Most Popular Tire Sizes / Brands for the Honda Shadow VLX
Making the change from stock tires to aftermarket tires makes all the difference in handling and even the look and feel of the bike. If you want a tire that looks skinnier than stock, or maybe wider you will find the size and a description of how it fits on both the stock and relaced rims here. At the bottom you will find a list of popular tire brands including available white wall options.
VLX VT600C/CD
The stock VLX rim sizes are the same as many other 52 spoke wheeled Honda Shadows. The front rim size is 19″ x 2.15″ and the rear rim size is 15″ x 3.5″.
Front:
100/90-H19 fr (This is the stock tire size)
110/80-H19 fr (This tire is wider but not as tall as the stock VLX tire)
110/90-H19 fr (This is a wider and taller replacement size for Metzler, Avon and other brands)
120/70-H19 fr (This tire is shorter and wider than tire giving that fat tire look, fender clearance issues can be a problem)
90/90-H21 fr (Use this tire if you have relaced your front rim to a 21″ VT750C2 front rim)
Rear:
The stock rear rim is 3.5 inches wide, note that a VTX rear spoke rim size is 4.5 inches wide.
170/80-B15 rr – (This is the stock tire size) Tests have shown that this tire actually looks wider than the 180 on the stock rim. This tire is 136mm tall based on its 80% aspect ratio of the 170mm width.
180/70-H15 rr – This tire has a wider width and lower height than the 170, and is quite common on the stock rim to get a few mm wider rear tire. This tire looks great on the VTX rim if you have relaced. This tires smaller aspect ratio of 70% means it is only 126mm tall giving it a lower profile look that the stock tire size which is popular among many riders.
200/70-H15 rr – This tire technically will fit on a stock rim but it will be bubbled and will not yield the wiedth results you might think form a tire this wide. This tire is best used only after performing the VTX rim relace. Note that this tire is tall which will affect gearing (acceleration) and cornering (bike will tend to self right itself). This tire is 140mm tall based on its 70% aspect ratio of the 200mm width. This tire size is incredibly popular with the VTX rim mod.
Note that each of these tires will only gain a few millimeters of width over stock.
Popular Tire Brands for all Honda Shadow Motorcycles:
Metzler ME880 – (possibly the most popular stock tire replacement brand based on longevity and handling in all conditions)
Avon Venom – (these are also incredibly popular and many would say they are as good or better than the Metzlers)
Dunlop D404 – (Dunlops are very affordable but are known for road chasing/following cracks and grooves)
Dunlop K177 / K555 Kenda K673 Kruz – (good wet/dry traction, do not chase the road)
Shinko 777 – (very affordable)
Pirelli MT66 – (limited sizes available)
White Wall Tire (WWW) Options:
Avon:
Venom: 100/90H-19 WWW Front
Venom: 140/90HB-16 Rear (30mm narrower than stock)
Shinko: (the only manufacturer to provide a matching set of White Walls that fit the VLX)
777: 100/90-19 WWW Front (stock size)
777: 150/80-16 WWW Rear (20mm narrower than stock)
777: 170/70-16 WWW Rear (stock size)
Metzler:
ME880: 140-90B-16 Rear
Me880: 150/80B-16 Rear
ME880: 170/80-15 WWW Rear
Dunlop:
K555: 170/80-15 WWW Rear
Available Tire Sizes By Brand:
| Brand | Metzler ME880 | Avon Venom | Dunlop D404 | Kendra K673 | Shinko 777 |
| Front Sizes Available: | 120/70B-17 130/70R-17 140/80-17 150/80-17 110/90-19 120/70ZR-19 90/90-21 |
100/90H-19 WWW 110/90H-19 80/90H-21 90/90H-21 |
120/90-17 140/80-17 140/80-17 WWW 100/90-19 110/90-19 80/90-21 |
100/90-19 110/90-19 80/90-21 |
160/80-15 170/80-15 150/90-15 WWW 170/80-15 WWW 150/80-16 170/70-16 170/70-16 WWW 150/80-16 WWW 150/90-15 WWW |
| Rear Sizes Available: | 150/90B-15 160/80-15 170/80B-15 170/80B-15 WWW 180/70B-15 200/70B-15 150/80B-16 160/80B-16 140/90B-16 WWW 150/80b-16 WWW |
140/90H-15 150/90HB-15 170/80HB-15 200/70H-15 170/80H15 WWW 140/90HB-16 WWW |
150/90-15 WWW 170/80-15 140/90-16 150/80/16 |
140/90-15 150/90-15 170/80-15 140/90-16 150/80H-16 160/80-16 |
120/90-17 140/80-17 100/90-19 110/90-19 140/80-17 WWW 100/90-19 WWW 80/90-21 90/90-21 |
| Brand | Avon Storm | Pirelli MT66 | |||
| Front Sizes Available: | 110/80R19 | 90/90-19 100/90-19 110/90-19 80/90-21 |
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| Rear Sizes Available: | 150/80ZR16 | 150/90-15 170/80-15 180/70-15 140/90-16 150/80-16 |