Shinko Raven 009

I'm looking for some feedback on Shinko Raven 009 tires from someone who is riding on them now or has in the past.

I've read reviews on other forums that range from great tire to junk. What is the dry and wet grip like and how many miles are the tires lasting?

Any input would be appreciated.

Bob
'02 R1150RT

I have them on my FJR. They are similar to the Me 880. I am not an aggressive rider and was looking for a tire that could handle the weight and power of the FJR. I was also looking for a long wearing tire. My son was able to scrape the pegs on the FJR in the twisties on dry pavement. We have used them in the rain but not aggressively, yet there were no surprises.
They have about 7500 on them and will make about 10000 miles before needing a rear tire change. This is from an area that the tires only get about 4500 miles (sport touring), or as in a pair of Me 880 I only got about 7500 miles total on my C.
I will be putting them back on the FJR when they wear out.
I believe it is all up to how you ride, and the type of road surface is in your area. This area uses chip seal, and is very hard on tires and windshields. The tires may perform differently on concrete or smooth asphalt.
Good luck

We have been using Shinko tires for a long time and they wear as well if not better than anything else. We have used nearly all of the brands over the years and tire prices have gone up a lot and find the Shinkos a bargain. We can't tell the difference in handling or in the rain but we aren't that aggressive of riders.

Thanks for the input Saber and Riders. From what I'm hearing from both of you this tire is a good alternative to the higher dollar big brand name tires.

Ride safe............Bob

I for one can not trust Shinko, or Cheng Shin, or any of the cheap tires.

I had some bad expereinces with Shinko "Metzeler laser knockoffs" on bikes used for the MSF classes I teach. The Shinko tires performed very poorly on wet pavement that bikes with Dunlop or other brand name tires handled easily.

I for one, would not put my life in jeopardy for the sake of saving a few bucks on cheapo tires when all you're riding on are two palm sized patches of rubber. Your choice, your ride, your life. Just not worth the few bucks saved.

I am running on Continental Road Attacks now, and just ran a set of Avon Storms. Prior to that I ran Bridgestone radials.

My wife had a set of Raven 009s mounted on her R1150RS shortly before putting it up for sale, so we can't comment on longevity, but... I can tell you we rode through some heavy thunderstorms with hard rain and hail on the Going to the Sun Highway in Glacier National Park, and she said they felt fine. I was behind her at the time and never saw a problem.
By the way, Shinko is basically the former motorcycle tire division of Yokohama.