I searched and couldn't find a current answer, so here goes.....
I've never kept a bike long enough to need to replace the tires, but now it's time. What would be a good tire for a 2011 796 used mostly for commuting, but I do get out for a highway run every week or so. I don't race it, wheelie it or stunt at all, just street legal riding. I try to avoid the rain, but it happens. Suggestions? Thanks. ....Steve
Round ones.
For your stated preferences, I would stick with Conti-motions... cheap and decent. Shinko 009s are nice also, but I've found they wear out faster than the contis. I have found the contis to be marginally better in the wet. I haven't tried the high end sport touring tires, but I hear good things about the Pilot Roads... all these things depend on your budget, your riding style, your annual mileage, and your own biases.
Quote from: Dirty Duc on March 08, 2013, 08:44:20 PM
Round ones.
For your stated preferences, I would stick with Conti-motions... cheap and decent. Shinko 009s are nice also, but I've found they wear out faster than the contis. I have found the contis to be marginally better in the wet. I haven't tried the high end sport touring tires, but I hear good things about the Pilot Roads... all these things depend on your budget, your riding style, your annual mileage, and your own biases.
Thanks for the info.
Budget isn't my main factor but I don't want to spend a pile of cash for a marginally better tire. Cheap is good, as long as it's not at the expense of a safe amount of traction.
Am I best to stick with stock width on a newer Monster or is there a reason to change it up? Like I said, I don't know much about tires on street bikes as I've never replaced them before, so thanks for your patience. ....Steve
IMO, tires are tires.
I wouldn't change the width or sidewall height unless I was sure what I was after (you seem to be undecided in the bike category). Wider rear will make it turn in marginally slower (although you probably won't notice after a few hundred miles).
I've heard (operative word) that the ST tires will last significantly longer (maybe 2x) than my tire choices. Of course, those tires also cost twice as much.
I commute on some strange rough pavement at highway speeds, and I'm a hooligan. I'm happy to get 4k out of a rear tire. I got 4k or so on the shinkos, and 5k on the contis. 2 rears to a front.
Any sport touring tire should work fine.
Pirelli Angel in OEM size.
Thanks for the suggestions so far.
Any feedback on the Michelin Pilot Power 2CT's? I can find them for $250 for a pair from the same place I'll be getting all my dirt tires this season. http://www.rockymountainatvmc.com/p/49/-/181/750/-/20817/Michelin-Pilot-Power-2-CT-Rear-Motorcycle-Tire (http://www.rockymountainatvmc.com/p/49/-/181/750/-/20817/Michelin-Pilot-Power-2-CT-Rear-Motorcycle-Tire)
nothing wrong with them that I can tell.
That is more than I normally pay for a set of tires, but I normally don't venture out of cheap. I normally discount mileage claims on tires... and figure I'll have to replace a front every year whether it is worn out or not (due to cracks).
the power 2ct is a sports tyre. you could run a sport touring rear and sport front. i have always not liked sport touring tyres on the front of my monster as i only ever had one real corner on the commute and the sports touring tyres felt bad on the corner, sports tyre better. depends on you. plus i haven't ridden my own bike on any of the latest ranges. pilot road 3, angel st, z8, 023, road attack, whatever the avon one is, they're all much of a muchness in as much as personal opinions will vary much more. i know my friend who rides a bmw r1200rt cop bike says the pr3 are better than the z8 (maybe z6) on them, esp in the wet.
and remember that a current sport touring tyre probably has better sports performance than the sports tyre available 10 years ago.
Quote from: SteveO. on March 08, 2013, 10:18:46 PM
Thanks for the suggestions so far.
Any feedback on the Michelin Pilot Power 2CT's? I can find them for $250 for a pair from the same place I'll be getting all my dirt tires this season. http://www.rockymountainatvmc.com/p/49/-/181/750/-/20817/Michelin-Pilot-Power-2-CT-Rear-Motorcycle-Tire (http://www.rockymountainatvmc.com/p/49/-/181/750/-/20817/Michelin-Pilot-Power-2-CT-Rear-Motorcycle-Tire)
I got my bike back in '06 and it came with the Pilot Powers. I'm not an aggressive rider but I had alot of confidence with those tires in the twisties, enough to get rid of the chicken strips ;). I did quite a bit of commuting and the Pilot Powers were fine in the rain (when I got caught in it).
First 2 sets of tires were Pilot Powers. I was averaging about 12k miles on a set of tires so for the 3rd set I wanted to try the Pilot Power 2CT's. I ordered a set online but the company mistakenly sent out a set of regular Pilot Powers. I knew they would be fine so I kept them, never got to try out a set of PP2CT's, but I'm sure they would've been an improvement over the regular Pilot Powers.
I've since relocated to Miami and recently hit 36k. Now on my 4th set of tires, I decided to try out the Pilot Road 3's simply because I know I'm gonna get caught in the rain more and the moto is my only transportation. I've put about 2000+ miles on them and so far, so good. Florida roads are boring, no twisties, and everything is flat. [thumbsup] for Pilot Powers and Pilot Road 3's
Pilot Road 2/3's will give you the best combination of performance + longevity.
All great feedback so far, thanks.
Is there a reason to look at sport touring tires instead of sport tires? Am I right to say better grip with sport, more life with sport touring? Thanks again.
Quote from: SteveO. on March 10, 2013, 01:31:36 PM
All great feedback so far, thanks.
Is there a reason to look at sport touring tires instead of sport tires? Am I right to say better grip with sport, more life with sport touring? Thanks again.
Sport tires will have better grip in perfect conditions. Sport touring tires will generally last longer, and provide more grip than most people need in most conditions.
^^^+1
With your description of your style....I would recommend the Sport Touring....if you find you need more performance you can switch in 8-10K miles, that is the beauty of this particular maintenance item [Dolph]
My recomendation is either BT016 front / BT023 Rear which last good but not as good in wet or the Pilot Power 2tc front / Pilot Road 2 Rear. Great combo for all around. The cool thing about running either of these combo's for me is they wear at about the same rate and they grip like crazy! I just got 8k miles out of the PP2TC/PR2 combo compared to 3K miles on the stockers.
Pilot Road 3 are much better than Pilot Road 2. Totally different tyre in fact even if the name is the same...
I have PR3s on my M750, I commute daily in all weather and they are perfect: warming fast, incredible wet grip, they do not wear too fast (3000 miles on them with no significant wear)
How many miles a year do you ride?
I advise my customers to buy a tire that will be worn out after 3 seasons of riding. At that point any tire will be 'timed out' regardless of miles.
There are advantages to all the Michelin tires, but you need to buy the one that suits your mileage, riding style, and ability.
The Pilot Power is a great tire. It doesn't sound like you need the 2ct based on your riding style. They're great in the rain, and quick handling. They'd also be the least expensive choice. Some of my customers get as many as 8K miles and some as few as 3K on a rear tire.
The Road 2 will give you more miles and will handle similarly to a Power. It isn't the best in the rain, but is adequate. It will cost you a bit more than the Powers.
The Road 3 is a completely different tire. They have a round front profile and is more neutral handling with easier corner corrections, similar to the Power Pure. They are a high mileage tire that is great in the rain. It will also be the most expensive choice by costing about $40 more per set than the Road 2.
Good luck on your choice.
Quote from: clubhousemotorsports on March 14, 2013, 08:26:56 AM
How many miles a year do you ride?
I advise my customers to buy a tire that will be worn out after 3 seasons of riding. At that point any tire will be 'timed out' regardless of miles.
Holy smokes! I don't think they make tires that would last 3 years on either of my bikes.
I have trouble believing that any tires would put up with my riding for one year (my riding season is 12 months long, and I ride as my primary method of travel)....
Quote from: Dirty Duc on March 14, 2013, 08:38:35 AM
Holy smokes! I don't think they make tires that would last 3 years on either of my bikes.
I have trouble believing that any tires would put up with my riding for one year (my riding season is 12 months long, and I ride as my primary method of travel)....
I suspect he meant 3 years
or less.If I rode 100%, I'd be 30k miles a year.
I've gotten ~12k miles out of rear Pirelli Angels.
Front Angel is still good at ~14k miles.
I know people do get better mileage out of some tires, but it seems that every 2 or 3 tires I get a flat due to road debris and that there is some confluence of my riding style and the local road surfaces that eats tires (squares them off something fierce). I see many reports of other people that get way better mileage out of the exact same tires as me under reported riding conditions that sound worse than what I put mine through. Maybe I should stop backing it into the turns and doing burnouts in front of the police station. [laugh] ;)
I guess what I'm trying to say is, I own tire changing equipment and have come to accept putting on a new rear tire every 4-5k miles. I'm not debating anyone's mileage or the pro advice offered here, I'm just reporting my mileage and my reasoning (such that it is). :)
I usually change fronts when they have started to show the little drying cracks at every 2 rears. In a couple of years, I will have enough used moto tires to line the go-kart track I have planned for the back yard... :D
In New England if you can get 8K in a season you're doing well. Our riding season is about 5 months unless you really like freezing your ass off and riding on sandy roads in the spring.
I personally never get more than 3500 out of a rear.
Late to the party, BUT I've run ContiMotions on my M750 before. I got a GREAT deal on them, so I tried them. Lasted decent, stuck pretty good and predictable. The only thing I noticed is the rear would track slightly toward the outside as you made a corner with a good amount of lean in the wet. Slides were "warning" slides and easy enough to recover from if you felt them.
JM
Quote from: Speeddog on March 14, 2013, 11:21:48 AM
I suspect he meant 3 years or less.
If I rode 100%, I'd be 30k miles a year.
I've gotten ~12k miles out of rear Pirelli Angels.
Front Angel is still good at ~14k miles.
Excellent suspecting. lol
Just updating this thread:
I had my Michelin Pilot Road 3s installed at 36k miles back in January 2013:
PR3 Front
(http://i58.tinypic.com/1tvvwk.jpg)
PR3 Rear
(http://i60.tinypic.com/28m2pdw.jpg)
And I just got the Pilot Road 4s put on today at 50k:
PR4 Front
(http://i59.tinypic.com/2dcbcsl.jpg)
PR4 Rear
(http://i59.tinypic.com/doucyo.jpg)
I probably had a couple months left on the PR3s but I picked up a nail on the rear :( . 14,000+ miles on a set of Pilot Road 3s... all good
Just replaced my PR2 out back because of a nail. Had 20K on it and looked great, probably had at least 5k if not 10k more in it. The front doesn't show any real signs of wear. Got another PR2 for the back.
Now this is all commuting miles, I-5 Orange County to San Diego daily, year round, rain or shine. 75 miles each way of relatively straight freeway at 75-80mph.
The PR4s are a strange looking tyre. Those sipes/sypes look strange but are supposed to divert water in a different way?
Skurvy,
Are they the TR or GT?
Quote from: koko64 on March 25, 2014, 02:21:42 AM
The PR4s are a strange looking tyre. Those sipes/sypes look strange but are supposed to divert water in a different way?
I saw a video review on youtube that said the PR4 tread pattern was updated (especially on the front), because some riders stated the PR3s had so many sipes combined with a heavier bike and/or under hard braking, it resulted in the front flexing a bit more and feeling unstable. The PR4 addressed that with less sipes resulting in better stability. I also liked the fact that the rear tire compounds went from PR3 - medium center/soft outers, to PR4 hard center/medium outers.
Quote from: red baron on March 25, 2014, 06:52:14 AM
Skurvy,
Are they the TR or GT?
They have 3 versions: Standard, GT, and Trail. Dude at the shop said he had a set of Standard in stock. I didn't feel comfortable on a plugged rear PR3 with 14k miles on it so I did the switch. Turns out the front tire is Standard and the rear tire is a GT. ???
Not a huge deal, I think the difference with the GT is that it's a little heavier and has a stiffer carcass for the bigger touring bikes and riding 2 up. My moto is strictly a commuter with a flat ride everyday. I ride rain or shine and although I had no problems with the PR3s, I just wanted to change it up this time around.
Quote from: skurvy on March 25, 2014, 08:48:48 PM
I saw a video review on youtube that said the PR4 tread pattern was updated (especially on the front), because some riders stated the PR3s had so many sipes combined with a heavier bike and/or under hard braking, it resulted in the front flexing a bit more and feeling unstable. The PR4 addressed that with less sipes resulting in better stability. I also liked the fact that the rear tire compounds went from PR3 - medium center/soft outers, to PR4 hard center/medium outers.
They have 3 versions: Standard, GT, and Trail. Dude at the shop said he had a set of Standard in stock. I didn't feel comfortable on a plugged rear PR3 with 14k miles on it so I did the switch. Turns out the front tire is Standard and the rear tire is a GT. ???
Not a huge deal, I think the difference with the GT is that it's a little heavier and has a stiffer carcass for the bigger touring bikes and riding 2 up. My moto is strictly a commuter with a flat ride everyday. I ride rain or shine and although I had no problems with the PR3s, I just wanted to change it up this time around.
Thanks. My brother got PR4s recently. He said they are keeping the PR2s here in the range, but getting rid of the PR3s.
I have some track takeoffs that Monstro Belle gave to me a couple of three years ago. They were old then. Im thinking of putting one on the rear and seeing how good or bad it is.
Yes seriously.
Yikes! I'm no expert, but I've heard tires have a life expectancy. If it were me with that rubber, unless you were practicing burnouts in a parking lot, I wouldn't use 'em.
boy howdy is she right! THe heat cycles alone would compromise it, and the age adds to it. I fitted a race take off once a long time ago, and after picking the bike back up I decided to never do THAT again!
so no checking it out around town then...
If you just need to get it a few miles down the road so that you can get new tires put on it, yeah, you could do it. Just know there's a risk involved. If you were Jorge Lorenzo, you could probably throw down some decent lap times on those suckers. For the rest of us, things might get pretty interesting just trying to eke out some decent braking on the freeway.
I'm a little baby on the track, so heat cycles on those tires aren't going to be your issue really. The age thing is more of a problem. I don't really know what tires do when they become old. My guess is that they become unpredictable. I don't really want to find out. There's enough excitement on a bike--I don't need the tires to be making things interesting. YMMV.
I was figuring on testing and finding out.
Smartass. [laugh]
Quote from: mostrobelle on March 31, 2014, 01:40:49 PM
Smartass. [laugh]
I was serious, but I then went out there to look at them. After dusting off the sawdust from the chop saw that operates right next to where I keep them, I saw that they were SuperCorsas which blows my whole plan cause those are slippery as it is when they are cold, and I had no plans to push them.
So if anybody wants go cart track tires come on by.
I ordered this.
Pirelli - Angel GT Sport Touring
Thanks Speedog
Quote from: Mendo Dave on April 01, 2014, 03:21:19 PM
I ordered this.
Pirelli - Angel GT Sport Touring
Thanks Speedog
You'll like 'em, they're very durable.
I've only used them a little in the wet, as we don't get much down here.
Quote from: Speeddog on April 01, 2014, 09:56:46 PM
You'll like 'em, they're very durable.
I've only used them a little in the wet, as we don't get much down here.
I don't ride in the rain anymore, at least not by choice. Not too much rain anyway here in the high dessert.
Pirelli's are boring.. and feel like there's nothing there. I been using Metzler sportec M3's they're the bomb [thumbsup]
+1 to the PR3's. Unreal longevity, dual compound which would suit your mostly commuting riding style, still sporty enough to get hooliganish with on the weekends, and the most insane grip in the wet I've ever experienced from any tire, period.