Changing Tyre Manufacturers

[Bibio]

i'd say. stick with what you know... the storms are really good on the sv. you know what to expect...

[Luckypants]

I have tried Bridgestone, Metzeler, Dunlop and Avon. I keep coming back to Avons... You find a tyre that suits you and stick with it I guess.

and G. Yes the BT-021 is rubbish IMO, hated them on the VFR, esp in the wet.

I think that you need to decide what you want from your tyres and what your riding style is. Some peeps go for grip against all else, others want more feel.
You need to talk to other bikers to decide what your style is.
For many, the outright grip offered by Michelins outweighs all else. I had a couple of bad experiences on Michelins and Metzelers and I've only ever had 1 set of Bridgestones in my life. As a result of these experiences I would NEVER willingly have Michelins or Metzes on a bike of mine, but that is very much a matter of personal choice. Those bad experiences have clouded my judgement/confidence on those tyres. When I say that they happened in the 80s you'll understand that it's prejudice. I know that as much as anybody else, but I also know that confidence is a major part in anybody's riding.
I have had a long love affair with Contis, ever since they were dirt cheap when trying to break into the Uk market in the early 80s. Before that I'd been running Avons and then Pirellis.
Those brands (Avon Pirelli and Conti) all seem to behave in a similar manner, they don't have the outright grip of Michelins and Metzes, but they give more feedback. One may suit you/your bike better than another.
Just because one tyre is "stickier" than another doesn't mean that it's better for you. If you can't get enough heat into it, it simply won't perform. I've found that I never get enough heat into "race" tyres and that, although I get some big angles of dangle, touring tyres suit my style of riding better, as well as getting many more miles/set.
The above are the reasons I choose Conti road attacks over any other. Wet weather performance isn't really a problem as we live in Spain, but I had so many offs in the rain when I was young that good wet weather feel is vital for my confidence.
I have Road Attacks on my TL1000S and will put them onto my OHs SV when the current set need replacing (currently it's got a weird-feeling Dunlop on the front and Bridgestone rear). The TL had adunlop rear last time out and I couldn't get any heat into it. Horrible.

Originally Posted by G

There's only one certainty - if you don't like them they will last forever!

I get that feeling......fortunately I have a good history at wearing out tyres pretty quickly[/quote]

hard on front brake + hard on throttle + release clutch = burnout

that'll get rid of nasty, dirty, ungrippy tyres lol

There's a good argument for changing tyre manufacturers.

If you put a set on that you don't like, it only makes you ride the bike more so they wear faster, then you can change them again. That way you get more miles under your wheels.

Everyone's a winner

[ethariel]

OE tyres stayed on for about 2k then got swapped out.

Z6's were great, swapped out for PR2's at about 6k, not looked back since then. Found rubber i'm happy with and and will also never ever push close to it's limit. Not cheap but i LIKE them which is about the most important thing when it comes to a choice of rubber imho.

I'll be perfectly honest - I was never that impressed with Metzeler Z6s that were fitted to my K5S. I found the old Avon Azaro AV45/46 combination to be far better all-round tyres on the bikes I put them on before I went to SVs. In fact, I dare say the original Dunlop D221s I have on my Versys give me more confidence than the Metzelers ever did, and I am no lover of Dunlops generally. The Daytona 955i had a set of Michelin Pilot Road2s put on it by me and they were brilliant.

When these Dunlops are trashed I'll be trying the Avon Storms out.