What is the most comfortable tire?

[just gone]

OK, I know I'm not answering the question, but rather addressing the problem.

I doubt any tire(s) is going to feel significantly better than any other unless it is seriously under inflated. So, getting back to your back,
you at least need a back brace (I use this one) and perhaps one of these as well for your multi-state adventure next year. Even though you have Russel seat you may need an Airhawk R as well to
absorb some bumps from your dirt bike abused back.

OH, and put more air in your tires or your wallet is going to hurt more than your back when you have to replace tires multiple times during next years trip.

..and yes welcome to the forum Kevin!

[VirginiaJim]

those are tire pictures

 

[just gone]

PS: (By the way, nice girlie pictures!)

Ted, you noticed the girls amongst all them tires?
 Dang that new C14 is just turnin' you 'round all over the place.   

[VirginiaJim]

Hey, ya'll chill a bit.
He's a new guy that we should welcome and help... Let's not scare him off....
So, Welcome to the group Kevin.   Excuse us Hooligans.

Hooligans?  You consider this banter hooliganism?  My goodness gracious, Ted, you've led a very sheltered life.

At any rate, one must remember and never forget that asking for information or an opinion on something here may not have a direct path to the truth or even resemble it in any form or fashion.  It's up to the OP to sift through the posts and make up their own opinion.  In fact, seriousness here is frowned upon and not encouraged at all, at least on the C14 boards. 

[Rhino]

So far Conrad and stevewfl have offered the best solutions....  er...  I meant pics which is just as important.

[VirginiaJim]

Quite so.

[kemartin3]

Ted (connie_rider) hit my target perfectly.

For me, "no harm, no foul" with the pictures.  Having grown up around auto mechanics and in bike shops, I like a good picture as much as the next guy.  Regarding the newbie status...that is true for this site, but I can only wish I were young enough to really be a newbie.  I've been riding since 1968, on too many brands to list

I have already bought a Back-A-line back brace to try to improve my classic, lousy 'merican posture.  But I believe a more complaint tire is also a good thing to look into.  Adding a back rest to the Russell seat is an interesting thought, that I hadn't come up with.

I don't have highway pegs installed, as my experience with them on other bikes (BMW R75, BMW R1200, Harley Tour Glide, Honda Valkyrie) didn't make much of a difference.  A lot of that may be because they don't really allow me to stretch out all that much (34" inseam).  The stock peg position combined with the Russell seat puts my feet pretty much where they ought to be (can raise up from the seat and stand balanced without holding onto the bars).

I lowered the pressure to 36 at the recommendation of Dan at Traxxion.  He explained that the high pressure Kawasaki was specifying was to try to compensate for the...umm..."manly" size of the C14.  That and the "too stiff" front springs that come stock are the reason that the front tires chew off like they were made of eraser rubber.  Agreed, the lower pressure will likely make for some amount of uneven wear and shorter life, but isn't really an unreasonable number.  I don't have a copy, but believe that Kawasaki lowered the recommended pressure to 39 in the newer models.  The PR4 GTs that are on the bike have 3K on them at 36 PSI, and have only begun to flat spot in the center, so at my speed, mileage doesn't seem to be a big worry.

Thanks all for your input.  As a group, we have an amazing amount of knowledge...and it is wonderful that folks are willing to take their time to share.

Kevin

[maxtog]

I lowered the pressure to 36 at the recommendation of Dan at Traxxion.  He explained that the high pressure Kawasaki was specifying was to try to compensate for the...umm..."manly" size of the C14.  That and the "too stiff" front springs that come stock are the reason that the front tires chew off like they were made of eraser rubber.

I don't think it is a design flaw, just a spec based on the type of bike and its weight.

  Agreed, the lower pressure will likely make for some amount of uneven wear and shorter life, but isn't really an unreasonable number.

I have read a lot of posts over the years about people who lowered the pressure and ended up ruining their expensive tires.  So I tend to warn whenever I see someone doing it (especially someone new to the bike).  At first, 42psi sounds shocking, but it really does work correctly for this bike and most tires.

I don't have a copy, but believe that Kawasaki lowered the recommended pressure to 39 in the newer models.

Well, really nothing has changed on the bike that would affect tires much- it is the same weight, same wheels, same distribution, same suspension design, same bar/seat location, same rake angle, same wheel positions, generally the same suspension settings.  2008 all the way through the 2013 user manuals call for 42psi.  Yours is the first mention I have seen anywhere about any type of possible recommendation change by Kawasaki.  Now that we have someone with a 2015, we can ask elp_jc to check his manual.... but I would be SHOCKED if it didn't say 42psi.

The PR4 GTs that are on the bike have 3K on them at 36 PSI, and have only begun to flat spot in the center, so at my speed, mileage doesn't seem to be a big worry.

I hope not.  Keep in mind the PR4GT is quite possibly the best matching tire for the C14 yet (for general purpose) and it is designed to have a longer life than any PR before it (while maintaining the grip).  Perhaps if you were running 42psi, you would already have seen less wear (although usually it is not the exact center that starts to suffer with lower psi, so perhaps not).

Thanks all for your input.  As a group, we have an amazing amount of knowledge...and it is wonderful that folks are willing to take their time to share.

Love the Forums- it is a great place to gather tons of information and share experience.  I will say that I tend to suffer a lot from back/shoulder/arm issues, and after adjusting the bike height, seat, and bars, the thing that made the most difference for me?  Back exercises and strengthening my core muscles (abs/back/sides/etc).  I *hate* exercising, but I have to admit it is important/effective and I am reluctantly suffering through it...  (getting older sucks, things used to work so much better/easier).

[just gone]

I  Now that we have someone with a 2015, we can ask elp_jc to check his manual.... but I would be SHOCKED if it didn't say 42psi.

It (2015 C14 O.M.) still says 42psi, page 225.   http://www.kawasaki-techinfo.net/showOM.php?view_lang=EN&spec=US&book_no=99987-1833&lang_code=EN

[sailor_chic]

You're right CR, we don't want to scare the new guy off right away with pics of tires and attractive women.   

In looking at the options that Kemartin3 has already tried I seriously doubt that a more compliant tire will make much, if any, difference in his comfort while riding his C14.

And heck, I didn't even mention how comfortable that rope must be...   

Did someone say rope

Oops, wrong forum

[connie14boy]

It (2015 C14 O.M.) still says 42psi, page 225.   http://www.kawasaki-techinfo.net/showOM.php?view_lang=EN&spec=US&book_no=99987-1833&lang_code=EN

I think she is saying "Tread very lightly and carry a big stick".
Re. tires again, the pair of PR2's I had went 18,000 miles on front and 16,000 miles on the rear w/190/55 and 42/44 p.s.i. religiously. Anything below 40 psi turns "Black Bear" into a hog.

[Deziner]

Did someone say rope

Oops, wrong forum

They meant to say line....

[elp_jc]

Kevin, welcome to the family. Like it was said and implied, you don't address ride issues with tire pressures man. You do it with suspension tuning. Try to play with different settings, and unless you're skinny like me (155# here), or super heavy, you should find a happy medium. I like a firm ride, and I'm happy with the stock settings. And that brings my next point: check that your suspension is at the stock settings, and go from there.

Maxtog, my bike also says 42/42, just like you thought. I wouldn't use anything less than 40 myself... and that's because I always ride solo, and am light. And I'm going to try it for the extra grip.

[lather]

Kevin has a bad back and thinks a different tire will help. That's all we know about his back but I assume road inputs hurt him as opposed to the usual aches many get from long hours on the seat. If that is the case a softer riding tire should help some without making the suspension so soft it messes up the handling. I think a sport tire might help. I have run many Shinko Ravens on my 08 over the years. They don't last long compare to ST tires but are so cheap I find them a good option for all but multi-week tours.

From the Shinko USA site:

"The Raven radial was specifically designed for long life. The Raven provides superior riding comfort while its tread compound gives high grip on both wet and dry roads.

Features include:

Highest tread life of Shinko sport-performance radials
W speed rated (168 mph)
Aramid belted
DOT approved"
I don't have back pain on a bike so I can't say from experience that the Raven can help that but I believe it is a good tire and it has a nice compliant ride.

Welcome Kevin!

PS I have degenerative arthritis of the spine with two narrowed discs. I have a lot of back pain but only when standing or lying in bed. Guess I'm just lucky...

[katata1100]

The fork springs are not responsible for the short life of the stock front tire; poor construction is.
My front was toast at 3200 miles, the rear was showing belts at that time too.
Replaced with pr3's, rear lasted 15K miles, the front 17k miles (just got is replaced yesterday).
You can lower pressure but I wouldn't dip below 40lbs. I think the stock suspension can be made soft with the right adj, I know I have mine set up pretty soft.

[PH14]

  - 36# air front/rear (recommendation from Dan at Traxxion Bill Belichick now that I have the horrid
     oversprung fork issue fixed that comes stock)

Here, I fixed that for you. 

[maxtog]

You can lower pressure but I wouldn't dip below 40lbs. I think the stock suspension can be made soft with the right adj, I know I have mine set up pretty soft.

That would be my vote too.  It is more about the suspension.  Making it softer will help with road bumps, of course, it will probably compromise the "sporty" side, but then everything is a compromise, isn't it?

In my case, I don't think it can be made softer without changing to softer springs because I only weigh less than 150lbs- and doing so is rather complex and expensive.  But I am OK with the ride, even if it is a bit rough at times.

[connie14boy]

The fork springs are not responsible for the short life of the stock front tire; poor construction is.
My front was toast at 3200 miles, the rear was showing belts at that time too.
Replaced with pr3's, rear lasted 15K miles, the front 17k miles (just got is replaced yesterday).
You can lower pressure but I wouldn't dip below 40lbs. I think the stock suspension can be made soft with the right adj, I know I have mine set up pretty soft.

katata 1100 and I are in complete agreement 100%.

[Zfood]

Have you tried sone lower back exercises/stretches? I had persistent pain in my lower back after short 30 minute rides. Between riding then wearing a duty belt with 35lb of gear it was killing me. I dedicated part of my workout routine to stretching and strengthing my back and my aches have gone away.

It may not be the bike but your body that needs some attention. The right posture both on and off the bike can really help. 

[maxtog]

Have you tried some lower back exercises/stretches? [...]

That was my suggestion too, here (at bottom): http://www.zggtr.org/index.php?topic=18874.msg232249#msg232249

Exercise is not my "thing" but I have to admit it helps, a lot.  I just wish it came in pill form