Love Corners And Ride Like A Madman (sensibly Of Course)

[jchbusa]

Hi All

Have read no end of threads on which tires to get for my ride BUT cannot find anyone saying if ALL you want is grip on the corners then get this one.

I don't care if I get 500 miles out of a rear tyre but I want to know as I lean into the bends I have the best tyre for grip.
I use the bike to commute to work (4.3 miles) every day and ride like a girl in the rain but rag it when it is dry.
so grip in the wet isn't as important to me as trusting it in the dry when wearing out the knee sliders :-)

Anyone tell me what they would go for then I can make a personal choice.

 

[skydivr]

The BEST gripping tire, of course, is a race tire - DOT or slick - but they do not work on the street as they require warmers and do not handle the varying conditions found on the street. You can't heat them up enough, and cold they will put you on your butt in a heartbeat. If someone tells you to put a DOT race tire on - run from them as fast as possible.

SOOO...that means you want the best combination of grip, longevity and ability to warm themselves and handle the varying conditions faced by street riders...And you will find a lot of opinions...What has worked for me is the Dunlop Q3. Great grip thru varying conditions; not as great longevity (it's a tradeoff as you mention). And at the price you can buy them at, they are worth a try. Let them warm up; drag your knee no problem if it suits you.

As important as the tire - regardless of brand- is also the pressure. If you want them to grip better, do not run them at the max recommended pressure or the pressure in the owners manual.

If you want to learn more so you can make your own decision - do a trackday as you'll learn more in a day on the track than a year on the street...

 

[Tufbusa]

You can't beat Dunlop Q3 for grip in a street tire. Forget dragging a knee, drag the body work!
Reaching extreme lean angle without proper skill in traction management is simply a crash waiting to happen regardless of the tire. Suspension & tire pressure are both key to maximizing lean.

 

[jchbusa]

I have 3 so far

Roso Corsa
Angel GT
Pilot Power 3 as 4 seems to have changed for the worse.

I will taker a look at the Dunlop you mentioned and read some reviews
Like I said not interested in longevity just pure grip.

Took the Busa back for its first service and then got a call to say that there was a nail in my rear :-( so that's the reason I am looking for something better than stock. Had stock tyres on all my 4 busa's since 2008 when I passed my test so time to up the ante and see what different tyres do.
Chicken strips I get rid off after a couple of hundred miles but finding with this bike for some reason keeps stepping out more than any of the others have done before. The ride is setup like have done all the others and the tyres are the same unless Bridgestone have changed something this year.

Tufbusa I agree with you about knowledge of traction etc. hence the reason for the post. I have a couple of long sweeping bends near were I live and that's were I did all my limit training. if I was to lose it there wasn't anything more solid that a hedge and fields after so god forbid if I did lose it then hopefully it would survive.

Skydivr I haven't done any track days as I am sure it would add to my knowledge but the track is a perfect surface so when you get back out on normal road conditions it might lead me to go that bit further well that's my stance on it at present.

 

[justintime2]

How you ride (talent) is far more important than the tires you've got...

 

[sixpack577]

How you ride (talent) is far more important than the tires you've got...

The tires you ride are Very important.
Yeah, you've got to have skill, but if you don't have the grip from good tires, it doesn't matter.

 

[sixpack577]

Q3s!
They are awesome, as were the Q2s.
I don't care about how many miles I get either, but it is nice to wear out front and rear about the same time.
That's hard to do with the weight of the Busa street riding.
With Q2/3 front and rear, you'll likely have life left in the front after the rear is toast.
TufBusa told us years ago about running a sport front and a sport touring rear.
That combo is great on the street. I can get 1500-2k miles out of a front, and about 1k-1500 out of a sport rear.
With a sport touring rear, I can have both wear out evenly in the 1500-2k mile range.
A Dunlop Roadsmart 1 or RS 2 with a Q2/3 front is perfect, and I had/have zero problem with grip.
My suspension sag is right on for me, and I keep my tires around 34-36 psi cold, and air them back down to that as they get hot.
Here's a pic of old rear Dunlop Roadsmarts of mine.

 

[sixpack577]

Dunlop Roadsmart sport touring rears
Not as good as a Q2 or 3 for grip obviously, but they'll do all you need on the street
I run sport fronts, regardless.
The Q2 and 3 are my favorite.

 

[justintime2]

The tires you ride are Very important.
Yeah, you've got to have skill, but if you don't have the grip from good tires, it doesn't matter.

Used to think the same until I watched Ben Spies come around me on the outside at Pacific Raceways on a bone stock 1000 like I was standing still (he had them pull it straight off the showroom floor of a local dealership even after Suzuki said he was not allowed on the track), tires still had the paper label on it going round and round, was strangely hypnotic for the few movements it lasted. So if he can absolutely destroy us mere mortals on cold stockers with the label still attached there is a lot more traction there than you think. Tires are important but are a crutch for most people's lack of talent/confidence, mainly confidence...

 

[Tufbusa]

Speaking of Dunlop Roadsmart II's, I took my Concours out to the track a couple weeks ago. She is shod with Roadsmart II's on both ends. I run 38 psi cold on both ends for street and I left the psi where it was. That big fat heifer was amazingly agile on those sport touring tires while dragging the rear sets. The current crop of street tires are equally as good as the race tires we used just a few short years ago. Jason Pridmore and all of his instructors at his school ride on Q3's and those boys ride them at race pace.

If you crash on any of the current tires, it "ain't" the tires". Its the nut behind the bars :-)

 

[Tufbusa]

Justintime2, if you are romping Pacific Raceway you must live around my neighborhood? I may actually know you if you are a regular at the track?

 

[jchbusa]

Gone for the Diablo Corsas's and will report back a review

 

[justintime2]

Justintime2, if you are romping Pacific Raceway you must live around my neighborhood? I may actually know you if you are a regular at the track?

Used to be but no longer racing. If I remember correctly when I first got into racing back in 2006 I spoke with you on the phone while doing my due diligence on what being on the track entailed!

 

[jchbusa]

Loving the Rosso Corsa, they give confidence in the corners and have good feedback. Glad I choose these so far