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Bad Dunlop Tire

Adventureman

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This tire has 3,000 miles on it and today I noticed this budging along the whole
circumference of the tire. It’s a Dunlop Trail Max;
 

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From what I’ve read about the Trail Max, I’m surprised you’ve even gotten 3000 miles out of it.
 
Is it budging or has the center worn down due to straight line riding?
It’s bulging around the whole tire. Really 3,000 is all you get out of a front tire normally? I live in the U.S. and we ride on the right. What is a good on-off road tire to replace it with? This is my 1st. bike. Thank you fellas.
 
The description I wrote for my photo below:

I'm ready to scrub in my new Avon AV53 TrailRider. It just replaced the old TrailRider which after 24,776 miles still had usable tread depth (2 to 3 millimeters on the braking edges in the center and more toward the sidewalls)! These tough, nimble dual-compound tires grab the road confidently whether it's wet and cold or hot and dry and they handle predictably. They also perform remarkably well off the pavement, doing everything in all conditions on any kind of surface better than the Michelin Pilot Road 4. I'm sticking with these winners.


2019-09-10 13;07;57
by greenboy, on Flickr
 
It’s bulging around the whole tire. Really 3,000 is all you get out of a front tire normally? I live in the U.S. and we ride on the right. What is a good on-off road tire to replace it with? This is my 1st. bike. Thank you fellas.
No, just those dun crap tires....when the bikes were introduced with those tires in UK, and got such lousy mileage, the dealers had to replace the tires free of charge...no such luck in the USA...
 
It’s bulging around the whole tire. Really 3,000 is all you get out of a front tire normally? I live in the U.S. and we ride on the right. What is a good on-off road tire to replace it with? This is my 1st. bike. Thank you fellas.
Some front street tires can go 15,000 miles on an NC700X, but not the Trail Max. They have a horrible reputation for being short lived.
What is a good on-off road tire? Tire recomendation threads are dangerous. Expect to get 10-20 different answers, and still be left to decide on your own. greenboy‘s Avon suggestion in post #6 would be good. If you want to stay at a very low cost, the Shinko 705 would work, too.
 
I have generally found Dunlops to be good tyres and used Trail Smarts for years on my former Triumph (a heavy bike) to good effect. However I am aware that the motorcycle manufacturers get tyres made to their own specifications for their new bikes regardless of make. I found this out one time when I wrote to Dunlop after getting crap dunlops on my former Africa Twin. They responded and told me so. As such in recent times I have found that any tyre that comes as OEM on a Honda will be rubbish. I have had rubbish OEMs on my various Hondas and a Suzuki from Bridgestone, Metzeler and Dunlop. The Z8 Metzelers were very bad on my former NC700X yet I know that Z8's are generally good tyres. Likewise with Bridgestones on my Strom. They were rubbish.

Nowadays I give the tyres on any new bike the benefit of the doubt for a few hundred miles. Any sign of slippage or other issues and they are immediately replaced. I suggest Michelin Road 5's as a replacement as they are imho currently the best all round road tyres on the market.
 
I suggest Michelin Road 5's as a replacement as they are imho currently the best all round road tyres on the market.
I'd do the same for Avon Trailrider. And there are others that are a great value, handle well and last long for their price. After hearing so many plaudits for the Road 4 I was rather disappointed with the reality. So I don't want to walk into that trap again.
 
———————
Nowadays I give the tyres on any new bike the benefit of the doubt for a few hundred miles. Any sign of slippage or other issues and they are immediately replaced. I suggest Michelin Road 5's as a replacement as they are imho currently the best all round road tyres on the market.

In post #5, the OP asked about an on-off road tire. Are the Road 5’s good off-road? I have no experience with them.
 
In post #5, the OP asked about an on-off road tire. Are the Road 5’s good off-road? I have no experience with them.

TBH I missed that spec in his post and thanks for pointing this out. Having said that on my X-Adv I have a road 5 on front and a PR4 rear and that machine has been used on forest tracks and rough muddy backroads without concern. I have Road 5 Trails on my Strom and again they work fine under the same conditions. From experience once one gets on to bog tracks and the like, even the so called Adventure tyres are at best only marginally better. Anything worse and I use the old reliable, the CRF250L with MT21's :)

Attached is a photo as an example of some of the roads that I ride from time to time to give credence to my statement above.

IMG-3137.JPG
 
I'd do the same for Avon Trailrider. And there are others that are a great value, handle well and last long for their price. After hearing so many plaudits for the Road 4 I was rather disappointed with the reality. So I don't want to walk into that trap again.

The Avons are good looking tyres indeed.

Road 5's are signifantly better than 4's wet or dry. I am still forced to use a 4 on my X-Adv rear, but it is ok and tbh I had more issues with the Road 4 front than the rear.
 
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Agreed. I’d consider the photo in post 13 to be that of a road, not off-road. For non-aggressive riding, street tires could do fine.
 
Thank you fellas for all of the kind responses. My rear tire is a Bridgestone Battle Wing. It still has very good tread on it. I decided to go with the Shinko 705 on the front. Once these tires wear down (likely after the coming riding season) I may go with a set of Michelin Pilot 5’s. It’ll all depends on if I plan-on more on-road riding. Honestly, I like off-roading more at this time. Thing is, I ride with a few people that own Harleys. Again thank you for the suggestions, I do appreciate your time and experiences opinions.
 
Agreed. I’d consider the photo in post 13 to be that of a road, not off-road. For non-aggressive riding, street tires could do fine.

Yes, as I said in my post an example of some of the "roads" that I ride. However those tyres have been on worse and as long as the going is reasonably dry they cope.
 
I have generally found Dunlops to be good tyres and used Trail Smarts for years on my former Triumph (a heavy bike) to good effect. However I am aware that the motorcycle manufacturers get tyres made to their own specifications for their new bikes regardless of make. I found this out one time when I wrote to Dunlop after getting crap dunlops on my former Africa Twin. They responded and told me so. As such in recent times I have found that any tyre that comes as OEM on a Honda will be rubbish. I have had rubbish OEMs on my various Hondas and a Suzuki from Bridgestone, Metzeler and Dunlop. The Z8 Metzelers were very bad on my former NC700X yet I know that Z8's are generally good tyres. Likewise with Bridgestones on my Strom. They were rubbish.

Nowadays I give the tyres on any new bike the benefit of the doubt for a few hundred miles. Any sign of slippage or other issues and they are immediately replaced. I suggest Michelin Road 5's as a replacement as they are imho currently the best all round road tyres on the market.

I can't seem to find these (Road 5) in the size for the NC. Any suggestions
 
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