I have a 1992 GS500E and I am looking to buy new tires. I have narrowed the selection down to 3 tires. 1. Pirelli - Sport Demon, 2. Metzeler ME330/550, and 3. Michelin ME50 Macadam. If you have any of these tires please give me your input. Which gives you the best handling, and can get a good amount of miles before replacing them???
Thanks,
wannabebikechic24
:)
Sport Demons will give the most performance and the best stick of the three. The Mts 550 will give more milage. I had 8k miles on mine and it didn't look half way worn. I only tried a bias ply Macadan on the front which seemed to not wear to fast. At 7K miles it had tons of life left. It handled okay consideing it was matched with a Mets 550.
I wouldn't totally discount the Avon's either...though you don't have them listed in your picks. I have the Avon AV45/46 combo with the 140/80 rear and love them. Great wear so far and have been good and sticky when i have needed them to be.
I have an Avon Azaro 46-ST 140/80 rear with a Metzeler Sportec-M1 110/70 front. They are both new radials I had put on last week. I can't comment on wear but I can say they stick so well when cornering that my confidence level has climbed massively. I think they are great, the combination seems to work very well.
What about BT-45s? I have them and I think they're great tires.
Can you put bigger tires with a higher spped rating??? I am looking to replace my rear tire the most. The specs that the site gives you is 130/70-17. Can you place a bigger tire and does that affect handling?? I appreciate everybodys response. This is my first bike and just want to get an idea and suggestion so I can choose the best tires. Thank you again!
Wannabebikechic24
8)
Welcome to GStwin!
You can put on tires with a higher speed rating, but the GS can't go fast enough to require them, unless highly modified. H rating is good enough for 130mph, V rating is good for 150. V rated tires are more expensive, too. Also, I have found some manufacturer's 130/80's to be less expensive than their 130/70's.
i've recently got the sport demons on and am very pleased with them.
sport demons don't last as long as the BT45s...from reading other people's post...
The bridgestone Bt 45 was the factory tire at the time. That's what I replaced to. They are very comparably to the macadam. Nice tire, and it doesn't wander or follow grooves. Decent life and If I recal it was cheaper.
big daub how sticky are the sport demons? and how good do they look?
Here are couple shots of Pirelli Sport Demons after a day on the track.
http://www.sunpoint.net/~manix/Kemora2004/kemora0026.html
http://www.sunpoint.net/~manix/Kemora2004/kemora0027.html
More pictures on the same gallery if anyone's interested.
I have to say the tires worked perfectly on the track, no sudden skids or slides. I was able to ride the suspension (stock) to it's limits before the tires.