Riders Of Vision

ok, so my refund is on it's way, & my trusty Metzlers are being forced into retirement.  i'm going to order new tires. knowing what i want, i called the bike shop to get prices.  i noticed online that Super Venoms & Roadrunners both have the designation "AM20", & the tread is similar.

can anyone with Super Venoms look at them & tell me if they are actually marked "Super Venom"??

looking at $245 mounted, balanced, tax etc, i wanna pay for the ones i'm asking for.

Thanks, --Lucky

Mine are marked "Super Venom" on both front & rear.  AM20 front AM18 rear.  The rear in size 110-90-18 is a front or rear tire.  The tread pattern is the same as the rest of the rear tires in the Super Venom series.  That was my main worry when I ordered mine.  Didn't want the front tread style on the rear.  The roadrunner tread is not quite as aggressive but otherwise very similar.  Almost hard to see in the photos.

Pretty good price for getting the work done for you.  I paid around $190 for just the tires.  Glad I can mount & balance on my own.

H₂O

  Mine only say Roadrunner  The front is an AM20 size 90/90H-18, measures 3.75 total width. The rear is an AM21, it is 110/90H-18, 4.5 total width.  Mine are only H rated because I wanted to stay with the 90/90 on the front   

Quote from: Lucky on February 07, 2007, 05:53:20 PM
ok, so my refund is on it's way, & my trusty Metzlers are being forced into retirement.  i'm going to order new tires. knowing what i want, i called the bike shop to get prices.  i noticed online that Super Venoms & Roadrunners both have the designation "AM20", & the tread is similar.

can anyone with Super Venoms look at them & tell me if they are actually marked "Super Venom"??

looking at $245 mounted, balanced, tax etc, i wanna pay for the ones i'm asking for.

Thanks, --Lucky

Wanna tryem before you buyem?  Thats the ones on my bike.

They both say "Avon Super Venom"

David

Quote from: Lucky on February 07, 2007, 05:53:20 PM
ok, so my refund is on it's way, & my trusty Metzlers are being forced into retirement.  i'm going to order new tires. knowing what i want, i called the bike shop to get prices.  i noticed online that Super Venoms & Roadrunners both have the designation "AM20", & the tread is similar.

can anyone with Super Venoms look at them & tell me if they are actually marked "Super Venom"??

looking at $245 mounted, balanced, tax etc, i wanna pay for the ones i'm asking for.

Thanks, --Lucky

why are you giving up on the metziez??


they are like my motorcycle security blanket,...................I can't live without em'

Could someone tell me what AM20 and AM18 means? ???

 :) Try this link... http://www.cycleshopusa.com/p160.htm

If you are too lazy to click the link, AM18 & AM20 are just tire model designations.

H₂O

Got it ;)

i'd get the Metz again, but the ME77's are history in our size, and i'm hearing better reviews on the Super Venoms.

btw, i have an 'all over' rim leak on the front.  if i use soap spray i get tiny bubbles all around, & have to add air every few days.  what grit do i sand the bead to to insure a seal?

The most common bead leak problem is bits of old rubber from previous tires & the various goops used to mount & dismount them.  I'd say use a brass brush to clean all that gunk off the rims.  Then some goo gone or similar cleaning solvent, followed by some brake cleaner.   If you still need to dress the rims, use some medium grit - 180 - 200 followed by some 400.  That should leave a great surface for the beads to properly seat.

I haven't had to clean aluminum or alloy wheel bead leaks - even in several years of tire shop work.  When it happened on steel rims, a steel wire brush worked wonders without any additional sanding or dressing / polishing.

H₂O

will do, thanks.

The Super Venoms are great tires.  I've had them in hot weather & they stick like glue.  They also work well in wet, cold & even slushy conditions.  Found that out twice last summer.  One ride, over Trail Ridge Road in late June, was wet with some snowflakes in the air, melting as they hit the ground.  Slow speeds on that road - speed limit is 35 MPH but you can't go that fast very often because of the heavy tourist traffic.

In late August, I went on a ride with a friend.  He was on his radial shod new Honda VFR.  When we left Ft. Collins, it was cloudy & cool but didn't look too nasty.  By the time we reached the top of Cameron Pass - 80 miles & an hour & 45 minutes west, at over 10,000 feet, there was fairly heavy snow falling.  It was melting on the pavement but sticking to all the fauna.  When we finally reached Snowy Range Road in southern Wyoming, the temps were in the upper 20s (F) and the previously wet roads had become slushy with about an inch of the stuff on the road.  Still mostly water, but very slippery.  I kept up with the Honda (he's an excellent rider) and never felt like the tires were slipping very much.  Fairly twisty road & maintained 30 - 50 MPH through most of that part of the ride.  (except for the couple times I had to stop & scrape the ice off my visor  ::) )  Also, about five miles over the top was heavily fogged in (actually riding in the clouds) so speeds were 10 to 15 MPH because we could see only a few feet ahead.

The roads between Cameron Pass and Snowy Range Road were wet & temps were in the upper 40s.  Fairly light but steady drizzle on the whole ride.  The turns are not very sharp in that area (known as North Park).  Speed limit is 65 MPH & we consistently maintained 15 - 20 over that in the cold, wet conditions.  Never even a minor "pucker factor" in any of the corners.  That's saying something as I'm kind of a chicken when it comes to taking corners fast.

I currently have over 3,000 miles on my Super Venoms & they look like they have at least that much life left in them.  Pretty good for a tire that's made for the sport end of sport touring.  The rubber is fairly sticky.  They have worked so well for me that I'll likely keep mounting these tires for the foreseeable future.

I am not receiving anything from Avon or any tire manufacturer or dealer - just want to pass on my experience with the tires.  I know Motorplow had an issue of fast wear with his.  Like the roads he rides in Virginia, the roads here are mainly chip & seal.  Guess the process out here is less abrasive.  Still, it makes for a good road surface - after the excess 'chips' are off the road.

H₂O

ok so metzlers are no longer available in the stock size,....

when the set of oversize ones I have now start to wear I'll check out a set of the super venoms.

super sticky and a VERY even round cross section profile (I hate the way triangular profile tires handle) is what I love about the metzlers, AND when you slide a metzler tire, either on purpose or by accident, they get GRIPPY-ER as the length of the slide increases

this fact has saved my ass more times than I can count, and is the primary reason I like them so much

i ordered my new meats today.
Ahhhh, i love the smell of fresh release compound in the morning.  it smells like...Victory! (after it's worn away)

--Lucky

Yeah...  until the gloss is   gone,  they can be a little slick.   I  slid  the V-star  around a corner  on  it's  maiden  voyage.  I'm  pretty sure sparks were flying off the pegs  too.   ::)   It  just  doesn't  handle  like  my V  does.   >:(     

BTW:  I think  I'm going to put Avons  on my V too  here in  about a week or so.   I also  need to change out  the stator  at one point or another  before  then.  I've been slacking.  It's just so  frickin' cold.

H20...you say you mount your own tires?  Do you have a shop?  I plan to be ordering a new rear for my Triumph as well as a set for my Red Vision...and later on a set for the Black vision.  What kind of pricing you have for Visionaries to help mount? 

Kevin -

I got the tire mounting machine for both auto & motorcycle tires from Harbor Freight.  I could use some better tire irons, but otherwise it works great.  I also built a gravity balancer from some angle aluminum & rollerblade bearings.  I need to get some more wheel weights & lead tape strips.  I will have the stuff at the 25 year celebration, available for all to use.  I just use my home garage / shop.  Cost is free - or some beers if you feel the need to do something.  William - the guy with the Venture we rode with last Fall & I split the cost of the machine.  We've each done one set of tires.  He did a set on his GTS & I did my Vision.  It has already paid for itself.  The wide radials are more difficult.  The Vision tires almost slipped off & on.  Using enough Tire Snot really helps.

I worked in a tire shop for several summers in Steamboat, so I didn't get into this on a whim.  Mounting motorcycle tires requires a little more precision & finesse than auto & truck tires.

I need to do some fine tuning to the balancer but otherwise, everything works great.

Let me know when you want to do the job.  I have it all on a doubled 4x4 sheet of plywood.  It fits into the truck great.  Can do it at my house or anywhere mutually monvenient.  I want to head south soon to get some more beer brewing supplies.  The store is close to I-25 & 120th.  Wouldn't be any real trouble to go farther south as long as I'm there.

H₂O

Quote from: h2olawyer on February 13, 2007, 04:25:21 PM

...I worked in a tire shop for several summers...

8) The first job I had when I left school and was awaiting my auto-mechanics apprenticeship was at a tire shop....went back years later as the "Break down" fitter...it has proved a very usefull asset, at time's. Although, I don't have a tire machine, just leaver's, which I really need to up-date...someday... ;D ;D :D :D :D :D

                 

Steamboat, being a ski & summer resort town, has two busy seasons.  At the time I was a tire tech during the summer, I ran ski lifts in the winter.  I spent three summers at the tire store.  The final year, I drove the large service truck & worked mostly with heavy equipment tires (tractors, loaders, scrapers & smaller mining haul trucks).  Some of the tractor & loader tires were calcium filled.  Those were a real pain to deal with.

The heavy equipment tires are in many ways easier than car tires.  Most of the work is done with hydraulics.  The only tough part was swinging the 16 lb. sledge baseball style to push the outer ring back so the lock ring could be removed.  Glad it only took 4 to 8 hits to get the job done.  My fast time on a scraper tire - from arrival to mid-inflation was 45 minutes.  The guy who trained me could do one in a half hour.  Actual tire removal & installation was done with the boom & a sling.

The heat finally made me decide to give up physically demanding work in the summer & I resumed formal education.

The Harbor Freight tire machine is really just a frame to hold the rim and make it a little easier to lever the tire off.  It comes with a large bar to remove the tire.  It also operates the bead breaker.  The bar well with car tires but not with motorcycles - except with the bead breaker.  A couple pieces of cut up plastic milk jugs serve as rim protectors & I have been using some various construction levers as tire spoons.  They're rounded on the edges so they don't cut the tires but some real spoons would make it easier.

H₂O

I recivied a email from Bike Bandit today they have tires on sale. When you mount new tires wipe them down with brake cleaner to remove the mold lube.

I used a sheet of 180 grit sandpaper to clean mine off.  You still need to ride easy for about 100 miles to assure the beads have properly & fully set.  That mileage also gives the tires time to heat up & evaporate the moisture out of the tire lube used to slip the tires over the rims.  That's also why it is not recommended to use soapy water as a bead lube.  Even after the moisture is gone, the soap remains slick & the tire bead can slip off or rotate around the rim.

H₂O

Quote from: Kevin on February 13, 2007, 09:18:01 PM
I recivied a email from Bike Bandit today they have tires on sale. When you mount new tires wipe them down with brake cleaner to remove the mold lube.

I would be really carefull doing that.  I've never done anything to new tires but take it easy for the first few 100 miles.   I probably go thru 2 sets of tires a year on my main bike and not had a problem. 

ok, it's about that time to actually place the tire order.

I know swmototire.com has been used by members on the forum but they dont seem to be carrying SuperVenoms.  Has anyone had success with other online tire vendors?

kEvin W

I got mine from American Moto Tire.  However, they,too, seem to no longer carry them.  Dennis Kirk says they have them in stock.  They have high initial prices but will match internet prices with proof from the online dealer.

Maybe Avon is phasing the Super Venoms out???

EDIT:  Just checked Avon's website & they still show SVs in the correct sizes.

Checked SW Moto Tire, American Moto Tire & Motorcycle Accessory Warehouse.  None show the Super Venom as available.  You might try contacting these dealers to see if they can still get them.  They all used to carry them.  If they are no longer available, I may have to try the Pirelli Sport Demons next.  Too bad nobody can give me a straight answer on whether or not the Metzeler Lasertec in 110/90-18 (H or V rated) is available in the US.  I contacted Metzeler a while ago to ask about it & they said "If it is on our North American website, then it is available."  However, when I contacted several dealers, they said no such size exists.  Felt kind of like Yossarian!

H₂O

Denniskirk only has the rear listed ...has 3 models...1 rear SV and 2 for Road Runner


edit...looks like they have them...just not listed if you select xz550

You must be looking it up through the 1982 Yamaha Vision filter.  That way, you only get the 90/90-18 fronts available.  Won't show the 100/90-18 fronts of the 1983 Visions.  I'm looking at both F & R Super Venoms on Dennis Kirk's site on the other tab in my browser.

The Super Venom is not available in 90/90-18.  You will need to bump up a size.  Not to worry - that's what came on the 83s even with the narrow 1.85 inch rim width.

H₂O

yeah,
got the 110/90-18 and 100/90-18 selected...

about to pull the trigger looks like 217.98 including shipping

"You can have the tires, we have plenty of them, unless you order them, then we are out."
--Vision 22

 ;D  Glad somebody picked up on it.   ;D

H₂O

better hurry up and get on DK if you want new snakeskins............

"snakeskin shoes....baby put 'em on your feet" - Lonesome George

I saw Super Venoms listed as "discontinued" on a site...

I just ordered the RoadRunners from DK because I can't find them anywhere else in the stock 90/90/18 - 90/110/18 size either...

I like the skinny tires  ;D you didn't see Lance winning tour 'd france with big fatties on his bicycle.

Tires Unlimited lists the Super Venom as discontinued.  Thet CLAIM the Road Rider is a direct replacement for both the Super Venom & the Road Runner.  Cost is lower than either of those tires.  Like the Super Venom, the 110/90-18 is a combination F/R tire.  Tread pattern has a 'radial' look to it.  Tread for F & R looks identical.  Wonder if they are as sticky?

Figures - I find a tire I really like & they discontinue it.

Just finished mounting a set of Avon Viper Sport AV 59 & AV 60 radials for my friend with the GTS.  Went on the rims much easier than the Bridgestone BT-020s we put on 18 months ago.  Like my Super Venoms, the first bead nearly fell on the rims.  The second bead took some lever work, but not a lot.  3 or 4 pries & the tire was on the rim!  I sure like tire companies that have the installer in mind when they design a carcass.   ;D  However, they dropped a notch or two for me since they are discontinuing the Super Venoms.

My new V project will need tires.  Not sure whether to get the new Road Riders or try the Pirelli Sport Demons.  Would go with the Metzelers if I could find the correct rear . . .

H₂O 

hmmm...wonder if we could inquiry as to its stickiness

Quote from: h2olawyer on March 22, 2007, 04:29:00 PM
Figures - I find a tire I really like & they discontinue it.H₂O 

That has happened with every set of tires i've bought for this bike!!  >:(  but on the flip side, every new set has been better than the previous set...

Catch 22 is one of my all time favorites, i still like the movie too. it's rare that i like a movie after reading the book..

Avon tires (tyres for those of British origin) has a pretty good website.  They have contact info as well.  their description for the Road Rider is as a commuter tire for high mileage.  Ddoesn't sound like they're as sticky.  Maybe we should start a mass complaint on their discontinuing the Super Venom?

www.avon-tyres.co.uk/motorcycle/ (http://www.avon-tyres.co.uk/motorcycle/)

Quote from: Lucky on March 22, 2007, 05:35:09 PM
Catch 22 is one of my all time favorites, i still like the movie too. it's rare that i like a movie after reading the book.

I agree- most movies ruin the book.  Guess us older folks mostly prefer to use our imaginations rather than be spoon fed the images.  Plus, it's hard to digest a large book into a 1.5 - 2 hour movie.  Too many subtleties & nuances left out.  Catch-22 was well done, though.  Been a while since I saw it.  Law school ruined most law related movies & programs for me as well.  However, 12 Angry Men, Anatomy of a Murder, Witness for the Prosecution, To Kill a Mockingbird, The Caine Mutiny and, as odd as it seems, A Fish Called Wanda & My Cousin Vinny are each great in their own way.  The first five are good courtroom dramas.  I like the last two comedies for the way they poke fun at lawyers & the court.  I also like to watch Rumpole of the Bailey on PBS when it runs.

H₂O