What tires

[John Luciano]

Saw a guy yesterday with a new Harley trike. I noticed he had the stock tire on it. I didn't know what to tell him was the right front tire to use. We with the Honda put on a rear tire.
# 2 what tires should I get for the rear of my Goldwing trike . I need new tires . Do i get Radials or bias ply?

[Hawkeye]

John -

We run the stock Harley front tire on all of our Harley trikes. They work fine and wear well. I change out my front tire every other year "just because" and they show minimal wear. My trikes aren't garage queens, either. Average around 25,000 miles a year.

Ran the Pilot Activ rear on the front of my Goldwing/MotorTrike back when I had it.

As far as rear tires go, I've never heard anything one way or the other regarding bias vs. radial. FWIW - all three of the Harley trikes in our garage (Champion and two Lehman's) have radial rear tires. Don't have the Goldwing any longer so can't say what was there. If you're happy with how what you have has performed I'd say "don't fix it if it ain't broke" and stick with the type you have now.

[Trikerjim]

I can't say for the front yet, still have the E3 that came on it. Has BFG T/A radials on the rear...

[Glennhog]

I've built a number of trikes,over the years, and I've found that Dunlop Speedmaster Mk3's to be the ultimate front tyre for any kind of trike that uses a stock bike front wheel. The advantage with them is that they are a square-section tyre, developed for use on sidecar outfits, so they wear and grip with more surety than standard bike tyres. I don't know if you can get them in the states, but I'm sure there must be something similar.
Obviously, the whole front-tyre grip thing comes down to having the correct rake on the front-end, so as to facilitate grip over the whole of the swing of the bars. This can be arranged by ensuring that, with a standard tyre, the tread rolls smoothly from edge to edge, when you turn the bars. Do this and you'll have a great handling trike!