I have a Thunderbird 900 1996. I had a 17 inch rim put on the back by central wheels so that I can fit better rubber and my first new set were metzler m6's and they were great. The problem was that although they have several thousand miles left on them , we are off touring in Spain in September. So I thought I'll order em now and while I 'm at it upgrade to the latest and best which is the m8 . One of the reasons for ordering the tyres early is because not many bikes use inner tubes and they can get a bit thin on the ground, oh and I only use quality tubes. I got the tyres out of the box and the first thing I look for on the tyres is when they were made. Its the little inch long losange with the four numbers in it. In this case it said 2315 i.e week 23 in 2015. That meant it was nearly two years old , not very impressive. Further inspection revealed the compound was o.k., you test by pushing your thumbnail into the tread and the easier it goes in and it stays the better, so far so good. Then wtf! Made in China. Metzeler, shame on you. I would'nt have bought them had I known. I'll let you know how they perform.
I remember when I were a lad..... ...not buying those rubbish Dunlops - they're made in Japan! We live in a world of out-sourcing. sometimes it works, sometimes it doesn't. Let us know how you get on with them.
worst mistake I ever made they were nigh on impossible to fit. The bead would not seat so I took them back to where I bought them and they put them on. After fitting them I said " fantastic, how come you managed to seat them when I could'nt ? ". He had blown them up to 100 psi , yes I'm serious. " Its ok for us we have spare tubes! " says he . First ride was a nervous one. They have the shimmy that Avon azaros have. Basically just off walking pace the bike squigals. Now other way to descibe it. The tyres are so stiff I reckon if I rolled over a coin I could tell you what value it was. Its definatly working the suspension higher. Also the inside of the bead when measured was 16 3/4 inches and not 17. No wonder it bloody would'nt fit.
We did a thousand miles riding around in Picos de Europe in northen Spain. We had a lot of rain and I have to say they performed very well in the wet and the dry. I would not fit them again due to the over tight fit on the rim. I believe this tight fit is due to tubeless tyres being fitted to ever more slippy rim finishes and more powerful bikes. Metzlers were always a joy to fit I'll miss them. Should be interesting getting them off !
