Topic: CHENG SHIN Tires

[mikedialect]

I run chen's on my 350's. Pretty cheap, but it doesn't bother me as I never ride fast or when it's wet. I've been running Dunlops on the 750 and they are ok. Nothing special.

[Gordon]

"You get what you pay for" is true about many things, and motorcycle tires are no exception.  I won't go so far as to say they're cheap #$%*, but they are cheap. 

[LoopsAndLogic]

I'm running a Kenda Challenger 90/90-18" in the front and a Dunlop D404 110/90-18" in the rear on my 400F.

1500 miles on both, and a few fast 65mph roads.......Lets just say I'm very happy!!

Unfortunately, my front Dunlop had a manufacturer defect, so I needed a tire badly, and wound up buying a Kenda.

Kenda's are really soft!! They come up to temperature Really fast and hold nicely in 25-38mph sharp turns

And when they skip off the road in a turn from a stone, they come right back!! Strong and confident!!

Also, don't go larger than what Honda recommends. I personally had a 100/90-18" on the front of the 75' 400F, and the steering
was scary as HE??

Hope this helps!

LL

[nuno]

I just bought a set of CHENG SHIN's for my cb 750, they are decent for what a paid for them. I use that bike to go short distances and low speeds and i just got the bike running recently so i just want some cheap tires to pass the inspection. They definitely don't feel as good as my Continental Blitz's i have on my other CB 750. Those tires grip nice on the turns. If you are looking to put alot of mileage on your bike I would spend extra cash on better tires, and go to a reputable shop that is going to balance the wheels correctly. I got screwed once, the mechanic was lazy or stupid and could remove my front axle so he didn't balance it, i noticed it at about 60 mph. I went back and yelled, now it's good.

[Klark Kent]

ive got a CS barracuda up front and its always been good to me.  way better than the dry rotted kenda that came on the bike    IRC durotour on the rear has slipped on me a few times but i cant say its because of the tire- also a huge improvement from the old kenda.  

tires are safety equipment and you should get the best you can afford- cheap tires will wear out or rot faster and you have to keep an eye on them or they will do bad things to you but i doubt there is much difference between the performance while in good nick of low and medium price tires- if you want performance that has benefitted from science you have to pay the scientist, and the high end tires reflect that in their prices.  

just another fools two cents

keep the cheng side down
-KK

[fixahonda]

I have a set of Cheng Shin Barracudas on my 350F and they seem to be pretty solid tires. They look well made, balanced well, without much weight and ride smoothly. Handling so far seems to be good but I haven't pushed it much. So far I am happy with them. From reading the reviews on JC Whitney, everyone that commented also liked them a lot.
A big factor in buying was that I don't think I found another make that had a 90/90 and 100/90 in the same line if I remember right. Seems like the 100/90 is an oddball these days.

[Gregorymoto]

AVON 100/90

[Ichiban 4]

Have to add another negative on Cheng Shins.

Most the bike dealers, shops here (except ones selling) think they're craap.   Only time seen usually is on resale, older bikes that probably had worse original skins.   For low speed, very occasional riding..guess they are okay.  But why be so cheap?  The two skins on a bike are much more important than four on an auto.  Lots of folks don't seem to make the connection.

Biggg reason I don't like them is lack of quality control.  I've seen Cheng Shins that run 1/2" out of round..don't fit on rims evenly (obvious manufacturing defects) even when brand new.

My suggestion: unless you're just putting on display bike or very occasional rider..cough-up the few extra bucks and get a good pair of skins.   As said in previous posts here..Metzlers, Avons seem superior for these older Honda's, et al.

My two-cents worth.

Ichi

[DF]

I put a set on my CB550 last spring.  I had no issues.  They were cheap and look good.  I think they are the Marquis style Cheng-Shins.

Unless you ride hard - they should be fine.  But maybe I got lucky and got a good set.  Chinese quality isn't the most consistent.   

But hey - I think I got the back for $40 and the front for $30!

[Terry in Australia]

I love my Bridgestone BT45's, but my cousin sold Cheng Shin's, (among others) for 10 years until he sold the bike shop, and never got one complaint. I had a new "Barracuda" (a copy of one of the best bike tires ever made, the Pirelli Phantom) fitted by the shop I bought the bike from, on the front of my first F2 when I bought it, and it was better than the new, expensive, Metzler on the front of my BMW R100RS.

Don't be swayed by the "If you've got a 10 dollar head, then buy a 10 dollar helmet" set, for Cheng Shins to be sold in the US (or any other first world country) they need to meet or exceed the relevant design rules for that country, same as the other imported (and domestic) tires do. If you like 'em, buy 'em, you can do worse with some "better" brand names for a lot more money. Cheers, Terry.  

[Gordon]

Don't be swayed by someone from another country telling you that your government has already done the legwork for you and that it's safe to use anything they've deemed "good enough". 

[Terry in Australia]

And don't be swayed by someone from your own country pretending that he somehow knows how government standards work just because he's a resident, ha ha!

[S-Dog]

I have CS's on my bike and really like em.. They hang in the corners well and run nicely in all weather.  I went on a 6 state trek in October, went up and down Mt. Washington with sleet, hail and rain for about 150miles and had no issues whatsoever.  I could be lucky with the set I have on my bike, but would not think twice about getting another set.

[Geeto67]

ah ha.....Found it:

http://www.lex2k.org/jurisdiction/asahi.pdf

it is an old case but I never forgot it. The reason this case is remembered is because it sets a precedent on the issue of indemnification - very little of it has to do with the accident since the products liability suit against Cheng Shin was really a settled matter (if you want to know more about that look up "strict liability").

and Terry I want you to pay really close attention where it says that the subcontractor for the manufacture of valve stems never contemplated that their valve stems would be sold in california. Even if they had contemplated there is no standard for the manufacture of valve stems. In this country products liability law sets up the dynamic that either you make a good product or you are on the hook for whatever damage it causes.

Terry you are partially correct about design rules in that yes countries sometimes have some, but in the US there are very very very low standards for tires including motorcycle tires. There are tires for sale in this country that are lesser quality than CS tires (remember those colored recaps they sell in all the magazine?  it is a recapped bike tire fer chrissakes and I have yet to see one that isn't out of round).

[Gordon]

And don't be swayed by someone from your own country pretending that he somehow knows how government standards work just because he's a resident, ha ha!

I know enough about my government and the standards they set to not blindly trust them with my life, ha ha!

Cheers, gordon!!!!!

[Geeto67]

this has a better description of the tire's failure:

http://books.google.com/books?id=vu0h0IgkmM4C&pg=PA129&lpg=PA129&dq=%22gary+zurcher%22&source=web&ots=Ssrs1MGdwE&sig=jR8NM1zEHHopGAOTdopEygLcIbo&hl=en

personally I would not want to ride anything that is on public record as having lost air and then exploded. Granted this probably had more to do with the tube than the tire but....hey it is your life. 

[kghost]

Interesting that case goes back all the way to 1978.

Anyone remember when anything made in Japan was $hit?

That one died hard.

Anyone remember Firestone and the whole spat of SUV roll overs?

Damn I sure wish folks wouldn't confuse China and Taiwan.

Tiawan is where all the communist hating folks wound up after Mao.

China is where the lead painted toys come from. 

[Geeto67]

I guess that is a good point....taiwanese stuff may be cheap junk but it is not a health hazzard like the chinese stuff is becoming. Unless of course we are talking about tires.

[lrutt]

Well, you certainly got opinions. I'll continue to use them as they work for me just fine. I could care less if I convince anyone else. They have been selling tires in the US for a long time and I suspect will continue to do so. Your dollars your choice.

[mark]

Regarding the aforementioned court case.......

As a Bay Area native, I would also note the possibility of differences between a jury in Solano County, California,.....




and somewhere in the real world.

[Geeto67]

Regarding the aforementioned court case.......

As a Bay Area native, I would also note the possibility of differences between a jury in Solano County, California,.....




and somewhere in the real world.

What jury? There didin't need to be a jury finding - in products liability cases unless a company can prove that there was no defect and the product failure was caused by something the owner did - the company is on the hook. CS settled that case before it got to the trial stage anyway and sought indemnity from its valve manufacturer claiming the valve was defective.

I it isn't that I don't recommend them because of this case, I don't recommend them because they slid out on me way to many times to be comfortable riding on them everyday. I wasn't even into a third of the life of the tires I had and they were greasy feeling. I am not saying others will not have a different expirence, I am just saying their quality control is bad leading to some people getting good tires and some people getting bad tires and hating them and their price reflects this. You could do a whole lot worse for more money but you can also do a whole lot better for a moderate expenditure of extra money. 


Lets take this thread another usefull direction....like what size and brand do you run on your 350F or 400F only?

[kghost]

Slid out on ya?

How many years ago? Or was this recent?

What model chen shin?

Why do you think they were greasy? Was it the compound? Was it heat related?

Any particular type of road surface more greasy then others?

[Geeto67]

It was farily recent - I am willing to say 2005 or 2006, I have to look at when I bought that bike. They were on the '79 cb750F I bought. They were HiMax Sports. The first time the slid out from under me was the day I rode the bike home. The previous owner had installed them and they had about 900-1000 miles on them and were about a year and a half old according to him. He bought the bike to replace his monster that had been stolen and was selling the honda because 1) he didn't like it, and 2) he was moving to france.

Anyway, the first slide occured on a dry residential street at around 3 in the afternoon in dry summer conditions. I had just exited the highway (LIE) after doing about a 13 mile ride (BQE to the LIE) I was approaching an intersection in Queens (about 8 blocks from my house) and rolled into a right hand turn at about 20 miles an hour. Half way in the turn and while I am leaned over, the revs spike and the bike slides a foot to the left. Not wanting to highside I pinned it, put my foot down and rode it crossed up for about 10 feet before righting the bike and backing off. My buddy who was following me in his car said it was the most awsome thing he had seen (he had just started riding) and thought I did it on purpose. I got off the bike and went back and inspected the intersection. Not a grain of sand, not a drop of oil, no potholes or small stones. I remembered it vividly because it was the first serious brown moment I had after my 65mph motorcycle accident in 2004.

After that I rode the bike on weekends and it the tires definatly had a greasy feel to them. Another time I was coming down an long hill and I down shifted to slow me down and the rear began doing that back and forth wiggle that you see watching Motogp riders break for the turn. The tire was predictable in its feel, it would only get greasy when warm, and I even got used to how far I could push it in a turn (and it was no where near peg grinding riding). What made me uncomfortable with the tire is that in city riding I often have to make sharp movements and there were a couple of manhattan lane changes where she felt a little loose. To be fair it was only the rear that would do this. I spoke to a tire expert I know (from the firestone case days) and he said it might be mold release agent that leeched into the tire and only comes out when the tire heats up.

After that I swapped to a set of Avon Venoms and it was like a breath of fresh air. I then sold the bike to my brother a year later and he loves it. Still owns it. 

[Terry in Australia]

Well I clicked on the link but it wouldn't open, but anyway, dragging out a 30 year old court case is pretty weak, as has been mentioned in recent posts, most of the major tire manufacturers have received some bad press over the years, that Firestone incident for one, and Dunlop in recent years for their racing "control tires" exploding at speed etc, and if I was bothered enough to waste my time trawling the net, (and instantly gaining "expert" status, apparently) I'd probably find a lot more.

Regardless of the "google experts" here, my original point was, that even though I prefer my Bridgestone BT45's to anything else I've tried, (and that's a really long list after 39 years) Cheng Shin tires are sold in every "first world" country and even if America has the lowest design standards for tires in the first world (which I doubt) the tires have to be manufactured to the highest standards (probably Europe, with their unlimited speed Autobahns just begging for fast bikes) so that they can be sold world wide.

For that reason alone, American market specific Cheng Shins will be as good as European market specific Cheng Shins and so on. As I said, my cousin sold heaps of them from his shop without one complaint, and my experience with them is good, so I'm happy to assume that they're ok, except perhaps for an incident involving a tube in 1978. Cheers, Terry.

[Gordon]

Not to prolong this pissing contest, but my opinion of Cheng Shin tires is based on my own experience with them on my CB400F and was formed long before I ever knew they had a bad reputation. 

The 400 had Cheng Shins when I bought it, and the rear would routinely lose traction and slide out when turning a corner if given the slightest bit of throttle before straightening out.  I chalked it up to the possibility that the tires were old and bought a new set of Cheng Shins to replace them. 

I saw absolutely no improvement with the new set, even after allowing plenty of time for them to wear in.  After about a year, I replaced them with Avons, and never experienced the same problem again.  Hence, I will never buy Cheng Shins again unless they're the only option, and I now routinely put Avons on all my bikes.