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[Winkie]

No rain today. Nice dry roads. Got kitted up, trusty Bullet fired first kick and off for a therapeutic ride. Reached the end of my road and felt a definite waggle on the bars as the back tyre happily let itself down. No spare tube in the garage so gave up on a ride.
I had forgotten how hard a Skidmaster tyre becomes after a few years use - absolutely rock solid! I finally won the battle but am covered in cuts and bruises so a new tyre is on the way.
Whilst I am at it I am thinking of replacing the snail cam chain adjusters with our host's screw adjusters. Does anyone have any experience of these?

[Pale Rider]

Hi winkie. Did you warm the tyre up before attempting to remove it. In my experience it makes life a lot easier if the rubber is warm. My personal experience of the snail cams is they work fine.

[Leon Novello]

My snail cam adjusters have a centre punch mark in red on them; they are accurate as far as I can see. I have used the old- string trick and they match.

[Norm]

Clamp the snail cams together in a vice and with a small rat tail file, file each notch so it is deeper and the points are more pronounced so you can easily count them around from the center punch marks. Every year or so I do a check that they are still ok for alignment

[Winkie]

Thanks, guys - I think I will stick with the snail cams.

I did remove the tyre in a warm room - much to my wife's disapproval - and I have no doubt that it had, with age, hardened considerably despite having loads of tread left. I can usually get tyres off and on relatively easily, but this one almost defeated me. I think that the lesson here is to replace tyres a bit more regularly than some of us do; they deteriorate with age even though they look OK. I should have been forewarned as the rear tyre on my Bullet clearly did not have the same level of grip as a similar, but considerably newer, one on my rigid Matchless, so must have become harder with age.

I am going to give Mitas a go. Certainly cheap and I have read favourably reports about them. I doubt if this will last as long - but that is probably a good thing as I will be forced to replace it before it hardens!

I have just had a look at the guilty tyre - no cracks of apparent damage inside but it is all that I can do to spread the beads apart slightly - it really has gone stiff and I shudder at the prospect of having to force it back over the rim. I think it must be older than I realise!

[Norm]

Winkie, tires out here have a date on them and they are supposed to be replaced once they are 6 years old regardless of the tread left

[apparently lucky eddie]

Winkiw, a word to the wise, I'm not sure why exactly but the Mitas tyres look very small and a little odd when fitted. I put one on the rear of my bullet and it looked much smaller than the K70 on the front wheel, in fact it looked like a bicycle tyre! And yes, it was the correct size. Also no amount of balancing and moving the tyre on the rim or changing pressures could stop a strange sideways rolling sensation so I removed it again within a hundred or so miles and went back to the K70 and a bike that went straight or round corners when I wanted it to. Things that are cheap are cheap for a reason, be it supermarket petrol, Iceland food or Mitas Tyres! Of course others here will say Mitas are brilliant, personally I would never go near another one.

[Winkie]

Thanks - that is interesting feedback about Mitas. I will ponder this for a few days, but must admit that I am now being drawn towards a K70 - it is certainly a safer option.

[grunda 12]

hi winkie i had k70,s the back tyre lasted about 3000 miles i personally prefer avon road riders at least i think they are called that i have picked them up cheap at various motorcycle shows although i think uncle allan sells them too they have a modern tread and stick to the road like shit to blanket ,i have used mr h,s adjusters and returned to snail cams i find them better!atb paul

[apparently lucky eddie]

Yup, have to agree Paul, K70's do wear quick due to the very soft compound. Remember back in the day when jappers used to go through TT100's in less than 1,000 miles? The common combo was K81/TT100 front and Avon road runner rear for better tyre mileage. The main thing to remember is hard compound = high mileage = poor roadholding. Avon skidmasters never wear out but you would n't want to push the cornering too hard so give the Roadrunner or Roadriders a go. Anything but Skidmasters or Mitas. Or the awful Contimentals I have on my Triumph!