Tire Dilemma

[stoney812]

I know I'm about to open a can of worms here, but I'm curious on everyone's thoughts about tire sizes.

I have always been a fan of the Michelin Pilot Roads for all over traction and lifespan for my personal riding style, but I found an really good deal on some Continental ContiMotion something or another tires not too long ago while in need of tires, and decided to give them a try. Well.. I guess you get what you pay for. I have barely put 3,000 on them, with no burnouts or anything crazy like that, and they have squared off and I am already seeing some metal starting to poke through. These were supposed to be more of a harder, longer lasting sport touring tire, but it looks like I was wrong!

The front tire is still looking great, so I have decided to keep it for a bit longer, but need something new for the rear. I thought I would go back and just get another Michelin Pilot 3, but noticed everyone at bike night with the Dunlap Q3's. I know I don't want something like the Pilot Power or the Q3, but found Dunlop's equivalent of the Pilot Road 3, the RideSmart 2. Reviews were great, price was less, had the double compound rubber like the PR3 that I want, so I went ahead and ordered one tonight.

Well...of course in all of this ordeal of researching tires, I couldn't just get away with such an easy experience. I went and ordered the Dunlop RoadSmart 2 190/55/R17, and then realized I got the wrong size. The stock rear tire for my bike is a 190/50/R17. I went back to see about changing my order, and of course, the 190/50/R17 is more expensive and close to the same price as the Pilot Road 3. Now if I change the order, do I just go ahead and go with what I know I like, or give Dunlop a try was my next thought.

This got me to thinking about just going with what I ordered, and giving the 190/55/R17 a try. I checked around on a few forums, and I found nothing but positive feedback. I tried keeping my search specific to my bike, and found it will fit with the %5 height increase on my bike. From what I've read, even on different bikes, it seems to help in the cornering and makes the bike a lot more nimble.

Anyways.. do any of you have any experience in increasing the rear tire height size +5%? Should I change my order, or go ahead and give it a shot?

[fixxervi6]

You'll be fine, the tire will have more sidewall so your chicken strips will appear a bit bigger but no problemo.

[Fussy]

On my Z1000, and many folks who have the Ninja, the 55 profile is highly recommended. The bike turns more easily. I did it and I was glad that I did. I think you will be happy, too.

No comments on the RoadSmarts, never tried those. I ran Pirelli Angel tires and got a good amount of life out of those.

[JTChiTown]

Buddy did it on his rc51 and swore by it. Only issue he had was that his rc chewed through that size even more so than his OE size. So if you don't like it, good news is you won't have as long to wait to replace it!

[fixxervi6]

Buddy did it on his rc51 and swore by it. Only issue he had was that his rc chewed through that size even more so than his OE size. So if you don't like it, good news is you won't have as long to wait to replace it!

Not sure how that would happen, the sidewalls will be lower giving more surface area to the crown of the tire (therefore more edge), that's pretty much it.

[fixxervi6]

[JTChiTown]

190/55 is the steepest. So you're running on the narrowest center section. Each molecule of center section has to work harder. Riding around town, it chewed up the center of his tire a lot faster. That was our logio to explain it, but maybe he was just more aggressive with them. He swears though he lost 500 miles of wear out of the rear when he changed.

[stoney812]

190/55 is the steepest. So you're running on the narrowest center section. Each molecule of center section has to work harder. Riding around town, it chewed up the center of his tire a lot faster. That was our logio to explain it, but maybe he was just more aggressive with them. He swears though he lost 500 miles of wear out of the rear when he changed.

I wondered if there was a downside. That makes sense, especially with the graph, but the treadwear is what I'm really trying to conserve here, especially after having to replace one that only lasted 3,000 miles. If only 500 miles difference though, i can live with that. I just want something like my the pilot roads that last closer to 10k miles, although that's probably a pipe dream with the N1k and all the extra torque I have now, compared to what I was used to with the zx6r.

I don't suppose the brand new 180/55 that I have on my zx6r would work with the n1k since the wheel is wider, will it?

[fixxervi6]

Your over thinking it, put on a 190/55 and ride it like you stole it

[Firewa11]

Riding style, and the roads you travel on are going to determine wear more than the brand / model of tire (within reason).

I average about 3000 miles per rear tire, it doesn't matter the brand. It's how I ride, how I apply power, with my 750, etc. I get on the gas hard, and I like to down shift and apply power even while freeway riding. I brake hard and downshift considerably before turns and put down a lot of power on the exit of the corner. This combination is harder on tires than being gentle on the braking and go-go juice.

For me, I'd rather replace a quality sticky tire every 3k miles and have the feel and confidence a tire like the Q3 provides, instead of riding a tire that may get me a 1-2k more miles but feels pool noodle wrapped around a bicycle tire when cornering.

[dufremle]

I like pool noodles

[Dragonfly]

I like pool noodles

We know! Trying to get 10k+ miles out of a set of tires. And, then getting pissed when people tell you, you should change your tires, and you say I only have 8k miles on them. Only person I know that's has ridden around with cords showing on the front tire!

[Dragonfly]

Your over thinking it, put on a 190/55 and ride it like you stole it

Hey Rick,
Question, were the OEM tires on your APE dual compound or Multi compound by any chance?

[fixxervi6]

Your over thinking it, put on a 190/55 and ride it like you stole it

Hey Rick,
Question, were the OEM tires on your APE dual compound or Multi compound by any chance?

Single compound I believe

[Dragonfly]

Your over thinking it, put on a 190/55 and ride it like you stole it

Hey Rick,
Question, were the OEM tires on your APE dual compound or Multi compound by any chance?

Single compound I believe

I was doing some research on dual compound and multi compound front tire wear patterns. And a lot of them looked like the issue you were having with the scallops.

[LonestarCBR]

Riding style, and the roads you travel on are going to determine wear more than the brand / model of tire (within reason).

I average about 3000 miles per rear tire, it doesn't matter the brand. It's how I ride, how I apply power, with my 750, etc. I get on the gas hard, and I like to down shift and apply power even while freeway riding. I brake hard and downshift considerably before turns and put down a lot of power on the exit of the corner. This combination is harder on tires than being gentle on the braking and go-go juice.

For me, I'd rather replace a quality sticky tire every 3k miles and have the feel and confidence a tire like the Q3 provides, instead of riding a tire that may get me a 1-2k more miles but feels pool noodle wrapped around a bicycle tire when cornering.

Exactly what he said.

And for the record, you can get a little more mileage out of them if you ride roads that use the sides up in equal proportion to the center.

[fixxervi6]

I was doing some research on dual compound and multi compound front tire wear patterns. And a lot of them looked like the issue you were having with the scallops.

I have the Q3's on and the rear is not showing scalloped pattern. I like my Q3's better than the perelli's I had on.

[Dragonfly]

I'm running Q3s on the S3 and like them so far. You know I'm not a big fan on Dunlop unless they are the NTECs or the D211GPAs. I have never felt comfortable on any of their street tires. Race tires awesome, street tires sucked. I now can't say that any more. I can still spin up the rear tire on command but that's mostly due to the short wheel base of the bike and the way the power comes on. Really great feed back probably due to the carbon fiber sidewall. You can go hard into a corner and the tire doesn't feel like it's gonna roll over onto the sidewall like previous models did. Accelerate hard out of a turn, and it delivers good traction at all lean angles. It really feels close to their race tires.

[Striple]

The answer to the 190/55 vs. 190/50 question depends entirely on your suspension settings. Since you are raising the tire height by approximately 5mm, you are affecting the geometry of the bike, which in turn is going to have an effect on the handling of the bike. If your suspension is dialed in, then this may have some slight negative effects on corner exit, for example. However, if your suspension has never been properly set up, then this change may obviously go in either direction.

As far as the tire model itself is concerned, it is largely a matter of personal preference. Most of the tire models that are produced by the big four manufacturers (Dunlop, Bridgestone, Pirelli, Michelin) are great tires when used in the right application. If you're commuting and need good longevity, then you should give the Pirelli Angel GT a shot. Solid traction and I get about 8k+ miles per set on the C-14. If you're not using your bike to commute and prefer something with great traction (but less longevity), the Dunlop Q3s are hard to beat.

[milesmiles]

Listen, just ride on one tire thus cutting down on cost by 50%. Problem solved

[LonestarCBR]

I find I often fail at turns when using this method.

[milesmiles]

practice makes perfect

[Firewa11]

The answer to the 190/55 vs. 190/50 question depends entirely on your suspension settings. Since you are raising the tire height by approximately 5mm, you are affecting the geometry of the bike, which in turn is going to have an effect on the handling of the bike. If your suspension is dialed in, then this may have some slight negative effects on corner exit, for example. However, if your suspension has never been properly set up, then this change may obviously go in either direction.

As far as the tire model itself is concerned, it is largely a matter of personal preference. Most of the tire models that are produced by the big four manufacturers (Dunlop, Bridgestone, Pirelli, Michelin) are great tires when used in the right application. If you're commuting and need good longevity, then you should give the Pirelli Angel GT a shot. Solid traction and I get about 8k+ miles per set on the C-14. If you're not using your bike to commute and prefer something with great traction (but less longevity), the Dunlop Q3s are hard to beat.

The Dunlop guy lives up the street from me, mounted our last set of tires, he said he's doing his damnest to convert you

[Striple]

Ha! I'm starting to have a good relationship with Dunlop, and their tires are great, so its definitely something that I'm considering. The tire carcass is significantly harder than that of Pirelli, but we'll see how the Dunlops are going to perform in endurance racing for us this season. Next season, the cards are mixed anew.