16.5" vs. 17" tires

Can anyone give a wee synopsis of the development of 16.5" vs. 17"
tires?

When did 16.5 start to gain favor and why? Were they tried and
abandoned in the past?

Where they a development from GP or Superbike?

All the remarks about 16.5" tires during the Malaysia tests have got
me curious.

TIA.

 

Can anyone give a wee synopsis of the development of 16.5" vs. 17"

A 16.5" tire has the same rolling distance (circumference) as a 17". To
accomplish this the sidewall of the tire is taller. This causes not only a
different contact patch on the ground, it affects the suspension at lean
angle. At full lean the forks are approaching parallel with the road, while
not terribly useful, the taller sidewall of the 16.5" tire can compensate
and make the bike more compliant over small bumps in addition to providing a
larger contact patch while leaned over. The drawbacks being that the bikes
weren't necessarily designed with the rotational dynamics of a smaller
diameter wheel and that tire development isn't at the same point as for 17"
wheels.

--Tim