Fat front tires slow the handling.

Hey...I got an idea!

You are a new rider with little or no riding experience, and you have never owned a bike - but may be buying a bike soon.  Ride that thing for a while and see if you like riding, and if the Savage is the right bike for you.  Then when you get used to riding the bike in traffic, on curvy,slippery, gravel laden roads, in the rain, etc....then maybe you will be ready for a Cafe' conversion.  Riding around a MSF paved parking lot is a whole lot different than riding in the real world where you can find gravel in corners, curbs, wet spots with algae growing in the shadows, potholes and traffic to contend with.  

Then if you do go with the Cafe' conversion....you need to be ready for the reality that they are not all that comfortable...and several have reported the steering to be a bit "unsettling".  The fork angle is steeper, the handlebars are narrower, and they can be more quirky when the paving has grooves or uneven areas.....and that is before you bolt on a set of square shoulder vintage tires!  Maybe you should try an affordable set of Shinko or a similar tires before you spend high dollars for an antique tire.  The reality is that most of the vintage tires are made for vintage or show bikes to provide the "look", and the ride and handling are not all that important as most are not daily riders.  There is nothing wrong with a modern tires on a modern Cafe' bike.  I have done several things to my Cafe' to make it look older than it is (1972 tank, big headlight, big slotted screws holding the side panels on, etc.) - but I have gone  for the most modern up to date tires I can find that fit a Cafe bike (Pirelli Sport Demons or Bridgestone Battlax BT-45), as I want the bike to corner and handle as well as it can.  The stickiest street tire that we can buy for Cafe bike sizes are "Sport Touring tires" - and they are also tires made to obtain decent mileage before they are worn out.

Also you need to be sure you are going to use rims that are a suitable size for the tire you are going to use.  Don't squeeze a 4:00x18 tires on a 2.15 wide front rim and a 2.50 rear rim and expect them to look the same.  It is best to use the STD rim width listed in the chart....although they do allow some alternate widths.
http://www.mtsac.edu/~cliff/storage/gs/Motorcycle_Rim_Width_Tire_Size_Chart.pdf

Jeff71 wrote on 09/24/14 at 08:53:26:


Until you buy a bike and put some miles on it and actually become a "rider".....I am not going to participate in anymore of these "What If" threads.

Dave

 + 2 on the previous posts !

From experience. in my teens, (and before),
rode dirt bikes, (and some really crappy ones)
in the local gravel pit. (And did some really stupid things)

From then, to, (just a few years ago), to 09, drove friends MC's, now and then. 2 - 4 times a year. From the 250 'Rebel's', to, Top of the Line G.W.'s, some 'BIG", Harleys, and even a couple of 'Can-Am's".
Also, picked up some, 'Barn Queens", tweaked them, rode them some, then sold them.

Then decided I Want one myself. So looked for a year, picked up a Yam XT-250, in 09.  (Cause a, 'dirt bike', is what I had). It was Fun.  
(accessorized it, but did not Modify)
But it was,  'Just', not enough, on the highway.
Researched again, and picked up a, 06, S40.

Happy with it. Very happy with it.
(Even now looking at, 'new', (old) 2014's with 0 miles, at the Dealers)

Picked up a Kaw V 800, My, 'buddies', said.
"Gee NOW you Finally got a Bike that, 'fits' you".
(A very small hand 'jester', dismissed that comment)

But I ride the S40 more, than the Kawy V800,
the V800, is Just to, 'soft'.

Now keep in mind, My trips are 30-50 miles one way.
And most every day, 9-12.
If My style of riding was 200-400 miles a trip, it would be a G.W.

So, unless it is a 'OLD' bike, you are making to be, 'Original',
then go with the Old, (style) tires.
(Like a 29 "A". or a 30 Chevy, and a 33 Buick)
You, Want, 'old', looking tires.

Passing your test on a TU-250 Or a Rebel 250,
is  QUITE Different, than riding on the road.
And, QUITE, Different than 'passing your test',
and going out and buying a 1500 CC, 1,000 Pound bike.

Ride your Bike.  Get to Know It, Get used to it.
Ride other people Bikes. (Most will let you)

THEN, change the, Handling/etc, of that bike.

OH, and the Most Important Thing Is:
If, you are doing changes, to, "Impress Someone".

Those people are  NOT, worth Impressing !!!!!!!

ESPECIALLY,  the  Girls.  !!!!!!!

Jeff, at the risk of displaying my ignorance, and it's considerable. How do you intend fitting an 18 inch tyre on a 19 inch front wheel and a fifteen inch rear? Changing both wheels o 18 inch will involve a lot of mechaninicing and I think would be contrary to some of the advice, that others with far more experience than I, have given you.

Jeff71 wrote on 09/28/14 at 21:33:07:

I don't think you're really looking for either...

I'll keep my "opinions/experiences" to myself from now on...
Best luck...

Teachers need to be boundless in their curiosity. It's good to know things
That ain't widely known,that way you have stuff to share with more people.
There's a lot of stuff here that you're not gonna be able to get out of a CAD program. We have lots to offer a curious fella. That fat single piston is a fun engine to mess with..

I am also a grizzled old teacher ... and a house painter for thirty years...and I tell my students regularly that I've moved from believing that experience is the best teacher, to experience is the only teacher.