New Tire Imput

Well, it!s time to purchase new tires again. In the past, before purchasing new tires, (first time) I asked my mechanic what he recommend. Without hesitation he said Perelli Diablos. I have not disappointed.

In your opinion, do you feel there are better tires out there. If so why.

I would appreciate any imput.

I tried Diablos. I got 5,000mls out of the rear compared with 67000mls with the Bridgestones. The front diablo i got 7,000mls compared with 11,000mls on the Bridgestone. I also tried Metzelers with similar results. I now stick with Bridgestones for mileage and performance. I change tyres when they get down to two millimeters of tread.  

Old Limey wrote:

I tried Diablos. I got 5,000mls out of the rear compared with 67000mls with the Bridgestones.

I think you've a accidentally added an extra zero to the Bridgestone mileage mate.    

Well spotted Meldrew, I meant 6700mls. I have been looking at that West Yorkshire dealer you mentioned Meldrew, Padgetts. I had a run out there a couple of Sundays ago, it was closed. He seems to have the best pricing on new Silverwings.  

I don't know why you guys don't try the IRC tires that come standard on the swings sold in the USA,
I consistantly get 11,000 miles on the rear and 20,000 on the front,don't they sell them over there?

As a Goldwing rider I ran ONLY Dunlop Elite 3, front and rear. I changed at 20K miles, 4 or 5 sets I forget. The question is, does Dunlop make Elites for the Swing?

I don't have a recommendation of a particular tyre; rather a word about what brand I would avoid purchasing, That infamous brand is Dunlop. I have used them on my ACE and twice got very poor mileage and ponderous road feel and tracking on cracks in the road. I stuck to recommended pressures and always checked pressures before every ride. The two sets I used were both disappointing.

jwt827 wrote:

I don't know why you guys don't try the IRC tires that come standard on the swings sold in the USA,
I consistantly get 11,000 miles on the rear and 20,000 on the front,don't they sell them over there?

I second this thought, I got just under 10K on the rear and the front IRC is over 13K and still going strong.

jwt827 wrote:

I don't know why you guys don't try the IRC tires that come standard on the swings sold in the USA

I don't have a problem with Bridgestone tyres, I had them on all four of my previous maxi scooters, they're the recommended tyre for the Silver Wing and they're widely available.

IRC tyres are available in the UK mainly for off road bikes, so are Heidenau tyres another make that's been plugged as a replacement. I get the impression some members on here choose replacement tyres solely for a cooler looking tread pattern.   

jwt827 wrote:

I don't know why you guys don't try the IRC tires that come standard on the swings sold in the USA

I don't have a problem with Bridgestone tyres, I had them on all four of my previous maxi scooters, they're the recommended tyre for the Silver Wing and they're widely available.

IRC tyres are available in the UK mainly for off road bikes, so are Heidenau tyres another make that's been plugged as a replacement. I've always got the impression some members choice of tyre is based solely on a cooler looking tread pattern.  

A lot of 8&10 inch wheel scooter guys like Heidenau's.

My Silverwing came with IRC tyres in the UK. I thought they were very good. I got just a shade under 14000 miles out of the rear. The front is still on there.

IRC tyres are rather expensive over here though. I replaced the rear with a Michelin City Grip which was a reasonable price and gives good grip in the wet and dry. They are supposed to last well too but time will tell on that one.

Paul

IRC are expensive as replacement tires in US.

2013 SilverWing owner's book----only IRC recommended tire.

Bridgestone Hoop as front tire has worked fine for me in past----got over 30,000 miles as front tire from last one......But on both Helix and Reflex had Bridgestone fly apart 1 on Helix, 3 on Reflex. rear.

Comment: on current SilverWing, rear IRC should go 11,000 miles or so but wearing more square than I like.

Cookie, are you sure you got City Grip's on the Silverwing? i have them on my Burgman 400 but my tyre people could not find any to fit the Silverwing.  

The IRCs are much easier to install than the Bridgestones.  The bead conforms *much* easier with the IRCs (I've also tried Michelin which is similar to Bridgestone the IRCs).  I have seen people damage Bridgestone tires putting them on, the bead is that stiff.  This probably only matters if you change your own tire, but if you do, stay clear of Bridgestone - the number of swear words per tire is much higher when installing or removing them from a wheel.

(Edited: Michelin tires are pretty easy to fit)

Diablos only if you want the absolute best grip in the dry and complete confidence in the rain while not sacrificing mph. I ride these tires year round and will accept low mileage tire wear to know EXACTLY what the S'wing is doing!!! year round means everyday bar snow or blackice potential

secret....ease in getting beads on.....let tire sit in sun for a few hours....or bring in house if you are working in cold garage. Get older, have power loss=longer tire irons.

john grinsel wrote:

secret....ease in getting beads on.....let tire sit in sun for a few hours.....

Thanks JG, never realized the sun would heat things.

josiah1214 wrote:

Diablos only if you want the absolute best  grip in the dry and complete confidence in the rain while not sacrificing mph. I ride these tires year round and will accept low mileage tire wear to know EXACTLY what the S'wing is doing!!! year round means everyday bar snow or blackice potential

Is that why you can't spare a few minutes to post an introduction?  

Old Limey wrote:

Cookie, are you sure you got City Grip's on the Silverwing? i have them on my Burgman 400 but my tyre people could not find any to fit the Silverwing.  

Hi Old Limey. Yes, I definitely got a city grip for the rear in the Silverwing size.
Blackcircles.com list them if you do a search on the size 150 70 13. They don't appear to list the front size at the moment but I think they're available.

I'm not sure where mine came from as I just got my local bike shop to order it for me.

I'm pleased with it so far and it wasn't too hard to fit.

Cookie

I meant to say above that the Michelins are similar to the IRC as far as fitting.

FWIW, on other scoots I've done tires on, the Pirelli's were even easier than the Michelins and IRCs. But the Michelins and IRCs are easy enough to get on and off.

If you watch some tire changing videos made by any company that builds tire changers, you'll see that Pirelli is the brand they almost certainly are using to demo their wares. You'll never see them demonstrate on a Bridgestone (which is unfortunate - I think that's where you could tell how well the tire changing equipment actually works).

I've used the same dealer to change a number of Bridgestone bike and scooter tyres and I've watched them efficiently removing old and replacing new tyres quickly and with no problems at all. The right equipment and technique, and a dab of tyre soap here and there made it all look very easy.