My new gt1050 has quite badly flattened off tyres and it's affecting handling, especially in these damp conditions. I was going to go for the Avon Spirit St but an MCN review said they are not great for heavier bikes. My riding style is not as aggressive as some but I like to be able to chuck it about a bit. I am willing to trade off a bit of stickiness for a tyre that is quite hard wearing and won't square off too quickly, but it must have good feel in a variety of conditions. I put Avon STs on the old Third 900 and loved them but the tbird is a lighter less powerful bike with the weight lower down than the GT . Some reviews recommend the Metzeler Roadtec 01 but I've read myself in circles now. Advice welcome!
@Stu9000 Metzler are good tyres. But if happy with Avon's then that is the route to take. People have various ways of making us buy what they want us to.
I am/was using Continental Road Attack 4 now on 4 different bikes and I am/was very happy with them! I also used Metzeler Tourance Next and Tourance Next 2 on my Tiger 1200 in the past. They were very good too.
I have Avon Spirit 2s on my T509 but as you say, it is lighter than a Sprint. I had Pirelli Angel 2s on my T309 Sprint which were good and only read good things about Michelin Road 5 or 6 but haven't tried myself although I also had Road 2s on a bike some years ago and they were good then.
@Stu9000: Be warned if you plan to buy some Michelin Road 5/6. Until 80% of possible milage everything is really good! But when you reach a specific point from one curve to the next your grip is gone!!! Myself and a friend of mine had the same experience on two different bikes. A BMW R1250 RS and a KTM 1290.
So true! This is the MCN article: https://www.motorcyclenews.com/news...ay/avon-spirit-st-first-ride-launch-portimao/ Not dissing MCN particularly, but I always wonder whether the magazine can be influenced by industry big hitters that no doubt buy advertising space. A useful article though.
I went with the Avon Spirit ST tyres in the end because I like the touring orientated harder compounds to offset the inevitable flattening off. A careful read of the MCN article suggest my riding style won't be troubled by their issues. I could not find the criticism in other articles either. However, most articles did rave about their longevity and sure footedness in a range of conditions. I really liked the way the front was profiled, giving a nice feel and turn into corners. I usually get them from Two Tyres but they are out of stock so i bought from Sticky Stuff. £228 for both front and rear inc fast 2 day delivery. One thing I have never understood though. Why do motorbike tyres arrive un-scuffed. It is downright dangerous on the first ride. How hard would it be to take that moulding glaze off? I guess they are manufacturing to fairly narrow cost margins, but its such a shame to get brand new rubber and then have to tip toe around for a couple of days.
I've just replaced the Roadtec SE 01 on the Tiger 1050 Sport, after 9756 klm of aggressive riding and touring. I like them enough to replace with the Roadtec 02's was from my scrub in ride, some time ago
I've run Conti Road Attack 4's on my KTM 1190 Adv for years. Never found anything to beat them. Excellent wear characteristics because they're single heat treated compound rather than dual compound, masses of grip in all conditions, especially at the front which feels glued down, and a sporty enough profile to accommodate all moods. Roadtec 01s are good tyres but I found they wore out the centre very quickly. Road 5's I couldn't get on with at all. They lacked the on-rails cornering stability of the Contis and the dual compound on the rear left a nasty shoulder at the transition between the hard centre and soft outer strips. The centre lacked straight line grip as well and would spin up under hard acceleration on a dry road and break traction under late breaking, where the Contis never would.
I am pretty happy with how the Avon's feel around town. Front feels secure and the tip into corners feels right. Mind you, the old ones were so flattened off anything would feel great. I'm off for a ride this morning to properly stretvh the bikes legs for the first time.
Err... I've been educated. The tyres are treated so they don't go off in storage. Half an hour in the motorway heats the tyre up enough to burn it off. But I'm guessing u guys already knew that.
I'm a bit late to the party but my st900 wears Avon Spirit's and I'm very happy with them. The twin is over 200 kgs plus often ridden quite spirited two-up, so I'm not sure there'll be much difference to your set up. Enjoy.
Continental Road Attacks are made without a release agent and the heat treatment process they use instead of a dual compound means the surface of the tyre has no glaze and effectively comes prescrubbed from the factory. They don't need scrubbing in and they grip from the word go right out to the edge.
