Shinko 244 Tires on a WR250X

Today I went for a ride on my newly installed Shinko 244's. It also was the first ride in the mountains for my WR250X. Once I got used to winding the motor the little 250 really shines. I did 30 miles of pavement and 30 miles of dirt and jeep roads. The 244 really worked well on the pavement and the gravel. Some of the more technical sections showed how bad a big fat front tire is. I think with some suspension stiffening everything should be just fine for the type of riding I plan on doing with the 250. The taller tires raised the seat height and ground clearance 1.5". I still have the stock 13/43 gearing which worked reasonably well, but I have a 12T sprocket in the mail. It should make 2nd gear more usable for steep hills and also help it wind out a little easier. 9,000' elevation didn't seem to affect how the bike ran.
So, the bottom line is that I'm happy with these tires for both the street and dirt.

Love the way that bike looks with those fatties on there.

What sizes did you get F/R? I like the look of the fat tires too.

IndigoWolf wrote:

What sizes did you get F/R? I like the look of the fat tires too.

Front 4.60X17, Rear 5.10X17. The steering is a little heavier, but it still handles great in the twisties.

Looks awesome.

Looks great! I may have to give those a try. I'm running Shinko 705's on my X and am not really getting the off road traction that I would like.

Thanks, guys! For now I'm really happy with them. I don't think I'll be changing the front wheel to a 21". I just changed the countershaft sprocket to a 12T and it really screams on the street. I haven't had a chance to go off road, but I think it will be perfect.

eflyersteve wrote:

Looks great! I may have to give those a try. I'm running Shinko 705's on my X and am not really getting the off road traction that I would like.

Do you have a photo of the 705's installed? And how are they on the street? They look similar to the Distanzas.

Thanks

They're decent tires. They last forever. They easily match my off-road skillz. But be careful on wet paved roads. Traction goes wwwwaaayyy down. Funny thing: for gravel roads, Distanzias have better traction than the Shinkos.

Hey 1moreroad ....

are you talking about the 244's or 705's ???

Thanks ...

1moreroad wrote:

They're decent tires. They last forever. They easily match my off-road skillz. But be careful on wet paved roads. Traction goes wwwwaaayyy down. Funny thing: for gravel roads, Distanzias have better traction than the Shinkos.

I've got these tires with about 8k miles on them, now. I'll give a few reasons i like them.

1. good knobbies, good traction. They handled as well for me as my full knobby pirelli mt 21's.

2. great in the paved twisties. No trouble at all, much faster than the pirelli's. I got scared before the tires did.

3. cheap. These are definitely the best bang for the buck in a dual sport tire. I paid ~ $80 shipped for both tires, & have 8k miles & counting. These will be my next set also.

4. improved suspension. These bigger tires will improve the bike's suspension. It is part of the air pressure management, but if you vary the pressures, the tire will respond differently.

5. rides flat. Ok, i've never had a flat in these, yet. But i've run 3-4 # of pressure in them & they hold up & preform well.


Here's some tips i have for these tires.

1. drop the pressures under 10# for gnarly off road conditions. You'll think you had a suspension job. It is a major improvement in soaking up the bumps.

2. Crank it up to 30# for highway riding. Your gas mileage will improve. I run ~ 20# or so most of the time, & drop it when getting into tougher rocky offroad conditions. I increase the pressure for long pavement rides.

I was a bit worried when i went with the X that the bigger front tire would be a problem. But now i think it is an asset. When mountain bikes came on the scene, it was the 'fat tire' that made them work. This 'fat tire' is also a big help with rough off road conditions. It is also better in mud & sand.. if anything can be better.. Real sticky mud is a nightmare with any tire. But in wet sloppy mud the fat tire rolls through it fine.

3. Slide forward in the twisties. This is true for any bike. Get the weight forward & off the rear wheel. The pegs will drag but the tires will hold. Be careful with new tires in corners.. need to wear them a bit & warm them up, first.

Don't be afraid to vary the air with these tires depending on conditions. They are stiff & need lower pressures to perform off road. I think people who have complained about them in gravel have had them aired up too much. Unless you have over 300# on the bike, 10# or less will be optimal. Try it. Let almost all the air out & push on the tire. It is still plenty stiff & will hold you up. Ride it around. It is like the old teraflex tires (which i also thought were great!). Too much air ruins them. Ride around on a parking lot & try to roll the tires with very little air in them.. 4# or so. If you put 28# in them, they will be fine on the street, but they will beat you up off road. Mine have had less than 10# in them for most of their life. I check them today, & they had 3# front, & 5# in the rear for the entire Grand Canyon ride we did a couple weeks back. I aired them up to 30# for an errand i had to run on pavement. They roll better, but make the suspension feel like it is frozen. These tires have been the best suspension 'upgrade' i've done with this bike.

Well, i better order me another set.. although i can probably get another 5k on the front, but the back is probably done. I'll ride it for another 1k or so, then change them out.

That looks very nice! I can’t buy those tires here so i figure that i have to order them next time my R needs new tires. On the x the tires look fat! What dimension would my R need to have the same look?

If you put in heavy duty tubes can you share what size you used? Thanks!

I just put in regular tubes.. 17". Mine fit either wheel so i used the same tube for both. These tires are pretty stiff, so flat troubles are minimal. I carry a patch kit & pump, but never use it. I've actually never had a flat in these tires.. about 10k on them, 50/50 dirt/street. My next ride i'll probably have both go flat..

I'd like to hear more about how they handle mud and sand. Although it's a bit dry around here at the moment muddy spots are common on dual sport rides. Also, this half of the state is mostly sand.

I've got the 705s right now and although I like them for road use, they are not too great on soft terrain.

Hi i hope you are well Im new to this forum and i am after some new tyres ror my 2009 wr250 x and the photos of yours look great so i am after a set of shinko 244s but i live in england and would have to order them from the USA but the sizes on my tyres are imp they are front 110/70-17 and rear 140/70-17. I would have thought that our bikes have the identical size wheels on so would you please let me know the exact sizes you have put on yours so i can order them for mine.
Many thanke Paul

hodgo wrote:

Hi i hope you are well Im new to this forum and i am after some new tyres ror my 2009 wr250 x and the photos of yours look great so i am after a set of shinko 244s but i live in england and would have to order them from the USA but the sizes on my tyres are imp they are front 110/70-17 and rear 140/70-17. I would have thought that our bikes have the identical size wheels on so would you please let me know the exact sizes you have put on yours so i can order them for mine.
Many thanke Paul

The shinko is a 4.60-17 front and 5.10-17 rear. The Pirelli MT 21 is also a nice tire. It's a little bit more aggressive. Sizes are 120/90x17 front and 130/90x17 rear.

Shinko's suck.

I wont waste my money again! (although it was only $80 bucks for the set.)

Knobbies popping off all the time....

Hi
Many thanks for sending me the sizes for the 244s i managed to order some off the internet from the states and they have arrived in the uk and now ive fitted them
they look great and handle well what did you find the best air pressure was for riding on main roads (tarmac) over here.

Cheers Paul

No clearance issues with the front forks with that size tire?

I have the 4.6 shinko 244 on the front(5.1 on the back) and I had clearance issues,i had to trim the side nobs by 1/8th of an inch.when installed there looked to be enough clearance but when ridding the wheel gets loaded from side to side and there was interference with the fork(even after dishing the wheel,it wasn't centered when I got the bike or the spokes loosened of when riding).over all these tires are OK but I've decided to switch to 21/18.i find the 17" wheel in the front a major disadvantage of road.it gets eaten by small holes and I find the steering very heavy and slow.i'm not a serious off roader ,and these tires served a purpose of being able to go offroad and still handle well on road,but they are a compromise and for me i'd rather have the better performance offroad.if anyones interested I have a set of stock 17" s for sale.
cheers,
jon

ps these tires wear great,and I didn't have any chunking off of nobs like others,but I found the front tire diameter a hinderance.just my 2 cents.

I put the pirelli mt21 130/90-17 in the rear and 120/90-17 in the front for a camping trip around the corner. Just figured i let you guys all know out there, being I did a lot of research on these forums before ordering them and everyone was saying they fit. My FRONT TIRE RUBS when the front suspension is compressed, I can still ride it and was sketched out while first riding it for this reason, it seems that it will wear away hopefully but I only plan on keeping them on for a short time for a camping trip. I WOULDN'T SUGGEST buying these tires if you are concerned with the tires rubbing the forks. It would be nice if there was something a little smaller in width but i have had any luck finding anything.

After giving the stock 18 and 21 a try for a couple hundred miles my wife (at 5'2") was just too uncomfortable off road in the rougher stuff so we decided to go with 17's. We had a pair of X wheels left over from my X to R conversion (yes we started with one of each and managed to convert each to the other... long story). I didn't have much time to get this completed so not much research was performed - I did read through a lot of the "X with knobbies" threads here. In my haste I went to a local MC shop and grabbed what they had available - 2 IRC Trials GP1 tires - 3.5 in the front and 4.6 in the back. I brought them home and performed the tire swap, it was evident right away (at least to me) that the mounted tires do not look as wide to me as so many of the photos I've seen here (of X wheels with knobs). This has turned out to be a good thing - no rub on the fork protectors or brake line and no issues under compression.

The IRC's hook up well and have no issues with lower psi (down into the mid teens). They're by no means skinny, just not as wide as what folks here seem to be using. My wife rides to work about half of the time and she's quite happy with them on tarmac as well. I think I just got lucky but the IRC's seem to be a good match.

My two cents - hope it helps.

I have a 2008 wr250X and need to go to knobbies, can i put my 2005 yz 250 knobbies on will it match up?? If not what tires should i get that will work for cheap??

sanluissound wrote:

After giving the stock 18 and 21 a try for a couple hundred miles my wife (at 5'2") was just too uncomfortable off road in the rougher stuff so we decided to go with 17's. We had a pair of X wheels left over from my X to R conversion (yes we started with one of each and managed to convert each to the other... long story). I didn't have much time to get this completed so not much research was performed - I did read through a lot of the "X with knobbies" threads here. In my haste I went to a local MC shop and grabbed what they had available - 2 IRC Trials GP1 tires - 3.5 in the front and 4.6 in the back. I brought them home and performed the tire swap, it was evident right away (at least to me) that the mounted tires do not look as wide to me as so many of the photos I've seen here (of X wheels with knobs). This has turned out to be a good thing - no rub on the fork protectors or brake line and no issues under compression.

The IRC's hook up well and have no issues with lower psi (down into the mid teens). They're by no means skinny, just not as wide as what folks here seem to be using. My wife rides to work about half of the time and she's quite happy with them on tarmac as well. I think I just got lucky but the IRC's seem to be a good match.

My two cents - hope it helps.

Its alot of work to put yz wheels on a wrx... diferent sized axle in the front so you need new bearings, differnt spacers need to be made and the brakes a different size, the rear needs an offset rotor and sprocket and new spacers.

The shinkos are cheap give em a try.