[rcmark]

Please post any comments!

 

[Kid Thunder]

Re: Tires (Poll)

i am running d208's i like them alll right
its all i have eva used first year on the street
going to try the diablo strada or the pilots soon

 

[evilbologna]

D220, rock hard. Stripped my bike of the D220s before they hit the wear bars.

 

[Mr. Black]

220s IMO.

 

[Six Chin Skinny]

In my personal experience, the D220 front was scalloped badly enough at around 12K to require replacement. The Pilot Roads I currently have on are now approaching 14K, and, while just about to hit the treadwear indicator, scalloping/flat spots are nowhere near as prevalent as I've gotten with other tires. Full function of the tire (meaning no 'falling in' to turns due to flat spots, loss of traction, or funky tracking) has not been compromised. The Roads may be the first tire I have been able to run down through the treadwear indicator rather than replace due to scalloping.


With the performance and grip they provide, consistent from mile 1 through mile ~13600, I am in total freaking awe of the lifespan of my Roads...


[edit: Is it possible the D220's are too hard?

I have been able to wear out the sides of the Roads (fun rides) to more evenly match the center tread loss from commuting and slabbing. This may have been possible due only to the increased grip and confidence I have in the Roads. The D220's gave me no confidence while leaned over as I experienced slides in many different situations, so I did not push this tire as hard and very likely did not wear down much tread on the sides. This might explain the severe scalloping on the front which prompted replacement, as the rear had another 2-3K miles left in it...]

 

[soundman]

MY GOD.... You guys get tremendous mileage out of your tires.
I'm on my second rear with my Avon Azaro's and got about 3k out of the first before I hit the wear bars and am currently at about 2k on the second and about to hit the bars again. I must just be tough on back tires. The front is still pretty good, and no I don't do burnouts... LOL

 

[Six Chin Skinny]

I've said it before, and RandyO has many times: The key to long tire life is religious attention to tire psi and maintaining pressure somewhere just south of maximum...

I think being smooth on the throttle and brake inputs helps tremendously, and Avid suggested proper warm-up as another key (with which I agree completely).


HTH



[edit: I forgot to add that I wear out my fronts well before the rears, most likely I think due to an aggressive front/back weight ratio]

 

[soundman]

I run 36 front, 42 rear, checked religously, just like Avon says.
I've always been hard on rear tires..

 

[Six Chin Skinny]

I run 36 front, 42 rear, checked religously, just like Avon says.
I've always been hard on rear tires..

soundman-- Are you a ham-fist? ;D Not having a go at you, I'm just curious how mileage differs so much between riders. You obviously have the tire pressure trick down.

Here's a question: What is the road condition in your location? One thing I noticed about the roads in AZ and NM is that they are a rougher (sharper) texture than the roads I am more used to in MN. I shredded a set of D207's and part of a set of BT010's (both admittedly a softer compound sport tire) in under 5K total miles while down south.

If not throttle/braking habits or road surface, maybe rider weight/frequency of 2-up? Suspension action, maybe? Would a firmer suspension lead to quicker tire wear?

 

[MagpieTear]

MY GOD.... You guys get tremendous mileage out of your tires.
I'm on my second rear with my Avon Azaro's and got about 3k out of the first before I hit the wear bars and am currently at about 2k on the second and about to hit the bars again. I must just be tough on back tires. The front is still pretty good, and no I don't do burnouts... LOL

I have about 4k on my Avons, check the pressure once a week, sometimes twice. Honestly, it looks like they're new. I can't see what is causing you to go through them so quick. Can't be your weight, since I go 220 without gear and Randy is a bit heavier than me.

 

[soundman]

The road surfaces that I mostly ride on ARE the rough rock and tar variety so that might have something to do with it. Also might have something to do with the fact that the group I ride with isn't exactly poking around when we ride and some days we'll run at a good clip for a tankful, re-fuel, and go at it again. I also trail brake with the rear and use engine braking probably as much as I do the actual brakes. Nothing wrong with the Avons, I'm just rough on rears. Had bridgestones only last about 1200 miles.

 

[Six Chin Skinny]

... there are these very long smooth corners that are quite fast--I think the sweepers really wear out tires quickly.

That may be one of the keys in allowing me to at least try to get the edges to match the centers on my Roads. I found some pretty good stuff rather close to my home that gives me the opportunity to wear down the sides a bit. Tire maintenance can be a dirty job, but it's gotta be done!! Wonder if Johnny Law would buy the 'tire edge scrubbing' defense??? ;D



soundman-- Sounds like you really give your tires the business! Mind if I ask what tires in addition to the Azaros you have had on the SV? I gots to think that there is a tire out there that should at least get you 5-6K...

 

[RandyO]

MY GOD.... You guys get tremendous mileage out of your tires.
I'm on my second rear with my Avon Azaro's and got about 3k out of the first before I hit the wear bars and am currently at about 2k on the second and about to hit the bars again. I must just be tough on back tires. The front is still pretty good, and no I  don't do burnouts... LOL

which Azaros you running the AV45/46 or AV 49/50 ? I have to assume the 49/50s if your only getting 3k they are a sport tire, much softer than the ST 45/46s

I get 10k+(13kmax) from my rear Azaro ST, normally chainge them in pairs, but has an unreparable flat with 9k on the rear so i only replaced the rear and my front currently has 16k on it notibly worn, but no scalloping or wear bars to surface yet


I've heard the same 10k+ reports for Z6s & Pilot Roads similar to Azaro STs

 

[soundman]

45/46 ST's

I've only had the Avons and Metzeler MEZ4's on the SVS (HATED the metzelers).
I've had other brands on other bikes and rears didn't do so well then either. I will say that the other local SV owner I ride with goes through pilot roads and went through bridgestone 020's on a pretty consistent basis so it may just be our low quality asphalt here in south ms.

 

[Nimbus]

The BT020's last forever for me. I'm about to 10K on my current set and they are holding in there. I suppose I could get another 1000 out of them (The front looks like it could go another 2-3K), but the back is nearly to the wear bars. I got 11K out of my last set of 020's. What is kind of scary is that they really do seem to lose grip in the last couple thousand miles. I'm tossing mine pretty much as soon as my Z6's get here.

The back has worn nicely over 10K (little noticible squaring), but the front is scalloped.

 

[Poe]

I only got 5K miles out of the original D220 rear. I was down to the wear bars (center and sides) and cord was just starting to peek through in the center in one spot. NO burnouts or skids. I weigh 190lbs. and I check my pressures religiously before every ride (33F/36R). I replaced that original rear with another D220 and by around 8.5K, the original front D220 was totally shot on the sides (center was fine). The newer rear still had a good bit of meat on it, but I hated the way the bike was "falling" into turns because of the worn front - so I put a pair of Pilot Powers on. They've only been on a few hundred miles so far, so the jury's still out on them as far as wear goes - but I don't expect them to last as long as the D220's. That's OK though - because they absolutely ROCK (as has been discussed in many other threads on here and all over the internet). I may try Pilot Roads or Metzeller Z6's next if the Powers don't last long at all. We'll see...

I obviously ride aggressively - in the turns and with the throttle & brakes in general. Many of my miles are from "spirited" riding while chasing my co-workers (R6 and Tuono) around the NC/GA/TN mountains. I have tried not to engine-brake as much when rolling to a stop since that first rear - so maybe that'll save the rear a little - I don't know. I don't commute on the bike anymore (did for the first 3K miles or so) so no more "easy miles". Now, if I'm riding, I'm looking for twisties and just enjoying the bike. I suppose I could try to be smoother on the throttle inputs - but one of the things I enjoy the most is pinning the throttle WFO when ripping through the gears - or nailing it when coming out of a turn! It's like a drug. I'm sure if I putted around & took it easy all the time, my tires would last a whole lot longer, but then again - if I wanted to ride like that, I would have bought a cruiser. I consider tires just another price you pay for fun. Tire wear rate is directly proportional to the amount of FUN you get out of them - and I enjoy the heck out of mine!

Obviously, if your bike is a high-mileage daily rider/commuter/tourer, this mentality would get expensive real quick - so you'd be better off with harder ST tires - and trying to take it a little easier on them - but that's not me. Which tire is right for you depends on your personal situation.

I'm doing my first track day in October ;D - so I'm going to try to keep these Pilot Powers in good shape until then.