Forgive me, but I simply don't get 'tyres'. Am I beyond help? 2002 Speed Triple 955. Right hand drive. cool I am a sedate all weather rider/commuter. I don't think I am a good enough rider to be able to tell the difference between tyres A, B or C. And....even if I could tell a difference I'm sure I'd need to try A....then compare to B. And then to C. Then B with C. And then with A again...honing it down until I notice a difference. And all that surely isn't practical! So...what am I left with? How do i go about getting or choosing tyres? I have only owned two 'big' bikes before and each time I never had them long enough to need to get tyres...until now for the T3 I kinda feel I should, whilst I'm flush. Currently I have a pair of Pilot Road 3s...the front is getting a bit of a central ridge. I'm not sure how old they are (I have had the bike 2½ years) so happy to change them so I know what's what...and the Misuse has given me the green light. But what am I 'looking' for? People talk a lot about tyres, but how can you even tell if you can't compare one set with another set directly? Any advice, as ever, gratefully received!
You’ll get a million different views on tyres so it depends on your budget. There is no such thing as a bad tyre these days, just more expensive ones. You could go Maxxis ( I’ve used these with no problem) or Michelin ( Road 5 is the new best thing, not tried them yet) or anywhere in between such as Pirelli, Metzeler, Dunlop etc. Good luck.
Any good sports touring tyre will be great i used to have the Angel GT 2 which I thought were great,I did try a couple of other makes on my speed triple but the GT seemed to give me the best grip,but there wasn't a massive difference between them they were all good
The best tyre is whichever one gives you confidence. Just because someone else doesn't like one particular tyre doesn't mean it's not right for you.
This is all useful, thank you! I understand that for every 2 riders there will be at least three different opinions How do you know if pair A give you better or more confidence than set C? I guess I just find it hard to compare. Perhaps it's an experience thing... Budget is 2-250ish I guess.... What is the situation if you want a knobbly look?
Wrong. At least five options with a plethora of conditional clauses subject to other random but important ‘facts’.
I know others say there are no bad tyres nowadays; but those Pirelli Demons fitted to the 2016 on water cooled Bonnevilles were less than confidence inspiring (Sh*te). Michelin Road 5, newest Metzler Sportec or Roadtec and a lot of other brand tyres are very good. I am using Michelin Pilot Activs on my Bonnie but that is because they don't have Road 5 in Bonnie sizes. Have a read of this article: https://bikerrated.com/gear/tyres/best-motorcycle-tyres/ and Tyre Reviews here: https://www.tyrereviews.com/Tyre/ Bike tyres are at bottom of each Brands Page
This has all been very useful, thank you all and wishbone, great couple of links. Based purely on reviews of others I am narrowing it down to Michelin (Pilot) Road 5 and Metzeler Roadtec 01 Both seem a within budget, decent, safe, reliable, long lasting, modern tyre that will suit my commutery, weekend ride out, within the speed limit riding style... For what it's worth, the current tyres (Pilot road 3s) are now 5 years old.
You won't go wrong with either of those 2! Add pirelli angel gt's to the list then shop around to see which ones are cheapest. Job done
For the use you've described I would definitely go with a sports tourer tyre. MCN did this not long ago so worth a read. https://www.motorcyclenews.com/advice/best/sports-touring-tyres/
I had Angel GT on my Sport but changed to Road 5s. The latter felt much more planted and stable but both were very good.
