Tyre - 160/60/16 M59x
Michelin rear tyre

88 - 90 Ducati 750 Sport, 86 - 90 Ducati 750 Paso, 89 -90 Ducati 906 Paso

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Also, 130/60/16 A59x Front Tyre

Swingarm Modification Trial Completed Successfully

Updated: 11th Aug 2008

Due to not being able to get original tyres, I recently had my swingarm modified by an engineer - and it has been a big success.

Now my bike is equipped with a non-standard back tyre that cost about half the price of an original. The new tyre is a Bridgestone Battlax 150/80/16 BT45R. These tyres are common enough and easy to get.

Rear Tyre:
The new rear tyre is slightly skinnier, higher profile, and has a larger diameter. I've thrashed it around the hills and am pretty happy with it. Pick-up is not quite as good as before because of the higher gearing due to the larger diameter tyre, but top speed is now a bit faster.

Front Tyre:
The front tyre is now a Dunlop 130/70/16.
Enabling it to fit just required some washers under the bracket that holds the front mudguard on, in order to stop the tyre rubbing on the guard.

Handling:
My bike now seems to turn more smoothly than it did with the standard front tyre, but high speed cornering is not as stable in the rear end, especially when there is extra weight over the back wheel such as when carrying baggage for a weekend trip. However, a small downgrade in handling is preferable to not being able to ride the bike at all.

I originally planned to import a few Michelins, the correct tyre for the bike. However, after a few months of searching and having found some tyres, I was unable to get any of the suppliers to ship the tyres to New Zealand. That's why I decided to try modifying the swingarm.

Before attempting the modification I contacted Michelin directly to find out why it was so hard to get the correct tyres, and their official response was, "We stopped production of those tyres three or four years ago, and current stocks of the tyres are nearly exhausted worldwide. Sorry, we can't help you." — Not the best result!

So even if we could get a set of tyres each for our bikes, we would have the same problem again next year, or next time we need a set.

Therefore, it seemed that the smart thing to do was to convert the bike to accommodate an alternative tyre immediately rather than waste $700 - $800 on a set of original rubber even if I could get it.

See more pictures of the swingarm modification here.

If you have any questions or wish to contact me for any reason, email me at: m59x@enthusiast.co.nz