Does anybody have a good pic showing the Pirelli Sport Demon 140/70's on a GS?
These are 130's. I think Snapper (?) has pics of her 140's.
(http://home.earthlink.net/~jamesvogl/gs500/pirelli_sport_demons/1.jpg) (http://home.earthlink.net/~jamesvogl/gs500/pirelli_sport_demons/2.jpg)
(http://home.earthlink.net/~jamesvogl/gs500/pirelli_sport_demons/3.jpg) (http://home.earthlink.net/~jamesvogl/gs500/pirelli_sport_demons/4.jpg)
Hmm...looks sweet. I heard they don't last as well as Bridgestones or Michelins. Do you use it more on the track or street?
Personally, I'm looking for a tire that'll last longer than my Bridgestone Exedra G550. It was brand-new on the bike when I bought it, and its only been 2800 miles and the center tread is near nothing :o There's no way I'm gonna pass inspection this spring without a new rear tire.
I did alot of highway riding, and I've ridden quite a bit in the cold (will cold roads/tires wear tires faster?) but now that I have the YZF for the open road, the GS is gonna get mostly around-town duties. Naturally, I'd like a tire that looks good, but more than anything I just want a tire that will last.
I know there's already like a gojillion 'best-tire' threads to read on the board, but if anybody's got a suggestion, I'm all ears. :cheers:
Quote from: kyzeeI heard they don't last as well as Bridgestones or Michelins. Do you use it more on the track or street?
Well I've put about 3500 mi on them - all street. This is the first set of tires I've bought for the bike so I have nothing compare to, but they seem to be wearing fine.
I just took a look and made a rough measurement: I've got at least 6/32" on the center of the rear. I'm guessing it was about 8/32" new and assume the wear bar is at 2/32". So I've used no more than 1/3 of the tire life. Should be good for at least 10k-12k mi... but that's just a guess.
Don't be fooled into going just for longevity. Get the tires that will give you grip in the most extreme situation you are likely to face, so they willl always be as safe as possible (not to mention more fun). Having said that, I had Michelin Macadam 100 front/90 rear on mine and got 10,000km out of the rear and 20,000km out of the front. I don't race the bike but I don't just puddle along either. In all that time they never even felt like getting untidy, even in the wet. Currently I have a Michelin Pilot Road on the front and it feels even better. The rep said it should last as well as the Mac100 but grip better. I guess time will tell. Good luck.
BTW, the Excedras are truly awful tires, so don't use them as a comparison for anything else. I wore mine out (they were fitted as OE on the new bike) in about 8,000km and they always felt skittish, even in the dry.
vt... if i'm not to lame to remember tonite I'll snap some of mine in the garage.
jake
are these 140/70 radials or bias ply's?
Quote from: pantabloare these 140/70 radials or bias ply's?
The Sport demons are bias ply.
What's the diff between bias ply and radial??
Quote from: pizzleboyWhat's the diff between bias ply and radial??
Let me count the ways...! Radials have the belts of material that make up the body of the tire running er.. radially, that is straight around from one side of the tire to the other. Bias tires have said belts crossing each other in layers at different angles. Practically, what this means is radials can usually be lighter for the same strength, so run cooler, take less HP to turn, and give less unsprung weight (meaning less strain on the suspension). There is less movement between the layers so the tire squirms less, making it more stable, providing better support for the tread and so giving better wear. This also allows softer compounds that grip better to still give good mileage. I'm not convinced that radials cost more to make but they perform so much better that most people are prepared to pay more for them. Over time, the increased purchase cost evens out with better mileage so if you have the choice, I believe radials are the preferred option. Hope this helps.
I do have pics of my 140s.. let me know if you want to see em. These tires are great. Course my last set were hard as rocks so I am comparing these ones to them! :thumb:
Quote from: snapperI do have pics of my 140s.. let me know if you want to see em.
yeah dude... post em up!!! I'd like to see a comparison to the 130's.
thanks :cheers:
QuotePractically, what this means is radials can usually be lighter for the same strength, so run cooler, take less HP to turn, and give less unsprung weight (meaning less strain on the suspension).
The lighter tire also allows for faster suspension response which is another plus the standard size tire has over a wider rear. If you want looks, get the wider tire, if you actually want to squeeze the most street performance you can out of the bike stay with the stock sizes. They deal with bumps better which is important if suddenly your favorite curve developed a new pothole you didn't see. Also it won't change your gear ratio and hurt your 1st gear take-offs.
Now if you're on the track the suspension response is much less important because you've got a nice groomed surface and it doesn't come up much. Things like total grip become more critical and moving to the larger tire MAY help depending on what other suspension and gearing modifications have been made.
When I had a 120/70/17 front and a 150/70/17 rear with stock gears I had to slip the clutch like a mo-fo to start out and the bike got really unstable in a deep lean. Not fun. When I changed to a 15 tooth front sprocked and stock tires I could suddenly accelerate again. In fact I can accelerate so hard on the low end I have to be careful pulling out of slow turns that I don't lift the nose or kick out the rear. Something I never could even attempt before since I both couldn't get into a hard turn safely and had no torque once I was there.
YMMV and all that rot.
Here are two different views of my 140 rear pirelli SD.
http://home.comcast.net/~dewarke/rear_pirelli.png
:cheers: [/img]
wow... that rear tire looks nice :thumb:
is that a 70 or 80? will either fit, and if so how will the different radius affect performance (I have a stock bike).
I have the Metzler ME330 front and ME550 rear but I can't say that I'm happy with them. I have ridden a couple hundred miles on them but they still feel squirmy when I lean the bike over. Have I just not scrubbed them in yet or what? I thought they should grip better than the stock tires but it feels like they are slipping.
Any body else running Metzler?
Rob
stock is 70 right? So its an 80. :mrgreen:
stock is 70 right? So its an 80. :mrgreen:
so snapper, did you notice any difference in performance with the 80's? I assume that a 140/70 sport demon will fit nicely on the bike, too. I'm not particularly concerned with the profile of the tire, but if one or the other may help with performance (acceleration/suspension), I'll take what I can get with the GS. I would assume that a higher profile will give you a slight decrease in torque at the rear-wheel, but a slightly higher top-speed? I assume that the speedo reads from the front axel, so it shouldn't affect indicated vs actual speed.
oh yeah, and I haven't the experience or the tools to remove my rear wheel (i think). my local guy quoted me 35 bucks to do the rear-tire start-to-finish for me. is that about the going rate?
peace
p.s. wow, I used the word "assume" three times in that post... first sign indicator that I have NO IDEA what I'm talking about :lol: :roll: :cheers:
Quote from: 500riderI have the Metzler ME330 front and ME550 rear but I can't say that I'm happy with them. I have ridden a couple hundred miles on them but they still feel squirmy when I lean the bike over. Have I just not scrubbed them in yet or what? I thought they should grip better than the stock tires but it feels like they are slipping.
Any body else running Metzler?
Rob
Normally a couple hundred miles is enough to pretty well scrub in street tires, but I see you are from Canada and this is winter. Traction is greatly reduced in the cold with all tires. I ride all year around here in NE Ohio and the pace is definetly slower when it's cold out there. Have ridden for 20 winters so far. :lol: :lol:
I've always liked Metzeler tires, but have not personally tried the new ME330/550 tires. The older ME33, ME55, and ME99 tires they replace had an excellent reputation for years. My son ran the ME33/ME99 tires on his 82 GS1100E for years.
I had a ME33 front and a ME88 rear on my 97 GS500E. The ME88 now replaced by the ME880 is a touring type tire and had better traction than the OE or BT45 tires I had on before that. I had a Dunlop K491 touring tire on after the ME88 and it was a mistake on a bike like the GS500. The Metzeler tires have always been a good compromise of life and traction.
Even better than the ME33/ME88 combo was the Z4/Z2 radial combo I put on the 97 GS the past 2 years. That 130/80 rear Z2 tire is an excellent combination of tire life and wear. Got almost 14k miles out of the rear Z2 with handling better than any of the bias ply tires I tried on it.
I was considering trying a ME330 front with a MEZ2 rear next season on my newer 02 GS500 since I was not as happy with the Z4 front as I was with the Z2 rear. But I really want to try the new Avon AV45/46 tires on the 02 this coming season. Decisions, decisions. :dunno: :dunno:
Quote from: vtlionoh yeah, and I haven't the experience or the tools to remove my rear wheel (i think). my local guy quoted me 35 bucks to do the rear-tire start-to-finish for me. is that about the going rate?:
$35 sounds pretty good to me!
Here there is a place that will mount new tires for 30 if bought elsewhere, if bought there, 15.
Mark
I actually had purchased a different pirelli's upon a different recommendation and it only came in an 80. The rear was out of stock so I ended up with just the front. I wanted to keep both tires the same so I ended up with the SDs. I was concerned more with the height difference cause I am only 5'4". Though the height was higher it wasn't bad, the ride is SOOOO much better than it was with the old tires!!!! But my tires were so crappy I never really pushed the bike before I got new tires.
I can tell you though that the bike turns great. I don't "fall" into a turn or anything...just glide into it!
:mrgreen:
jack-
av36 or av46 rear? which would you prefer and why?
Quote from: vtlionso snapper, did you notice any difference in performance with the 80's?
The larger, heavier tire won't increase performance - probably decrease all around (over the same tire in stock size). Acceleration would be slower, suspension would be slower, and handling would be slower. I doubt you would gain any top speed from the swap either, since it isn't top gear that's limiting the speed, but power. In fact, I think some report higher top speed in 5th gear or w/ a 15T rear sprocket (?). If you want the best performance, you should stick w/ the stock 130/70 or perhaps consider radials.
As far as wheel removal, it's really not so bad. I think all you need is a wrench big enough for the axle nuts and a way to support the bike. Probably the trickiest part is aligning the wheel when you reinstall, but that's something you should practice anyway. But $35, including wheel removal, seems like a fair price.
EDIT:
Quoteor w/ a 15T rear sprocket
Oops, I meant, 15T
front sprocket
so there's no reason not to go with 140/70's right? they should fit well and ride just fine, no?
You should not have a problem.
:cheers:
Quote from: pantablojack-
av36 or av46 rear?
nevermind. av36 only comes in 180 rears. av46 is available in 140/80 as smallest rear.
Quote from: vtlionso there's no reason not to go with 140/70's right? they should fit well and ride just fine, no?
...uh...aside from the aformentioned potential performance decrease? :?
In reality, I would think they'd all fit fine and ride well enough. :dunno: A 140/70 is still wider than stock, as is the 140/80, but I don't know how those two would compare to one another... The 140/80 is technically bigger, but narrower relative to its width (taller)...
It seems lots of folks have gone bigger w/ out complaints, so maybe any differences are minimal... again, dunno. If you want something like a 140/80, why not just go to a radial... like the avons or metzelers? gsJack knows.
Quote from: 500riderI have the Metzler ME330 front and ME550 rear but I can't say that I'm happy with them. I have ridden a couple hundred miles on them but they still feel squirmy when I lean the bike over. Have I just not scrubbed them in yet or what? I thought they should grip better than the stock tires but it feels like they are slipping.
Any body else running Metzler?
Rob
I got a 550 on the rear and I thought it felt squirmy to for about 500 miles. Now I am at 7K miles with it and it looks almost new and handles great, at any GS speed.
Quote from: pantabloQuote from: pantablojack-
av36 or av46 rear?
nevermind. av36 only comes in 180 rears. av46 is available in 140/80 as smallest rear.
Actually they both came in the 140/80 size Pablo; when I destroyed my like new Z2 rear earlier this year, I found a 140/80 AV36 in stock locally that I could get mounted and balanced right away. The AV36 has been discontinued and replaced by the newer AV46 tire. There is probably only limited sizes left over in the AV36's.
I would go with the AV46 given a choice between the two. It has the newest tread compounds and should give both better performance as well as longer life than the AV36. Remember the AV45/46 tires are Avons sport touring tires and do not give the same level of traction that the sport tires like the Pilot Sports give. Avon also has new AV49/50 sport tires that are more equivelant to the Pilot Sports in traction but they come only in the 150/60 size you didn't like with the Pilot Sport rear.
I read with considerable interest your previous post about the way the Pilot Sport was falling out from under you when nearing the end of it's life. When I put a Dunlop GT501 bias belted front tire on last year with a Z2 radial rear, it did that exact same thing. The first two or three times I hit a sharp curve fast, it felt like the bike was falling out from under me to the low side. Whatever it was I compensated for it automatically and ran that combo another 3000 miles and could not make it do that again. I compensated for it automatically and never felt threatened. Lucky for me I can respond from experience in such sutuations because I sure can't think that fast anymore. :lol: When you mentioned it, I wanted to go out and try a 150/60 rear to see what would happen. :thumb: