ake a switch to the Avon Venoms and you’ll feel the difference. Rolling on Venoms, bikes handle easy, they transition into corners better and do it all with less effort. This is something felt on all Harleys but especially notable on the bigger bikes, machines like the Road Kings and Ultra Classics. Avon Venoms let these bikes handle much more nimbly, especially at slower speed in-town urban riding. It’s all about the Venom’s profile.
     Avon Venoms have a much more rounded profile then OE Harley-Davidson rubber. The result: instead of feeling like the tire is fighting against itself to make that transition from straight up to leaned over the Venoms make it a smooth roll-over and cornering becomes almost effortless. It’s a dramatic departure from OE. That’s just the beginning of the Venom advantage, too. These tires are great in the wet, they’re cool running, they’re manufactured with a softer compound for better grip and on top of all that they can last longer. Properly maintained and inflated Venoms can deliver significantly greater mileage than OE rubber.
     The Venom’s tread pattern is pretty special, too. It’s about more than just traction. That simple-appearing tread pattern efficiently evacuates any water underneath it, even though at a glance that might not seem possible. But look closely. There are no interconnecting grooves to trap water. Instead there’s a clear, unblocked channel so water just flows out and away from the contact patch. Tires using a series of inter-connected blocks in their tread patterns tend to wiggle and squirm during use. That creates cupping. To get any mileage at all from a tire like that the compound has be harder. That’s a non-issue with a Venom. The Venom tread doesn’t “squirm” so it resists cupping and because of that the compound can be optimized for grip without sacrificing mileage. For all of these reasons Avon Venoms are one of the most popular Harley replacement tires on the market.
     Venoms are available in all the sizes and styles Harley riders need, including tires for the V-Rods and Deuces when using the Storm or the new Cobra. And while these are premium tires, they don’t carry a premium price. Venoms are comparably priced with the market and Drag Specialties has them all.
     One final note: For best performance Avon recommends cleaning these tires with soap and water only. No chemical cleaners. They also strongly discourage the use of liquid balancers and sealers and warn against the use of spray dressings. A slippery tire might look good at an indoor show but that’s exactly what you don’t want on the street. And the recommended inflation pressures for a Venom are a little higher then you’d expect. For solo riding on a bagger it’s 38- to 40 PSI for the front and 42- to 44 PSI for the rear. Two-up or luggage-loaded riding ups those recommendations to 40- to 43 PSI for the front and 46- to 50 PSI for the rear. Heed all of that and those Venoms will be with you for a long, long time and you’ll love every mile of it.