Section width of CT?

I received my CT today. The wheel is still at the chrome shop. So, out of curiosity I slide the CT into place with out it mounted to any wheel and it absolutly rubs. Which leads me to the question, How much might I expect the section width of the tire to change when mounted to wheel? I am hoping that the section width of the tire will be significantly narrower when mounted to the wheel, or I will need to try a different size tire, or modify the swing arm. The section width of the CT when mounted to a 6.5" width rim is 8.1". This same CT mounted to a 4.5" or 5.5" rim width will cause a narrowing change in the section width of the tire? correct? I sure hope so! Any insight on this will be greatly appreciated.

The question is what bike are you mounting it on, and what tire ( brand, style and size) are you mounting? I have not heard of a 205 tire rubbing on a 1300, except for the exhaust bolts need to be turned around.

Jerry

You are going to have to measure then take off 1/3 inch for every inch smaller the rim is to the recommended rim size ... if rec. rim size is 5" and he has a 4" rim then he sub tracts 1/3 " .
let's say he has a 4.5 rim and the tire was for a 6.5 rim then he can take off .66 of an inch or 2/3".
depending on tire height that will be close but might work.

horseman8m wrote:Uncle Jerry this is a Kawasaki , he is going to have to measure then take off 1/3 inch for every inch smaller the rim is to the recommended rim size ... if rec. rim size is 5" and he has a 4" rim then he sub tracts 1/3 " .
let's say he has a 4.5 rim and the tire was for a 6.5 rim then he can take off .66 of an inch or 2/3".
depending on tire height that will be close but might work.

Ok, I think I got this. The tire is a 205/50/17 it has a section width of 8.1" when mounted to a 6.5" width rim. So with what your saying in mind, when I mount the 205/50/17 to a 4.5" width rim, the tire should have a section width of about 7.44". Or if the tire is mounted to a 5.5" width rim the section width will be about 7.77". If this is correct, I think that the 205/50/17 will fit my Meanstreak. Thank you for the information.

Hi there 12 volts. When I got my ct I took a c-clamp and sqeezed the bead area down to 5.5 inches, which is the rim width on the meanstreaks. My tire was still a little over 8 inches wide. That is why I had to work my swingarm over. If the tire is around 8.5 inches as it sits unmounted, it will more than likely rub. If you need any information to get you going I can help. I just mounted a 205 ct on my meanstreak this spring.

2wheeladdict wrote:Hi there 12 volts. When I got my ct I took a c-clamp and sqeezed the bead area down to 5.5 inches, which is the rim width on the meanstreaks. My tire was still a little over 8 inches wide. That is why I had to work my swingarm over. If the tire is around 8.5 inches as it sits unmounted, it will more than likely rub. If you need any information to get you going I can help. I just mounted a 205 ct on my meanstreak this spring.

Thank you 2wheeladdict , you have only 5 posts and you are helping others .
This is what we like to do is help when we can.
Horse

I'm willing to help with whatever I can. I had to figure my ct out on my own, and nobody should have to fight with a tire like I did. My wife kept telling me to forget about the tire and buy a new mt. I was determined to make it work, and all that trouble I went through finally paid off.

2wheeladdict wrote:Hi there 12 volts. When I got my ct I took a c-clamp and sqeezed the bead area down to 5.5 inches, which is the rim width on the meanstreaks. My tire was still a little over 8 inches wide. That is why I had to work my swingarm over. If the tire is around 8.5 inches as it sits unmounted, it will more than likely rub. If you need any information to get you going I can help. I just mounted a 205 ct on my meanstreak this spring.

Thank you for the info 2wheeladdict. I was looking at one of your other post, about the CT that you choose to use. A Yokohama S-Drive 205/50/17, if I remeber correctly. I also looked up the specs for that tire and it is one of the widest section width tires in this size(I really like the Yokohama's tread pattern). I believe that it has a section width of 8.5" when mounted to a 6.5" width rim, I can understand why you would have had to modify your swing-arm to keep that tire from rubbing. The main reason that I choose the BF Goodrich G-force Sport 205/50/17 was because it had the smallest section width of 8.1" when mounted to the recommended rim width of 6.5", with the hope that it would just barely fit, with no mods to the swing-arm. I will know for sure after I get the CT mounted. So long as, the information in one of the above posts is accurate, in that for every inch of rim width below the recommended rim width for that tire, I can subtract .33" (1/3") from the section width of that tire. Which should give me approx. 7.77" section width when mounted to a 5.5" width rim. If that holds true, then it should fit with no mods to swing-arm. So long as the section width does not exceed 7.9"(which is what the MT 200/50/17 was). I will be riding on the DarkSide soon! P.S.If it does come down to modding the swing-arm, that is what I will do.

If I may jump into the discussion...I have a 2000, Kawasaki Drifter 1500, with a stock MT of 150/80-16, I "was" wanting to put a Bridgestone G019 195/55/16 on the stock rim, 3.5". However, the CT unmounted is 8.0"wide, and the clearence in between the swingarms is 7.25", un-ground. Now I don't really mind grinding a few thousands off, but can anyone tell me if this is going to fit?