Conti tkc80 tires on R100GS?
 

Hello. Lots of people seem to rave about this tire and i plan to buy a set when i reach Cali. My question is will they fit my R100GS; is there enough swing-arm clearence for a 130-80 17? I'd hate to find out the hard way http://www.horizonsunlimited.com/ubb/wink.gif
Thanx in advance.

hi ron
yep no problem with tkc's got them fitted to mine

have fun
nobby

Thanx Nobby1 Nice to here from you again.

TKC80 on R100GS needs tubes!
 

I've just switched to TKC80 from Tourance. Great grip on and off road. I can now ride in mud with confidence. However, after a week in the garage they had completely deflated.

I checked the tyre fitment guide on the Continental web site (the global site not the UK site). I was surprised to find that it states "please fit inner tube". The tyre fitment and pressure guides include recommended tube sizes.

And yet on the side of the tyres it clearly reads 'tubeless'.

Is this something to do with the Akront spoked rims?

I'm happy to fit tubes, having run an F650 with tubes in Tourance tubeless tyres. But it would be nice if they could state 'tubeless' on the tyres.

What bike is this on? I have TKCs fitted on my R100GS with the standard BMW tubeless rims without tubes and they are fine.

hi Ron

I am running tkcs on my r100gspd outfit, however i had to trim some side knobbles to make it clear the swingarm.


Thay work very well on everything bar real claggy mud and last well.

I run them tubeless and have had no probs with them on standed rims.

I gave them some abuse at the 8th northern mini meet see pics here
. http://www.horizonsunlimited.com/hubb/hu-travellers-meetings-uk/8th-northern-mini-meet-39987-6
3 r100gs went on the ride out and all had tkcs fitted

cheers
Iain

I'm running them on my 1995 R100GS, and they work great!

Rear is 130/80-17.

TKC 80 is a low-profile tire 130/80-17" less they have a new product.
Is the PD monolever to have low or high tires?
If it is to have 90 hight the speedo will show much higher speed than actual speed...

Should fit on monolever. Will not fit on /7 swing with dual shocks.

/7 swing with dual shocks had a maximum allowance of about 127mm width of the tire. There is a spacer from BMW shifting the rearwheel about 5mm to the left allowing for up to about 130mm max width. Trelleborg Army Special was possible to mount on the monolevers, whilst Winter Friction was too wide (data from 1995:ish).

Note: tire width vary greatly between manufacturers.

The manufaturers do have a list in which they specify the dimentions of their tires mounted on different rims; ask to see that list - but be prepared that the tyre might still not fit or leave more space than necessary to the swingarm.

Check the valve. Not so much the valve core but the body that bolts through the rim. The rubber seal gets hard and perished, letting the air out.
It cured mine. Buy new ones that bend 90 degrees to ease your life.

Sometimes the TKC 130/80 can rub the swing arm (paralever). It only requires every other tread block trimming by a mm or 2 OR fit a 3mm spacer like mine has.

John

I had exactly the same issue with metzler karoos on a 100GS. There was a very slight airleak around the rim. I put some tyreweld in and it stopped leaking. When the tyre was being replaced there was no sign of any tyreweld left in the tyre. No subsequent tyre has had any problem on the rim. My best guess is that, that particular tyre wasn't a perfect fit for the rim.
I would not recommend using a tube in there unless it is an absolute emergency, they heat up too much and that can be problematic. Try tyreweld or some such product.

Depending on the journey I sometimes fit the TKC in front and the Tourance on the rear wheel. On dry gravel the Tourance isn't too bad and lasts much longer than the TKC.

Another point to extend the life cycle of the front tyre is to turn around the TKC, because at about 10k kms the knobbies tend to form a saw-tooth pattern. Such wise the tyre lasts about 20k kms :cool4:

I have just fitted these on my r80gs and like Patta trimmed about 3mm off the very edge of every alternate block on the paralever side to give plenty clearance of the spring. I bought a pair of the innertube only version of the tyre but they do a tubeless version which has a different carcass construction and rim seal. (Maybe why people are having problems with loosing air etc) - its pretty dodgy using the tubed ones without a tube they can fail and come off the rim far easier. (Told all this by the tyre fitter as I wanted to run them tubeless also). I had been using Mitas e-08s which gave excellent feel on the road with good grip in cold, wet and dry and huge mileages /wear ratio they were ok on Gravel but not so great when the ground was soft. The TKC are much more vague on the road they are fine but move about a lot more so dont feel as secure and dont roll over into bends as comfortably slowing up the feel of the bike. But yesterday i covered several miles of green lanes and some muddy wet sections the tkc were excellent and made riding gravel tracks, slippy or loose surfaces much easier bye far over the Mitas. I think once used to the feel of the TKCs they will be just as good on the road its just a matter of getting used to them.