| Author | Message | ||
     Greg_e |
The ever present question that never has a simple answer... Which tire model to get. I'll need a rear tire this year and I have a Michelin Pilot Power front and Pilot Power rear, got somewhere between 4000 and 5000 on the rear so it really did OK for me but it is getting square and thin. Motorcycle Superstore has tires on sale so I am thinking of buy a tire to have on hand. Choices are PR2, PR3, PP2ct, PP3. (Pilot Road or Pilot Power) Assuming the PP2ct and PP3 use a harder compound in the center, I should get pretty long life out of them compared to the original Pilot Power I have been running. I know many suggest the PR2 but wanted to know if anyone had PR3 on an XB. Mine sees a lot of commuting, half on highway (going to work), half on back roads (coming home) which used to keep the edges worn down with the center. | ||
| Hammer71 |
Had the PR3's on my 9 for a while, great tire for anything I threw at them. Try this place for tire price comparisonhttp://www.compacc.com/Tires-Package-Deals | ||
| Greg_e |
I was thinking and may go to my local independent shop, their prices are pretty decent and that is probably where I would go for mount and balance. Why did you only have them for a while? Did you wear them out and decide to try a different tire? | ||
| Hammer71 |
A while is because I sold the bike. As far as I know they are still on it. I had put a little over 4500 miles on them and they still looked great, that includes a few super slab trips at 400 miles each and the rest was my usual knee dragging spirited riding. Cant go wrong with any of the Michelins (my opinion). | ||
| Chessm |
PR2's or 3's if you dont do trackdays (well theyre ok if you only do like 1 a year and youre in C group). i recommend the 3's over the 2's if you ride commue in the rain a lot (not that the 2's are bad at all in the rain). but if you do trackdays then PP3's or some other sport tire like Q2s | ||
| Terrys1980 |
I had the PR3 on my XB and loved them. I now have the PR2 on my 1125. I don't do much riding in the rain and the price difference was almost $50. | ||
| Gentleman_jon |
I had Pilot Road 2's on my XB12SR, and they were great. Excellent handling, and long life. I did not take them to the track, but lots of guys have. I just put a pair of Pilot Power 3's on my Street Triple R, and I love them too. Really great handling. Only put about a hundred miles on them so far, it's been too damn cold to do any more. Supposed to wear pretty well too. I have been using Michelins for about the last five years and I never had a tire that was anything but excellent. | ||
| Greg_e |
OK, thanks. I think PR2 might be the ticket since I try not to ride in the rain. And since I don't do track days right now and would be in the beginner class if I did. Racing school is something I want to do, but certainly not this coming summer. | ||
| Chessm |
ya you can still haul major ass with the PR2s (or pretty much any modern sport touring tire) so you dont have to worry about it holding you back. while still returning thousands of miles before you need to change them | ||
| Reepicheep |
Don't worry about the PR2's in the rain either, they stick like stink even when wet (IMHO). | ||
| Sifo |
I got caught in a nasty rain storm a couple years ago with PR2's on my XB12Ss. There were about seven of us on various sport/naked bikes, most were spinning their wheel taking off from stop lights. I found that odd because I still had no problem pulling wheelies. I get fantastic mileage out of a set of PR2's too. I think the one down side with these is that if you don't spend some time on the expressway instead of twisties, the center will never wear down. If you wear out the center of a sport tire though, the dual compound makes a lot of sense. | ||
| Roycet4 |
I Just put PR3's on my XB12R and so far love them, though I do ride mostly highway | ||
| Abenormal |
Which tire would be best for you depends on your riding style and goals... All street / no track : Get the Pilot Road 3s. You will get the most mileage and best rain grip, and get better overall grip than the Pilot Road 2s (according to Michelin). Mostly street / trying a track day : Pilot Road 3s would be fine for your first track class and a few days as a novice, and you would still reap the high mileage and excellent rain characteristics. Mostly street / definitely a few track days: Novice to slow intermediate on the track? You most likely won't be outriding the Pilot Powers. Pilot Powers are the most economical and longest lasting of Michelin's "Performance" category. If I am reading the color coded charts on the Michelin site correctly, the 2CT has the same softness in the "hard" section as the Power has overall, with the 2CT going even softer on the shoulders. Track junkie? Intermediate group or faster? If money is tight the 2CTs are a few bucks less than the Power 3s, but not by much. I ran Pilot Power 2CTs on my 1125R and loved them, but I will be mounting the new Pilot Power 3s on my new XB12stt for this season. (Message edited by abenormal on March 21, 2013) | ||
| Chessm |
one more thing to add about PR2's and 3's. theyre really easy to get rid of chicken strips. they go away without even trying. and that's just normal street riding. ya i know, its a weird positive but whatever.  | ||
| Fyre1up |
I've been running Michelin Pilot Road 2's for a while now and I just love them.. Harder compound in the middle for highway with softer compound for the curves.. Haven't really tried too many other tires aside from the stock tires, Dunlop, but you won't be disappointed.. Everyone always talks about the Corsa 3's, handles perfectly but life is slim.. Good luck with your choice! | ||
| Greg_e |
If I didn't care about tire life, I would just stick to the Pilot Powers, very happy with these tires, they are way more tire than I can ride so I always feel safe really getting over on the side. I have never been able to slide them during a corner unless I hit loose material on the road or a tar strip, and they lock back on as soon as you are clear of the debris. But the way a lot of people ride, they are a few thousand mile tire and might be a two a season tire for a lot of guys. I decided to just wait a bit and see what happens to prices, but it will almost certainly be a PR2 or PR3. | ||
| Gater |
I have the Pilot Powers on my XB12s. And my friend has the Pilot Powers on his KTM 625 SMC and we like them. They stick good. They cost me $214.24 delivered. I got them from Bike Bandit. | ||
| Barkbuster |
Best tire i tried so far are the pr2`s but they are hard to find and have since tried the bridgestone bt023`s. these are better priced and as good just a little different. actually better for me in that they are better wearing. both brands lean over till past my toes and footpegs touch but the pr2`s felt better near the limit.my bt 023`s are the gt version with the heavier construction for bikes like the fjr or concours and have been the best wearing tire i`ve tried. they tun in almost as quick as the pr2`s and resist standing up on trail braking too! pirelli angels were ok but didn`t wear as good and really stood up under braking compared to the other two. | ||
| Sifo |
I've been meaning to post up some pics of some well used PR2's. This one is on my Sprint ST and currently has about 15,500 miles on it, including a whole bunch of expressway miles between IL and CA last season. It's a bit flat in the middle at this point, but I would still expect another 2-3K miles. In reality, it will get replaced soon just for peace of mind on the road this summer. Had it spent a bit more time on twisties, it would be looking at a 20K service life with no problems.  This next one is on my XB12Ss, and has about 5K miles on it. The profile is still nice and round and the tread is nice and deep.  One thing that I don't like about these tires is that the very center seems to appear much more worn than it really is. It's just the way the grooves taper at the center of the tire. When you look for the wear bars you get a better idea of the tread condition. I'm used to seeing it look that way now and just accept it. I guess that after over 15K miles that should be acceptable though.  Looking for a good sport touring tire? Stop looking! | ||
| Gater |
I have the Michelin Pilot Power front and Pilot Power rear on my XB12S and they are great. They handle great even in the rain. By next riding season I will need a new rear tire so I'm just going to put on another Pilot Power. Once I need to replace both front and rear I going to get the PR2. | ||
| Xb9er |
2ct's are great for wear and tearing up curves | ||
| Fast1075 |
Just to mix it up some. I have Bridgestone S-20's on mine and they are perhaps the best handling tire I have ever ran on my XB. |
