Guest VFRbar Posted January 18, 2007 Share Posted January 18, 2007 At 3400 miles, my Diablo Stradas have had it and I am now in need of new tires. Never was very happy with the level of grip these provided, so I'm back searching for the Holy Grail. I've been reading lately of two new dual-compound tires that are supposed to be out in January. Bridgestone's new BT21 and Michelin's Pilot Road 2CT both promise a regular hard compound in the middle of the tire and a soft sport compound on the edges... i.e. THE HOLY GRAIL OF MOTO TIRES. Here's a short piece translated from le French that I found on another forum. Moto Station "Michelin will replace the Pilot Road, it's aging radial road tire, from January 2007. It's successor will adopt the 2CT (Two Component Technology) technology that came from the MotoGP and was already used in the Pilot Power 2CT. This tire with its profile inspired from the sporting model of the range, is characterized by a band "Sport Tourism" with a hardness equivalent to the Pilot Road, associated this time with a compound "Sport" on the edges, to offer a cornering grip equivalent to that of the current Pilot Power. In launching this Pilot Road 2CT, the objective of Michelin is very clear: to put together that which hasn't been done till now, an important longevity for those who put on lots of miles along with comfort and maximum security in corners for more sporting riders, exactly what we've all (or nearly all) dreamed of! The bi-component technology is arriving now on "everyday" tires, which is excellent news and a very promising product, which we won't hesitate to compare with its designated competitor, the all new Bridgestone BT-021." Anyway, SW Moto Tires has the BT21 in stock.. Anyone tried it out yet? I've never bought Bridgestones before because I've heard of the dreading cupping problem with the 10s and 20s, but this new tire has peaked my interest. Haven't found anywhere that carries the new Michelin yet. I have had a pair of the Roads and liked them ok, but they got a little slippery as they wore. The new tires sound almost to good to be true, so perhaps I should just bite the bullet and go for the Pilot Powers. I hate to go through a set of tires in 2500 miles though. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Member Contributer Synaptic Misfire Posted January 18, 2007 Member Contributer Share Posted January 18, 2007 I am using the new Diabla Corsa III which is dual compound and I am havving really good results with these tires. I have 1400 miles on them currently and they still have a good shape and look new (except for that velvet texture almost to the edge). I live in Florida and do a lot of straight line riding the middle compound really is holding up well. Also wet perormance is awesome I have never felt a loss in traction in the wet. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Member Contributer chris2992 Posted January 18, 2007 Member Contributer Share Posted January 18, 2007 Lots of tires use dual compound technology, including the current Bridgestone BT020 and BT45. I have used both of these tires before, 020 on the VFR and BT45 on my previous bike. They are both a very good tire, I have a set of Pilot Roads waiting to be put on in Leau of the 020's, but as soon as they are toasted I'll be back to either the 020 or the 021. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Veefer800Canuck Posted January 18, 2007 Share Posted January 18, 2007 You might also look at the Avon Storm ST tires. They are the replacement for the Azaro ST. Not dual compound, but they claim that the carcass construction negates the need for different compounds. http://www.avon-tyres.co.uk/motorcycle/?pa...wtyre&id=25 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
enzed_viffer Posted January 18, 2007 Share Posted January 18, 2007 You might also look at the Avon Storm ST tires. They are the replacement for the Azaro ST. Not dual compound, but they claim that the carcass construction negates the need for different compounds. http://www.avon-tyres.co.uk/motorcycle/?pa...wtyre&id=25 I was going to say "Azaros are dual compound" then when I saw yopur post I remembered that they are "variable belt density" instead. BTW: I have a feeling the "cupping problem" on BT020s (and other front tyres) would be alleviated somewhat by running them at 38 or 40 psi. Just a hunch I have after playing with tyre pressures (similar to tire pressures, only metric) and talking to tyre/tire technicians... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Member Contributer jeremy556 Posted January 18, 2007 Member Contributer Share Posted January 18, 2007 BTW: I have a feeling the "cupping problem" on BT020s (and other front tyres) would be alleviated somewhat by running them at 38 or 40 psi. Just a hunch I have after playing with tyre pressures (similar to tire pressures, only metric) and talking to tyre/tire technicians... Do you still use "psi" when measuring the pressure in your tyres? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
enzed_viffer Posted January 18, 2007 Share Posted January 18, 2007 Eek! I just trawled through the Avon site to see what replaces my front tyre (Azaro AV49-SP). The model that replaces it looks entirely different. Might have to go with an AV45 or AV55 instead. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
enzed_viffer Posted January 18, 2007 Share Posted January 18, 2007 BTW: I have a feeling the "cupping problem" on BT020s (and other front tyres) would be alleviated somewhat by running them at 38 or 40 psi. Just a hunch I have after playing with tyre pressures (similar to tire pressures, only metric) and talking to tyre/tire technicians... Do you still use "psi" when measuring the pressure in your tyres? Yeah... :salesman: I run ~38-40 front and rear.* I grew up with PSI, MPG, MPH and all that, so although I'm comfortable with km/h or mph, and use kilograms and sometimes kilowatts (still prefer horspower) I still find mpg and psi more meaningful than "litres per 100 km" or kPa. * I was running 36 rear until this morning, but I found yesterday that both tyres ended up at 40 when hot, and the transition when tipping into corners felt a bit unsettled, so I bumped the rear pressure up to 38 (cold) and the rear preload up one notch to 3 from bottom, and it felt so much better: not tending to run wide and smoother/more progressive tipping in. :thumbsup: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Member Contributer chris2992 Posted January 18, 2007 Member Contributer Share Posted January 18, 2007 I run my front 020 at 38 psi and rear at 41 psi, no cupping at either end. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tinyminds Posted January 18, 2007 Share Posted January 18, 2007 BTW: I have a feeling the "cupping problem" on BT020s (and other front tyres) would be alleviated somewhat by running them at 38 or 40 psi. Just a hunch I have after playing with tyre pressures (similar to tire pressures, only metric) and talking to tyre/tire technicians... I feel your pain with the cupping. I'm running BT020's and I've been really impressed with them so far. I'm a relatively agreesive rider when I see a twisty, which isn't plentiful here, but for what I'm looking for, miles with still enough traction to drag a peg, I have been impressed. My chickenstrips gone on the rear, no slips except for downshifting to hard, I think you can do that with any tire though =P. But the cupping is problem like mentioned above for those in flat area's. If I was still in KY, I would stay with Sport tires instead of Sport-Touring stytle tires. I'll be putting a new set of M3's on my bike for the Texasmac trip, but I'll be taking a set of BT020's with me to change out after I fry the m3's during the week, then have to make the ride up to KY, then back to FL. So for sport touring tires, I would have to give Bt020's a thumbs up even with my moderatly hard twisty riding, to a point. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
enzed_viffer Posted January 18, 2007 Share Posted January 18, 2007 So for sport touring tires, I would have to give Bt020's a thumbs up even with my moderatly hard twisty riding, to a point. I've had BT-020s on my bikes twice; the first ime was on my '90 VFR750, when I had a BT-012 (no longer available) on the front and BT-020 rear. That worked very well : no cupping, and sped up the steering. When I bought the VFR800, it had BT-020s all round. I didn't care for the front tyre at all; it wore unevenly, buzzed, wandered all over the place on coarse-chip seal, and didn't impress me at all. I wish I'd thought to bump the pressure up to see what that did. Why don't you try whatever the equivalent of the BT-012 is (BT-014?) on the front? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tinyminds Posted January 18, 2007 Share Posted January 18, 2007 Why don't you try whatever the equivalent of the BT-012 is (BT-014?) on the front? Because these are what came on my bike when I bought it, I took them off with 37 miles on them, went through 4 sets of M1's in 10k miles, moved to FL, figured the roads here were flat enough for me to get by with a set of S/T tires, so I just put them back on instead of buying new ones to see if I could even handle using S/T tires again after being so use to Sport tires on my VFR. Wasn't so bad. My next set of S/T tires will be Pilot Roads or Avons though. We will have to see. Basically, I'm cheap and trying to use what I have :thumbsup: Not that tires is a place to go cheap on, but they are doing fine, not like I'm slipping around. If they would have slipped on the first couple of turns after I put them on, I would have taken them off and trash them weather they were new or not :beer: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted January 18, 2007 Share Posted January 18, 2007 I forgot that I did own a set of BT-12s that were given to me and they did not cup, but only lasted about 1800 miles. Talk about a quick-wearing tire! I run my ST tires pressures low 32/34 in the mountains but when I am doing hwy miles or taking it easy, I bump them up to 36/42. Chances are, I'll probably go back to sport and let someone else test out the latest/greatest. I have continuously gone back and forth between sport and st tires, never being happy with the mileage of sport and the grip levels of sport-touring. I guess I'm just too hard to please. <_< Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
enzed_viffer Posted January 18, 2007 Share Posted January 18, 2007 I have continuously gone back and forth between sport and st tires, never being happy with the mileage of sport and the grip levels of sport-touring. I guess I'm just too hard to please. <_< I've had three sets of sport front/ ST rear, and it suits me fine. As long as I get around a year of use, I'm happy. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tinyminds Posted January 19, 2007 Share Posted January 19, 2007 I have continuously gone back and forth between sport and st tires, never being happy with the mileage of sport and the grip levels of sport-touring. I guess I'm just too hard to please. <_< I've had three sets of sport front/ ST rear, and it suits me fine. As long as I get around a year of use, I'm happy. HAHA wow I wish I could ever say that. I'm on my 5th set of tires in 8 months of owning this bike, 13k miles. Like I said, when I was in KY, it might get expensive but a set of M1's at 170 a pop is cheaper than the left side of my bike. My problem is a ride a lot of miles to get where I'm going, but ride hard when I get there. There's no perfect tire for me, I just suck up and take it. They don't make a tire capable of getting 6k a set with the grip to drag a knee w/ a passenger in the rain the way my m1's would. ( dragging knee w/ passenger in the rain was no intentional, it was an owe $@#$ moment, but the tires held right in there with a 42 degree lean angle in the rain 'factory spec ' ) That day alone made me a huge Metzler fan. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Member Contributer tbzep Posted January 19, 2007 Member Contributer Share Posted January 19, 2007 Bridgestone's new BT21 and Michelin's Pilot Road 2CT both promise a regular hard compound in the middle of the tire and a soft sport compound on the edges... i.e. THE HOLY GRAIL OF MOTO TIRES. Holy Grail sounds about right. I don't think any tire that's been run on the VFR gets better milage than Pilot Roads at the expense of tire profile, harder ride (stiffer tires), and vague feeling at full lean. The current Pilot Power seems to be all the rage for stickiness without disintegrating after a couple thousand miles. However, the Pilot Power 2CT took forever to come to the USA even though it became available quickly in Europe. I wonder if the same thing will happen with the new Pilot Road 2CT? The dual compound Power is hard to come by and is very expensive. One of the magazines needs to grab a set of PR 2CT's and BT-021's and do a direct comparison with them ASAP! If they wear in the center like Pilot Roads (BT-020's for Bridgestone) and grip on the sides like Pilot Powers and BT-014's, both should be great tires. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
house Posted January 19, 2007 Share Posted January 19, 2007 Cycle gear has the 2CT's in stock (in Atlanta anyway) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Member Contributer tbzep Posted January 19, 2007 Member Contributer Share Posted January 19, 2007 Cycle gear has the 2CT's in stock (in Atlanta anyway) Pilot Power 2CT's. However, they aren't in every store, and they are very expensive. Southwest Moto doesn't even have them. They were available in Europe for a year or so before we saw the first set in the USA. I have a feeling the same thing will happen with the new Pilot Road 2CT's. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
house Posted January 19, 2007 Share Posted January 19, 2007 Cycle gear has the 2CT's in stock (in Atlanta anyway) Pilot Power 2CT's. However, they aren't in every store, and they are very expensive. Southwest Moto doesn't even have them. They were available in Europe for a year or so before we saw the first set in the USA. I have a feeling the same thing will happen with the new Pilot Road 2CT's. /ww slaps head doh... sorry about that... I should learn to read before it gets me in trouble :unsure: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Member Contributer PorradaVFR Posted January 19, 2007 Member Contributer Share Posted January 19, 2007 I've been all over the map...my first set of Metzeler Z6s were great, second set was crap (FAR less milage). My Pilot Roads have been good for two sets, but buzzy (noisy) and slower to turn in than the Z6s. I have a set of Diablo Stradas (basically the Z6s - same company) waiting to go on and am interested in the 2CT model. The BT020s were lousy in the cold / wet winter conditions in the Bay Area, so I never went back to them. Never tried the Avons... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Member Contributer Rydn4fun Posted January 19, 2007 Member Contributer Share Posted January 19, 2007 Pilot power 2ct's are loads of fun, I put a pair on in October and they really impressed me right away. We do not ride much here past november so I can't comment on wear yet. Even if they do not last as long as the stockers I will be putting them on for the next set. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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