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What's the right tire for YOUR bike?

19K views 24 replies 12 participants last post by  iamzombie 
#1 · (Edited)
All right, this is the question that everyone usually asks and there are many different answers to it. I'm going to try and sum most of the answers into this one thread.

Tires are a HUGE mental game. I know this first hand because I used to only trust Michelins, and today I'm sponsored by Dunlop (Edit:1/1/16 Back to Michelins) Most of the time, any tire option will suit you just fine for street use (unless you try dirt tires on a street bike or something silly like that).

All major brands (Dunlop, Michelin, Pirelli,...) are great players in the game, so to say you like one brand better than the other because you like the shape of their logo doesn't quite fly.

First thing you have to ask is what do you want out of a tire? A race tire would be a waste of money if you're using your bike for street only. Even if your doing half street, half track, a race tire will destroy itself very quickly depending on your pace.

A street tire may not be suitable for any riders riding from mid "I"ntermediate group or higher. Tire just wasn't made for those kind of speeds.

Most tires available from your local vendor or a motorcycle website are street tires (ex.: Dunlop Q3, Michelin Pilot Powers, etc.). Race tires are usually a little harder to come by, you need to search them specifically or go through the manufacture directly.

However most people think that when they drop the bike is because they went in "too hot" and the tire lost grip, and that is simply not the case most of the time. Even with a stock suspension a motorcycle can do a lot more in a corner with a street tire. Most of the roads I've been to, I wouldn't even push the limit of the front end of my bike in a corner simply because the corner wouldn't allow me too (I'm sure there are roads out there that you can)

So when you go asking for "what tire is the best?" Or "what tire is better for my bike" remember that a lot of it has to do with your mind. Get what you think you would be comfortable with :fact
 
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#4 ·
Theyre not made for it, same with the street tires part.

In other words yes, to a point. Everyones "aggressive" riding is different :fact
 
#5 ·
Sport Rider magazine did a comparison between slicks - DOTs - Hypersport (street tires) - and Sport Touring tires. They experienced approximately a .10 second difference from one tire to the next. I've ridden Deal's Gap with Sport Touring tires on my R1. I wasn't dragging knee, but wasn't far from it.
 
#6 ·
I think confidence has a big role in tire selection.

My good friend once said "tire technology has come a long way, they were dragging knee in the 80's."

I think there's some solid truth to that, and it has helped me with tire selection. When someone's afraid of a tires capability, I feel that it could lead them to make frequent mistakes, because they're not trusting the tire and are distracted. When you can take the human element out of the equation, a tire's ability is exponential no matter the type.

I always say go with your gut, and what you like. If you feel like a sport touring tire won't hold up well while leaned over, don't buy one. That mental barricade is going to burn you every time. If you think you'll feel more comfortable with a hypersport on the road, or a DOT vs slick on the track, preference is importance because it builds confidence.

Just my .02
 
#7 ·
Don't forget....a lot of sport touring tires have the edges of the hyper-sport tire (dual/triple compound).....

Angle GT's for me on the street wheels (for my next set)
Pirelli supercorsa slicks on the track wheels....
 
#8 ·
I've given up trying to explain it. :lol Most folks hear the word "touring" and assume that they are not safe for speeds over 50. The sporting touring tires I have run have been Z rated radials and have lasted about 10k miles. The only complaint I've had about the older ones was the lack of feedback. But grip has never been an issue.
 
#9 ·
Mileage is always going to be a factor. I run the stickiest tires I can afford (D211 GPA's take offs currently) and care very little for mileage. If I get another track day out of this set I will be happy, and honestly I think I will get at least one more after that. Tires have definitely come a long way from the 90's, and this R1 sure can eat up rear tires.

I still can't stand Michelin though...
 
#13 ·
Lol.....and I'm partial to Pirelli - hence the angel GT's.

Honestly, all the major brands are great, sticky tires. Dunlop have a stiff carcass, while Pirelli have soft carcass. But, IMHO, I don't think you'd even feel a difference on the street. I'd say to with whatever's on sale....
 
#16 ·
I originally asked this thread to be a sticky since this question comes around VERY often.

However i am not god and am not always right so I wanted to see if people were thinking any different, if you do have a different opinion please post it up
 
#17 ·
all points raised hopefully aids in the person asking the "what tyre" question to ask a better question...

i.e.

i want a fast turning tyre....life is important....but i do track days in the fast group....i get caught riding in the rain so wet grip matters...oh, and excellent cold grip.

that's what i want!!!
 
#18 ·
Get a spare set of wheels and put the track tires on it :lol
 
#21 ·
This is completely personal preference.

I, personally, am a die hard Michelin fan when it comes to street tires. The pilot road is made to warm up quicker being a street tire when you dont carry warmers with you everywhere.
 
#23 ·
I normally ran Dunlop UK slicks on the street for a while, then had a cold tire crash so went to Dunlop Q3s doing tons of canyon riding, dragging knee in the canyons and doing aggressive cornering, I started to come away from that and commute more, and went with 2ct Michelin, those were on an 09 R1, well, crashed and broke my back on those in April, then about 2 months ago I bought another R1 2013, and it came with the Michelin pilot Power 3s can't stand them I feel no front tire stability, feel like it's gonna break loose, couldn't find my confidence, anyways, back to what I need help with, I'm in the search for tires, I commute a lot, like 100 miles a day, and I also need something with good sides for when I hit corners aggressive, I know everyone's aggressiveness is different, for me just take it as, I don't know how to be calm when a corner comes up, unless I'm not too comfortable with my tires, thanks
 
#24 ·
Hi emap72,

New here so a bit late to the conversation. I've been running pilot road 3's on my KTM990 SMT for 5 years now, about 24k miles and really like them. They work well in the wet (I live in seattle) and the dry and I was getting about 6500 miles on the rear most of the time riding pretty aggressive touring.

I'm getting a 2016 R1 soon and I will probably run Pilot Road 4's most of the year for sport touring. I'll mount something else for track days.

Hope this helps.
 
#25 ·
I've been running PR3's (and at the end of last season PR4) since I replaced my OEM Pirelli's. I've got roughly 25,000 kms (15.5k miles) from the rear (too cold to go put a battery in the bike to verify, lol) from the rear and while it will definitely need replacing soon, it's still got quite a bit of life left.

If you are constantly doing track days or canyon carving at high speed, a sport touring tire may not be for you, but for me the Pilot Road's are nothing outside of amazing.
 
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