Kenda Bearclaws for my 84 200es

[MN250R]

Hello, was looking to put on some more aggressive rear tires on my 1984 Big Red.
I have been reading posts on here about how popular bearclaws are. I also see people say GBC Gators or Possibly Swamp Witches?
Recommendations? Anyone of those tires to heavy and rob alot of horsepower?
The rear tires i have on now are 25x12x9. Rocky Mountain doesn't appear to have that size.
Anyone know where a cheap place to buy them at? I checked Ebay also


Thanks!

[fabiodriven]

You are correct in assuming heavier and more aggressive tires will rob horsepower, because they will. It depends on your terrain as far as which tire would be best. Here in New England, the OEM 2-ply tires or the closest thing you can find to them (Cheng Shin knobbies) are by far best. It is extremely rocky and rough where we ride and our tires are half of our suspension. A 4 or 6 ply tire is not going to have enough flex for us here to ride on comfortably. We all have rear suspension here too, but you do not. Therefore your tires are your entire suspension, not just half. If it's smooth enough where you ride that you can afford to lose the suspension 2 ply tires offer and you actually need more aggressive tires where you ride, then the meaty hard tires are for you. If you're getting them just because they look cool or something, they might bother your lower back depending on how the terrain is where you ride.

[fabiodriven]

This is what we run on our Big Reds, and the same thing in 22" version for SX's.

https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20181201/5db5acb34db346fb8f1bced0d3207bfd.jpg

[MN250R]

You are correct in assuming heavier and more aggressive tires will rob horsepower, because they will. It depends on your terrain as far as which tire would be best. Here in New England, the OEM 2-ply tires or the closest thing you can find to them (Cheng Shin knobbies) are by far best. It is extremely rocky and rough where we ride and our tires are half of our suspension. A 4 or 6 ply tire is not going to have enough flex for us here to ride on comfortably. We all have rear suspension here too, but you do not. Therefore your tires are your entire suspension, not just half. If it's smooth enough where you ride that you can afford to lose the suspension 2 ply tires offer and you actually need more aggressive tires where you ride, then the meaty hard tires are for you. If you're getting them just because they look cool or something, they might bother your lower back depending on how the terrain is where you ride.



Thx for the reply! That is good information to know. I currently have cheng shins on mine now and plan on keeping them. Looking for maybe a spare set if i ever go mudding. Here are a couple pics of it. My goal is to also add a ATC 200M fork setup for the front here very soon since my shocks are seized in the front. The last picture is what my Big red looked like when I bought it.

[ps2fixer]

Have personal expernce with a 250es running 25in highlifter outlaws (the old/first design which if I recall correctly is a 2 ply tire). Light enough and soft enough for a 3 wheeler, but super agressive for any mud/clay situations. Not ideal for sand, but does pretty well. Hard surfaces it's a bit of a ruff ride though. Small downside to the tires is the 12in rim size.

The knobbies do pretty well for general use, and 3 wheelers are light enough to push though stuff pretty easy anyway.

Also these rear tires on my 350x do pretty well overall. Haven't gotten into anything too nasty with them though, seem to do quite well in dirt/sand though. I took it down the drag strip a few times at trike fest and was wheeling most of the way down the track with my weight over the front tire. I can grab the name off them if you're interested in them, they are 22in on the 350x but maybe they have a 25in version. Also the tires are reversable for mud vs sand. If I recall correctly, the way they are installed in the pic is for mud (for clean out), and the opposite way is to act more like a scoop for sand.

https://i.gyazo.com/b3b3073715b2fc81ceacd4f647ee78a8.jpg

[fabiodriven]

Those are called Realtors.

[MN250R]

Those are called Realtors.

Nice 350x! Ya, my buddy has realtors on his banshee. Ill have to check those tires out also. Alot of good information here. thx for all the replies!

[ps2fixer]

No prob, yea that's my "pretty" machine that never is rode lol. I have to replace the timing chain on it and the carb floods over, have one that should be bolt on ready to go in the house, and the clutch has a bit of an issue. My rider 350x has the rear tires on it though and is ugly but no super major issues lol.

Added photos of the rider 350x when I first got it, I replaced the engine on it and the tires. Have a few more things to do like replace the bent fork and the front wheel bearing & steering stem bearings getting worn a bit. Seems like the last owner liked stainless steel. Air box lid and the scoops on the tank were stainless when I bought it lol. Have to love the bubble gum welds all over the exhaust/head. Was a pain to remove, had to destroy the head pipe to get it off the machine, have a DG overly loud exhaust on it now :-/.

[67Sport]

I have bearclaws on my sx. Theyre good tires for what they are meant for, but sure don't drift easily like most of the stock-type tires used on 3 wheelers. You notice the weight too.
I only use my sx for that kind of riding though, and I have been happy with them.
I ride my 350x when I want to drift, and it has less aggressive rear tires for sliding.https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20181202/2d0a8c2105b0b62e40641473bf0c614f.jpg

Sent from my SM-T560NU using Tapatalk

[redsox]

look into Goodyear 25/12/9's. I believe they are a 2-ply. They are still heavy and not near as forgiving as the Duro's or Chen Shengs. They are tall beasts though. A good 1.5-2 inches taller than the 25 inch Duro. They look great and really dig in. Although i wouldn't recommend them if youre bouncing around a lot on tht harttail. I dont know how old you are, but your back will catch up to you in the later years.

[MN250R]

I will check them out! Thanks for all the replies from everyone!

[Scootertrash]

I have Bearclaws on my 84 200S. Thay can be rough riding, but then again it is a hardtail. I run them with about 2 psi in them.

[86125m]

Just my 2 cents I have the cheng shin knobbies on the back of my 200m and my bike will go wherever my girlfriends families four wheelers with huge mud tires and four-wheel drive will and they get stuck but I do not.

[keister]

Thx for the reply! That is good information to know. I currently have cheng shins on mine now and plan on keeping them. Looking for maybe a spare set if i ever go mudding. Here are a couple pics of it. My goal is to also add a ATC 200M fork setup for the front here very soon since my shocks are seized in the front.

Nice trike, man! In my opinion, the tires you are currently running are the best tire choice for that trike. I wouldn't change a thing if I were you..... well, except the front forks, but that is a problem for every 200es.

[MN250R]

Thx again for everyone's input! I'm bnbjust gonna keep what I have on. As far as forks go, I'm in the process of adding a 200 front end.

[Scootertrash]

What's the scoop on that headlight?

Isn't it kinda hard to work on that while it's laying on it's side?

[MN250R]

Thanks! I think im just going to keep what i have on for tires :) I am however in the process of adding a 200 front end. I picked it up for 80.00. Just getting things tacked in place. Still have a couple more adjustments to make. Im making it so I can keep my original Big red headlight. First picture is the 83 ATC 200 I got for 80.00, then the parts after i sandblasted them etc. I was able to head over to the steel company by my house where i picked up scrap 1/4 metal for less than 2 bucks. During the process of taking the shocks apart, I found one shock boot filled with dead red ants inside lol. All in all, the forks worked perfectly still, and nothing was froze or seized up. I will add more pics as I go.

[ps2fixer]

What's the scoop on that headlight?

Isn't it kinda hard to work on that while it's laying on it's side?

That's one of the LED headlighst I'm working on stocking and making plug and play. It's 45W. Not sure if that's the standard style or blue angle eye style, but no doubt the same base LED light. More info on them in my thread and the second thread is an old write up on them.

http://www.3wheelerworld.com/showthread.php/187297-Which-LED-Headlight-style-should-I-stock-for-the-3ww-shop-200ES-E-etc-6x4in


http://www.3wheelerworld.com/showthread.php/173600-Guide-Upgrading-Stock-Headlamp-to-LED-on-ATC-200-ES


I have one on my 250ES and it's been a great light for me. Only issue is the plastic lens can scratch fairly easy. It's more or less a direct fit for 200E, 200ES, and 200M, haven't searched out the other machines yet. The 250ES it's the right size for, but requires a special adapter to bolt the light in.

[jb2wheels]

How do you cut your tabs from 1/4" stock? The look so nice. Mine never look that good.

[MN250R]

What's the scoop on that headlight?

Isn't it kinda hard to work on that while it's laying on it's side?

Sorry, i had the picture rotated the wrong way when i added it :)

[MN250R]

I got those from the steel company by my house. They came like that. They have a pile of scraps left over from the laser cutting they do. I just bring them home and fine tune them.

[ps2fixer]

I was going to guess water cutting or laser cutting, no way that was DIY at home unless you had some serious skills lol. Plasma cutter would do fairly well though if you have a stencil to follow or a CNC machine.

[MN250R]

I was going to guess water cutting or laser cutting, no way that was DIY at home unless you had some serious skills lol. Plasma cutter would do fairly well though if you have a stencil to follow or a CNC machine.


Ya, I have a cheaper plasma cutter to, no way would I get it that straight either, even if I had a couple beers to steady the hand lol. Exspecially the rounded part.

[redsox]

Looks good. I'm Doing a similar setup. What about the front rack?

[jb2wheels]

I was going to guess water cutting or laser cutting, no way that was DIY at home unless you had some serious skills lol. Plasma cutter would do fairly well though if you have a stencil to follow or a CNC machine.

I'm glad you said that - I was feeling like a true hack looking those pieces.

[350for350]

Another though for MN250R. If you really want to play in the mud, you could keep an extra pair of rims with the mud tires of your choice mounted on them. Just change them out for mud riding where you won't see the speeds or bumps of trail riding where you want the rear suspension.

[MN250R]

Ya, I might get an extra set for mudding. On a different note, the front end is almost finished with adding 200 forks. This is my first metal fabrication/ welding project.
Not the greatest welder lol.
I'm pretty happy with how it turned out .

[MN250R]

Pictures of the progress.
Front rack is the original 84 big red one.
I took alot of pictures of the progress.
I used valspar red oxide primer, and harvester red valspar with hardener. Same as I did the gas tank. Has a nice shine to it.

[ps2fixer]

I assume you're using a wire feed welder? The welds don't look too bad, but seems a bit on the cold side or too much wire speed. I'm by no means a professional welder, in fact I have very little time on a welder, but I grew up all my life with my dad welding things, and as he learned, I saw the effects. The welder should make a nice smooth buzzing sound when it's adjusted right.

Basically, the power setting is how much penetration (how deep the weld goes into the metal), and the wire speed is how fast you have to move along the weld. There's a balancing point speed vs power too.

I learned on an arc/stick welder, the moved to a small 220v mig/wire feed welder. I have yet to use it, but my dad bought a nice large/higher end mig welder by HTP. If you get serious about welding projects, I'd suggest that brand as the best bang for your buck and best quality for the price too. Can't remember what country they are based in, but I'm pretty sure it's in Europe. The one my dad bought even has "four wheel drive" as he calls it. Most consumer grade welders have a single drive wheel on the wire and it bird nests fairly easily, the HTP one has 4 wheels, all powered to push the wire and I've never seen it bird nest yet. Even when the wire gets welded to the tip, it's got enough push to break the weld and push wire though the clamped area, it doesn't weld smoothly though, the tip has to be cleaned to fix it.

If your welder is the gas-less type, then the welds are probably not going to get all that much better, I've never seen pretty welds from those machines with the flux wire, never used one either though.

Anyway, wasn't trying to bash your skills or anything, just trying to help/educate what I've learned. It looks like you've made great progress so far. I wish I had a garage to take on projects and get stuff done like this lol.

[MN250R]

Ya, I have to do more practicing :) I use a Hobart 210 MVP Mig welder with Argon gas. I got her mostly put back together tonight. I did a full rebuild on the shocks. Hopefully she holds together :)
Just got some polishing left to do

[ps2fixer]

A little FYI, generally pure CO2 is a LOT cheaper than "Gold Gas" aka Argon and works for nearly everything you'd ever need it for. If I recall correctly, Argon is needed for very heavy/thick welds and is over kill for anything thinner. Definitely research it out, or just try it some time, but my dad runs CO2 for just about everything he does. He mainly welds around 1/4in or smaller though. Also the local air gas store charges very little difference between tank sizes, so best bank for your buck is the biggest CO2 cylinder you can get. Smaller ones are nice for lugging around though.

I keep seeing that 350x sneaking in some of your photos =).

[MN250R]

Ya, I will have to keep practicing and do as one more research:) haha ya the 350x likes to photo bomb some shots.

[ps2fixer]

I should probably say, my comments on the welds are only minor adjustments, I've so soooooooo much worse welds before..... like this! My poor OEM 350x exhaust that I had to cut off (saved the muffler side, head pipe was shot anyway).