Advice on tires needed

Life Cars & Motorcycles
1

Hey guys, I need some advice on tires.
I ride a Hartford VR200X, a bike with 17" front and back wheels with street tires. Lately it seems whenever I’m on it I ride on eggs - the front is giving a very spongy feedback and the rear seems to slide in corners. There is plenty of tread left but the wheels have <6000km on the clock now. I also had the chain adjusted recently but the wheel alignment seems to be ok.
Now, I gotta change the rims anyway some time soon and I thought I try different rubber than the current one (Maxxis; front 110/80-17, rear 130/70-17). I saw a couple of bikes akin with Bridgestone Battleaxe on them and read good things about that one, too. But the rear seems rather fat and it sits very tight in the rear swingarm; almost too tight it seems on the bikes I saw.
Does anyone have any recommendation about some good rubber for that kind of bike? Would appreciate any comment.
Oh, btw, I need the bike to be shod with tube, tubeless tires don’t fit on the wheel (at least thats what I heard…)

Have a nice day
Stefan

2

[quote=“Stefan”]Hey guys, I need some advice on tires.
I ride a Hartford VR200X, a bike with 17" front and back wheels with street tires. Lately it seems whenever I’m on it I ride on eggs - the front is giving a very spongy feedback and the rear seems to slide in corners. There is plenty of tread left but the wheels have <6000km on the clock now. I also had the chain adjusted recently but the wheel alignment seems to be ok.
Now, I gotta change the rims anyway some time soon and I thought I try different rubber than the current one (Maxxis; front 110/80-17, rear 130/70-17). I saw a couple of bikes akin with Bridgestone Battleaxe on them and read good things about that one, too. But the rear seems rather fat and it sits very tight in the rear swingarm; almost too tight it seems on the bikes I saw.
Does anyone have any recommendation about some good rubber for that kind of bike? Would appreciate any comment.
Oh, btw, I need the bike to be shod with tube, tubeless tires don’t fit on the wheel (at least thats what I heard…)

Have a nice day
Stefan[/quote]

wow i guess nobodys heard of the bike you ride???//// maybe you better ask MOrdeth ?? he seems to be the moto guru

3

[quote=“tommy525”][quote=“Stefan”]Hey guys, I need some advice on tires.
I ride a Hartford VR200X, a bike with 17" front and back wheels with street tires. Lately it seems whenever I’m on it I ride on eggs - the front is giving a very spongy feedback and the rear seems to slide in corners. There is plenty of tread left but the wheels have <6000km on the clock now. I also had the chain adjusted recently but the wheel alignment seems to be ok.
Now, I gotta change the rims anyway some time soon and I thought I try different rubber than the current one (Maxxis; front 110/80-17, rear 130/70-17). I saw a couple of bikes akin with Bridgestone Battleaxe on them and read good things about that one, too. But the rear seems rather fat and it sits very tight in the rear swingarm; almost too tight it seems on the bikes I saw.
Does anyone have any recommendation about some good rubber for that kind of bike? Would appreciate any comment.
Oh, btw, I need the bike to be shod with tube, tubeless tires don’t fit on the wheel (at least thats what I heard…)

Have a nice day
Stefan[/quote]

wow i guess nobodys heard of the bike you ride???//// maybe you better ask MOrdeth ?? he seems to be the moto guru[/quote]

oh wait, is that like a bicycle??? i thought it was a motorcycle. I will ask my brother who is a bicycle expert (but have to wait a week till he gets back from his honeymoon)

4

thanks but don’t bother.
i got it figured. have a nice day.

5

[quote=“Stefan”]thanks but don’t bother.
i got it figured. have a nice day.[/quote]

good on you mate, as they say in OZ

SO WHAT did you do? what kinda tires did you go with? any improvement?

6

well, i went to my trusty mechanic yesterday and he showed me that even though there was plenty of tread left the tire had squared off. i didn’t see it but i could feel it with the flat hand slightly touching the surface.
so then he asked me if a bridgestone would be ok, i agreed and he put the battleaxe on. it looked really fat - but has the same dimension on course as the old one. half an hour later i was on my way again and i instantly felt a difference. the ride was much smoother, no wobbeling and running as on eggs, lane grooves in the tarmac aren’t a unsetting problem anymore.
so for the next 100-200km he asked me to take it slow in the corners, until the tire has ‘settled and is worked in’ - thats how i understood him.

will see how the tire works in the wet, saw some reviews and i guess it will be fine. got confidence again.
seems the maxxis is not the right choice for this bike from the start, stuartca told me he has the same problems as i before.

so then, weekends here we come.
thanks for asking.

have a nice day

7

tires are the things on your car that make contact with the road

8

[quote=“Stefan”]well, i went to my trusty mechanic yesterday and he showed me that even though there was plenty of tread left the tire had squared off. i didn’t see it but i could feel it with the flat hand slightly touching the surface.
so then he asked me if a bridgestone would be ok, i agreed and he put the battleaxe on. it looked really fat - but has the same dimension on course as the old one. half an hour later i was on my way again and i instantly felt a difference. the ride was much smoother, no wobbeling and running as on eggs, lane grooves in the tarmac aren’t a unsetting problem anymore.
so for the next 100-200km he asked me to take it slow in the corners, until the tire has ‘settled and is worked in’ - thats how i understood him.

will see how the tire works in the wet, saw some reviews and i guess it will be fine. got confidence again.
seems the maxxis is not the right choice for this bike from the start, stuartca told me he has the same problems as i before.

so then, weekends here we come.
thanks for asking.

have a nice day[/quote]

Do you mind spilling the beans on what you paid for it? I want to replace both tyres on the RZX while I’m doing some other work on it. I replaced the tyres on my commuter scooter with Pirellis a few months back… I balked at the cost back then but they made so much difference it was like I just bought a brand new bike.

9

same here, feels like a totally different bike.
well, the rear tire was 3.5K. he only replaced that one, saying that the front is still ok.
i trust that guy in that, although it seems a bit wired only to replace one tire and run around on diffent treads. but it works and in time i will have to replace the front, too. and it will be bridgestone as well. have to see how long the new one lasts though. the old one was due after 6500km streetriding.
i can really recommend that brand, works well with me and the bike. should have had that one from the start.

10

Not saying you’re wrong here exactly, but you seem to be comparing worn-square Maxxis with brand new Bridgestones, and concluding the Bridgestone is a better tyre.

Maybe it is (its more expensive, right?) and maybe it’ll wear better, but you don’t actually know that yet. If you’d got a new Maxxis, you would probably have experienced improved performance.

Its not a fair comparison, unless you are remembering acurately what the Maxxis was like new, and comparing with that, which is a difficult trick.

11

could be.
but trust me - i know my bike, i know how it felt all the time with the maxxis.
the front isn’t square yet, i’ll keep it for a little while longer until i replace it and yes, the new front will be brigdestone, too. i read some reviews about that one, and although a little outdated maybe (some other brands might be better in this way or the other) it works for me.
about the maxxis i didn’t find a review though, only got my first hand experience with this particular bike and its handling. not saying its a bad tire, just doesn’t seem to be the right one for this kinda bike.

12


get some of these… They’re Maxxis and good enough for 小龍 a mate of ours, to take his third win in Taiwan Supermoto!.. Can’t be all bad…

13

[quote=“Stefan”]Hey guys, I need some advice on tires.
I ride a Hartford VR200X, a bike with 17" front and back wheels with street tires. Lately it seems whenever I’m on it I ride on eggs - the front is giving a very spongy feedback and the rear seems to slide in corners. There is plenty of tread left but the wheels have <6000km on the clock now. I also had the chain adjusted recently but the wheel alignment seems to be ok.
[/quote]

Have you checked your suspension?

Have your mechanic adjust it while you’re ON the bike.

14

edit: this comment refers to the post of plasma with the cool pics of the track rider…

maybe next time. but why should i use one i was not happy with?
and don’t you agree that your example is a slightly different context of use?
how do these tires they use on the (smooth) track behave on the (mainly rough) roads here?

i was looking for some advice here, didn’t get one so had to figure it out myself. i’m happy with my choice.

that’ll be the last thing i say about.

15

Dear Stefan,

We are frightfully sorry to hear that you have not received the service you have come to expect from the forum formerly known as vroom vroom… Our complaints department will dispatch several clerks to investigate this lapse in quality standards and we will publish a report of their findings in due course… With regards to your complaint we would like to offer this follow up service regarding your original request for tire information and assistance in a Taiwanese context…

• If you ride hard, and your tires make it to 6000km, chances are it’s time to change them…
• Bridgestone tires are very nice indeed but quite expensive…
• Pirelli tires are very nice indeed but extremely expensive…
• Michelin tires are very nice indeed but exorbitantly expensive…
• Dunlop tires are both quite nice and quite expensive…
• Metzler tires are quite nice but expensive and quite German…
• Maxxis tires (made in Taiwan by Zheng Shin) are okay and quite cheap…
• All other tires are a laughing stock and should be avoided like the plague…

It should be noted though that each brand manufactures a huge range of tires in all imaginable sizes, profiles, compounds, treads and constructions, making specific model recommendations almost impossible… For information regarding which tires are available in the correct sizes for your bike and whether or not they come in tubeless varieties, please consult our website, www.google.com We hope that this goes some way towards compensating you for the poor quality of service that we offered in this matter… It goes without saying that we will make every effort to ensure that you do not experience this kind of slip up in the future… Please accept our sincere apologies…

Best regards,

The Forumosan Stefan Advisory Committee

16

Mod’s note: Continue squabbling in the temp forum if you really must, but I would advise you to take yourself to the nearest bar and buy yourself a beer instead. :beer:

17

thanks for deleting both our embarassing posts. otherwise i would have.
like plasmas humor, point taken.

have a nice day.

18

Thought I’d chip in with some more stuff that’s actually about tyres :slight_smile:

[quote=“plasmatron”]• If you ride hard, and your tires make it to 6000km, chances are it’s time to change them…
• Bridgestone tires are very nice indeed but quite expensive…[/quote]

Never tried Bridgestones before but after getting a lot of enthusiastic advice I’m swapping out my low-end rear Maxxis and front Shit McDong Whatever tyres for Bridgestones. I’ll see how it goes when they turn up.

I’ve never been disappointed by a Pirelli tyre. Given the quality I think you get a lot of tyre for your money but they seem to wear out more quickly than cheaper tyres.

Had two Michelin car tyres go mysteriously flat, one about six weeks after the other. Have a few friends with Michelin blowout stories. Don’t really understand why they’re so expensive - I certainly won’t buy any more. Have I just had bad luck?

I’ve been very impressed with the Dunlop offroad tyres on my truck. Done over 6,000 pretty hard miles on this set (rotating at every service) and they’re still like new. Wear and handling have been super with a very reasonably price (NT$11k or so for a set including fitting) - I might consider trying Dunlop motorcycle tyres in the future after this experience.

My mechanic kept telling me he could get some kind of German tyres a fair bit cheaper than the Bridgestones but I couldn’t work out from the Chinese name what brand he was talking about. Has anyone had any experience with Metzlers? None of my friends have ever strayed from Pirelli, Bridgestone, Dunlop, Michelin, Maxxis or cheapos.

Yup, nothing bad to say about Maxxis here… I’d say better than average tyres for a fair price but I’ve tried almost new Pirellis vs almost new Maxxis and there is a very substantial difference. Maybe their racing slicks are miles better but their street tyres are nothing to shout about IMO.[/quote]

[quote]• All other tires are a laughing stock and should be avoided like the plague…
[/quote]

I’ll drink to that.

19

i took plasmas advice to my heart and did some research on tires for supermotos and wanna post it here; also for some damage repair as well :blush: it’s a continuation of his post, actually.
and maybe it gives other guys with similar problems an idea what to look for…

here we go. the following tires were tested by a german magazine in 2005 with lightweight bikes (~150kg). I’ll try a translation here, forgive me if some points don’t become clear enough…

Bridgstone Battleaxe (love that word for a tire) BT 090
Handling in corners: Developed for lightweight sportsbikes, the tire convinces even in extreme lean angles with great grip and superb handling. Threshold is a bit narrow, tends to (edit: stand up) get upright when braking.
Handling on wet roads: At its best in the dry, the tire stil does the job in the wet - but just about. Sticking to the asphalt acceptably and grip-balance between front and rear tire are minimized by narrow threshold - a tire for extreme supermoto, the faster the better, but only in the dry.

Continental ContiForce SM
Handling in corners: Made for lightweight supermotos. Gives accurate feedback and even in extreme lean angles gives extraordinary good grip with a broad band of threshold. Minus: tends to (edit: stand up) get upright when braking.
Handling on wet roads: Stay on the throttle when it downpours. As good as any rain-tire. It’s the reference these days (2005) to sports tires in regard to stickiness, feedback in extreme lean angles, precision in steering… Best tire for dry and wet.

Dunlop Sportmax D 207 RR
Handling in corners: Great handling all around but indifferent steering precision when going slower and it tends to (edit: dtand up) get upright when braking. Not as extreme angles as with Conti and Michelin Pilot Power possible.
Handling on wet roads: You better stay home. The tire does not warm up to required temperature and its hard to find traction.

Michelin Pilot Power
Handling in corners: Tire of the year 2004 (Germany), also great choice for lightweight supermotos. Great grip to extreme lean angles, well controllable threshold combined with a significant advantage: it does NOT tend to (edit: stand up) get upright when braking.
Handling on wet roads: Best performance also on wet roads in regards to grip and feedback.

Maxxis Goldspeed “Silver Line”
Handling in corners: Better performance on slippery or cold roads. even without warm-up phase great grip and traction. Under ideal circumstances it tends to drift - but with a huge reserve until actually slipping away. Does NOT tend to (edit: stand up) get upright when braking.
Handling on wet roads: It’s a rain-tire. Stay on the throttle.

Pirelli Dragon Supercorsa
Handling in corners: Due to being almost identical with the Metzeler Rennsport, almost identical characteristics: great grip on dry roads and top handling. Minus: when riding slow in corners tire tends to wobble, while leaning and than braking it tends to (edit: stand up) get upright. An updated version is on the market that elimintes these points.
Handling on wet roads: Not good. It’s hard to warm-up the tire. Better drive slow.

Metzeler Rennsport
Handling in corners: Acceptable results only after proper warm-up. Excellent grip, traction and handling. Minus: when riding slow also tends to wobble and to (edit: stand up) get upright in corners.
Handling on wet roads: not so great. Be carefull with the throttle then, loses grip easily.

Pirelli MT 60 S
Handling in corners: Although the oldest among these mentioned, still accaptable tire with a little less grip and also handling not best, but better than most. Ideal for cold weather or climate, NOT (edit: stand up) getting upright when braking and no wobbeling - you’ll feel the limits early.
Handling on wet roads: No negative surprises: combination of front-wheel oriented grip-balance, great stickiness and a broad band of threshold makes it one of the best rain-tires. Ideal for every day (moderate pace) and all weather.

Ok, that is it. According to these evaluations i should have taken the Conti - but the Battleaxe (still love that for a tire… i know, i know, its battlax, but who really reads it that way… :wink: ) does a good job, too. we’ll see.

have a nice day

20

[quote]Bridgstone Battleaxe (love that word for a tire) BT 090
Handling in corners: Developed for lightweight sportsbikes, the tire convinces even in extreme lean angles with great grip and superb handling. Threshold is a bit narrow, tends to get upright while braking in corners.
Handling on wet roads: At its best in the dry, the tire stil does the job in the wet - but just about. Sticking to the asphalt acceptably and grip-balance between front and rear tire are minimized by narrow threshold - a tire for extreme supermoto, the faster the better, but only in the dry. [/quote]

Had these on an FZR250RR in the past, absolutely excellent dry weather tire for both grip and longevity. If memory serves me right these tires have two different rubber compounds, centre is harder longer lasting, outer edges are softer stickier rubber. Could grind the pegs on the FZR all day on roundabouts, never pushed it hard in the wet, never had any big moments though. From memory the bike originally came with Perelli (75’s?) which were sufficient, never tried getting the pegs down with them though as they just didn’t inspire much confidence, tended to square off at relatively low miles but were nice in the wet. Guess it really depends on what suits your bike and riding style/needs.