So what's the consensus on tires?

Dunnspeed

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Nov 18, 2011
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St. Louis, MO
I did some searching as best I could to find out as much info as I could about tire opinions. I hate to start another tire thread but I'm new to the R3T and have only spent 500 or so miles on the bike since I got her Nov. 19th. Therefore, I really can't form my own opinion on the Metzelers as the rear is quite done and the front is close.
I'm cool with Darksides but I'm sticking with MC tires to see what kind of miles I can get out of them with my riding style. The Metzelers that are on there have 13,500 miles on them and that's more miles than I got with Metzs on my Speedy. I would like to get that kind of mileage again but I've read some nasty posts about the Metz on here and don't want to buy a tire I might be unhappy with.
So what's your thoughts/opinions? Anybody running different kinds of tires between front and back? Thoughts on Dunlop, Shinko, Bridgstone? I'm looking for some experience and I'd appreciate your success/horror stories. Thanks.
Dunnspeed
 
Good subject

I think Metz are an good tyre, but I only got 7000 Kms out of my new Metz rear.. front was half worn at the time, and I was shocked over the short lifespan.. but I didn't look after the inflation pressures so neglect was my own contribution to the rapid wear problem .
I now run Avon Cobras so far so good, but there are disadvantages with harder compounds and my style had to change especially in the wet weather. So far happy with the ongoing life of the Avon
And I check pressures every week now
 
The Tour at least you have options, I ran 180 Bridgestone on my Suzuki and had real good success but on the Metzler 7000 miles is about average. Bridgestone I got 11,000 normal plus a whole lot cheaper but since my Classic R3 required the 240 Metzler, I went to the Dark Side of third the cost and five times mileage
 
This is my latest rear tire and after 2,000 miles of mixed use I am very pleased with its performance. It's 1/2" higher aspect ratio pretty much cures the roughly 7% speedometer deviation that is inherent on pre - '09 models with the OEM Metzelers on the rear.

I will probably be mating it to a Dunlop 140 series, the D 205, I think, in order to improve and quicken the steering response which is well-blunted by the giant Metz 150 which comes with most R3s.
 
TriumPhil said:
This is my latest rear tire and after 2,000 miles...

I will probably be mating it to a Dunlop 140 series, the D 205...
Click to expand...

Hey Phil
You never said what you're running on the back or I misread the post.
Could you let me know what you're rolling back there? Thanks.

I appreciate the input from you fine fellers so far. Keep it coming!

Chris
 
On the R3T I've found that Avon Cobras are a bit softer, handle better, and as a result you will get fewer miles out of a set. Other than the recalled OEM Bridgestones the only other tire I've used are Metzlers.

I can get around 10K miles from a set of Metzlers compared to around 8K from the Avons. Compared to prior bikes where I got 4-5K at best from a set of tires, this thing is real easy on rubber.
 
Thanks, Harry. I've done a lot of reading and I have gathered from the site that Avons handle better but get less miles. I'm glad you see it the same way and that helps solidify that. I too have gotten low mileage out of other, much smaller bikes and I was surprised to buy the bike with 13,000 miles on a set of Metzelers that still have some life left in them, but I consider them done. Anyhow, I'm hoping the bike is easy on rubber. I got the impression from reading posts around here that I'd be spending a small fortune on tires. Maybe it won't be so bad
 
Yeah its all a matter of perspective. You hear a lot of complaining about tire mileage but I think most of that comes from long time cruiser riders. Maybe they're used to much lower horsepower bikes. I suspect riders with a sport, sport touring, or adventure bike background will generally see 8-10K miles from a set of tires as quite acceptable.

As to the Avon/Metzler difference. I have to assume the Avons use a different compound on the R3T tire compared to the larger Standard/Classic tire. Most reports on the Standard/Classic models seem to indicate the Avons are harder and last longer. I found the opposite to be true for the R3T.
 
Hey Dunnspeed, please go to Rocket3 Tech and read what I wrote about the Dunlops. The D 251 made me very happy. Also search for the best price.
 
Oops. I think I did have that backwards. Just when I think I'm getting it straight
Thanks for your thoughts so far.
 
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