Tire recommendation

[bigbikerrick]

The stock front bridgestone bt020 on my 03 v 11 sport naked is almost down to the wear bars at only 5500 miles, the same tire in the rear is still in very good shape, Im surprised the front wore out so quickly, I am not an agressive rider,and keep the air pressure at around 30 psi, I mostly do sport touring type riding. what tire brand have you folks had good luck with and gotten good mileage out of? I ride mostly in dry conditions( It never rains in Arizona) Thanks!

[Guzzirider]

Tyre choice has been debated many a time on this forum- have a search and you will find a million posts.

 

If you want long life I understand that the new Contis have a good reputation.

[stormsedge]

Interesting...noticed my front appears to be wearing faster than the rear as well. Second set of tires, these Michelin Pilot Roads. The previous Bridgestones wore the rear out first, but first owner outweighed my by 30 or so pounds (believe that is about 120 in twinkie points). I am wondering if the increased front tire wear has to do with my inclination to use the front brake without rear brake assist a large amount of the time, or the previously threaded rotor warpage I dealt with...anyway, working to use rear in tandem with front again, but will likely have to put a tire on in near future. Btw, my front tire wear specifically makes the tire look like it has a more squared center with abrupt angle to sidetread...may just be the lack of corners around here. k

[Steve G.]

Ahh, Tire threads, oil threads, gotta love them.

A very personal issue, I have to say in one sentence, that no tire is the perfect tire, much like bikes, that commonly the stickiest tires don't last long, and the longest lasting tires don't stick as well. Anyone who pronounces that their tire of choice does both better than "those other tires" I feel might be trying to convince themselves about their tires more than others. A tires ability in the rain has more to do with the tread patch pattern than that "special" compound that only their tire seems to have.

Adding to the problem of varying thought about reading tire wear, is that the road, and rider skill has more input into the wear than the tire itself. Depending on where in the world you ride, the "crown" of the road has the biggest impact on unequal tire wear, with those in mainland Europe, and North America finding the left side of the tire wears quicker, with those in the UK, Australia wear is on the right. Also note that different ways of laying down ashpalt roadways drastically affect different wear rates. For example, roads in Canada use a lesser amount of crushed gravel, the roads here tend to be very smooth to the touch, with less tire wear, and in certain conditions, namely rain, or high heat, very slipperly conditions. Roads in the United States use a higher degree of crush rock, so sliding your hand across finds a very rough and bumpy [to the fingers] surface. This is most ideal to the bike rider who likes to negotiate his corners fast, but makes for very agressive tire wear. Those who live near areas with minimal corners will have to expect tire wear mostly in the centre.

Add road temperature to the debate for an extra effect on the tire. Bigbikerrick mentions he is unhappy with the wear on his 020's. Last time I checked, average temperatures are on average 25 degrees F warmer in populated Arizona than in southern British Columbia. I average 16,000kms [10,000miles] on my front 020, and 10-12,000 kms on the rear. My wear usually happens like this. Towards the end my front shows wear right across the tread pattern, with more wear and cupping on the left side [crown], some on the right. The tire is always changed before I even get to the centre wear mark warning, as the tire wear on the sides makes the bike unconfident in the corners. This "feeling" of lack of confidence happens surprisingly in a very short time, it is not a long progressive feeling of reduced confidence. If roads around here were only straight, I'd keep it on longer, but when you think about it, the tire would not last as long, as tire wear would not be shared across the whole face of the tire. These are wear rates comparable to many of my riding buddies on the front. They are different on the rear because of varying hp outputs from different bikes, and here's new for you, my rear tire lasts longer than those on ZX11's etc.

My brother uses a race compound Dunlop on his RC30. The tire has been worn out in as little as 2500 kms. He also has over 30,000kms on the Dunlop K70 on the front of his CBX. I know this is apples and oranges here, but also bear in mind that the K70 lasts so long because it has tire compounds that make it as hard as a hockey puck, and it is downright dangerous to ride agressively. What I'm trying to say is, you will not find a tire that will stick like a race slick, AND last forever.

When buying a tire based on personal judgements of your previous tires performance, keep these differing road conditions and riding characteristics strongly in mind. They have a much greater influence on the tire performance than whether it's a sport touring Continental, Dunlop, Pirelli, or others.

Ciao, Steve G.

[stogieBill]

Listers,

 

FWIW

 

It's my understanding that, generally speaking, front tire wear is most commonly attributed to braking in cornering. Rear tire wear is generally from acceleration (out of corners :-).

 

Having said this, I think the 30psi your maintaining in the front may be a bit low. I'm running 34 front and 38 rear but there's no way I'll ever see 5500 miles on a set of tires on my Scura.

 

Happy trails,

 

Bill

[Ouiji Veck]

, I am not an agressive rider,and keep the air pressure at  around 30 psi,

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30lbs is a bit low... I think 34 is more like it.

I've been riding 30 yrs and never ate a front tire first....especially on a big bore twin, shaft drive,

I got a couple hundred miles on my new Conti Road attacks. They feel great.

( I think someone mentioned running them @ 40/38psi)

The price was right and I read a couple of unbiased articles about them that sounded

very good....long life w/ good rain grip...wish I had the links. One was from a group called Canyon Chasers.

It's an eternal struggle finding a high milage yet sticky tire. I don't need Nicky Haydens

compound but I do get stuck far away from home in a deluge now and then and

if a bikes going to slide out ...well..you know.

I got 7000 mi out of my last metzlers...the left side on the rear was completly gone

when I got back from Nova Scotia (2700mi) this year.

Will we ever see even a 10Kmi performance tire?

[mark.gilmore]

Hi men.

My Use a soft tyre on the front,It will last longer cause it is harder to push a soft tyre into a corner and make it grind. An 020 is hard compound and grind very easy,Good for long straight roads. 014,Good for twisties,Better grip and wont grind in the corners as much,Hence longer lasting.

As for tyres worn on one side more than other side,I've seen this heaps with some of the guys I ride with on twisty mountian roads. When asked ,Witch corner do you prefer,Left or right,The answer is always the side least worn.WHY IS THIS SO .Most people are happier going around left handers, [Cause most tracks and stuff like that ever since you were young are anticlockwise].So,Most people in there prefered corner be it L or R will roll the throttle on through the corner,This transfers some desired weight to the back wheel making handling much better and less tyre wear on the front. Best way to avoid this tyre wear is to go sign up for a Keith Codes Superbike School an learn how to ride a bike.Those guys are the best in the business.

Have a great day Gilly

[dlaing]

I am still trying to figure out why my front wears on the left and the rear is balanced.

I think it was the setup of the Marzocchi Forks.

I got some Ohlins forks about two thousand miles ago and the front may be wearing better...but it is too early to tell.

The angle of the front tread has a great effect on scalloping.

I choose my front tire accordingly, and in my pigheaded opinion, brands that get the angle wrong, SUCK, are CRAP, DO NOT BUY THEM!!!!!

But I won't name brand names, this time....

Just watch out for tread that goes like this:

\/

\/

\/

(....looking from the front of the bike, and not standing on your head)

 

While front treads that go like this are what you need

/\

/\

/\

[orangeokie]

. . . I got a couple hundred miles on my new Conti Road attacks. They feel great.

( I think someone mentioned running them @ 40/38psi)

The price was right and I read a couple of unbiased articles about them that sounded very good....long life w/ good rain grip...wish I had the links. One was from a group called Canyon Chasers. . .

 

Here's the thread with the link on the RoadAttacks . . . third post down.

[bigbikerrick]

Listers,

 

FWIW

 

It's my understanding that, generally speaking, front tire wear is most commonly attributed to braking in cornering.  Rear tire wear is generally from acceleration (out of corners :-).

 

Having said this, I think the 30psi your maintaining in the front may be a bit low.  I'm running 34 front and 38 rear but there's no way I'll ever see 5500 miles on a set of tires on my Scura.

 

Happy trails,

 

Bill 

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Thanks Bill, I will up the psi on my tires as you recommend, Rick.

[bigbikerrick]

I am still trying to figure out why my front wears on the left and the rear is balanced.

I think it was the setup of the Marzocchi Forks.

I got some Ohlins forks about two thousand miles ago and the front may be wearing better...but it is too early to tell.

The angle of the front tread has a great effect on scalloping.

I choose my front tire accordingly, and in my pigheaded opinion, brands that get the angle wrong, SUCK, are CRAP, DO NOT BUY THEM!!!!!

But I won't name brand names, this time....

Just watch out for tread that goes like this:

\/

\/

\/

(....looking from the front of the bike, and not standing on your head)

 

While front treads that go like this are what you need

/\

/\

/\Hmmmm. Thats interesting I never thought about that! 

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