250sx tires

[ADOG1207]

hey i was readin a fellows post about putting bear claws on his sx. they look great and im plannin on doing the same. ill go with factory size rears, and the front tire is the tricky bit. he said he went with a 23x8x11. and an 11x7 rim with 2+5 offset. couple questions. He mentioned wheel spacers to make the tire center properly. two 1" spacers on the hub and then the rim ontop? that centered it properly? could you possibly go with 11x7 rim and a 4+3 offset to achieve the same balance? i tried pming the guy but his inbox is full or something of the sort. I tried posting on the forum and the site wouldnt let me. ive learnt this is because i havent made any posts previously in this newbie forum, despite spending a ton of hours on the site reading and soakin up info.

SO, im looking to see if anyone else has done this swap, if a 23" front tire would lift the front end enough (i find that im leaning forward alot on my trike) or if a 24" tire would be better. But mainly the centering issue. what rim would work best to keep the tire centered? any help would be great!

[whyzee]

Hopefully someone can help you out.

[Flyingw]

The Bear Claw is a bad choice for the front. Its way too wide and will rub the inside of the lower fork tubes. This will eventually wear a hole in the fork tube. I have see this many times with tires too wide for the SX. I tried to put a Mudlite on the front and it was even too wide. Duro Desert tires, AMS Fox AT is what I have on two of my SXs and they fit well. There are several tires that fit the SX front end but always do your homework first. I tried putting Bear Claws on one of my SXs but I could not get the sidewalls to stretch over the rim. I bought three tires intending on putting one on the front but when I held it between the forks, it was obvious it was way too wide. I ended up going with Mudlites on the rear and the AMS tire on the front. The other SX has Duro Desert tires all around. I like the tireds to match but sometimes that isnt possible with all the 22x11x8 choices.

[ADOG1207]

flyingw. a bearclaw anywhere near 11" would rub for sure. i was looking at putting an 8" wide tire on the front. are the tires youve put on the front stock size or on a stock rim? if not what changes did you have to make to make the tire balance?

[Flyingw]

Yes, the tires and rims I have are all stock. So if you put an 8" rim with spacers on the hub then that does allow you to have some flexiability with the tire you choose so just be mindfull of the overall width of the tire and have an allowance for sidewall flexing.

[ADOG1207]

i find my bike is a little low in the front. im debating puttinig a 23 or even a 24 " tire in the front. anyone else feel l like your leaning forward on a 250sx? im not sure how big to go. thinkin on it now the shocks might be a little bagged out too. but as of now im humpin the gas tank and would rather be sittin on my seat a little more.