Yawn...Another tyre question?

[BizBo]

Hi experts!!

06 BB needs some new boots, don't use it much in the wet (got a big old dirty XR400 for that, plus mud and everything else).

Now as I generally ride in the dry I would like a sporty tyre, but something that is quite well suited for the BB.

Over to you guys...

BizBo

 

[Jaws]

As far as the majority are concerned there are but two options, the BT's and the Avon Storms..
I have been fortunate enough to be able to try all sorts from Pirellis to Dunplops ( noooo, that is not a spelling mistake ) to Michs... And have still come back with just the two options.. Most of the others are fine until pushed.. then they seem to go squidgy and move around an awful lot.. which, considering the weight of the bird is not really that surprising.
Bridgestone and Avon have addressed the weight issue of bikes like ours with a better than normal carcass ..
The only real issue with the BT's is that while they do not grip any better than the Avons they do square off bloody quickly.. I am now on my second set of storms ( first rear lasted a tad under 8k miles which included a run to Southern Germany and a couple of bloody cold track days )

 

[BizBo]

are they 'sporty' enough? what about vipers? Or storms good enough?

 

[Jaws]

Valid question that..
And one answered by Avon themselves ..
They have stopped making the Vipers in favour of the Storms as far as I am aware..
Previous to the two sets of Storms I did have vipers on.. amazing tyre but me being proly Mr average has seen no lack of grip with the Storms compaired to the Vipers.. still dragging pegs all over the place ( which is why I have titanium peg feelers.. they are just SOOOO much fun LOL ! ) and still accutely aware of the fairing being a bit close to the ground for comfort !

 

[bikesnoopy]

BizBo...sports/touring tyres today...or even from a couple of years ago,offer more grip than YOU'LL ever need on a Blackbird in the dry.
Your cornering fun will be limited by the lack of ground clearance & NOT by tyre grip. You'll be scraping pegs,exhausts & fairings long before you get anywhere near the limit of adhesion of your tyres,so dont waste your money on "sporty" or "sticky" tyres,because you dont need them.They take longer to warm up then go cold again at the next set of traffic lights.Theyll feel unstable.
Youll wear them out quickly & they wont give you ANY grip advantage over "the correct" tyres. . . p0pc0rn41

 

[andyBeaker]

Personal experience is that 020s were fine until the Bird came off the sidestand. OK when new but squared off to the extent i thought my head bearings were shot.

Avons are:yo: different class.

 

[BizBo]

looks like 'storms' then.

Is there a special one for the bird or do any of the storms fit (notwithstanding the correct size of course).

BizBo

 

[Jaws]

Interstingly there is no special designate for the Storms.. What they decided to do was make them ALL up to the required spec !
I guess it makes sense.. The ones that suit our bikes are happy on others, but the ones for other bikes would not suit ours.. So I guess normalising the whole set up to us heavy weights was the way to go

 

[Canadian Bird]

Tires

I've ridden Mich's, Bridgestones,only. I suspect that the roads may be quite different across the pond. I've decided to try a pair of Pirellie Diablo Strada's. I have a good price on them and I think they will ride fine for my touring of BC. Albt, Wash, Oregon, Montana, Idaho, which is where I will be doing most of my riding this summer. I want to try a few different tire types and Storms and Roadtecs will be on the list. I'm especially eager to get some distance on the new suspension set up, rear Penske and front from Jaws. Cheers from across the pond.

 

[Jaws]

Spot on C B .. we know from days gone past that Mich's seem to work stunningly well on Nother American roads ( in general ) .. Also Pirellis seem to work much better of southern France roads than northern French roads ( now how weird is that ! !! )..