New tire love

Wheels, tires, suspension, forks, and brakes.
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Turbojoe
Posts: 162
Joined: Fri Jun 03, 2011 10:35 pm
I ride: 2004 Vulcan 500
Location: Mesa, AZ

New tire love

Postby Turbojoe » Sat Apr 21, 2012 6:57 pm

I had a Kenda 671 Cruiser rear tire and got 8,000 miles from it. It still probably has a few more miles left but didn't want to risk it. I just installed a Bridgestone S11 Spitfire today and WOW what a difference! I knew in the first 100 yards of the test ride that I was going to love this new tire. Even at the 35 psi I had in it for the initial test ride (rated to 41psi) it had a super plush ride. No more tendency to follow lines in the road and super stable on turns. Quiet too. Can't get over just how much nicer the Bridgestone is. I got used to that Kenda and just didn't realize how crappy it rode. I'm VERY easy on tires so I hope I can get the same mileage from this as I did with the Kenda. As soon as the Kenda on the front needs to go a Bridgestone will replace it as well. It's comparably priced to the Kenda but a much nicer tire so far. It only cost me $102.00 shipped with a new Bridgestone tube, rim strip and 2 oz of Dyna Beads from Rocky Mountain ATV. I'm actually looking forward to replacing the front now. Just need the money.......

Joe
The nonsensical ravings of a lunatic mind.....

2004 Vulcan 500

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Turbojoe
Posts: 162
Joined: Fri Jun 03, 2011 10:35 pm
I ride: 2004 Vulcan 500
Location: Mesa, AZ

Re: New tire love

Postby Turbojoe » Sat Jun 16, 2012 11:41 am

I've been super happy with the Bridgestone S-11 rear and couldn't wait any longer for the Kenda front tire to wear out so I just ordered a new Bridgestone Spitfire S-11 100/90-19 for the front of my bike. When I installed the S-11 rear all road groove tracking completely stopped at the rear. Unfortunately that Kenda on the front still finds every imperfection and it can be very unsettling at times. If the S-11 front ignores road grooves like the rear does it'll feel like a completely different bike. Hopefully the tire, tube and balancing beads will be here by next weekend so I can get it swapped out on Saturday or Sunday. The rear S-11 has over 2,000 miles now and has little perceptible wear. If the front gives good wear like this I'll be staying with this tire for the foreseeable future. Best part is that pricing is within even my budget!

Joe
The nonsensical ravings of a lunatic mind.....

2004 Vulcan 500

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Triangles
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Joined: Sun Dec 27, 2009 10:35 pm
I ride: '94 Black Cherry Vulcan 500, '06 Candyfire Red Vulcan 500 LTD
Location: Toledo Ohio
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Re: New tire love

Postby Triangles » Tue Jun 19, 2012 8:48 pm

I got a new set of Pirellis to replace my factory tires after 12k I could have gone farther but the rubber had hardened and was very dangerous on wet pavement. I decided after the 2nd time I almost went down due to tire slip it was time for new tires even though there was plenty of tread left. So far they have been great too! we'll see if they last.

Update 6-12-15:
After 3 years and roughly 14k miles these tires are beginning to show their age. The front is showing early signs of dry rot (nothing to worry about yet) and tread is still there but showing wear. I have one plug in the rear tire where it was punctured by a hunk of pointed scrap metal. I could probably get another 2-3k miles out of them but I will replace them next spring regardless of miles due to the front starting to dry rot. I assume this is from the tire sitting in the sun. These tires have performed well and I will likely buy them again.
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AKrider
Posts: 30
Joined: Sat Oct 01, 2011 12:21 am
I ride: '93 Vulcan 500, '06 Honda Rebel, '81 CX 500
Location: Two Rivers, Alaska

Re: New tire love

Postby AKrider » Thu Jun 11, 2015 7:56 pm

Tried Dunlop D404s - great traction but rubber so soft they didn't last long (about 3000 mi rear and double for the front).

Then I went with Bridgestone Exedra Max front and rear, did better on the wear (about 6000 mi rear) but occasionally the rear would slip sideways a little on rough pavement in corners so that was a little disconcerting.

Currently Running Michelin Commander II, Put the rear on this spring and have about 3000 miles on it with no noticeable wear, and just put the matching tire on the front, rode in the rain yesterday over some of our rough roads here in interior Alaska and very impressed so far with handling and traction.
We are what we repeatedly do, excellence is a habit.

GeorgiaRider
Posts: 168
Joined: Sat Jan 23, 2010 5:51 am
Location: NW Georgia

Re: New tire love

Postby GeorgiaRider » Sat Jun 20, 2015 6:26 am

I got 8K miles out of the original Bridgestones. Ran two sets of Dunlop 404 and got 10K out of the front (down to 1mm-2mm) and 8K out of the rear. I ran a set of Metzler ME-880s and got 15K out of the rear and 10K out of the front. I still had quite a bit of tread on the front, but it was showing signs of dry rot so I replaced both with Dunlop 404s again.
GeorgiaRider
2006 Vulcan 500

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AKrider
Posts: 30
Joined: Sat Oct 01, 2011 12:21 am
I ride: '93 Vulcan 500, '06 Honda Rebel, '81 CX 500
Location: Two Rivers, Alaska

Re: New tire love

Postby AKrider » Sun Jun 26, 2016 5:06 pm

Still liking the Michelin Commander II's, up to about 7000 miles on them now, still wearing and riding well.
We are what we repeatedly do, excellence is a habit.


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