Single, dual or triple compound?

Marketing hype or real advantage? Liked my PR2s, but as manufacturers are still releasing new single-compound designs; it makes me wonder how effective they must be.

My PR2's saved me from a big crash a donnington, lost the front into the foggy esses, the front slid until it had leant over so it was on the sticky shoulder of the tyre and recaught, if I'd been running a single compound tyre I'd have crashed. So I like them.

I had PR2s and liked them. Got some Bridgestones of some kind on now (Bt21s!?). 1500 miles this weekend (with pillion, luggage and camping equipment) and they're completely square!

[the_lone_wolf]

Pirelli Supercorsa Pros, because straight lines are boring:

Triple is actually only dual... they count either side and the middle as a compound when there are only really dual.

Duals are better if for nothing else you get more wear from the middle. My bike has a similar PO to your tripple and I can get 5K out of a PR2 rear before bad flattening and 8K before illegal. Ace!

Trying a Roadsmart on the rear atm. Great grip, similar to the PR2 though tbh

[G]

Originally Posted by gettin2dizzy

I had PR2s and liked them. Got some Bridgestones of some kind on now (Bt21s!?). 1500 miles this weekend (with pillion, luggage and camping equipment) and they're completely square!

First I have ever heard of them going square, usually the edges wear away first.

I'm not keen on them, althugh they do seem to give plenty of grip.

Originally Posted by ThEGr33k

Triple is actually only dual... they count either side and the middle as a compound when there are only really dual.

Duals are better if for nothing else you get more wear from the middle. My bike has a similar PO to your tripple and I can get 5K out of a PR2 rear before bad flattening and 8K before illegal. Ace!

Trying a Roadsmart on the rear atm. Great grip, similar to the PR2 though tbh

BT-016 is a real "triple" compound.

Depends on the tyre.

Some Dual compound tyres have the stickier sompound so close to the edge and so thin that in 99% of road conditions it'll never get used and this could well be for marketing.
Others have larger, more useful dual compound areas that do get used.

But like all things it has to be used properly. Having a Sticky compound on the edge of your tyres means nothing if you don't warm the tyres up. Having a cold "sticky" compound at the edge may actually be worse than having a cold Touring compound at the edge. Likewise in the wet it may be better to have a touring compound instead of a stucky compound.

Having used dual technology on the front of my Hornet it is easy to see and feel the difference. If you spend a lot of time cranked right over then it may be worth getting some.

If you don't then the time you spend on the sexy sticky part won't warrant it... Unless they happen to be the same price.

I've also read that there are differences in stability on some dual compound tyres in comparison to the same tyre in a single compound. But until I've tried both I can't comment personally.

C

Originally Posted by gettin2dizzy

I had PR2s and liked them. Got some Bridgestones of some kind on now (Bt21s!?). 1500 miles this weekend (with pillion, luggage and camping equipment) and they're completely square!

I've got a BT21 on the back and did 2200 mikes in France recently with luggage but no pillion. Mine hasn't squared off, but I'm a lightweight.

From the way you ask the question and the info on the tyres you have. It may be worth pointing out that just because its a dual compound doesn't necessarily mean that the centre will be any more hard wearing than the tyres you have now. Just that the edges may be stickier for the same mileage.

The benefit of dual compound tyres is that they are marketed as longer lasting *sports* tyres rather than longer lasting Sports touring tyres.

So, for example (and simplistically, they may not be exactly the same compounds), the Michelin Pilot road CT2 will have the same edges as the standard Pilot Power but the centre of the Pilot Road. It isn't going to last any longer than a pilot road despite being dual compound. It will however, be stickier at the edges and give better wear than a Pilot Power.

Likewise the Pilot Power CT2 has the sticky sides of the Pilot Race but the centre is the same wear rate as the standard Pilot Power. Its not going to get better mileage than the standard Pilot Power.

Conversely, all of the dual compound tyres have *worse* wear at the edges than their standard equivalents.


C