bigger back tire

anyone have any info on how to put a bigger back tire on a shaft xj650

 

you need to make a cutout in the cover of the driveshaft

 

Whatever happened to the guy who was going to cut two rims and weld them back together to make it wider so he could put a fat tire on the rear?

 

Probably the same thing that happened to the guy who was gonna drop an XJ550 motor into a Johnny Pag "chopper."

Some things are destined not to succeed.

I never did quite figure out how widening the rim would solve the swing arm clearance issue.

 

He was going to offset the rear wheel to the right then add in more rim to the left. The center of the tire would off center to the bikes centerline and the rims center line would be off center to the tires centerline and even more off center to the bikes centerline, but he was pretty sure it would not cause handling problems. I think thats how it was supposed to be

 

Probably succeeded in building the wheel, got a tire, went out on the first ride and died. So unless anyone on here can communicate with the dead, we'll never really know.

 

Why do people want wider tires? (Other than looks).

This is my 1st bike and I have no issues.

The stock tire is more than stable enough at 70mph in strong winds let alone in 1st gear at 5 mph...

 

I look at my back tire and think it looks fat.

 

...which brings us to that timeless question......when your wife/girlfriend (hope mine never meet) sits on the back of your bike and asks, "Does this skinny back tire make my ass look fat"?
For GODS sake LIE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
That's the only reason you need to get a wider tire than stock.

 

looks was my motive. im still alive and have discarded that plan being too expensive. im still saying it can be done but requires a custom swingarm etc. i was trying to find a cheap and effective way. i did not succeed.
on this "xj MODIFICATIONS" section, its sad how almost no-one ever contributes on how things could be done, only that things cannot be done.

this is the best board for xj tech talk and things related to stock xj bikes, but anything out of the ordinary, dont bother. there are forums dedicated on modifying motorcycles, this is not one of them


"I think thats how it was supposed to be"

you thought wrong, i never said having the rear end offset to the bikes centerline would not affect handling

 

There are modifications, and there are bad ideas. Ideas need to get tossed around, and the ones that won't work for whatever reason NEED to be pointed up as such. That way people can learn from other people's experience and mistakes and hopefully not learn things the hard way.

I'm all for a good mod. A good, safe mod that doesn't take a nice rideable bike and turn it into a rolling disaster waiting to happen. Dual discs on a bike that started with a single disc? Good mod (has its ups-n-downs, but a solid mod.) Eliminating front brake altogether? Bad mod. Shorter shocks as opposed to trying to cut down old units or fit inappropriate shocks from a different bike? Can be a good mod.

Creating a rear wheel that's not exactly in line with the front wheel?

Bad mod. But maybe involves factors you never thought of; so the discussion was necessary and valid. Even if the idea was a bit... off center.

I'm not anti-mod at all. I'm anti-danger.

 

Just my 2 cents...
I run the rear wheel from a Maxim on my Seca from time to time. BeingI lowered the bike (bobbed it) etc. I wanted a lower, fatter tire on the back of the bike, which the Maxim wheel does because it has a wider tire on it. So, I can also gowith a few sizez wider when I use the Seca rim (which is an 18" wheel instead of the Maxim 16" wheel)
There is still enough room with the Maxim wheel/tire to be able to go with even a wider tire, which I plan to do when the tire wears out.
Yes, I like fat rear ends on my woman as well as my bikes.
"Why do people want fatter tires on their bikes"? Because they can. And that crap about it changing the handling, don't believe it. Mine handes just as good with the wider Maxim 16" wheel/tire on it than it does with the 18" Seca wheel/tire configuration. The only difference is the fuel mileage and lower RPMs with the 18" wheel on it.

 

Some of the forum members did offer you good advice, where as I and others didn't respond positively. You did throw out an idea and when you do that you will get positive and negative replies but making this statement-

"its sad how almost no-one ever contributes on how things could be done, only that things cannot be done".

-I think, is being negative on your part too.

You then make this statement-

im still alive and have discarded that plan being too expensive. im still saying it can be done but requires a custom swingarm etc. i was trying to find a cheap and effective way. i did not succeed

-so what do you want from us?

I guess I'm in a grumpy mood this morning but your post struck a nerve. I hope you do figure it out one day and come back here and show us how it turned out.
Good luck with your project.

 

hello there venlis-I guess i dont completely understand this last post but I too was asking about a way for a larger back tire. I got plans to run a 140 by notching the shaft housing-simply for a larger contact area for better braking. I know there are purists here who object to anything other than stock. Life would be pretty boring if people didnt have dreams. If there is a will there is a way. Just remember safety is #1. XJ's ROCK!

 

Full Moon?

 

I think is a matter of "what one minds thinks another has already thunk"!
almost every mod there is to be done on these bikes has been done or tried n if a reply seems to be in the negative its only cuz some one has tried n is letting u know so u can save a lot of frustration n $$$...
jst my 2c

 

my rear tire is a 130/90-16..i'm hoping on going to a 150/80-16 but i'm not sure just how well it'll hold on the rim.. i've got the clearence witht the frame and should have enough room by the chain...we'll see what happens..seems like the hardest part is finding a good white wall tire for a good price...Maxxis why did you have to discontinue yours! lol

 

Barefoot isnt one of the members on here a tire dealer?

 

Try a maxim rear wheel (if it’s not already) of a 650 or 750 it will go straight on. I have a maxim 16inch on the of my 81 you will just need to adjust the shocks.

 

must be.

 

Awoooooooooooo!!!!!!!!!

:twisted: :twisted: :twisted:

 

So I don't mean to jump in with a question here but does anyone know what the largest rear tire is that will fit with no mods, I have an 85 700..16"wheel.

 

130/90-16

 

BAREfoot, check out motorcyclesuperstore.com ..... they seem to have a pretty good selection of white walls at (I think) reasonable prices. Ordered a couple helmets from them, they seem to be pretty good to deal with so that gives them a +1

 

Reading back on this thread, I guess there are some differences between models. I would love to have a 150 to 180 rear tire on my 700, but thats not going to happen without mods.
BTW Fitz, if you go to the Johnny Pag website and look at the pics of customers bikes you'll see a chopper with a 750-4 Honda motor in it, so that mod can be done. :wink:

 

130/90-16 is the absolute largest without mods?

 

Going to a wider tire isn't gonna do what you want it to do. I have a 150 on mine with no mods, but the rim is the same width, so there's no real difference between the 130 and 150. The walls of the 150 just get pulled in. you want a wider tire, you need a wider rim.

 

Shinko makes a nice wide whitewall tire..and cheap!

 

Kevenelevin, who makes wider rims that 'll work on these bikes? I would love to have one.

 

No one that I know of.

 

First - no practical experience.
You get the Virago Spoke hubs from the '80's
You get custom rims and new stainless spokes from various catalogs.
You get someone experienced to offset-lace the rear rim to accomodate a super-wide 170 or so, and match the front at 130 with no fender.
You do lots of trimming, clearancing, and planning.
Then you get to brag about your accomplishment here.

It's do-able.

 

beware i've heard you may die soon after

 

Hah, that is awesome.

 

Good idea Time, a wider 18 inch rim with the Virago hub would be nice. But then you would have to get a nice 21 inch spoked rim to go up front to match, could get costly. :wink:

 

w/o mods, yes. Even the 130 gets pretty close to the shaft housing. Also bear in mind that it fits just fine ONCE IT'S IN THERE but the wheel with the wider tire may not slip in between shocks, fender, gearbox and all quite as easily as the 120 came out. I honestly can't speak first hand about 16" max and XVs but that's how it is with my 18" on the Seca. I can change a 120 all by myself on the side of the road with the bike on the center stand. Less than 15 minutes out, get some fresh rubber, less than 15 minutes back in and on the road.
With a 130 I have to set the bike down on top of the wheel somehow. At home that means ratchet straps to the passenger hand hold to the ceiling. "out in the world" that means stepping on the left side foot of the center stand and tipping the bike up towards me (left) about 45 degrees while a helper tucks the wheel in there and onto the splines.
Might be lots easier with a 16". I dunno. Would be easier if say, I had no fender.
If any of that is a consideration for you than sleep on it before going wider.
I don't hold it against anyone for being a fair weather rider or calling their buddy with a pickup truck when something goes amiss on a sunny sunday afternoon. Longevity, reliability, affordability, repairability... All MAJOR considerations for the way I choose to ride. I do almost as much wrenching out on the road as at home in the garage. Hell, I now carry an air compressor in my tank bag. I know not everyone rides like I do and that's cool. The above bit about ease of changing is just my own personal experience with 120 vs 130 width tires.