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Kenda Tires

Discussion in 'Pull up a chair and sit for a spell' started by wvak47, Sep 17, 2007.

  1. wvak47

    wvak47 Active Member

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    Didn't know if this was tech talk quallity or not, so I put this here.

    Has anyone had any experience with the Kenda Tires. K673 KRUZ in particular. The money can't be beat and the guys over on the Venture Riders board had a pretty good review. It did well other than when towing a trailer (or something like that whatever that means LOL I thought trailers were for cars anyway).

    Anyone here that have actually rode on these tires care to share?
  2. chucktx

    chucktx Moderator Staff Member

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    sorry, i run dunlops..........
  3. fxdxriderleo

    fxdxriderleo Active Member

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    Hey dude, Don't know if this will help but here goes..Not sure about the K673's I ran Kenda Challenger's on the old XS650 Yamaha I rode before the Harley. After about 5000 miles the front still looks new, the rear needs a new tire. I was impressed with the grip ,wet or dry, it being a cheap tire. I have been running the stock Dunlop D401's that came on the Harley, great tire, always liked Dunlop, Get 10-12,000 on rears , upto 14,000 on fronts. fxdxriderleo
  4. wvak47

    wvak47 Active Member

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    Thanks anyway Chuck. I am currently on Dunlops myself but they are in need of a replacing. Set too long and started to crack.

    Hey fxdxriderleo, got more questions for ya.

    Were your front and rear put on at the same time? If so what explains 5K and front still new and rear needing replaced? Riding style maybe, holeshots, burnout, extreme rear braking?

    Now if the Kenda had the same price tag as say an AVON would you still be impressed with the Kenda or are you impressed at performance vs price?

    Live by the rule if it sounds too good to be true it probably is. I can put tires (front and back) on my bike shipped for less than a rear tire without shipping. Haven't been able to find anything bad about the Kenda so far. One guy on Venture Rider didn't like them for towing. Like I will put a trailer behind an 883 Sporty WTFever LOL. Otherwise everyone seems happy with them.

    Anyone on here used them and hate them, heck even dislike them? Please sound off before I cut a corner, and wish I could make a real corner later.
  5. fxdxsteve

    fxdxsteve Active Member

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    I don't know anything about the kenda tires but on my fxdx I get at least twice as many miles out of my front vs. the rear usually more I run the metzelers . imho its not worth the savings to have them shipped because you can't inspect the tires before you buy them also being that much cheaper scares me. about the only oriental brand name tire I might consider would be yokohama if they made tires to fit my bike
    you get what you pay for

    jmho
  6. wvak47

    wvak47 Active Member

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    See Steve that backs up my too good to be true idea LOL.

    I put Kuhmo tires on my SUV and they wore and ran great. Cheapest thing I could find in the odd ball size. I know apples to oranges, cage to scooter. That got me to thinking (Always a major danger there) that maybe these tires may be the same story.

    Not going to lie, am a bit skiddish about buying them (LOL better skiddish on the purchase than on the street though).
  7. ironhorse

    ironhorse Active Member

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    yes you get what you pay for but as I am in need of the rear tire I am going to a proven tire the dunlop, I will usually run a bargain tire on my truck, not on my wifes car though, but only having two tires to depend on, not able to carry a spare, (if I make it out of a blowout), and most places will charge you an arm and a leg to change, and balance your tire if'n they will even touch your off brand. the little cash your saving, my safety and piece of mind is worth more than that. heres some thing to think about , why are the tires that much cheaper than the rest? are they missing some special process in the manuf. or are the cutting out the expense of quality control? where is this tire saving you the money at?:confused:
  8. chucktx

    chucktx Moderator Staff Member

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    i have been running dunlop 402's and 404's on my electra glide....change them 3 rear to 1 front. just put a elete 3 on the rear, gonna see if i can get a bit more than 8k out of it......most all my riding is 2 up, bags full.
  9. Peyts

    Peyts New Member

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    Sorry, bro... never heard of 'em.
  10. cowboy

    cowboy Moderator Staff Member

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    never heard of them eather i run the metlzer's 2 to 1 well worth it ,my safety is worth it my wife & grand kids ride with me at times
    so add a little more to the price & get a tire you'll be safe on , riding is tough enough with all the cages around not paying attion to us so why chance it it cheep tires
  11. fxdxriderleo

    fxdxriderleo Active Member

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    kenda's

    I put them on rear couple weeks later did the front . Most tires I have ran in the past , the fronts usually run longer . the dunlops seem to run closer to the same. Alot of people run cheaper tires, but they have to change them more often, pay a little more for a good tire, they last longer save cost of changing tires. Better tires may go two seasons. cheapies may not go one season. do the math.
  12. wvak47

    wvak47 Active Member

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    So Leo, you are or have ran them then, is that right? If so what was your observations of them. I am ok with changing tires a bit more frequently as my friend works for a tire company and we have no trouble changing our own LOL. Nice to know folks huh. Anyway, most important is reviews of performance on these rascals, not my BS. Thanks folks I appreciate your replies.
  13. Sleepy

    Sleepy Well-Known Member

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    sorry, I've heard of 'em but not run 'em. I've been using the stock dunflops on the EG..really crappy mileage two up pulling a trailer...mamma likes it,the trailer that is..so I do too..:) but the tire really works well on the bike and sticks when you want it to..lots to be said for that.
  14. fxdxriderleo

    fxdxriderleo Active Member

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    WVAK47 Yes I ran kendas on my '75 xs650 yamaha. for a cheap tire I was quite impressed with the grip both wet and dry, hardly noticed the tar snakes. the front seems to be wearing well , the rear is getting thin. about 5000 miles on them. If it was all I could get I would run them and not worry. I may have to run them on the 650, not to good a selection in 110/90/18 it's the biggest that will fit. I think part of the wear issue on the rear is the clutch, the sweet spot is quite small. The travel at the end of lever is about 3/8 - 1/2 inch from engaged to disengaged. Hard to get a smooth engagement, both up and down shifts. I don't ride it much, needs top end work. Smokes real bad. leaks some oil. about 150 miles to a quart. but I'm working on it. fun to ride, don't worry to much about scuff marks
  15. mwelych

    mwelych Active Member

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    Used Dunlops and Metz's... Don't know anything about Kenda's. But as was said earlier... You get what you pay for...:)

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