Street Tires for the Hawk 250cc
 

Hello,

I am new to the world of Motorcycle Tires. I love my Hawk, have had it since September and have put over 250 miles around town on it.

My question is this:

I will rarely ever ride my bike off-road. That being said, these tires are way too aggressive for mostly on-road riding.

The front tire size is: 80/100-21
The rear tire size is: 110/100-18.

I would like to switch to a street tire, but using the factory tire size, I cannot find a tire that is not an aggressive tire such as what is from factory.

I could use any help anyone can give. I have tried to do research on the matter, but I am not sure what conversions I need to do to get the correct tires that are about the same size as what are already on.

Thank you for any assistance!

Here is the code for deciphering metric tire sizes. The first number is the width of the tire in millimeters. The second number is the aspect ratio of the tire, or the height of the tire represented as a percentage of the tire's width. The final number is the rim size.

For example, here are the actual measurements of a size 80/100-21 tire.

The tire is 80 mm, or 3.15 inches wide.
The tire is 100 percent as tall as it is wide. Therefore, the tire is 80 mm, or 3.15 inches tall.
The tire is manufactured to fit a 21-inch rim.

An equivalent tire with imperial measurements would be size 3.00-21. Therefore, you could probably also mount a tire of size 2.75-21. ;)

For another example, here are the actual measurements of a size 110/100-18 tire.

The tire is 110 mm, or 4.33 inches wide.
The tire is 100 percent as tall as it is wide. Therefore, the tire is 110 mm, or 4.33 inches tall.
The tire is manufactured to fit an 18-inch rim.

An equivalent tire with imperial measurements would be size 4.60-18.

I hope this helps. If you have any further questions, don't hesitate to ask. :) What are the rim sizes for your bike? Please post a photograph of your current tires, so we can better help you to choose new tires. :)

There are quite a few tires that are for dual sport/adventure that are maybe half way between street and knobies. They would be perfect for you. Rim sizes would include yours.

Thank you so much for your help!

I will try to get pics and post them today or tomorrow.

For your same reason, I mounted these on my Q Link and like heck if I can remember what brand they are at the moment. I went a little wider on the rear than stock on purpose, strictly because I liked the look. I can tell you though, they are excellent! Great for street riding, canyon twisties and handle all the dirt roads I go on without a hitch. They've even handled wet pavement very well. As I recall, they were quite reasonable also. Make sure you replace the stock tubes with the thick ones.
Edit: I believe they're the Kenda Dual Sports.

Kenda and Shinko manufacture a wide variety of excellent, yet inexpensive tires. :)

Here is the picture of my current setup.

Thanks Spud and 2LZ for all your help!

Not to hijack the thread but here's a side note: I see in the pic your rear disk and master cylinder. MAKE SURE THERE'S GOOD SLOP IN THE LINKAGE AT THE MASTER CYLINDER TO PEDAL! While giving my X-Moto the once over, I adjusted 90% of the slop out of the linkage. While out trail riding, the brake fluid and brake components heated as it normally does and clamped the rear brake down. I had no tools and had to sit there until the brake unlocked. Just a heads up.....
Back to the normally scheduled thread topic.

Thank you 2LZ. I will double-check that!

I had the same thing on a similar bike. Locked the rear wheel on the road...

In my case was too much fluid in the master cylinder. I'd check that too.

Pretty bike 2LZ.

Looks good in orange :-)

Im with this guy!!! i would like a set of mostly street tires as well.
can really find anything that size online..

Here are two choices in Kenda Tires.

Kenda K761

http://powersports.kendatire.com/media/1189/k761.jpg

Rear Tire: 120/80-18
Front Tire: 90/90-21

Kenda K270

http://powersports.kendatire.com/media/1649/k270.jpg

Rear Tire: 4.60-18
Front Tire: 3.00-21

Here are two choices in Shinko tires.

Shinko 244

https://images.rockymountainatvmc.co...ua_spo-rea.jpg

Rear Tire: 4.60-18
Front Tire: 3.00-21

Shinko 700

http://shinkotireusa.s3.amazonaws.co...700-series.jpg

Rear Tire: 4.60-18
Front Tire: 3.00-21

Thanks Spud! It's the K761's are what I have on my Q. They've been really good tires so far.

Wonderful!

Couldn't ask for better help. Thank you Spud

You're welcome. :) Please let us know which tire you choose, and how well it works for you. ;)

i would also throw the shinko 705s into the mix as an option... no direct cross sizes, but you could run the 90/90-21 up front and the 120/80-18 out back i would think with no issues... i have a 130/80 rear on my shineray and theres no rubs, but its also a street tire for a 16" rim... just food for thought....

http://www.shinkotireusa.com/tire/705-series

http://shinkotireusa.s3.amazonaws.co...705-series.jpg

Thanks for mentioning the Shinko 705 tires, BB. :) When I checked the Shinko website, I forgot to scroll down, and I missed the rear tire sizes. ;) I think the tire sizes you recommended are great.

Rear Tire: 120/80-18
Front Tire: 90/90-21

I agree on the Shinko 705's. Those are really nice looking tires for the price!

I will probably pull the trigger on those within the next few months if my funds don't dry up.....

Will post pics after installation.

Thanks everyone!

X2. I have recently bought and installed the Kenda k761 on my Hawk as well. Price was good and performance good as well. Although when delivered one sticker on each tire said tubless and other tube type, they install n run just fine. Loose dirt and wet grass is like riding on a slick but great for road riding.

If your interested. Here's a link to the tires I bought. Very cheap and the delivery was unexpectedly fast. Came before tracking said they were supposed to.

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00...ilpage_o02_s00
Nevermind the different looking tread pattern. Idk why they used this pic but the tires are the same tread pattern. I was concerned when i ordered but all was good on delivery.

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00...ilpage_o03_s00
This one is 110/80 r18. If I had to do it over it would've got the 120/80 r18. The 110 is about as wide as the stock front knobby.

And I used stock rear tube and bought a new 90/90 21 front tube. Don't know if I had to but didn't wanna not buy it to find out I should of. Hope this helps.

Forgot to mention. If you want strictly street tires, there's another resident here(Sicario) , that installed strictly street tires, and I must say his bike does look good. Hope you don't mind the mention Sicario. Lol. Here's a link to the post with his pics..http://www.chinariders.net/showthread.php?t=15398

The rears are Duro HF918.
The fronts are Duro HF296A

So an update...

I purchased the Shinko 705's, and WOW!

They give the Hawk 250 a totally new feel on the road. Did a quick ride, and even was surprised how stable they were on gravel.

I would recommend them as of now. Will post updates on how they hold up over time.

Sizes I went with:

Front Tire: 90/90-21
Front Tube: 2.75-3.00x21

Rear Tire: 120/80-18
Rear Tube: 4.00-4.50x18

Thanks for posting the update. :) Shinko makes good tires, and they look great on your Hawk. :tup:

I just got the shinko 705's.
I did a 90/90-21 on the front and 120/80-18 on the rear. 109$ shipped from motorcycle superstore through Amazon. Tubes were around another 30$. I haven't installed them yet, but they should be good.

I also had my rear brake lock up after adjusting the slop out. I thought my screw had just backed out though.

(Sorry to dig up something old, but this thread is great and always relevant)

Those 705's look great on the Hawk. Are they still working out ok? Have you noticed any highway speed or gas mileage improvement?

Will stock tubes work?

Yes

I blew a tube out in my rear tire this weekend and think I'll just throw on new rubber all the way around.

Anyone recommend one brand of tubes over another?

I would imagine this set is perfectly fine to replace my rear tube:
MMG SET OF TWO: Motorcycle Inner Tube 4.10/4.60-18
..I would rather find something that is a bit more 'heavy duty' for the rear though

Maybe this is a better option for the rear?:
MSR Racing Heavy Duty Tube - 80/100-21/

And this set for the front:
Outlaw Racing Motorcycle Heavy Duty Inner Tube 2.5mm Thick 2.75/3.00-21” Front

I am planning to run with the Shinko 700's for front and rear tire.

I agree that the standard tubes are too light. You should have no problem finding 4.00 X18 heavy duty tubes. Anybody who sells competition tires will have heavy duty tubes...ARH

i think the heavy duty ones are 4 mm

Depends a bit on the brand, but usually. Some heavy duty tubes are 4mm

Pls pic the f***ed tube. I want to find out who's the maker by official trademark record http://wsjs.saic.gov.cn/

Hi,

I note the Kenda K761s are slightly wider than the originals (10mm or slightly over 1/3 of an inch) but it seems they are working fine out there with the Hawk 250s?

-Kenda Back: 120/80-18
-Original Back: 110/100-18
-Kenda Front: 90/90-21
-Original Front: 80/100-21

The clearance up front (shocks) and back (chain) seems so tight as it is. Are there success stories out there with the K761?

I have the 705s on my bike and love them. they handle SO much better on the street.

http://chinariders.net/showthread.php?t=21276

Yep the 705's are great for bikes that mainly see the road.

If you never plan on leaving pavement at all, then you can go one step better and put actual road tires on your bike.

As far as size and fitment. 120/80-18 and 90/90-21 are the exact sizes I ran on my 705's and I had no fitment issues at all. Plenty of room. If you want to stay true to the rear tire diameter, then a 120/90-18 is almost the same exact diameter as a 110/100-18. 120/80-18 works just fine, but the decrease in diameter is effectively the same as going up 1 or 2 teeth on the rear sprocket, so you may need to adjust for the size difference.