OK, here's one for ya to ponder....

[tkent02]

The Slipfires were fine until I tried RoadRiders, Sport Demons or any modern tire.
They are serioulsly outclassed. Had them on a few bikes, now only the 1100G.

It's fun to spin the wheel on a paint stripe, or anything wet, but the front wheel gets loose too, I don't like that as much.
I guess they'd be OK if you stayed off the stripes, didn't ride in rain and went slow always.

 

[Steve]

front is 402 and rear is 395.

Looks like the newest it could be would be the 40 week of 2012 for the front, but more likely the 40 week of 2002.
And for the rear, the newest it could be would be the 39th week of 2005.

No, could NOT have been made since 2000, as it would have four digits in the date code. If it were made in the 40th week of 2012, it would show "4012", not "402". 39th week of 2005 would be "3905", not "395". Three digits in the date code tell you that it's 1999 or older. I have been told that tires made during the '90s had a triangle after the number, which I did not see in the picture, so that tire was probably made in 1982.

Those tires were unsafe a decade ago. They were made in 1992 and 1995.

See comment above about the triangle. Not sure that all tires had the triangle in the '90s, also not sure if it started early in the '90s or later.

Oh great, so now I should get new tires too! I don't see any cracking or dry rot...

It's not just "cracking or dry rot" that makes them unsafe.

About your tires, there may be no cracks but from the date numbers you put up the front tire was made in the 40 week of the year 1972, 1982 or 1992. The rear tire was made in the 39 week of the year 1975, 1985 or 1995. That makes, at best, those tires are over 17 years old...YIKES.

Since the bike is a '79, I would not suspect the tires were made in '72 or '75.

It is because of this ambiguity of production year that they switched to four-digit date codes starting with the 2000 production.

.

 

[bwringer]

The Slipfires were fine until I tried RoadRiders, Sport Demons or any modern tire.
They are serioulsly outclassed.

Agreed. Love the Avon Roadriders, and the Pirelli Sport Demons are the ultimate in soft and sticky.

The Shinko 230 is an excellent cheap tire if you need to save a few bucks. Doesn't last as long as some, but sticks great. The Shinko 712 is similar.

Other modern tires for vintage bikes that I haven't personally tried, but that have good feedback include:
Bridgestone BT-45 (yep, they make a much better tire than their own Spitfire)
Michelin Pilot Activ
Continental Go (very new -- not sure what the consensus is, but Conti usually makes good stuff)
Dunlop Elite 3 (limited to 16" rears, but very, very good grip and excellent treadwear)


There are still some older design tires available that some people still like for some reason, such as the Avon Roadrunner, Conti Milestone, Dunlop 501, the Bridgestone Spitfire mentioned earlier, Metzeler ME77/88/880/Lasertec, and others.

Duro, Kenda, and IRC make some lower-end rubber -- there are some rare oddball sizes out there you can only get from IRC, and they're OK.

That lumpy Dunlop on your bike has been out of production for aeons, but there may still be some around somewhere sold as rim covers for 100 point concourse bikes that are never actually ridden.

 

[bwringer]

The Slipfires were fine until I tried RoadRiders, Sport Demons or any modern tire.
They are serioulsly outclassed.

Agreed.

The Shinko 230 is an excellent cheap tire if you need to save a few bucks. Doesn't last as long as some, but sticks great. The Shinko 712 is similar.

Other modern tires for vintage bikes that I haven't personally tried, but that have good feedback include:
Bridgestone BT-45 (yep, they make a much better tire than their own Spitfire)
Michelin Pilot Activ
Continental Go (very new -- not sure what the consensus is, but Conti usually makes good stuff)
Dunlop Elite 3 (limited to 16" rears, but very, very good grip and excellent treadwear)


There are still some older design tires available that some people still like for some reason, such as the Avon Roadrunner, Conti Milestone, Dunlop 501, the Bridgestone Spitfire mentioned earlier, Metzeler ME77/88/880/Lasertec, and others.

Duro, Kenda, and IRC make some lower-end rubber -- there are some rare oddball sizes out there you can only get from IRC, and they're OK. Cheng Shin made decent tires, but they haven't made any road tires in a few years.

That lumpy Dunlop on your bike has been out of production for aeons, but there may still be some around somewhere sold as rim covers for 100 point concourse bikes that are never actually ridden.

 

[slyone]

Thanks for all the great info.! I'll have to get some new tires when I bring it out for spring..

 

[jimfj]

Ok, after reading all this you need new tires. I use the Shinko's and like them very much. Use whatever you feel comfortable with.

I have the same problem you do with my 1100G. I have brand spanking new tires that are professionally balanced, new fork seals and new "real" fork oil. It still does the same thing. I am running about 13 psi in the forks. I believe that the problem lies in the springs. I used Sonic Springs on my 550 and what a huge difference that made.

I am going to dust off my wallet and drop the $90.00 to cover that cost and go on down the road. Your bike is essentially the same weight as mine and I know my springs are tired. I also feel the air system isn't the greatest.

Food for thought from someone that has been/is in the same place as you.

 

[slyone]

Agreed.

Other modern tires for vintage bikes that I haven't personally tried, but that have good feedback include:
Bridgestone BT-45 (yep, they make a much better tire than their own Spitfire)
Michelin Pilot Activ
Continental Go (very new -- not sure what the consensus is, but Conti usually makes good stuff)
Dunlop Elite 3 (limited to 16" rears, but very, very good grip and excellent treadwear)

There are still some older design tires available that some people still like for some reason, such as the Avon Roadrunner, Conti Milestone, Dunlop 501, the Bridgestone Spitfire mentioned earlier, Metzeler ME77/88/880/Lasertec, and others.

Yea I personally like the style of the Metzeler lasertech biased touring tire myself....
Ya know what, after all considerations...maybe the Shinko TourMaster is the way to go!