Combat Wombat Tires

[dcooke007]

I have Will's Combat Wombat back and looking to re-shoe. The tires on it now are old school and terrible in mud. Just pack full with mud and slick as all get out when wet. Just looking for some current recommendations that work well for all around use. Factory size is 3.00 x 21 front and 3.50 X 18 rear.

Thanks,
Danny

[hodakamax]

Hey Danny, I've got a Shinko 100/100-18 on the rear of my 94A. It's too wide for a chain guard though, but it's what I like, wide with big sharp blocks, big spaces and low priced. I've never been able to tell the difference between expensive and cheap tires when they're new and sharp. Tires can be a large racing expense and I always thought that cheap fresh tires are the way to go, which you can change more often. You might go to the Maxxis site which lists dimensions. I put a set of Maxxis (cool name!) on the new project and even though I haven't ran them they look aggressive. They are really reasonably priced like about $100 bucks a pair to your door. I bought my Shinkos from Paul, also reasonable. The metric 80/100-21 works good on the front.

Just my opinion and brief report.

Max

[Dale]

For the proper size I only know of Vee Rubber. Don at All Moto Tire sells them and is a Hodaka supporter. I have them on my 98 Super Rat and like them. They are a low profile tire and have a stiff carcass. Track mud has been no issue.

I currently have Maxxis on my Combat Wombat. Great tires but the smallest size are too big for the bike. They look and handle great but are too big to run the chain guard and I can not hardly spin the tire out of a corner. I am going to switch to Vee Rubber soon.

I understand that Dunlop is soon to have a 100/100-18 tire designed for vintage. This is according to a Dunlop rep that was at the Boise Vintage races recently. I am guessing that they will be about like the Maxxis size wise but I am anxious to see them.
Dale

[dcooke007]

Thanks for the info. I will take a look at these.

Thanks,
Danny

[dcooke007]

Checked out some of the tires online. Since this is a small displacement bike we don't want to put to big a tire. Looks like the narrowest rear tire commonly available is a 100/100x18. Front seems to range from 80/100 to 90/100 x 21. I like the look of the Maxxis Maxcross SI.

Danny

[ossa95d]

I know I may sound like a broken record but a 4.10-18 such as the ones made by Cheng Shin and Duro are way smaller (and lighter) than any 100/100-18. They are very close in size to the 3.50-18. They are readily available and I have mounted both of them on Hodakas with no clearance issues. I use the Cheng Shin C755 4.10-18 on both the Road Toad and Super Rat that I race.

[Dale]

Ivan,
Thank you for telling us once again. I am going to give one of these (Cheng Shin or Duro 4.10-18) a go for my Combat Wombat in hopes of getting my stock chain guard back in place. Even trimming the knobs on the Maxxis 100/100-18 was not enough to keep the chain guard from rubbing...
Dale

[dcooke007]

Thanks guys, this is exactly the kind of feed back I needed. Don't want to reinvent the wheel kind of thing. To big or heavy with little wheel spin would not be desirable. Very concerned though about how the tire performs in mud. I will be looking at the tires on the bike today for some base line info.

Thanks,
Danny

[ossa95d]

Danny and Dale,
I had to laugh at myself after my comment about sounding like a "broken record" realizing that this might be the only group on-line that would understand the reference. I may try to take a picture of a Cheng Shin 4.10-18 next to a 100/100-18 to demonstrate the difference. It's pretty dramatic!

[dcooke007]

A picture would be great. Will's bike has stock size 3.00x21 and 3.50x18. Still considering options.

Danny

[Dale]

Danny,
I have received my new Cheng Shin 4.10-18 rear tire and will post some pictures. Comparing apples to oranges here, but I do believe that the Cheng Shin 4.10 is .5 inches narrower than my current Maxxis 100/100. In addition, it appears to be .2 inches narrower than my Vee Rubber 3.50. This is measuring from outside knob to outside knob (total width in regards to clearance).

Of the 3 tires, the Cheng Shin has the deepest tread. About 16mm compared to 12 on the Vee Rubber. Again, this is all subjective and my best guess. I do like my Vee Rubber on my Super Rat and will continue to use them. I also like my Maxxis tire, but it is too big for my Combat Wombat. So I will now see how the Cheng Shin fits and performs.
Dale

Maxxis 100/100 vs Cheng Shin 4.10

Cheng Shin 4.10 is .5 inches narrower than Maxxis 100/100

Cheng Shin 4.10 measures 4.0 inches (unmounted)

Vee Rubber 3.50 measures 4.2 inches (mounted)

Vee Rubber 3.50 vs Cheng Shin 4.10

Cheng shin 4.10 has aggressive tread depth

[dcooke007]

Dale,
Thank you for going to the effort to post this info. I will study this a bit and wait for your test ride info.

Thanks again,
Danny

[hodakamax]

Excellent report Dale!

Max

[ossa95d]

Thank you Dale! I know I had offered to do this comparison and failed terribly in my assignment. You did a better job than I would have anyway! I do run the 4.10 Cheng Shin 755 on my hodakas and really like the fit and performance. I think I mentioned before that they are much lighter in weight also which helps in the performance.