Mixing tyre brands?

[craig dow]

hi iv got a sv650s curvie , need to replace square back tyre , i have battlax bt014 160/60zr17/c on it at the moment , same make on frount , but frount tyre is ok , should i just get the same one to replace the back or does it not matter , i use my bike for commuting every day 64 miles round trip in all weather , so dont know if i should have same make frount and back , or just replace back one , i dont race or thrash the bike ,
thanks for any help

[Lozzo]

Put whatever you want on the rear. Most people will tell you that you absolutely must have an identical matched pair of tyres, but generally these people do 500 miles a year and haven't a clue. You'll be ok, you won't die and you probably won't notice anything strange.

[craig dow]

thanks for that , did a lot of reading on here , and some say yes , and some say no , but iv read i can get a pair of road attacks , fitted for around £130 - £160 so thats good , so think i will just goes for a pair of these , or less some one tells me of a better pair of tyres for that price , but as what iv read think there the most pop at the mow , but thanks for you advise

[fizzwheel]

Personally I dont like to mix brands, but many people are like Lozzo and will happily do so.

If want to stick with Bridgestone but want something a bit more suited to your commute, go with a BT023 or whatever the equivalent is, it'll last alot longer that the 014 will.

[Lozzo]

If someone is offering Road Attacks at 130 to 160 quid a pair fitted then buy them as a matched pair. That's a damn good price and the tyres are ok.

[-Ralph-]

Ive had a Bridgestone BT020 on the back of an SV at the same time as an OEM Dunlop D220. The result wasnt good, but as Lozzo correctky says, I'm not posting from heaven or hell, with wings and a harp, or horns and a pitchfork. No combination of tyres is going to kill you, but some combinations may not handle too well.

Then later in the SV's life I had a Pirelli Diablo Strada on the front and a Metzeler Z6 on the back. Now those are the same tyre from different manufacturers and were therefore perfect.

I dare say a BT020 on the back, but a Z6 on the front would be fine too, as they are similar shape sports touring tyres.

So the only correct answer to this question I'm afraid is - it depends on what tyres you are trying to match, and even if you did tell us, ir's unlikely anyone would be abke to give you a solid answer, unless they had akso tried the same combination.

[craig dow]

hi thanks for that , im going with the price on here for the road attacks , so will have to see what i can get them for , the frount tyre is a bridgestone battlax bt104f 120/60zp17m/c so might ask and see what will go with that , and at what price , see if its cheaper , as it still has loads of tread on the frount one , thanks all for your help

[NTECUK]

Ran a Bridgestone front and s Conti rear no problems.

[Dicky Ticker]

Although it is possible to mix and match brands with similar tread patterns the grip and water displacement from front to rear will be better with a matching set as they are designed to compliment each other,plus have compatible levels of grip. The levels of both may be acceptable on a mix but will never be just that 100% achieved by matched tyres as they give different feed back to the rider,be it wall flex,profile,grip or whatever.
You don't see professional racers using mixed tyres,just different compounds.

[NTECUK]

I don't think sponsors would let you mix and match DT

[rictus01]

I've done both, mixed and matched sets, some times for convenience, sometime financial, only one golden rule really, make the stickier one the front,

If you do get in a situation where the limits of grip are found you want to make should if one of your tyres lets go it is the rear, most people "feel" the grip through there back side and a good grippy rear tyre with a less so front can give you a false sense of security and not end well.

So my advice, matching brands, tread pattern and what not are desirable, but most combinations will work OK or at least get you out of trouble, just remember the golden rule.


Cheers Mark

[Steve_God]

As long as you know what to expect from each, and you're prepared for it, then there's no issue.

Eg: I previously had a mileage tyre on the rear, and a supersport soft tyre on the front.
(reason being was I'd changed the front forks, which came with the wheel and tyre still attached).
Although many people would say that's crazy to not only mix up different brands, let alone different type of tyre, I knew that the front would have no grip until it warmed up, and that the rear would never have anywhere near as much grip as the front when it was up to temperature.

As long as you understand how the tyres will behave differently, and ride accordingly, you'll be fine.

[ophic]

No combination of tyres is going to kill you...
But if it does, make sure you post and let us know :rolleyes:

[-Ralph-]

But if it does, make sure you post and let us know :rolleyes:

I'll come back and haunt the .org! I'm never going to volunteer to be a mod, so if you suddenly find your posts 'Last edited by -Ralph-' you'll know I'm no longer in the land of the living! :)

[NTECUK]

Oh yes dont mix a sticky with a road milage type.
The rear corsa will allways give ,me a nudge if its cold .
Wouldn't want the front to step out like that

[Spank86]

Put whatever you want on the rear. Most people will tell you that you absolutely must have an identical matched pair of tyres, but generally these people do 500 miles a year and haven't a clue. You'll be ok, you won't die and you probably won't notice anything strange.
Not quite that simple Some mixes of tyres will invalidate your insurance as they are illegal, a decent tyre fitter or a quick google will tell you the details. Its not down to brand though, just the construction of them.

http://www.etyres.co.uk/uk-tyre-law

[-Ralph-]

Not quite that simple Some mixes of tyres will invalidate your insurance as they are illegal, a decent tyre fitter or a quick google will tell you the details. Its not down to brand though, just the construction of them.

http://www.etyres.co.uk/uk-tyre-law

You can still buy cross-ply tyres in sizes for an SV? :shock:

[Spank86]

No idea.

I dont know what any of it, means; radial, bias belted, and all that malarky, Its just rubber to me.

[-Ralph-]

No idea.

I dont know what any of it, means; radial, bias belted, and all that malarky, Its just rubber to me.

OK, just this post made it sound like you knew more about it than Lozzo.

Not quite that simple Some mixes of tyres will invalidate your insurance as they are illegal, a decent tyre fitter or a quick google will tell you the details. Its not down to brand though, just the construction of them.

http://www.etyres.co.uk/uk-tyre-law

[mister c]

Put whatever you want on the rear. Most people will tell you that you absolutely must have an identical matched pair of tyres, but generally these people do 500 miles a year and haven't a clue. You'll be ok, you won't die and you probably won't notice anything strange.
I totally agree. Unless you are mister V Rossi esq, then, for normal use, you should be fine. I've done it a few times without any problems at all, in fact this CBR I've built has a Maxxis on the back & a Dunlop on the front. They are both legal, so why change them? I'll get a few miles out of them & then ditch them for a pair :)

[NTECUK]

For cars it was radial rear .
Mainly as under steer is easier for Jo public to cope with.
On a bike its a different kettle of fish.

[Spank86]

OK, just this post made it sound like you knew more about it than Lozzo.
I'm good at that.

Not knowing about stuff, just sounding like I do and remembering trivia.

All I know is theres 3 different types of tyre and you cant just go mixing them without knowing which ones can be combined, which information may or may not constitute more knowledge than Lozzo holds, I haven't spoken to him on the subject, it's certainly more knowledge than he imparted.

[Lozzo]

I'm good at that.

Not knowing about stuff, just sounding like I do and remembering trivia.

All I know is theres 3 different types of tyre and you cant just go mixing them without knowing which ones can be combined, which information may or may not constitute more knowledge than Lozzo holds, I haven't spoken to him on the subject, it's certainly more knowledge than he imparted.

Quite simply - you won't find cross-ply or bias belted tyres in SV sizes, so the advice about mixing carcass construction types may be a relevant point in general terms, but not relevant to this particular instance as you will only find those sizes of tyre in radial construction.

[Spank86]

Quite simply - you won't find cross-ply or bias belted tyres in SV sizes, so the advice about mixing carcass construction types may be a relevant point in general terms, but not relevant to this particular instance as you will only find those sizes of tyre in radial construction.

Perhaps you should let Dunlop know about that then, I'm sure they'd be surprised to learn they don't make an elite 3 bias belted tyre that fits the sv650/1000. Or if they wouldn't then some of their stockists would.

[-Ralph-]

Spank, you should change your username to 'GoogleGuru' ;-)

[Spank86]

Too generic.

Besides, I only go to google for the details because people keep getting their panties in a bunch about my half remembered facts.

[-Ralph-]

Too generic.

Besides, I only go to google for the details because people keep getting their panties in a bunch about my half remembered facts.

As any long standing member will tell you, people get their panties in a bunch because they are trying to maintain the integrity of the advice posted on the forum, and in doing so maintain the forums main Raison d' etre. If you post half remembered facts, that really you know nothing about, then unless you post something to say it's half remembered crap that you know nothing about, it dilutes the forums usefulness and it's purpose. Particularly if you post it in an authoritative manner, such that it comes across as if you know what you are talking about. If somebody pulls you up on it, essentially what they are doing is putting in a post that says to the next person reading, 'ignore what he posted above, it's bolox/not relevant to this thread/<insert other reason here>'

[Spank86]

And as it turns out I did know what I was talking about.

Both in general and as it turns out specifically, even if there isn't a massive range of those tyres.

Besides which, all I said was that it was something to look out for, even if it had turned out that there were no tyres but radials for SVs it wouldn't be harmful advice and might even be actively useful if and when the guy or someone else gets a different bike.

[-Ralph-]

And as it turns out I did know what I was talking about

As it turns out in this case, you were lucky and you managed to google and find one tyre which supported your case

(however unlikely it may be that someone would ever supply/fit/buy that tyre for an SV, I wouldn't be surprised if there isn't a single SV anywhere in the western world that has that tyre fitted)

The point is though, that you didn't know that tyre existed when you posted your authoritative 'advice', and by your own admission, you didn't even know what a bias belted tyre was.

[Spank86]

I'm not about to go trying to find evidence of a bias belted SV, I think that would be to defend into farce but I will say that I still don't know what a bias belted tyre is.

I also don't know what a radial tyre is, I just know there's different types that shouldn't be mixed and that's all I need to with luck having nothing to do with it.

It's not in any way erroneous information and whilst you might not consider it particularly helpful wether there's a tyre for SVs or not but I don't see how it was in any way harmful or indeed worth making any sort of issue over.

As for the authoritative nature of my advice I specifically suggested talking to a tyre fitter or googling for more details. It really seems pretty reasonable to me. More reasonable than a "put anything you want on the rear" which could be mistaken as a blanket statement.

[Lozzo]

Perhaps you should let Dunlop know about that then, I'm sure they'd be surprised to learn they don't make an elite 3 bias belted tyre that fits the sv650/1000. Or if they wouldn't then some of their stockists would.

I'd expect someone with your google addiction and ability to search out the most obscurest of facts to be fully aware that a bias belt tyre is not recommended for the SV1000 or SV650, and no doubt the in depth research you've already carried out has shown this to be the case.

FWIW, if some cerebrally challenged retard tries to fit a bias belt tyre to any bike for which a radial is recommended, then simply look on it as Darwinism in action and hope they haven't bred yet.

I used to be like you, looking for arguments and frantically searching out facts to support my tenuous grip on reality... then I grew up.

[ophic]

I used to be like you, looking for arguments and frantically searching out facts to support my tenuous grip on reality... then I grew up.
and the tenuous grip on reality was lost forever ;)

[Lozzo]

and the tenuous grip on reality was lost forever ;)

Give the man a coconut :-)

[Spank86]

.

I used to be like you, looking for arguments and frantically searching out facts to support my tenuous grip on reality... then I grew up.

Apparently not.