Anakee III vs TKC-70 vs K60 --opinions from people that have tried at least 2?

I'm at just about 6,000 miles on my 2015 R1200GS and the stock A-IIIs are just about done. The rear has squared off considerably and the front shows uneven wear around the center band. Just about all of the miles were on the road, though what little dirt-road riding I did do did not inspire a ton of confidence (I'm new to dirt but want to increasingly try it).

The roads around here are mostly chip-sealed, so I suppose I shouldn't be disappointed with 6K miles.

I'm debating trying the Continental TKC-70s as they look like they would be slightly better on dirt, while likely still pretty decent for the somewhat aggressive riding I do on-road (55-75 mph on curvy canyon/mountain roads).

So I'm wondering if anyone that has experiences with these tires could compare and contrast. It also appears the Heidenau K60 Scout has gotten some good reviews---should a 90/10 (maybe going to 80/20) guy like me consider these as well, even though they are considered 50/50 tires?

Any/all opinions greatly appreciated, and apologies in advance for yet another tire thread.

tigerman22 said:

I'm at just about 6,000 miles on my 2015 R1200GS and the stock A-IIIs are just about done. The rear has squared off considerably and the front shows uneven wear around the center band. Just about all of the miles were on the road, though what little dirt-road riding I did do did not inspire a ton of confidence (I'm new to dirt but want to increasingly try it).

The roads around here are mostly chip-sealed, so I suppose I shouldn't be disappointed with 6K miles.

I'm debating trying the Continental TKC-70s as they look like they would be slightly better on dirt, while likely still pretty decent for the somewhat aggressive riding I do on-road (55-75 mph on curvy canyon/mountain roads).

So I'm wondering if anyone that has experiences with these tires could compare and contrast. It also appears the Heidenau K60 Scout has gotten some good reviews---should a 90/10 (maybe going to 80/20) guy like me consider these as well, even though they are considered 50/50 tires?

Any/all opinions greatly appreciated, and apologies in advance for yet another tire thread.

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Well, I'm running in the 11,600 mile mark on the Anakee 3's with favorable thread left,,, I'm really happy with them for sure..
I heard and read alot of conti's which work well but wear out super fast.... faster on the tarmac for sure.;

I rode and had the K60's on a former bike and worked well in pot hole hell, where i'm from....and also hit
up to the 10,000 plus mark on miles... I feel the K60's are great. But not for everyone....... they do have a
vibe, and get squirrely on the tar snakes,, and steel grated bridges...... I liked the k60's as a go any where
tire that can take abuse.,, except mud of course....
Understand the tires functionality before buying something with of the expectation of being something else and then complain about it... meaning when I bought my K60's... I did expect a bit of noise from the tire, not
that perfect free flowing smooth as silk riding quality as a Road Pilot 3. Its simply a great all around thread.
But Not for everyone.

Thanks Jody. I sure wish I could get 11K miles out of the A3s! The chipseal roads here just eat tires. Sounds like moving to the TKC's might be a step in the wrong direction on the wear front.

Tigerman22 I'm in the same situation as you. My AIII's have 7150 miles and are close to the wear bars. I've got a set of TKC 70's in the garage. I'm going to install them this weekend. The first weekend in Oct I'll be heading to AR for the BMW RA rally and then on to AL for a week. I expect to put about 2500 miles on them by the time I return to TX. I'll let you know how they compare.

I have a 2014 GSA WC with 43k. Since new last July I have been replacing the rear Anakee III at 8500 mile intervals, with a front every second rear. My current set of tires are K60's. Looks like the front will live longer than me, the rear will have around 9500 when I get home next week and still has some life remaining. I am pleased with the wear with these tires.

advenbob said:

I have a 2014 GSA WC with 43k. Since new last July I have been replacing the rear Anakee III at 8500 mile intervals, with a front every second rear. My current set of tires are K60's. Looks like the front will live longer than me, the rear will have around 9500 when I get home next week and still has some life remaining. I am pleased with the wear with these tires.

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That's some serious miles Bob! Thanks for the reply...I'm curious---are you pretty happy with the handling the K60s on tarmac, in the curves?

I'm on my second set of TKC70's. Over 6000 miles on this set and I expect to get at least another 3000 miles on these tires. My GS came with Anakee 3's and they were shot at 6000 miles. What I like about the TKC70's, besides the thread life, is that they are pretty quiet, they handle well on all road surfaces, wet or dry, and they are decent on the dirt. I will continue using the TKC70's without question.

I arrived home from my 3 week trip with 9500 miles on the K60. When I had the K60's installed and rode the 90 miles home, I had a rude awakening when on the freeway, The tires will track groves and tar strips due to the tread design Not so with the Anakee's. Woke me up quickly. As miles accrued on the front tire the tracking became less noticeable. When coming to a stop or slowing down the tires rumble (lacking a better explaination) shuttering the bike. Feels like you didn't pull in the clutch when coming to a stop. On the highways, cornering is a little less aggressive than with the Anake's I don't do that much off road riding and debating if I go back to the Anakee's or stay with the K60's. I had them installed for a trip to Alaska that did not happen due to an engine failure that took 2 weeks to correct Going to try again next summer.

advenbob said:

I arrived home from my 3 week trip with 9500 miles on the K60. When I had the K60's installed and rode the 90 miles home, I had a rude awakening when on the freeway, The tires will track groves and tar strips due to the tread design Not so with the Anakee's. Woke me up quickly. As miles accrued on the front tire the tracking became less noticeable. When coming to a stop or slowing down the tires rumble (lacking a better explaination) shuttering the bike. Feels like you didn't pull in the clutch when coming to a stop. On the highways, cornering is a little less aggressive than with the Anake's I don't do that much off road riding and debating if I go back to the Anakee's or stay with the K60's. I had them installed for a trip to Alaska that did not happen due to an engine failure that took 2 weeks to correct Going to try again next summer.

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Well, just installed the TKC 70's, Took them on forest roads,dirt,etc, nothing dramatic, and they worked well and held there course of action, On the Highway, and if its paved or concrete slab they are working well.
The only issues thus far, are also on the grated or grooved highway spots, and you feel the marble effect of the tires tracking.
I anticipate this to calm down,after they get a few more hundred miles burned in.

Over all they are working out well... as with a 60/40 as the tkc 70's or the hidy's a bit grabby on the
grooved roads.

So if you plan to venture more off road, go with the tkc's or heidenau,,, if your primary is to peg the highway and long distance travel, I would stay with Anakee'3.

I may change my mind after the tkc's wear in though...lol

Its cool that the TKC is a Radial vs. a Bias ply (heidenau), so the Tkc will flex and absorb more vs, the hidy's being more rigid.

All good, its just a Tire, right?
Also, I will be honest and warn you the tkc 70's are not good 80 mph and above, the anakee 3's I would hit 110 mph and the anakee are solid road proformers! I do not know the speed rate for the tkc so it's what I'm experiencing from both threads.

Good Balance between Pavement and non-pavement

I got more than 10,000 miles out of the A3s that came with my 2014 wethead GS. Several off-pavement experiences were fine, but loose sand and gravel were pretty unpleasant. The front wheel would slide out and the bike would go down. I replaced the A3s with Conti TKC70s and gave them a workout this year. Took them to a track day and was able to drag the edges of my boots through corners without any slipping. Over 100 mph and still smooth. Went to the BMW off-road riding school in SC to improve my skill off pavement and have spent several days riding around our Northern Michigan forest trails through water, sand, mud, and gravel. The TKCs do a great job and the front wheel stays connected much better than the road tires did. I think there are about 8,000 miles on this set of TKCs and I don't see any reason to replace them yet. Hoping to get a few more days of riding in before the snow gets too deep, but don't plan on buying new tires until next spring and will definitely get another set of TKC70s.

All these tires are compromise tires. Course tread for dirt road traction vs vibration, gruve tracking problems, etc.

Hard tread for long miles vs soft tread so they are sticky in dirt and in the twisty on pavement in the corners, better on wet roads, tar snakes.

I took the Heideneaus to Alaska. They lasted the whole trip ( the rear was done (bald) and the front only half but some what scalloped). Did the dirt roads well.

They were pretty slippery on wet pavement. I will not buy them again, I want better traction on wet roads and will sacrifice longer tread life for that.

If you are an aggressive road rider TKC's might let you down in the corners, but if you spend time in dirt, the Anakee's could do the same.

I like the Anakee 3 for street and they wear very well, compared to the other 90/10 tire choices

I pulled into Vegas last week. 2015 1200 GSA 5200 miles on the A III original rear. Shot no way it would last the 1000+ miles home. No replacement in stock and so too the TKC70 front and rear. Only rode two up since. The 70's provide less cornering confidence feel more like the tourances on my 2005 1200gs. I'll see how I feel about them after I ride it just myself. They should be better in a little dirt. The wear on the A3 was lousy. I suspect I will be back on the a3 in 6000 or 7000 miles. Still I may be happy with the slower pace. Tkc70 is fine on freeway and hasn't slowed me down there.

tkc 70

I had tkc 70 on my previous 05 GS. I now ride a 2014 gsa. When the anakees are done, I will go back to TKC 70s.