BT014s Vs 020s

Time for me to change my tyres, I've always brought BT020s because they seem to last for ever but this year (yes they last me a whole year ) i'm thinking of putting on a pair of 014s

How long will they last? I know they're gripper then the 020s but i'm tight and don't want to buy a pair if i'll have to change them in 6 months

Also, how do they fair in the wet?

[fizzwheel]

Originally Posted by svrash

i'm thinking of putting on a pair of 014s

How long will they last? I know they're gripper then the 020s but i'm tight and don't want to buy a pair if i'll have to change them in 6 months

They dont wear well at all, they square off really quickly to. I was getting 1800 miles to a rear on my GSXR and it was toast after that. But for the last 500 miles of its life the tyre went down hill really quickly. They are unbelievably soft. After a spirited ride on a hot day I was able to roll litle balls of rubber off the tyre with my hand.

Originally Posted by svrash

Also, how do they fair in the wet?

They are rubbish. They dont work well at all when its wet. They take ages to heat and are really vague and dont give any feedback at all. I hated them they robbed me of all my confidence its taken ages to get it back.

They are good if you dont do many miles and only ride on hot days. If you ride all year round then look for something else.

I've got Metzler Z6's on my SV which I really like the feel of. I've got Michellin Pilot Power 2CT's on my GSXR which are a huge improvement over the 014 and they last twice as long as well.

HTH

Fizz, you really surprise me because I always ran 014's on my Gixxer and they were great in the rain....

To put things into perspective, 020's are a "Sports Touring" tyre, the 014 is out and out sports rubber, big difference. The 014 is very confidence inspiring, I was amazed just how much grip my Gixxer had at some major lean angles. But they do square off quickly, my GSXR600 was doing about 2000 miles before it started to notice - change the tyres and it was like a new bike again!

So it's down to what you want from the tyre, Fizz's Gixxer is a 750, and the 130 odd ponies can eat rear tyres - I know I used to run them on the 'Blade. If you want sports bike grip go for the 014's (or even Pirelli Diablo Corsa's) but if you're doing motorways and touring, stick with the 020's.

.

As an aside; are the standard new dealer fit tyres not any good then? Hardy anyone seems to keep theirs...

Grrr... I'm really lost on tyres, i want something more grippy then the 020s but i want to get some miles for my money

[fizzwheel]

Originally Posted by svrash

Grrr... I'm really lost on tyres, i want something more grippy then the 020s but i want to get some miles for my money

Metzler Z6's would be what I'd be fitting. Cheaper than 020's last about the same sort of time, but heat better when the roads wet and cold. Give good feedback and I found them very confidence inspiring.

The Pirelli Diablo Strada is the same tyre with a slightly different tread pattern but around the same sort of price.

I think Bridgestone are replacing the BT020 with the BT021 so might be worth being the forum guinea pig and trying a pair of those.

If you want to go a step further, look at some of the Sport tyres with the dual compound tread ( hard in the middle soft of the edges ) The Michellin Pilot Power 2CT i've got on the GSXR is like this. Iive got 3500 miles out of a rear. Its really square now, but its much better than the BT014 was on that bike at the same stage of its tyre life.

As Jelster has said, Pirelli Diablo Corsa 3 are getting good reviews and thats what I'm trying next, The Dunlop Sportmax Qualifier comes highly recommended to. Again both these are dual compound so they wont square off quite as quickly. But these are going to be more expensive.

I think the thing is to just keep trying tyres until you find a pair you really like, Liz and I do a lot of miles so we get through tyres at a rate of knots which means it doenst take much time to evaluate different brands etc. TBH theres no such thing as a bad modern tyre. Its just a matter of find what works for you and what doesnt, tyre choice is a very personal thing.

Bluesteel - the Standard Dunlop D220 fitment on the SV isnt actually that bad, If you are new to biking and the SV is your first bike, just run with those and wear them out. We're coming into spring now and they work better when the roads and ambient temperature is better.

Jelster - Its a personal thing again isnt it. I hated them I've spoken to plenty of other people who like me hated the 014, but I've spoken to plenty of other people who love them. I liked them when the were hot, but I didnt like the vaguness from the front when they were cold or it was damp or raining hard. Thats when I got really fedup with it combined with the high wear rate and how expensive the 014's are I just decided I'd had enough.

Emailed my local tyre shop and with my discount the tyre prices are as follows (fitted to loose wheel)

Bt021s £165
BT014s £158
Metzer Z6 £170


I'm gonna go for the 021s and give my views

[Viney]

Originally Posted by svrash

I'm gonna go for the 021s and give my views

Good man

Originally Posted by fizzwheel

Jelster - Its a personal thing again isnt it. I hated them I've spoken to plenty of other people who like me hated the 014, but I've spoken to plenty of other people who love them. I liked them when the were hot, but I didnt like the vaguness from the front when they were cold or it was damp or raining hard. Thats when I got really fedup with it combined with the high wear rate and how expensive the 014's are I just decided I'd had enough.

See if you hadn't of gone all "hard man" with a 750, and got the 600 like everybody else you would have been happy

I haven't looked back since switching to Corsa's, absolutely blooming fantastic tyre (if you like 'em sporty).

But like you said, tyres are a personal thing....
.

[fizzwheel]

Originally Posted by Jelster

See if you hadn't of gone all "hard man" with a 750, and got the 600 like everybody else you would have been happy