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R1150RT Tires

ghargrove

New member
I'm brand new to the forum. I'm sure this question has been beaten to death, but I'd like to see some replys regarding replacement tires for my '04 RT. I use mine mainly for touring. I'd like to get the most miles from a set of tires. I normally ride solo at "higher than normal speeds". There are very few twisties in my area, but I'm headed through Colorado, Wyoming and then to California's PCH this summer. Thanks in advance for any help.

Thanks for all the helpful replies. Any updates will be welcomed. I'm leaning toward the Metzler. This forum really works! :clap
 
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I personally like the Metzler M6's on my RT, but everyone has their favorite. I had Dunlops before these and now I will not go back. I am thinking about Metzler ME880 or ME88 Marathon. The best advice I can give you is to not buy solely on price.

If you do a search on tires from the toolbar with a keyword of Tires you will get about 300 responses. Probably one of them will give you the info you want. :thumb
 
Granted I only have 600 miles on my new Dunlops which came with the RT, I already feel much less "sure-footed" on them than I did on the Michelin Macadams on my old Beakster (R1150R). I have Dunlop 491's on the Gold Wing as well and again, great for the interstate but less than confidence-inspiring in the turns. I'm conisdering a quick swap-out on the RT to Metzlers or Road Pillots and then selling the stock dunlops on Ebay. For the type of riding you describe, ghargrove, the Dunlops may be okay.

Benn is right - there are about a million posts on tires in this great forum and the search option works pretty well. Good luck!
 
I like to say I've got a lot of miles on my new Road Pilots, but I don't, so I can't tell you how long they'll hold up. I can tell you that they are 100% better than the Dunlops that came on the RT, as far as seat of the pants feel goes. I put around 12k on the Dunlops and could of gotten more out of them, but they just don't inspire confidence and the cupping on the front tire was driving me nuts.
I didn't like the tread pattern on the M6's, I don't like a center groove that can wiggle around on pavement rain grooves, but that's just me. And, I didn't like the sales person at the dealership telling me that they recommend the M6's when I'm asking for a price on a Michelin.
Best advice, buy a set and if you don't like em, ride the hell out of them and buy something else, cause the best and worst thing about tires is that they don't last that long. :)

Dave
 
GHargrove, here's another opinion for ya'.

I've been running Bridgestone BT020s on my RT. Getting about 8-9k on the rear and 10-11k on the front. I take 'em right down to the wear bars (then I start to get a little nervous and change 'em out). I ride about 80% solo, 20% 2-up. I run the rear at 36psi and the front at 32 psi, & pump 'em up to 42/36 for any 2-up touring. The front does start to cup slightly toward the end of its lifespan.

I'm satisfied with the handling, but they are the only tires I've tried on this bike so I have no true standard of comparison. My previous ride ran on bias ply tires (K100RT) so I'm still tickled just to be on modern radials. I can say that the bike does everything I ask it to without complaining. And that's all I know about tires on RTs.
Steve
 
I'm currently running Conti "Forces" that have a little over 6K on them. They seem to do well and I like them, but I don't think they'll see 10K like I got out of my Metzler M4's.

My next set will either be M6's or some Michelins.
 
I have an '04 RT and just turned 6k. My Z4 (came with the bike) rear is bald! I was running 32/35 and just had a very experienced buddy recommend I run them at 38/40 solo and 40/42 2-up. I'll be replacing my first tire this week sometime. I'm going to try a Z6--probably not the longest wearing, but I hear they really hug the corners.
 
mine came w/ z4's. have about 5k on them and tread looks fine. cupping is getting to be noticeable but here in the sunny south we have seriously crowned roads. i assume this contributes somewhat to cupping. an rt buddy who had the same tires advised me to run 42 rear 40 front on the z4's, which i 've been doing. the tread on both looks new so far. i'm either going z6 or road pilot when i change them.
 
I'm sure this question has been beaten to death, but I'd like to see some replys regarding replacement tires for my '04 RT.

All good information above. You should also consider............

Ask yourself what kind of rider you are. Sport, or just cruising around town.
Highway touring with a lot of gear, or backroads twisty type of riding.
Your "home" riding environment.
More often than not,riders don't take into consideration their home environment/climate. Riders in the norther part of the country will purchase a hard rubber compound tire for extended mileage but can't understand why their bike slips all over the road at cooler times of the year. Or in the wet seasons.
And yet,a rider in west or hot southwest will complain he only can get "X" amount of miles out of a tire that others have reported to give excellant high wear mileage capabilitys.
Your riding style and environment will dictate what tires will work best for you. Road surfaces also very greatly around this country. Some areas have a rougher surface depending on the environment and climate.
Their really isn't an all perfect tire for all conditions,so we try to find a happy medium. Look for a tire that will give you the most for your riding style and the environment you will be in.
Softer compounds are more common in areas with broader seasonal climate changes. The softer compound life is shorter,but the trade off is better stability/handling in "all weather/temperature" conditions.
Hard compound tires tend to work better in areas with higher temperature environments and rough surface roads. They are designed to deliver the performance expected and offer longer life for the rough conditions.
 
Centerline tires

I wanted to second what Dave said about the squirreliness of centerline tires. I have gotten that same sensation on metal grate bridges with some OEM centerlines. Also, after coming off of a long line of sport bikes I'll be looking for a slightly more triangular profile. I'm just more accustomed to a little less stable feeling then the RT provides. I liked the look of the new sport/touring Metzelers that I saw at Cycle World this past weekend. Shiner
 
Rich - very nice analysis of tires versus environment versus riding style! It makes good sense. A nice follow-up would be a sort of ranking of the leading tires (Metz, 'Stones, Michelins, etc) from soft to hard. Anybody out there have broad enough knowledge/experience with these tires to suggest such a ranking?

Steve-O
 
A nice follow-up would be a sort of ranking of the leading tires (Metz, 'Stones, Michelins, etc) from soft to hard.

There was a site on line for tire comparision. I almost wanna say "Discount Motorcycle Tire" when they were in business. I think they had a forum somewhere on their internet site, that you could post your findings on a particular "tire" including tire brand,compound,size,mileage,handling etc.
You could also rate the tires for comparision used on the street or track.
I quit using Discount 2-3 years ago when I got much better deals at SW Moto Tire. Now I understand SW Moto is gone also..... :doh
 
I ride a 11S. Love Pilot Roads on them, and get about 10-11K out of a set. i ride to the vey edge of the tire- no rear chiken strip at all. great grip, dry or wet. have run BT020s on it as well, never felt very confident, and mileage was no better than on the PRoads.
my buddy runs the Mileage Maker 880s on his '02 RT, got over 15k on a set, and rides it like a sport bike. his dealer siad it was a no-no, but he loves 'em.
Steve-O: your tire pressure of 32/36 solo is a bit too low. it is contributing to the cupping you're experiencing. i'd bump 'em up to 35/39 for solo riding.
 
Bikerfish - sounds like good advice! After following this thread (& looking back at previous tire wear threads) I'm gonna pump it up.

Steve-O
 

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I quit using Discount 2-3 years ago when I got much better deals at SW Moto Tire. Now I understand SW Moto is gone also..... :doh[/QUOTE]

Errrrr, Rich,
I just had a pair of ME-880's delivered yesterday from SWMotoTire. I HOPE they are not gone. :stick

www.swmototires.com

2440 Coyote Dr. #130
Tucson, AZ 85745
 
All right all you guys running M6's, how many miles ya gettin out of them? I went on ride today with a guy who has a pair of M6's, he's only gotten around 6k out of them and they look bad. He does run higher pressure in them too. BTW, they are on a R1100RT, if that matters. :dunno

Dave
 
Okay - after 600 miles on my new RT with very unexciting and non-confidence-inspiring stock Dunlops, I had Metzeler Roadtec Z-6's mounted on my bike. Took it out over the weekend and rode 250 miles 2-up on very twisty roads (including AZ 89A in to Jerome, Arizona from Prescott). Love them! It is like riding a different bike! Extremely responsive and sure footed! Of course, no idea how they will last. I ran them 40/42.
 
i've got 76k miles on my 99 1100rt, and i've used up a few sets of tires. i run 39/40, the main reason for those pressures are soft wheels on the rt. it took me 5 years, and i had just turned 76k miles to finally bend a set of rims on a pot hole in the bronx. i use michelin road pilots, i ride pretty hard and i can feel more confident on these tires compared to others. the bridgestone bt 020's come pretty close, but i can feel those tires squirm a bit when ridden hard. also the road pilots don't seem to cup, the bt 020's also are good in this regard. i get around 12 to 13k miles on them. i might get better mileage on other tires, but i'd rather have the softer compond for the traction. i pretty much use up most of the tire, maybe that's why i get pretty good mileage. just my $.02. :thumb

pete
 
Errrrr, Rich, I just had a pair of ME-880's delivered yesterday from SWMotoTire. I HOPE they are not gone.

I've tried 3 times since X-mas to get a hold of them and no luck....

Something about the "web site" being down....................


Well,just checked off of your link, and the site is good to go!!! :clap :clap :clap

Time to order ssome new skins!!
 
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