Shinko 705: A cautionary tale

EricV

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For future reference, I've run several non standard sizes on the S10, (and other bikes), w/o issues. A little taller and skinnier isn't an issue. Not sure if a 170 would clear the brake tension arm. Lots have run 140s. Its a big challenge to do this over the phone though, (trying to figure out what they have that might work). It's common for shops to shut you down with not having ADV tires, not thinking that you'll be fine running darn near anything 17", round and black to get home instead of paying for a truck rental. In the bad old days you could buy a beater pick up, load the bike in the back and sell the truck when you got home. Prices have gotten out of hand for beater trucks these days!
 

RCinNC

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That may be the worst looking rear 705 radial I've ever seen. Even the bias plys that had the tread blocks come off looked healthier than that thing.

In a pinch, you can make a wheel removal tool from a big hex bolt and two hex nuts. That's what I have in my tool kit for the front wheel.
 

EricV

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In a pinch, you can make a wheel removal tool from a big hex bolt and two hex nuts. That's what I have in my tool kit for the front wheel.
3/4" is essentially 19mm, so coupler nuts with 3/4" wrench flats work as a compact and cheap tool kit tool. I also used to make up my own allen bit socket with cut down pieces of 19mm allen wrench and a low cost socket, then drill and pin the allen bit.

I still have a handful of 19mm allen wrench chunks if anyone wants one. Your's for the cost of shipping USPS.

Or the hex on some 13/16" spark plug sockets, inserting the extension backwards, (into the socket). Not all fit, and not all have the square drive all the way through into the inside of the socket. But you can find handfuls of these at almost any pawn shop in bins for less than a buck each. Easy to just grab a handful and go test until you find one that fits. Then buy that one. If the rubber insert is still in the socket it will need to be removed. Easy to do in the pawn shop with some needle nose pliers or a screwdriver.
 

RCinNC

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I don't specifically remember, and my tool kit is out in my tool tube, but I suspect that I used a 3/4" hex bolt and a couple hux nuts as jam nuts. Mainly because I doubt my local mom and pop hardware store had a 19mm hex bolt.
 

cyclemike4

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I don't know the mileage because the tires came on the bike when I bought it, but I would guess it's around 3k miles total.

Yeah, I was really surprised I couldn't find a replacement. All the shops I called were super helpful, but they all commented that "they should think about carrying more tires for ADV's in the future."

It's a funny story about the tools. I thought I had everything to pull either wheel, but I realized that my axle hex tool was sitting on my workbench in my garage and never made it into the tool kits when I left. :rolleyes:
I see people saying just stop and get a tire. Don't worry about it. I have been out crossing the country on two different trips that I had a tire issues. I would stop at every bike shop I saw to try and find a tire. One trip I stopped at bike shops in five different states and none had a tire that would fit. One shop actually acted like I was bothering them by just being there. It was a Saturday morning and every body was sitting around talking drinking coffee except for one person putting all the equipment out in front of the store. He told me they were booked up and didn't have time to get to me today. No one was doing a thing and everybody was on the clock. Really gave me a bad feeling about that place. Anyway my tires were not as bad as yours so I was able to limp it home. As a matter of fact one of the offending tires was a Shinko 705. those places just don't seem to keep inventory on hand. Guess they can't afford it or something but there are several brands and bikes that now run the tires sizes we have. you would think one place would have a tire to fit. Oh by the way I have a bolt with some nuts welded to it for the tool to pull the wheels on my bike. Works great.
 

Mad_Matt

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Yeah, I think the model has greatly changed. It's not common for shops to carry a large inventory anymore. Every shop I called told me their standard timeline for having the tires I needed to be shipped to their location. Going that route would have cost more in hotels than just getting the UHaul.

When I was in San Antonio the day before, I called CycleGear, and even they only had two or three options in stock that would fit the ST. In hindsight, I should have installed the Michelin Road 6 or Anakee 3 they had in stock; it would have saved me a lot of pain in the long run.
 

OldRider

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There are three major tire distributors in the US, Western Powers Sports (WPS), Tucker and Parts Unlimited. They have warehouses spread out all over the country. I would say that 90% of the shops in the US can get a tire from one of them overnight. Why they won't do this for a customer, I don't know.

This is where it is important to be on good terms with your local shop at home. All three of these distributors will drop ship to anywhere in the country for the dealer. I had a good customer that was out West and had rear tire trouble. My distributor had a warehouse in Denver so I called my sales rep. and he had a tire sent out and my customer got it at his motel the next morning.

You don't have to be out there alone, you just need to find a shop that will get off their ass and help you. I owned a shop for 50 years and I know a shop can pull a few strings and get things done fast if they will.
 

RCinNC

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I had a battery terminal break off inside a battery during a trip two years ago. I called around and couldn't find a shop anywhere that had a battery in stock, nor would one of them order one for me and have it shipped overnight (at my cost, of course). It was basically "sorry, we only order once a week, we can have a battery for you in seven days". You know who came through for me? Advance Auto Parts and O'Reilly Auto. The personnel at those stores went out of their way to help me get back on the road again. O'Reilly even had a battery shipped to their store for me by the next morning.
 

SkunkWorks

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It seems this is a common theme in recent years.
My friend Cap'n Ron tours the Country every summer. The last two years he has ran into an issue where he has needed a tire at some point during his trip.
He has had the same problem where nobody within riding distance has any tires in stock, and nobody offers to order one in for him within a reasonable timeframe.
He rides a Vstrom-650, and uses the same size tires that most other ADV bikes use................
It seems less and less places are willing to stock tires anymore?
He now pre-orders and ships tires to his Parent's house in NY, and swaps them halfway through his trips.
 

RCinNC

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I totally get why it's become like this. Online retailers have hit brick and mortar shops hard. Profit margins are thin for those shops, and there's no profit in buying parts that aren't immediately needed and will just be sitting on the shelf taking up space. It doesn't help that the inventory at so many shops has switched from primarily motorcycles over to ATV/UTV sales and service. You'd have a far better chance that a shop would have a tire for a Wolverine in stock than one for a Super Tenere.

All that being said, I still feel less than generous towards a shop that refuses to order something like a tire or a battery when the stranded customer is offering to pay for the shipment upfront. I doubt that's even a phone call for them; they could probably do it on line in a couple minutes. You're going to pay their markup, you're paying the overnight shipping fee, and in some cases you're going to be paying them to install that battery or tire, and they still refuse to basically be a businessman.

If I was making a trip that I knew I'd be likely to need a tire, I'd do what Skunkworks' friend did; I'd drop ship a set of tires to some point along the route. Backpackers do it all the time when they're thru-hiking something like the AT; they ship supplies ahead to a post office that provides general delivery services (there's a list of those post offices somewhere on line), and pick them up there when they roll into town. I suspect that same trick would work if you shipped your tires ahead to a general delivery post office.

If I found myself in the predicament that Matt did, I think I'd just get a motel room somewhere, call Rocky Mountain ATV or Revzilla, and pay the outrageous overnight shipping fee to get them to ship that tire to the motel I was staying at, and I'd change it in the parking lot. Overnight shipping of a tire would be stupid-expensive, but probably still cheaper than renting a truck to get your bike back home. And if I had the time, I'd do a cheaper shipping method. It would still be better than the standard reply from a shop of "we can't order anything until Tuesday, and it'll take a few days to get here, and we don't have any sort of recovery vehicle that can transport your bike to the shop when the tire does get here, and we can't get to it until next Wednesday anyway".

I'll tell you, I know people love to bash the Bar and Shield, but back in my Harley days, I had nothing but good experiences dealing with Harley Davidson service shops. They were always very accommodating if I was passing through an area on a trip and needed something, and I never got that "screw you, we don't need your business" attitude that I've gotten from more than one Japanese motorcycle service center. I actually got a the greeting once at my local (now defunct) Yamaha shop of "what the fuck do you want?" when I walked in the door. And I wasn't a friend of the guy at the counter, he didn't know me from Adam.

And that is why I work on my own bike, for the most part.

Holy crap, I hijacked my own thread! Let me reiterate the original point of my post: Shinko 705's, at least under the current manufacturing process, suck.
 

OldRider

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I was a small shop and all three major distributors gave me free shipping on all orders over $100. Almost every dealer gets free shipping. As I said earlier WPS, Tucker & Parts have about 15 warehouses spread across the country. Almost any shop you walk into can grab a catalog, look up the tire part number, punch it into their local distributor on the computer and in five seconds they can see their inventory. Put the tire in the cart, hit enter, checkout and it's on the way. Be in their hands tomorrow.

When you need something quick check with a small shop. The guy you're talking to is probably the owner and he should have no problem making a quick profit on a tire. The kid at the dealership gets his $12 an hour whether he goes out of his way to help you ot not.
 

tntmo

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Yeah, I think the model has greatly changed. It's not common for shops to carry a large inventory anymore. Every shop I called told me their standard timeline for having the tires I needed to be shipped to their location. Going that route would have cost more in hotels than just getting the UHaul.

When I was in San Antonio the day before, I called CycleGear, and even they only had two or three options in stock that would fit the ST. In hindsight, I should have installed the Michelin Road 6 or Anakee 3 they had in stock; it would have saved me a lot of pain in the long run.
This is a good reason to be involved in other online forums. I was able to get a tube in a small town in Canada when my buddy didn't have a spare by reaching out on ADVRider forum. They also have a huge section where people have "Tent space" which is a spot for traveling motorcycle riders to stop for the night (or a couple) which is often more than tent space, including spare rooms, etc. That could have saved a lot of money. FaceBook has BunkABiker and a few others that offer the same thing, I have used it and it has been a great experience.

Anyway, it's easy to Monday morning quarterback it. Lessons learned and all that, you have a story and as my good friend always says, "Did you die? No? Good adventure!"
 
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