I have a CBR600 F2 (F3) kit, with a 160 x 17" tyre at the rear.
http://img291.imageshack.us/my.php?image=sidely6.jpg
What I would like to know is whats the biggest/widest tyre I can put at the rear.
As someone else on this forum has a 180, is the american CBR version different from the UK?

Thanks

 

Ive heard that 180 is a bad idea...One guy on here had one and his chain was rubbing the tire....the biggest i would go is 170..thats what im doing

 

Does the 170 give you a bit of clearance on both sides?
What tyre are you using?

 

right now im using a 160 but im changing before I ride to mpp's 170/60/17 rear and 120/70/17 front

 

Ok thanks for the info...and it gives u good clearance?
Gonna jump out and grab a 170

thanks

 

i have a f3 rear rim because its wider than the f2 with a 180 and no problems at all!

plus do a search there are about 1000 post about the same thing..

 

OK, allow me to throw my 2 cents in on this one and (I hope) put this whole debate to rest. Attached is a pic of my new Avon Storm ST 160 rear tire (left side) next to a Metzler 180 on anidentically sized rim. As you can see with the Metzler pinched on the 4.5" rim it actually is about the same width. Granted,the Metz has a lot more tread up farther on the side wall. I SUPPOSE this means that you could feasably lean the bike over farther and still have usable tread on the road. But the bottom line is this; If you are looking for the appearance of a wider tireyou will HAVE to put it on a wider rim. Personally, I don't do ANYTHING strictly for appearance sake. It either works better or it's a waste of money. Worse yet it could cause problems with your bike or it's handling.



[IMG]local://upfiles/23326/F73B3723262A461CBA7CE9F61196C391.jpg[/IMG]

 

I doubt that any of the people that have "upgraded" to a wider tire have ever been able to ride the chicken rails off their 160's.

I can grind the pegs off of my CBR with the 160 tire, a 170 tire will not help you corner faster as you'll still be restricted by the stock footpegs. If you want more lean, get aftermarket rearsets and learn how to hang off your bike!