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Tires for the X300?

38K views 31 replies 19 participants last post by  fasteddiecopeman 
#1 ·
Anybody have the chance to change tires on the little bike? Which brand and size did you go with? Specifically the front tire. I want to go with a little more aggressive off pavement tire. ie Shinko 705's, but they don't list the front tire size. Can't even find the OEM IRC tires on the IRC site. Any thoughts or comments.
 
#3 ·
#4 · (Edited)
I love the Michelin Anakee 3 tires on my V-Strom 1000. It appears they are recommended for the Versys-X 300 by Michelin. I am nearly sure they won't meet your aggressive off-road requirement as a 80/20 type tire but for me they are the best tire I have found for my style of riding. Maybe the highest mileage to date for a combo tire. Many folks get 12+k miles on the rear.

2017 KAWASAKI Versys-X 300 tires | Michelin Tyre Selector
 
#5 ·
I measured the tire tread depth on the X 300 at 5/32" front and 8/32" rear when the bike was new. I just checked again at 1000 miles----the front is still showing approximately 5/32" and the rear is down to 5/32". It must be all of the horsepower eating up the rear tire or maybe has a similar wear rate as the K750 installed on a new KLR650. They rarely went more than 3000 miles.

Anyway, I have a new Shinko 244 5.10 x 17 rear that will be installed on the bike when the original is worn out.
 
#7 ·
On original tires only rode about 5 miles on gravel and that was enough to find out I needed different tires.

Ordered new tires and taking a chance with the front tire since it will be a little skinnier but might work at a really good price from AMT:
KENDA K270 5.10-17 71P TUBE TYPE REAR MOTORCYCLE 042701764C0 1
SHINKO 244 2.75-19 43P FRONT / REAR MOTORCYCLE SR244 2.75-19 1
Both tires together cost $88.54 from American Moto Tires web site.

Installed tires last week but not good weather and gravel forest service roads closed.

When mounting the front tire, pinch the tube in two places. Bought original size IRC heavy duty tube to replace it (about $21). Was hard shoving the tube in the skinny tire but worked.

So finally tested the tires out on 100+ mile ride today, 50% was gravel the other 50% pavement. Works fine. Lot more grip than original tires on gravel. Got up to 70mph once and 80mph once on pavement for very short periods, seconds. Little noisy and at certain speed can hear the tires over the motor and wind noise. Was smooth than I expected.
 
#8 ·
Update on the tires for my X 300. I installed a rear Kenda Big Block Paver at 3000 miles and a front Kenda Paver at 10000 miles. The rear Paver was replaced with the same at 13000 miles. They wear good, don’t cup, and are quiet. My bike has 15500 miles on it and I will be sticking with the Kendas as my bike is road ridden with minimal rock road use.
 
#9 ·
I´d love to see more comments on this topic. I´m still on my original tires, since I´m at only 3000+ km, but it´s clear, that I need something more off-roady at some point. The stock tires are really just good for street and I think I am missing out on a lot of the bikes potential. Internet is full of suggestions for ADV bikes, but it seem that they all refer to "big bikes". It really hard to find something more specialized on the mini-advs.
E-07, TKC-80/70, SCHINKO 705...
Especially since where I live (southern Chile) access to special tires is very restricted, I´m kinda confused on the availability on these tires for the X-300. Most of them seem not to be available for the front of the X-300, or they are only for tubeless tires.? Any thoughtsor experiences on that matter?
 
#19 ·
Wore out my KENDA K270 on rear and installed a Shinko 244. Both are about the same on gravel roads but K270 is really squirrelly in corners on pavement when pushing the speed. I will never use a K270 again. Still have the 244 on the front and over 5200 miles. Getting close to need replacement. When I push the front at speed on pavement, I did notice the inside part of each knob with little light cracks when running at 32lbs. At 28lbs was none of it but the knobs were wearing on angles. the 32lbs fixed that and now wearing straight. I due push the x300 with a fair amount of speed on pavement and it handles nicely with the 244s.
 
#20 ·
I ran Kenda K270 tires on my KLR650 for quite a few miles, and my ONLY complaint was how squirrelly they were when crossing bridges that had been made to allow stuff to fall thru them (probably 1" x 1" squares), and mostly I found those on the Alaska Hwy. Pretty scary!
 
#30 ·
My VX300 sees mostly Jeep roads and technical trails here in Maine. The terrain includes hard pack with loose rocks, mud, and boulder strewn trails. I mounted a Shinko E-804 up front and a MotoZ Tractionator Desert H/T in the rear, and I'm pleased with the performance. The front tire gives me the confidence to pick my lines as I see fit, whether it's crossing muddy ruts, drifting on loose surfaces, or picking my way through baseball sized rocks. I find the rear tire very predictable on all terrain. If I spool the engine up over 8k RPM's, inducing some rear wheel steer is easy and controllable. It cleans mud well. It howls a bit on hard surfaces and pavements. I don't push hard on the road, so I don't know what the limits are. Right now, the biggest limitation is the suspension. It pales in comparison to my KTM 520EXC, but I accept that and (mostly) ride accordingly. Today, my enthusiasm got the better of me, and I got some air at 60+ MPH off a dropoff on a dirt road I know well. As I expected, II used up all the suspension, but did not touch the skid plate on the ground. Bob B. 65 and still doing stoopid stuff.
 

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