tires,tires,tires on the dragon

i read a couple of ya talking about the tire conversation, im rolling a 05 R1 with only about 1400 miles on it, all my local buddys riding the same bike hate the factory tires that come on the bike the 218's , i myself have had no complaints so far, but i also still have 1/2 inch chicken strips where i havent had the bike all the way down yet. im told when they push hard on these tires in the tight corners, or in the long low sweeps... that its easy to break theses 218's free and start sliding " wheel spin". anyone else had this problem with theses factory tires ? i dont plan on going all out on the dragon as i have not rode it before, but considering it is "THE DRAGON" i wanna be prepaired. should i mount the pilot powers before this trip and put the factory's up ???? p.s. and before anyone starts giving me hell for the chicken strips, hey i live in indiana, not alot of good places to drag knee around here.:D and i would rather ask this question before i find out the hard way on the dragon. otis:fork

i know some of the guys didnt have any problems with teh 218 loved thm in fact. it is all up to you. if the tire is stickey for your riding style dont worry to much about them

Originally posted by southern118 i know some of the guys didnt have any problems with teh 218 loved thm in fact. it is all up to you. if the tire is stickey for your riding style dont worry to much about them you make a good point. it should be warm enuff by the middle of next month i dont think i will have a problem with gettin em sticky.

i will tell you that ian(r1formeetooo) had the stock 218 riding in the wet and had no problem with traction. you might hit him up with a pm and see what he says he is in destin this week so he wont be quick on the respone

Originally posted by southern118 i know some of the guys didnt have any problems with teh 218 loved thm in fact. it is all up to you. if the tire is stickey for your riding style dont worry to much about them I was going to say it depends on your riding style. I had no problems with the 218s and had them worn to the edges, but I am not one for getting extremely heavy on the throttle early while exiting a corner. I have heard nothing but good things about the Pilot Powers, you could always try those out before you go.

Originally posted by cowboy_r1 I was going to say it depends on your riding style. I had no problems with the 218s and had them worn to the edges, but I am not one for getting extremely heavy on the throttle early while exiting a corner. I have heard nothing but good things about the Pilot Powers, you could always try those out before you go. considering im not going to be pushing too hard on this "my first trip to the gap" im thinking im gonna leave the factorys on and just go with the pilot's when its time to replace. i like yourself am not know either for being heavy on my corner exits. thanks otis

I am one of the guys who HATE dunlop tires. I swapped out the 218s (and then sold them) with Pilot Powers even before the bike had 1 mile on her. If you feel confortable on the 218s then stick with them. For me, I want the best of the best while I am at the gap. So I went out and bought a pair of Pirelli Supercorsas just for the gap trip. :fact

Originally posted by kevap I am one of the guys who HATE dunlop tires. I swapped out the 218s (and then sold them) with Pilot Powers even before the bike had 1 mile on her. If you feel confortable on the 218s then stick with them. For me, I want the best of the best while I am at the gap. So I went out and bought a pair of Pirelli Supercorsas just for the gap trip. :fact THATS A THOUGHT . THANKS

If I bring the CBR I'll have the OEM pilot sports on there. Not too worried though.... The pavement and the gap rocks and if you are smooth on the gas there isnt much to worry about.

my new bike has pilot sport cup on it. i dont know how the traction is yet as i havent put any miles on it but will know in a few weeks before the trip. i just dont have my gear right this minute to go ride hard

Originally posted by KneeDragger77 If I bring the CBR I'll have the OEM pilot sports on there. Not too worried though.... The pavement and the gap rocks and if you are smooth on the gas there isnt much to worry about. FROM OHIO EH ? WELL HEY NEIGHBOR ! :D

Originally posted by southern118 my new bike has pilot sport cup on it. i dont know how the traction is yet as i havent put any miles on it but will know in a few weeks before the trip. i just dont have my gear right this minute to go ride hard THERE ARE SO MANY TIRE CHOICES, AND I DONT RIDE TO EXTREME, IM NOT THINKING I HAVE ANY WORRIES, HPE YOU GET YOUR GEAR SOON, THIS WEATHER IS TOO NICE NOT TO BE RIDING ! OTIS

My experience with the 218's does seem to vary from a lot of others that have posted up. Dunlop 218 Likes: Tires last a while and seem to hold pretty well in the rain. Dislikes: Tires slip on me quite profusely when coming out of a turn hard. I for one am a semi-track guy and I love to really get on it coming out of a turn trying to shave my times down just a bit. Also stocks are 190's and they turn slower.; I recommend 180's or just go down to a 190 55 (Lower profile) they turn like 180's too. RECOMMENDATIONS: #1 Diablo Corsa's Nice tires 50/50 track/street tire (Now these things stick for a street tire) However, their life span is not great! #2 PILOT POWERS ------------------------- Just my .02

Originally posted by kevap I am one of the guys who HATE dunlop tires. I swapped out the 218s (and then sold them) with Pilot Powers even before the bike had 1 mile on her. If you feel confortable on the 218s then stick with them. For me, I want the best of the best while I am at the gap. So I went out and bought a pair of Pirelli Supercorsas just for the gap trip. :fact I have Dragon Supercorsa 190/55 on my bike now medium ... soft supercorsa front. They stick great but some time a bit much for the street. I may be ridin on them too. But think I will prolly just go for the "Diablo Corsa's". However I have been hearing great things about the Pilot Powers "Race" version tires. Friends say they seem a bit more v'd then rounded and the bike really shifts from side to side w/o effort guess we will see.

Originally posted by 2005ravenYZFR1 My experience with the 218's does seem to vary from a lot of others that have posted up. Dunlop 218 Likes: Tires last a while and seem to hold pretty well in the rain. Dislikes: Tires slip on me quite profusely when coming out of a turn hard. I for one am a semi-track guy and I love to really get on it coming out of a turn trying to shave my times down just a bit. Also stocks are 190's and they turn slower.; I recommend 180's or just go down to a 190 55 (Lower profile) they turn like 180's too. RECOMMENDATIONS: #1 Diablo Corsa's Nice tires 50/50 track/street tire (Now these things stick for a street tire) However, their life span is not great! #2 PILOT POWERS ------------------------- Just my .02 I SEE WE HAVE THE SAME BIKE. SWEET. HEY THANKS FOR TAKING THE TIME TO WRITE ALL THIS STUFF OUT, IM SURE I WILL PICK ONE OF THOSE 2 WHEN ITS TIME FOR ME TO CHANGE TIRES UP

I'll have my supercorsa's on. They have done good for me in the past at the GAp.

i was on diablos last year and after about 1400 miles they are gone on my ninja. but we will se how the pilot sport cups last this year or i will be buying tires from wheelers

Originally posted by SWALDEN I SEE WE HAVE THE SAME BIKE. SWEET. HEY THANKS FOR TAKING THE TIME TO WRITE ALL THIS STUFF OUT, IM SURE I WILL PICK ONE OF THOSE 2 WHEN ITS TIME FOR ME TO CHANGE TIRES UP Hey Swalden... can you turn the caps lock off?? It really is annoying. :fact

Originally posted by kevap Hey Swalden... can you turn the caps lock off?? It really is annoying. :fact it could be like me. while im at work i use nothing but caps so if i turnt hem off and go back to work i have to redo stuff it sucks sometimes:fact

Originally posted by southern118 i was on diablos last year and after about 1400 miles they are gone on my ninja. but we will se how the pilot sport cups last this year or i will be buying tires from wheelers Just an FYI, Eddie (2nd time) was running regular Diablo's last year.....and we all know that Eddie is no slouch on the Gap.

you are correct and we all know i cant ride.

I was trying to say that Diablos should be ok for 99% of the time:hellobye

Originally posted by southern118 it could be like me. while im at work i use nothing but caps so if i turnt hem off and go back to work i have to redo stuff it sucks sometimes:fact not a problem, from time to time i forget.

Yes, the Pilot Powers are more pointed. That's the first thing I noticed when the UPS man dropped them off at the house. I'd done two track days on them now and some hard street riding. Also, you don't get near as many of those rubber bugers forming on the sides when doing a track day as you do on the other brands. I'll be on them at the gap. I still have lot's of good tread left.

I don't think it's that the Dunlops are bad, but just everything else is better. I had no real problem with my stock 208's at the gap until I got my M1's. <-----M1's, and with 2 patches on the rear tire at that.

Yeah the Metzler M1's are pretty nice. However, I wont give um too much on 208's. They grip pretty nice in the sweepers but the quick 90's etc they seem to slip a little (My opnion anyways). That and their life span of a whole 1500 ish miles sucks. It's strange Pirelli Diablos have the same compounds in their tires as well as the same softness. However, Diablo's seem to grip better heat up faster and last 300-600 miles more than the M1's. Hover I agree Dunlops leave something to be desired but are not tooo bad. Though if I am riding i'll trust my diablo's or Pilot's any day of the week over any other tire out there. :thumbup

If you trust a newbie on the R1 forum here..... I've ridden the Dragon quite a few times. I've been on Pilot Sports, Dunlops, Pilot Roads, and now Pilot Powers on the SuperHawk. They are, hands down, the best street tire I have ever ridden on. Last year I had Pilot Roads on the CBR and the SuperHawk. They worked very well on the CBR, but were awful on the SuperHawk. I could spin the rear tire easily on either bike but they would break free (slide, not spin) both front and rear, on the SH with no warning. I switced to Pilot Powers on the SH in the off season. I rode harder than anytime before, riding behind Eddie a few weekends back. I spun the back tire only twice and that's after dropping a tooth on the front sprocket when I changed tires. 30 psi rear 28 psi front I happen to talk to Darryl (killboy) and he has Pilot Powers on his 600 F4i. Glowing accolades from him as well. For the money I don't see how one could do much better. Brian A

p.s. and before anyone starts giving me hell for the chicken strips, hey i live in indiana, not alot of good places to drag knee around here.:D [/B] Wanna bet? Just kiddin' - where are ya from in Indiana? I should be heading down to Deal's on Wednesday night if all goes well. Eric