Introduction

I have recently joined the forum, and thought I would introduce myself I live in Brentwood uk.I have owned my mk3 since 91 it’s a roadster in John Player no10 colours.Fitted with a 4s cam and a flowed head,twin discs and six pot calipers, haven’t used it much in recent years due to other bikes.I need to fit a new set of tyres for the summer, currently running a 110/90 18 inch bt45 on the rear and a100/90 19 bt45 on the front, been happy with them, however when I spoke to my supplier he seemed to think that conti classic attacks were the way to go on the commando I wondered what your thoughts and experiences were. Thanks in advance.
Regards Rod

No experience with them (yet) but I understand they are radial construction, and that sounds very good to me...

Mr. Rick said:

No experience with them (yet) but I understand they are radial construction, and that sounds very good to me...

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Nope. BT45 are bias ply. Only problem I can see is that they would really work best with 2.50" rims, but they clearly work well enough on narrower ones.

I've run them on several other bikes (not Norton), and liked them.

Ken

Sorry, I was referring to the Conti Classic Attack, which the OP asked about.

My mistake. He is asking about the Conti, not the Bridgestones. As you said, they are radial construction. But, like the Bridgestones, they are also designed for a wider rim than the stock Commando 1.85". Conti says the front 19" tire is ok on 2.15, 2.50. and 2.75 rims, and the rear 18" tire on 2.15, 2.50. 2.75. and 3.00 rims. On the other hand, Rod might already have wider rims.

Ken

lcrken said:

My mistake. He is asking about the Conti, not the Bridgestones. As you said, they are radial construction. But, like the Bridgestones, they are also designed for a wider rim than the stock Commando 1.85". Conti says the front 19" tire is ok on 2.15, 2.50. and 2.75 rims, and the rear 18" tire on 2.15, 2.50. 2.75. and 3.00 rims. On the other hand, Rod might already have wider rims.

Ken

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I am enquiring about the conti, also I have a 3.00 rim on the back and a2.75 on the front, the other thing which is quite important is the height of the tyre, because the current bt45s work well with the centre stand.
regards Rod

You must know Commandos may be the most sensitive cycle there ever was to tire selection, rim fitment and wear. No one else seems to have such wide wheels for similar wider-shorter oval patch profile so you are the best to be the judge and get back to us. Total patch area remains about same. Modern cycle fork angles mainly done to compensate for wider patches, not sizes, so experiment for us if any distinct differences to report. Seriously if not got hot rod engine bigger rear feel like boots so the amount of throttle to nullify that sense implies rear should not last to 4000 miles. Easy to do in a month or 3. So if did not like em, would not be stuck with em long any way. On a hot rod if not constantly holding back ya should know to always keep spares on hand.

I collect others tire air pressure levels and the difference settled on between front and back. Would appreciate your range if known by now.

Rod Hill said:

I am enquiring about the conti, also I have a 3.00 rim on the back and a2.75 on the front, the other thing which is quite important is the height of the tyre, because the current bt45s work well with the centre stand.
regards Rod

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I think you might not find a lot of Commando owners who have tried the Contis, mostly because of the rim widths needed. But they look like they would work just fine with your combination. I haven't used them, but I have in the past run radial tires on a Commando with no issues, so I don't think that radial tires in themselves present a problem.

Ken

Conti brought out a rear 19in classic attack tyre in 2016 to go with the front 19in which has been available for some time - I have them fitted to my mk3 with 19in WM2 front and WM3 rear rims. They are not as tall as the TT100s I was running, so the the bike rocks more when on its centre stand. Grip and handling are excellent - no tramlining - because of the radial construction but you seem to be blown about more in strong winds. Trying to get the correct tyre pressures is WIP - there is a trade off between stability and traction - I currently run 30psi front and 34 rear without luggage - have done about 1k miles so far on them. A further benefit is that the handlebars used to wobble if you took your hands off while decelerating at about 40mph - this has now gone.

I would have thought that being radials the conti would’ve run a higher pressure, I am currently running 34 in the front and 36 in the back on my bt45s with no stability issues.
Regards Rod.

Thanks for your pressures - as I said it is WIP and my next move is to increase to nearer your values - generally tyre suppliers don't want to quote on pressures on old bikes, they just refer you to the original manual which is useless.