Tire Prices....

First off, I want to be clear that I am no way affiliated with this business. But, I just bought a Avon Cobra rear tire for my R3T from this place, and thought I should post about it.
I looked around my usual haunts on the internet for pricing, and stumbled across this link: Motorcycle Tires: Michelin, Dunlop, Metzeler, Pirelli, Avon, Bridgestone.
I ordered it on Monday morning, and it was on my doorstep Wednesday afternoon (East Coast to West Coast). It was significantly less expensive than the other places that I have checked.
If you are looking for tires, give it a look.

Excellent prices on the OEM Metzelers, too! Thanks for the link, Super D.

WOW ... $240 for a 240/50 Cobra rear tire ... that's the cheapest I've seen that tire EVER.

Excellant find... Thanks for the info..

Difference between BIAS PLY and RADIAL PLY tires

That is a great site.

A stupid question: What's the difference between BIAS PLY and RADIAL PLY tires?

Dunlop lists two different tires, both tubeless. One BIAS, the other RADIAL.

Is one better suited for for the larger cruisers?

I did some I Net research, but you guys always provide the best info. For example:

Remember, correct matching of front and rear tires is important to obtain optimum performance and handling. Follow the Tire Selection guidelines.

• Mixing radials, or mixing radials with bias or belted bias tires may adversely affect handling and stability.

Thanks in advance for the help!

Well, Radials have the belts wrapped around the radius and make the tire more stable as well as controlling "growth" at high speeds. Simply put, it's a better technology that allows for higher speeds, longer life and less possibility of carcass separation.
Bias ply tires have the cord wrapped on the bias ... not length wise or cross wise on the tire, but diagonally. It's still used for really heavy duty tires that don't go high speeds and for classic replicas. You don't mix radials and bias because of the way the tire carcass flexes on radials and less on bias. You can loose control around curves by mixing them from the uneven sidewall slip.
Unless you are trying to be true to the era an antique was made, radials are your best choice. I would stick with radials. (and don't mix them)

The definition comes from the way the cords (the string like pieces that lie under the tread that give the tire shape and strength) are laid out on the pattern.

Like HF said, the cords on a bias ply tire are laid at approximately a 45 degree angle to the beads. A set of cords going lower-right to uppper-left is overlapped with a set of cords going from lower-left to upper-right. This form gives the tire tremendous strength and rigidity, especially in the sidewalls. The form however tends to force the tread face to deform under load rather than the sidewalls.

A radial tire, however, has the cords laid out perpendicular to the beads. In other words, the cords goes straight from the left bead to the right bead. |--| This results in a less rigid tire that is more flexible. To control the shape of the tread face, manufactures will run "belts", either aramid or steel, on top of the cords parallel to the beads. Much like a ring on a finger. The belts keep the tread face from deforming under load which means that the sidewalls tend to flex more. The end result is that more tread remains on the road at any moment in time. The added benefit is that less energy is wasted in deforming the treadface which translates into less rolling resistence leading to better gas mileage.

2c in the jar, please.