Time for new tires

[lake_carl]

10k on the f6b. Rear might have few more miles and front 30% left. I have read info for over an hour.
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Who would of thought the choice so hard to make. Thanks all for all the info here. Mostly I want long tread life.

[willtill]

10k on the f6b. Rear might have few more miles and front 30% left. I have read info for over an hour.
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Who would of thought the choice so hard to make. Thanks all for all the info here. Mostly I want long tread life.

Then you should mount a car tire my friend.

[seadog]

Then you should mount a car tire my friend.

I have always opted for the good handling over the long tread life and a car tire wouldn't ever match the handling of a motorcycle tire, I just installed a Dunlop Elite 4 on the rear of the B and haven't a clue how many miles I will get out of it but it is suppose to have a harden center tread with soft sidewalls for cornering and so far the handling is spot on. Right from the day I put it on I took it out to scuff it in and it handled great right off the bat.

[willtill]

I have always opted for the good handling over the long tread life and a car tire wouldn't ever match the handling of a motorcycle tire, I just installed a Dunlop Elite 4 on the rear of the B and haven't a clue how many miles I will get out of it but it is suppose to have a harden center tread with soft sidewalls for cornering and so far the handling is spot on. Right from the day I put it on I took it out to scuff it in and it handled great right off the bat.

Not sure what you are talking about. I haven't lost any handling since installing the Michellin Alpine PA3 run flat car tire on my F6B.

Maybe you just don't know how to ride?

[seadog]

Not sure what you are talking about. I haven't lost any handling since installing the Michellin Alpine PA3 run flat car tire on my F6B.

Maybe you just don't know how to ride?

I will put a motorcycle tire up against any car tire out on the market for handling!

[willtill]

I will put a motorcycle tire up against any car tire out on the market for handling!

It's your money. Spend it how you wish :icon_wink:

[seadog]

It's your money. Spend it how you wish :icon_wink:

You will never see a car tire on my motorcycle and the cost isn't even a problem.

[Brewdog]

10k on the f6b. Rear might have few more miles and front 30% left. I have read info for over an hour.
.


Who would of thought the choice so hard to make. Thanks all for all the info here. Mostly I want long tread life.

Hey lake_carl,

I just put a set of Dunlop Elite 4's on my F6B. The original Bridgestone's had 8400 miles are were wearing heavily. The front was wearing stupid for a tire with 8400 miles. I can say I am not a fan of the original tires. I keep my tires at 41 psi all the time. The last set of Dunlops' I had were on my Harley and I put 24,000 miles on them before replacing both tires. So far, the Dunlop elite 3's or 4's work for me. I don't get some guys talking about road noise with them. My Elite 4 tires are smooth and quiet.

Just sold my Harley. Since I bought the F6B, I didn't have the desire to ride it.

[willtill]

You will never see a car tire on my motorcycle and the cost isn't even a problem.

Ya, I get that. I had thought like that once too... :icon_wink:

[1951vbs]

Hey lake_carl,

I just put a set of Dunlop Elite 4's on my F6B. The original Bridgestone's had 8400 miles are were wearing heavily. The front was wearing stupid for a tire with 8400 miles. I can say I am not a fan of the original tires. I keep my tires at 41 psi all the time. The last set of Dunlops' I had were on my Harley and I put 24,000 miles on them before replacing both tires. So far, the Dunlop elite 3's or 4's work for me. .

I averaged 18,000 miles each on the first 4 sets of Bridgestones on the F6B. I am not sure how I am riding differently than you but I do mostly straight line riding at 80-85 mph in the Florida heat. That being said I installed Elite 4's as my 5th set and we will see how they hold up. So far they seem a little "slippery when wet" compared to the stones.

As far as car tire handling....watch this Goldwing at the Dragon. It does not seem to slow him down!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=37XLJNLpzxQ

[Jimmytee]

Not sure what you are talking about. I haven't lost any handling since installing the Michellin Alpine PA3 run flat car tire on my F6B.

Maybe you just don't know how to ride?

I put a car tire on my Valkyrie and I'm luke warm about it at best. DOn't care for the way the tire want to stand the bike up in the corners. People get used to this, but there is no doubt the tire handles differently than the Avon Cobra that is usually on the rear. To each their own, but it was enough to convince me that I didn't want one on my F6B.

Oh, and I do think I know how to ride. I ride pretty aggressively. :icon_wink:

The one positive thing I do like on the Valk, is that the car tire does offer a nice plush ride especially 2 up.

After 3 sets of Bridgestones, I switched to the new ELite 4s. Hoping for a littel better mileage. What I can say so far, is they do stick very well. Have had the bike down to the engine guards in the corners and no slip noticed.

[F6Dave]

I thought of trying a car tire on one of my old Valkyries, but for a few reasons I never did. On Valks you usually need to make a mod for clearance under the fender. And, if you don't like it, a lot of work is required to switch back.

Unlike the GL1500s, the F6B rear wheel change is a breeze. Since I bought a spare rear rim from a trike dealer, I could try the darkside and easily switch back if I didn't like the handling. Even if I didn't like it, I might still use the CT for long trips on the slab, and the MC tire when I'm home in Colorado riding the twisties.

I know a CT can be ridden aggressively. I've seen some impressive photos of guys riding darkside Wings and Valkyries on the ragged edge on roads like the Tail of the Dragon. But most of the darkside riders I personally know don't ride very hard. When riding behind one friend on mountain roads I noticed an awkward transition as his CT would enter a corner.

Like Jimmytee, I like to ride hard. I scrape my pegs a lot. So I'm curious, how many of you guys with CTs really push the F6B hard in the corners on a regular basis? And what's it like in those situations?

[lake_carl]

Was not trying to start the debate again as I had read about 2 hours of great information and thoughts on here already and was thanking all for the great information

[zeus661]

I have the Michellin Alpine PA3 run flat car tire on my F6B and love it. I feel more secure and all aspects of riding. I did not even feel a difference when first installed. You can't compare how well it performs on wet road. Far superior to a MC tire.

[willtill]

Was not trying to start the debate again as I had read about 2 hours of great information and thoughts on here already and was thanking all for the great information

No worries. We debate on almost everything lake_carl. :icon_lol:

[willtill]

I thought of trying a car tire on one of my old Valkyries, but for a few reasons I never did. On Valks you usually need to make a mod for clearance under the fender. And, if you don't like it, a lot of work is required to switch back.

Unlike the GL1500s, the F6B rear wheel change is a breeze. Since I bought a spare rear rim from a trike dealer, I could try the darkside and easily switch back if I didn't like the handling. Even if I didn't like it, I might still use the CT for long trips on the slab, and the MC tire when I'm home in Colorado riding the twisties.

I know a CT can be ridden aggressively. I've seen some impressive photos of guys riding darkside Wings and Valkyries on the ragged edge on roads like the Tail of the Dragon. But most of the darkside riders I personally know don't ride very hard. When riding behind one friend on mountain roads I noticed an awkward transition as his CT would enter a corner.

Like Jimmytee, I like to ride hard. I scrape my pegs a lot. So I'm curious, how many of you guys with CTs really push the F6B hard in the corners on a regular basis? And what's it like in those situations?

I did exactly that. In preparation for going Darkside; I bought a brand new Goldwing takeoff wheel and brand new Bridgestone tire mounted on it. In case I decided I didn't like the car tire.

Now... I am stuck with... a brand new Goldwing takeoff wheel and brand new Bridgestone tire already mounted on it. That I never will use. :banghead:

[stroguy]

No worries. We debate on almost everything lake_carl. :icon_lol:

It's more like bickering.

I prefer the positivity of the Dunlop reviews. I am on second set of Bridgestones and will look forward to trying the Dunlops. Thanks for the help.

[Jimmytee]

I thought of trying a car tire on one of my old Valkyries, but for a few reasons I never did. On Valks you usually need to make a mod for clearance under the fender. And, if you don't like it, a lot of work is required to switch back.

Unlike the GL1500s, the F6B rear wheel change is a breeze. Since I bought a spare rear rim from a trike dealer, I could try the darkside and easily switch back if I didn't like the handling. Even if I didn't like it, I might still use the CT for long trips on the slab, and the MC tire when I'm home in Colorado riding the twisties.

I know a CT can be ridden aggressively. I've seen some impressive photos of guys riding darkside Wings and Valkyries on the ragged edge on roads like the Tail of the Dragon. But most of the darkside riders I personally know don't ride very hard. When riding behind one friend on mountain roads I noticed an awkward transition as his CT would enter a corner.

Like Jimmytee, I like to ride hard. I scrape my pegs a lot. So I'm curious, how many of you guys with CTs really push the F6B hard in the corners on a regular basis? And what's it like in those situations?

I ride with lot of guys on car tires, either on Valkyries or Gold WIngs. These guys ride hard I can assure of that. However, one thing I did notice on a couple of rides. We were pushing it pretty hard with triple digit speeds in the twisties. Coming into some corners that abruptly decreased in radius, a couple of the guys, on Wings with car tires, were pushing to the outside of the turns to the point of running off the road nearly. In those same turns, I found it fairly easily just to sink the bike harder into the corner and maintained my line. Now these guys are goofs, and we were also playing around a lot so some of that might explain it too. However, my car tire experience on the Valk, kind of coorelates to what I observed.

[seadog]

No worries. We debate on almost everything lake_carl. :icon_lol:

As a matter of fact good information comes out of these debates over items. Good information is always worth it weight in gold. We all know opinions vary and the good and bad information we mull over and usually come out with acceptable things that a lot of us didn't know. Willtill has his opinions on car tire and I have mine on motorcycle tire but you still have to respect a mans opinion to have what he thinks is right. No problem with a good debate as good info comes out of it.

[edgeman55]

Problem with a car tire is that you have to mount one and see if you like it or not.I was lucky to have a friend with a Wing that has had a car tire mounted on it.We are close in size so I felt it would give me a realistic feel as to how it handled for him.I rode it for a good two hours one day and it just was not for me-felt stand upish as if I had to manhandle it in the turns.My friend on the other hand loves it as he has mounted many over the years to that bike.I am a what ever floats your boat type of person,if it works for you great.That all being said I was not unhappy with the Bridgestones that came with the bike and I did get around 11K out of the rear and the front could have gone many more miles but when I do a rear I tend to get a new front too.My latest set are the Metzler 888's and I could not be more happy with them.They stick well wet or dry.Don't seem too get slippery on tar snakes like the Bridgestones did and they are quiet.About 5K on them so far and wear looks great.Who knows might try the new Dunlops next as many here are happy with them and time will tell the mileage they will get.

[wjduke]

My next set is the Elite 4...I saw Teach ride with hers, and they stick so good you can hear it. Rain and tar snakes.

[lake_carl]

Called the stealership where I bought it used , $300 for Dunlop elite 4, if I bring bike in and they take care of it. Those doing the c t or buying online have any issues getting someone to mount them.
I might be leaning darks idea as half my riding is easy sight seeing 2 up. My solo riding is just not aggressive as I feel like this bike compares to trying to barrel race a draft horse, might be capable of impressive things but does not compare to the best made for twisties

[seadog]

My next set is the Elite 4...I saw Teach ride with hers, and they stick so good you can hear it. Rain and tar snakes.

If I hadn't already bought an OEM Bridgestone front tire when I heard about the Elite 4's Dunlop was coming out with I would have had a set put on instead of just the rear but my initial scuff in on the brand new Elite 4 rear tire told me that this is the tire I was looking for. For a brand new tire to hold onto the curves at the speeds I was running it sold itself. I was amazed at its holding power. There will be a front Elite 4 put on when the Bridgestone wears out.

[willtill]

Called the stealership where I bought it used , $300 for Dunlop elite 4, if I bring bike in and they take care of it. Those doing the c t or buying online have any issues getting someone to mount them.
I might be leaning darks idea as half my riding is easy sight seeing 2 up. My solo riding is just not aggressive as I feel like this bike compares to trying to barrel race a draft horse, might be capable of impressive things but does not compare to the best made for twisties

Most of us have been buying the car tires online. Most of us just take the wheel off of the bike (easy) and bring them in to a motorcycle shop to have the car tire mounted. Just tell them it's for a trike if they are wigged out. I would wager (based upon my recent conversion) that motorcycle dealers/shops are seemingly not too alarmed about doing it these days since it's becoming common.

[Jimmytee]

Most of us have been buying the car tires online. Most of us just take the wheel off of the bike (easy) and bring them in to a motorcycle shop to have the car tire mounted. Just tell them it's for a trike if they are wigged out. I would wager (based upon my recent conversion) that motorcycle dealers/shops are seemingly not too alarmed about doing it these days since it's becoming common.

When I did my Valkyrie, I asked Ray , the head mechanic at my local Honda dealer if he'd mount it for me. He told me as long as I brought the wheel in and didn't tell anyone. You didn't hear this from me.:shhh:

[Crazyhorse]

I ride with lot of guys on car tires, either on Valkyries or Gold WIngs. These guys ride hard I can assure of that. However, one thing I did notice on a couple of rides. We were pushing it pretty hard with triple digit speeds in the twisties. Coming into some corners that abruptly decreased in radius, a couple of the guys, on Wings with car tires, were pushing to the outside of the turns to the point of running off the road nearly. In those same turns, I found it fairly easily just to sink the bike harder into the corner and maintained my line. Now these guys are goofs, and we were also playing around a lot so some of that might explain it too. However, my car tire experience on the Valk, kind of coorelates to what I observed.

You can't compare your experience with the CT on the Valk and a Wing. I mounted the same run flat tire on my 03 Wing and my 99 Valk. The Wing I could not tell the difference between it and the motorcycle tire. The Valk can't wait to go back to the motorcycle tire.

[Fla_rider]

Riders ask me all the time how I like my CT over my stones. I ask them if every bike they owned was the same in corners. Of course not, but they did take getting use to and after awhile you don't even notice. I don't even notice that my back tire is Darksided most the time. The feeling I get is smoother than a MC tire, I feel more in contact with the road, a lot more stable in the rain and due to changes in profile just a smidgen more flat footed. For a cost that is slightly less than the normal tire and should last 3x longer, I'll give it a try. CT mounted at 26k, currently 30k. Will let you know.

[six2go]

I did exactly that. In preparation for going Darkside; I bought a brand new Goldwing takeoff wheel and brand new Bridgestone tire mounted on it. In case I decided I didn't like the car tire.

Now... I am stuck with... a brand new Goldwing takeoff wheel and brand new Bridgestone tire already mounted on it. That I never will use. :banghead:

Wanna sell it?

[olegoat345]

Okay, other than being cheap & getting a zillion miles out of a car tire, what's the other "real" reasons for using one?
I ain't buying better ride & handling, a car tire is designed to carry several times the weight of a MC & ride flat, with 3 more helping it to roll & track in a straight line. Better ride & handling, I think not.

[bob109]

You can't compare your experience with the CT on the Valk and a Wing. I mounted the same run flat tire on my 03 Wing and my 99 Valk. The Wing I could not tell the difference between it and the motorcycle tire. The Valk can't wait to go back to the motorcycle tire.

What your experiencing with the difference in handling is more than likely the results of bike "Dry Weight"! With the Wing at 800.3 lb. dry and the Valk at 681.2 lb. dry, the 119.1 lb. makes for a big difference in maneuverability. There may also be a slight difference in the front "rake and trail" of both bikes.

[pilotguy299]

Okay, other than being cheap & getting a zillion miles out of a car tire, what's the other "real" reasons for using one?
I ain't buying better ride & handling, a car tire is designed to carry several times the weight of a MC & ride flat, with 3 more helping it to roll & track in a straight line. Better ride & handling, I think not.

There are arguments on both sides of this issue on why or why not to do it. I did an awful lot of reading 5 years ago before putting a goodyear triple tread on my VTX1300R. The "pros" cited by people had already gone dark side, just seemed to outweigh the "cons" proposed by people who never tried it. I have yet to read anywhere about a car tire on a motorcycle actually causing any of the issues the naysayers were proposing.

Now it may be because in all of those incidents the people actually died in a big ball of flame, and were never able to report their accident. But I'm not convinced of that.

In my own experience the ride is smoother on straightaways, provides significantly better braking on dry & wet roads, lasts much longer, takes a bit more to get in to a turn, but takes a lot less to get the bike back upright and stopped.

And to be completely honest, I find that I ride a lot more aggressively - even in the turns - than I do on a motorcycle tire. I just feel that much more comfortable and capable on the car tire I have. And that's with about 30,000 miles on two different bikes.

Tire selection is important. The GYTT has a pretty squared profile, and took a quite a bit more to get in to a turn. The Brigestone run flat tire I have now is a little more rounded at the edges, and is more MT like in it's handling. And since you're supposed to get the bike upright before braking in a turn, I see that tendency as a huge plus.

And I understand your hesitation to buy in to it. I was skeptical as well.

YMMV

[Shiv]

Okay, other than being cheap & getting a zillion miles out of a car tire, what's the other "real" reasons for using one?
I ain't buying better ride & handling, a car tire is designed to carry several times the weight of a MC & ride flat, with 3 more helping it to roll & track in a straight line. Better ride & handling, I think not.

Why argue with somebody who accuses me of being cheap and already knows without a doubt that it doesn't handle well? My experience has been 8-10K miles on a run flat, some difference in twisties (not worse, different), far better in rain and gravel, and the ability to ride home about 40 miles - two up - with zero air pressure. Your 'experience' ?

Shiv

[Shiv]

There are arguments on both sides of this issue on why or why not to do it. I did an awful lot of reading 5 years ago before putting a goodyear triple tread on my VTX1300R. The "pros" cited by people had already gone dark side, just seemed to outweigh the "cons" proposed by people who never tried it. I have yet to read anywhere about a car tire on a motorcycle actually causing any of the issues the naysayers were proposing.

Now it may be because in all of those incidents the people actually died in a big ball of flame, and were never able to report their accident. But I'm not convinced of that.

In my own experience the ride is smoother on straightaways, provides significantly better braking on dry & wet roads, lasts much longer, takes a bit more to get in to a turn, but takes a lot less to get the bike back upright and stopped.

And to be completely honest, I find that I ride a lot more aggressively - even in the turns - than I do on a motorcycle tire. I just feel that much more comfortable and capable on the car tire I have. And that's with about 30,000 miles on two different bikes.

Tire selection is important. The GYTT has a pretty squared profile, and took a quite a bit more to get in to a turn. The Brigestone run flat tire I have now is a little more rounded at the edges, and is more MT like in it's handling. And since you're supposed to get the bike upright before braking in a turn, I see that tendency as a huge plus.

And I understand your hesitation to buy in to it. I was skeptical as well.

YMMV
You said it way better than I, but you experienced the same things I did. BTW, I am on the 4th one.
Shiv

[pilotguy299]

i dont think we should be argueing about this at all. provide a short thumbnail of what youve experienced and move on. some people have tried it and not liked it, and that's ok. the other downside i forgot to mention is that is does tend to follow ruts more than a mc tire does.

[willtill]

I was a skeptic for many, many, years about C/T's on motorcycles; though over the years becoming an optimistically oriented skeptic (If that is even a understandable phrase) :icon_lol: as I studied the phenomena; and finally deciding to try it on my F6B.

http://hondaf6b.com/showthread.php?9498-Converted-my-F6B-to-the-Darkside

Never, ever going back to a rear motorcycle tire on my F6B. Once dialed in, the car tire functions much better, and for all the right reasons.

:nojoke:

The Darkside forum on this site has a lot of useful information. Check it out in totality. :icon_wink: