B12 Experts - Tyres + Shims

Bike is a K1 B12.

The manual says to check the valve clearences on my B12 every 7500
miles. On other equally low-tech bikes In the past I've always left the
clearences a bit without problems. (Usually doing them after about
double the recommended milage). Is every 15k likely to be often enough
on the B12? (It doesn't matter much - easy do do which is one of the
reasons I've bought the bike.)

Being lock nut adjustment will they tend to do wider, rather than
narrower? (thus 'failing safe'?)

Also It's on it's OE tyres and I'm not far off needing new tyres.
Unsurprisingly, I want bucket loads of wear and loads of grip. What
choices are there and which is best? (I'd be prepared to compromise a
_bit_ on grip in wet etc in exchange for longer tyre life.)

 

I'd certainly carry out the first check at the recommended
mileage(ish).

I'd imagine that they would tighten up whatever the form of
adjustment. Valve to seat wear/bedding in, innit.

There is only one, mate. Avon Azaro AV45/46. That's the AV45 for the
front, AV46 for the rear. The deepest tread pattern this side of a
motocross tyre, superb grip in the dry, far better than you'd expect
in the wet. I have 'em on my RF900 and I never had a moment's doubt
once they were scrubbed in. The rear did spin up to start with, but
140bhp rampaging through brand new tyres on a concrete road in the
*pissing* rain and a couple of inches standing water isn't a happy
combination.

The rear tyre has a 1mm deep 'tell-tale' groove across the tread.
Puncture the tyre while this is still visible (c. 1000 miles expected)
and they'll replace it for the cost of fitting a new one. I've put
3,500 on the RF rear and that groove is still visible - and there's
6mm of tread to start on yet!

Seriously - the best combination of grip and longevity I've ever used.
Some people don't get on with them as perhaps due to the depth of
tread and the angle it goes across the tyre, there's a shimmy at low
speeds. Walking pace riding can lead to the back end wiggling from
side to side a bit which can be unsettling. I like it ;-)

Others have found them light on grip - but that is invariably with
lighter bikes - they suit the heavy beasts better, it seems. In a
direct comparison, they hammer the Bridgestone 020 into a cocked hat
for grip (especially in the wet) and tyre life too. Bargain.

I currently have 020s on my Bandit and will repalce them with Avons
when they are shagged. No question.


http://www.fwr.co.uk/avont.htm refers - scroll down a bit.
Alternatively: http://www.fwr.co.uk/packof3new.htm will give you a
front and two rears for £189 delivered to you, then have 'em fitted at
your local place. Another bargain.

 

Pip wrote:

[snip]

Cracking. That's exactly what I wanted to know. Thanks muchly for
taking the time to give so much info.

 

<double whimper>

P.

 

<turns screw>

D'ye know, I thought of you and what you posted about the cost of your
tyres ... that's why I /had/ to find the packet of three deal ;-)

 

NP. It's good to help.

 

... that **** down a flight of stairs.[/QUOTE]

Just done a quick google to try and work out where the **** that came
from. Sir clearly doesn't like mother jokes, and perhaps broods on
perceived slights just a little too long!

 

Cool, my first stalker.

 

I agree and just put a second set on my B12

 

Hog scribbled on the back of a napkin:

Learn to snip, newbie

 

I usually take it to my (more) tame tyre fitter. Problem is my tax disk
has fecked off into the ether, so I didn't want to ride to south london
with no mot and a tax disk that expired last august :/

So I bent over and greased up ...

P.

 

Go **** yourself, ****.[/QUOTE]

The break from work is doing you good then. Not that I don't agree
with you 100%.

 

Sensitive little souls aren't you! On the one hand it's quite a
compliment to the power of newsgroups that weeks after any normal
person would have forgotten my comment you two are still fretting about
it. On the other hand, if I'd known it was going to cause you both such
distress for so long, I'd have had some pity and not put you through it.

 

I did, only left in the previous poster's comments

 

Absolutely. That's why I responded to the post in question the way I
did.

I think you're a ****, you think I'm a ****. I don't use your family
for cheap shots and you don't use mine.

 

You can both have my family to take cheap shots at. There, that's
settled.

 

<Email to US Air Force>

Hey guys - I've a cunning wheeze how you can improve your
munitions-on-target percentage

</ETUSAF>

Phil