Short report on new Dunlop K70 tires

[mike horvath]

Quik reply Rob!
I am not sure what WM1 or 2 rim is. I've presummably got the OEM rims as the bike was sold as original except the newer tires. The tires look good on the Bike Bandit site, but sometimes it's good to see how they fit on someone elses bike before popping out the bucks.

[G-Man]

Mike / Rob

Not my bike but you get the idea......


G

[Snakeoil]

Mike,

Rims come in sizes like everything else. I think the Brits started the WM sizing method. Googel rim sizes and you should find a chart that shows the various WM sizes and what that means in inches or mm. I'm going from memory here, but think WM-1 rims are 1.60 inches between the flanges. Here's a link to a chart. http://www.hagon-shocks.co.uk/WheelTab.htm

The WM designation is not all inclusive as you will see. Many of the other sizes are simply given as the actual dimension. In the chart you will notice that a 3.25 tire is really too big for a WM1 rim, which is what we have on the front of our CL77 bikes as OEM rims.

regards,
Rob

[e3steve]

Rob & G, I've had a pair on my CL for a year and they work excellent. My installer was able to rotate the tires enough to eliminate all of the balance weights on my rims(spokes actually). I've thrown this thing into some corners that were pretty scary. They work well in the wet also..........................D

Well I, for one, am dead envious that Gold Seal K70s are still made in 19" but not 18"!

At Silly Sixteen, back in the days when fear was just a word and road sense non-existent, I ran my first CB77 on a pair of Dunlops -- ribbed front and K70 rear -- and was able to lay it over to such an extent that I wore the ends off the handlebar grips (yeah, I'm kidding about that bit!). But seriously, though, the K70 was constantly covered in oil (as a result of my own inexperience and stupidity with crankcase separation). That oily K70 never broke away; even in the rain!

Two or three bikes later I bought a BSA A7 SS which was shod with a pair of K70s. It, too, was nigh-on unstickable. Anyone who's owned/ridden an A7 or A10 will know how sturdy & stiff the frame is and how well-behaved they are when ridden with mindless abandon (after all, the frame design & construction was only a small step away from the legendary Goldie, which provided the backbone for the RGS).

Oh, how I wish I could get some 18" K70s again!! I'd even be prepared to step up a size in width.

[e3steve]

Does anyone know of whitewall tires for the CA77? I found one pair on ebay but the guy wants $200 a piece. The original tires had a small whitewall stripe, I would like to find a pair of tires like that.

As requested by Brew, please edit-in your location; many won't answer Qs from a 'homeless' poster ☺.....

Also as Brew says, there's no need to pay that ridiculous two hundred bucks (plus the geezer's space-cadet shipping fees!).

Make some inquiries with some tyre sellers about having a pair of black-walls white-striped. We could get such done in Britain (see the pic of my old Opel Manta that I had back in '80/'81), but I'm not sure if it still can be. Nor if it is/was ever possible in the US.

Worth asking, though.

[Snakeoil]

Mike,

Never got around to putting the wheels on the bike. Had to replate the sproket nuts and bolts. But I did promise pics of the tires on the wheels. So here you go. You can just notice the added curl to the sidewall near the rim on the 3.25 mounted to that WM1 front rim.

regards,
Rob

[Snakeoil]

[/quote]Well I, for one, am dead envious that Gold Seal K70s are still made in 19" but not 18"!
[/quote]

Steve,

The K70 is available in 4.00-18 if you are talking about shodding a Brit bike. They make 3.25 and 3.50-19 tires for the front and 4.00-18 for the rear.

regards,
Rob