off-road tires for f650 gs
 

hello everybody

does anybody have some experience with knobblies / off-road tires for the f650 gs? which model would you suggest? I would like to buy the Metzeler Karoo but apparently it is not available for the f650 gs...
:helpsmilie:

thanks everybody!

Have you looked at Continental TKC 80?

thanks - not really! do you have any experience with them?

Yes, but on a 1150GS. They were fine, preferred them over the Karoos which I found noisy on tarmac and wore out pretty quick (was doing a lot of gravel roads).

All depends where you are going/terrain etc, LOTS of threads here about that if you have the time..!

Hi,

IMO, after just under 200 000km on three different F650 GS Dakars the best knobbly tyre for the back is a Kenda K270 and on the front I always go with the TKC80. In Lesotho there are long stretches of gravel roads with quite large and sharp rocks sticking out of the road surface and I've never had any trouble with either. No sidewall cuts either.

The Kenda is good on any surface (gravel, grass, mud and sand, even on tar) and outlasts any other brand I've tried. With loaded panniers the bike does tend to weave a bit on tar for the first few hundred kms of its life (around 115km/h). Even so, I preferred to pay for the extra weight of a spare one on the flight from SA to the Netherlands before riding from Amsterdam to Cape Town last year because I would not have had time to look for one over there. And there's just not any other tyre I would use. Another advantage is that it's real easy to take off if you have to fix a puncture.

BTW, the same Kenda also fits the F800GS and even at speeds over 120km/h on tarmac I got over 12000km out of it. i would not take it to a track day though, but then, track's not really my thing :biggrin3:

Have fun!
Kobus
One Ball One Continent page on facebook

I only use knobbies on my Dakar. Always picks the most aggressive tyre for the most aggressive terrain that I'll encounter. Even when I ride 60-70% on the road. So fare always D606. Get about 8000km out of them.

Hello Heike

Conti TKC 80
expensive, good on tarmac and gravel, be careful when it`s wet, wears out pretty fast

Heidenau K 60
long distance tyre, cheap, good on tarmac and gravel, no sand or mud

Pirelli MT 21
real knobbie, cheap, tarmac OK, pretty good on gravel / sand

Michelin T 63
real knobbie, cheap, pretty good on tarmac and gravel / sand

I heard good things about the Kenda K270

the Michelin Desert is the tyre for offroad travelling (ask Colebatch aka Walter), but the most expensive one ....

Have fun
Thomas

wow - thanks for this comprehensive overview! it really helps!