Tire carcass shapes/profiles?

[MZ5]

In the sportbike realm, one finds tires of various shapes. Some (not many) are quite round, some are quite pointy in the center of the tread, and some are in-between.

Is there much variation in tire shape in the sport touring to on/off-road realm? While the Pirelli Scorpion trail (I think it's called?) Is a minor possibility, I'm basically choosing between the Pilot Road 2 and Bridgestone Battlax BT-023.

I'm curious about how the handling and gearing (quickness of turn-in, revs per mile, etc) of these would compare based on shape.

Thanks.

 

[Old Can Ride]

I believe both tires are good tires. I know that the BT-023 gets around 12,000 miles. I have no knowledge about the Pirelli mileage. Both are good companies that have been around a long time.

 

[MZ5]

Thanks, OCR! The only Pirellis I've ever had were car & pickup tires. Excepting one set from a long time ago, they've been round and smooth. I've liked the Bridgestones, Michelins, and Goodyears I've had, too.

 

[SergeantChuck]

Did some looking just now because I was curious too. I'm not due for a tire change yet but it will be here before I know it. What I'm about to quote is information I have just read. It is not first hand experience.

First off, it seems more often than not the people that have ridden both prefer the PR2's. It seems that a majority of the riders feel very comfortable with them in wet conditions and say they give you a lot of confindence in corner and braking. Say they grip like no other. People quoted different mileage on tires but saw anything from 8K to 11K.

Nobody had anything bad to say about the BT-023's. The just liked the PR2s better.

All I did was a google search with Pilot Road 2 vs Battlax BT-023. It brought up quite a few forum threads discussions.

Additionally the guys that really liked PR2's and have tried the PR3's seem to like them even more. They do cost a little more. I have not check to see if that tire is made in a size we need.

 

[dduelin]

I ran the BT023s and Pilot Road 2s on my ST1300 and can offer my recollection of differences between the tires. I was selected to beta test a set of 023s on the 1300 before they were released for USA sale and had to fill out a questionnaire and rate the tires in a number of areas when the worn tires were pulled off my bike and sent back to Bridgestone. A set of PR2s with 3500 miles were pulled off my bike when the 023s were shipped to a local dealer for installation so the comparison was fresh in my mind at the time. I was never a fan of the original Pilot Roads, tried a set after the OEM tires wore out, and rather reluctantly fitted a set of Pilot Road 2s after a long string of Avon Storms. The Storms were my favorite tire but I went to the PR2s because I could not get a Avon rear tire to last more than 6000 miles and I was looking for longer wear and willing to give up some handling to get it. Peers were reporting 8, 9, 10,000 miles or more on the Michelins so I gave the PR2s a try. The PRs and PR2s have an elliptical cross section and were rather numb at tip-in and to me did not give good feedback when pressed in hard cornering. They gripped plenty well but I was always over-steering into the corner and having to adjust my line after tip-in. I never lost the need for an adjustment to my line after the bike was leaned into the corner but I did get used to it. They only time they felt confident and communicative were in the rain. The PR2 rear wore in a odd, lumpy pattern and the front was very noisy after a few thousand miles. I really did not like them. In contrast the Bridgestone 023s returned me back to a tire that was precise at tip-in, planted at any lean angle at any speed, and was quiet from new to worn out. The 023s wore in a very symmetrical pattern. I liked them and gave them high marks except the only problem was they lasted 5700 miles. Granted, the tires were free and I rode them hard but I could see that they were not going to go 8 or 9,000 miles ridden like I did the Avons that I really liked but only averaged 6000 miles on. The dealer put my 3500 mile Michelins back on and I rode them out to about 9,000 miles. In the meantime Michelin released the Pilot Road 3 which I tried next. The 3 handled better and did not have the odd hitch the 2 had after turn-in. They also wore better and did not moan, whine, and buzz after 3,000 miles. A rear easily goes to 9,000 miles for me on the heavy ST1300. Dry or wet they grip very well and when skipped or slipped on a bit of gravel or damp paint stripe they hook right back up. They are a confidence inspiring tire but still a bit numb at initial turn-in. I then ran consecutive PR3 pairs and never went back to the Bridgestone 023. Oddly, the last PR3 rear got holed early and I got a new PR2 rear at a very good price so I currently have a 3 on the front and a 2 on the rear. The noise and buzz I did not like about the 2s was apparently attributable to the 2s front tire wear pattern. I have about 7,000 miles on this set now and the tires remain quiet although the lumpy rear pattern is making itself known. My 700X came on Metzeler Z8s. I wore out 2 rears to one front and at 14,000 miles replaced the Metzelers with Michelin PR3s. I believe the Z8 handles better than the PR3 and feels better at lean but after the good experiences on PR3s I trade off a bit of feel for better mileage.

Hope this helps.

 

[SergeantChuck]

dduelin,

I really appreciate that detailed report. The dealer that sold me my bike also offered a service plan which I chose to accept. Part of that plan is a free set of replacement tires.

The bike came with the BT-023's. I have just recently went over 4K miles but a majority of that is on the highway. I've ridden in the rain several times but again the route to work is fairly straight and I've done nothing on these tires to really test them in that condition. I have had them out on some twisties at high speeds and they performed well.

I've heard a lot of talk on this board about the PR2's. I have never run them. I appreciate all the information you provided on them. Based off your comments about the PR3's I think that is what I'll go with. The dealer will require me to pay the difference but I'm willing to do that.

 

[bamamate]

I went from Z8s to PR3s which now have 1500 miles on them. I agree with dduelin’s assessment. PR3s are little slower to tip-in and a little less feel in the corners. Basically not as sporty as the Z8s. On the other hand the PR3s handle gravel on the road way better than the Z8s and off-road are miles ahead. I’m going to watch the reviews on the Scorpion Trails but right now I’m happy with the PR3s as a 90/10 tire.

 

[MZ5]

Thanks for the detailed report, dduelin, and for the additional info, bamamate!

Are the PR3s still elliptical in cross section?

It basically doesn't rain here, and when it does, I either want it to rain solidly and for a while, or else I generally drive a 4-wheeler that day. I don't want any part of the months of road oil that sometimes is brought up by a light sprinkle, during a commute in traffic.

I'm very surprised to read that the PR3 is good on gravel. I guess I figured that gravel would just grind them up the way it always did Michelin pickup tires.

I don't really have a specific problem with the Metzelers that came on my NCX. The front is wearing oddly, but it doesn't seem to be causing a problem. I always assumed the wear pattern was mostly due to the fact that I'm a bit of a trail-braker.

I've got almost 9,300 miles on the bike, and will end up with about 11-12,000 miles for the 12 month period. I'd like to not have to buy tires more frequently than annually (and I wouldn't object to 40,000 miles at all! ).

Being able to run forest service roads without crashing or chewing up the tires would be great! But, commuting in HOT weather is the overwhelming majority of my use.

 

[cdnuser]

I have the BT-023s and need to swap them out now. 18,000kms