The time has come to..........

[jonny teabag]

finally ditch these God awful Metzeler tyres and my preferred short list is:

This list is in no preferential order

Avon Storm ST
Dunlop D220
Bridgstone 021
Michelin Road Pilot 2

Question - Has anyone tried the Avon Storms on their 'Dog? They are on my list as they are the latest sports touring tyres from a good British company and the price for 2 is quite favourable. As are the Dunlops. I can source these quite cheaply too. The Bridgstones and Michelins are full price premium brand items and the question is are they worth the extra money?

I would safely say that any of the above MUST be a great improvement over these crappy Metzelers.

Any comments would be welcome.

Ride safe, JT

[Axman]

Good morning JT,

first let me say, that there are two things that I never buy cheap : tyres and brakes

I ditched the Metzelers after two days. My first choice then was the Pirelli Diablo...very nice but nearly down to the thread after 7000 Km´s only Next in line was the Metzeler Sportec M1...even nicer but too "sporty" for the Bulldog. This tyre would be my first choice on the racetrack but definitely not on normal roads (or maybe on a lighter bike)

After this and up to now I chose the Michelin Pilot Road 1. This tyre seems to be ideal for the Bulldog. It enhances the handling of the bike very nicely, the roadholding and grip are outstanding even and foremost in the wet(!!) and it seems to last forever
This tyre is definitely faster than I am...and that´s the way I like it

There are some of us that already use the Pilot Road 2. But as it is not significantly better than the PR1 - at least not for the extra money it costs - I´ll stick to the PR1...at least as long as it is still available.

Cheers

Axman

[nippo_]

I am very happy with Metzelers Sportec M3, very sticky and (suprisingly) reached 10K kms and are not finished yet despite a lot of motorway!

[John w]

Hi JT,

In my humble opinion - you get what you pay for!
This approach usually works for me!

John W - a happy Bridgestone user!

[Blubber]

I also have to replace my tires quite soon.
As it seems that we are going to have a mild winter again,
Verena and I are going to put some more hundred Km's onto our Dog's.

One thing is for sure. I do NOT use PR 1 again.
The noise emitted from the front fender is annoying and
from my opinion it does not end. Even at the near end of the lifetime
of the rubber.
I do have the foamrubber in my fender, but it is no 100% cure for the problem.
Probably I have two, too sensitive ears.
@ John : Despite the fact I take my pills every day.
I am considering to go for the Metzeler Z6 or the BT 21.

Keep the rubber down.

Blubber

[jonny teabag]

Hi guys, Cheers for the input I've been Googling for some tyre tests & reviews and it seems that the results are the same all over the biking community.. i.e one mans favourite tyre is another mans wost nightmare!!

Its seems that although one brand may be liked by most, you will then get a proportionate amount of folk complaining about them wearing out too fast

In my biking life i like most have tried all sorts of brands of tyres and currently favour using Bridgestone 020's'but like everyone would like more mileage from them,and would throw a set on in a heartbeat.

It's just confusing that when ANY brand of new rubber is tested it ALWAYS beats all the other brands that happen to be its direct rival

Of course it's no different on these boards as "one mans meat is another mans poison" as the saying goes

I will of course listen to all the kind people on hear who have an opinion to share, but ultimately have to make my own mind up in the end.

Axman, you say you have tried the Pirelli Diablo's, were these the Strada's ? by any chance as these are probably more suited to the Bulldog's nature being the Sport's Touring application of the Diablo range.

Kind regards, see you next year in Germany!!

JT

[nippo_]

I will of course listen to all the kind people on hear who have an opinion to share, but ultimately have to make my own mind up in the end.

Wise man, JT

Two more comments from me: first, like in races, tyre manufacturers try to improve their products season by season, and THEY organize the comparison tests for the press. That explains well your very correct perception of a different winner in every test.

On the other hand, the tyre must work well with the bike. And the Bulldog is our common point here - for fairness' sake, well appreciated tyres according to Bulldog owners are Continental Sport Attack and Metzeler Z6. I decided to go for the M3s because I wanted to track my BT few times (which I did once) and was pleasantly surprised with the duration...

Apart from my own personal experience, by putting together impressions from Italy, France and Germany there seems to be a consensus that the two tyres I mentioned above are the best choices. No positive comments about Bridgestones for the BT (apart from John W), despite their track success in MotoGP. Bear in mind that our bike is SLIGHTLY different from a racer

[Axman]

Good morning,

I don´t know where Nippo got his data from, but at least in Germany the Michelins - Pilot Road 1 or 2 - are the most commonly used Tyres on the Bulldog ! There are some guys that put the Continental on their Bulldog "because they like the thread-design.." but this is an argument that I really can´t take seriously !!

The Pirelli Diablo - no, it was not the "Strada"..they didn´t have it yet - was a good tyre but it didn´t last as long as the Michelins and the wet-grip wasn´t as good either But the "Strada" seems to be better in this respect as I´ve heard..

The only gripe I have with the PR1 is, that it does make a noise from the front end. But after glueing a piece of foam-rubber under the front fender I don´t hear it any more.

Regards

from tha Axman

[Martin_CZ]

I've just finished with my Dunlop 220ST "sportmax" tyres. Rear tyre gone after more than 10.000 kms (just to the limit), including vacation with fully-loaded bike (4.500 kms) and many highway courses at 140 kmh. Still some 1mm to go on the front tyre. 6,5 mm of tread on rear tyre = good mileage. My overall impression was just average, next time I'll try something else.

[Eddie]

Hi @all,

this time I have buyed the Continental Road Attack for my Bulldog and it seems to be a good decision.
Not expensive and very easy to drive. First, the grip was not on top, but it´s only a question of time.
The next tyre will be the same Contis for sure, but the question, what kind of tyre its the best, its a religion.
So, it´s your choice...

Eddie

[Mick P]

Michelin Pilot Road 2 1500 miles not a blemish on them very pleased

Mick P

[sully22252]

Hi JT

Have you got those new tyres yet, and if so what did you finally settle on? I can't bear to throw away tyres with life left in them so this weekend I'll be doing about 1000 miles on the dreadful Metzelers, which should finish the rear off anyway, and I was then thinking of putting Avon Storm ST's on. They've had plenty of good write-ups in the UK and a friend who put them on his BMW thought they were the best tyres he had had to date with great wet and dry grip and good wear, but then every bike and every rider is different.

I didn't particularly like the BT020's on my second Bulldog although they've always been fine on other bikes I've had, so I've just replaced them with something very different, Pirelli Scorpion Sync's, although I had to have a 180/55 on the back but it fits straight in. I got them for their vaguely offroad tread but they feel superb on the road, far better than I expected. I'll see how they wear but they feel so good I'm tempted to stick them on the other one too.

Regards
Chris

[jonny teabag]

Hi Chris, no i haven't decided yet I too have thought about Pirelli syncs after hearing great things about them from the Buell owners site that i frequent, though i didn't know that the 170/60 is not available.

I've sussed that if i buy 180's there often cheaper than the 170's- must be that 180's are far more popular hence bigger numbers equals cheaper production costs

But the dilemma would be that the rolling circumference would be shorter which would lower the gearing of a already short geared bike ( though would you actually notice the small difference - i don't know )

Just to throw another spanner in the works I've just read a write up in Bike magazine about the latest Dunlop Sports Touring tyres, the RoadSmart which use a duel compound but only on the rear ( Michelin use duel comp front and rear)

The small artical says they were tested back to back with the Mich road pilot2's and the Bridgestone 021's and the journalist said they equaled the class leading Miche's and bettered the Bridge's in the wet and dry test.Crucially no estimates of them lasting as long as either were mentioned, so I'am keeping my ears open on that one

I'll keep you posted when i decide

Keep smiling, JT

[Waidler]

Hi Chris, no i haven't decided yet I too have thought about Pirelli syncs after hearing great things about them from the Buell owners site that i frequent, though i didn't know that the 170/60 is not available.

I've sussed that if i buy 180's there often cheaper than the 170's- must be that 180's are far more popular hence bigger numbers equals cheaper production costs

But the dilemma would be that the rolling circumference would be shorter which would lower the gearing of a already short geared bike ( though would you actually notice the small difference - i don't know )

..

Hi JT,

don't worry about the 180. Lots of BTs have that (and even bigger sizes) on, it works well and looks good

Regards
Waidler