 50 bucks and get a tire which is basically an equivelent.... but, im goin on what you guys tell me... am i correct to assume it is an equivelent?

-Jordan

Should be.  Either tire choice is an H-rated X-ply from a respectable motorcycle tire company.  Price matters and I've noticed that Bridgestone has raised theirs. :guns:   Avon looks like a deal.