Best Tyres for the Varadero??

[AckAckFlack]

Metzler Tourance

whos next

+1

10,000kms on rear and still have another 1,000kms left on them
Don't think the front will ever need changing at this rate of wear

[Dee Duble Yuh]

Wear: Almost all the tyres mentioned will last 8,000 - 10,000 miles (rear). Sport-touring tyres are likely to last the longer than dual sport tyres because the blocks don't move around much. Tyres even more oriented to off-road riding, like TKC 80s, tend to wear out in a few thou.

Feel: Compared with a sport-touring tyre most dual-sports tyres have a more rounded profile. That means leaning into a bend will be slower, but once there it might feel "locked in" to the lean; you have haul the bike back up. In S-bends you will feel yourself working the handlebars. Also the tyres will be more sensitive to road markings and imperfections. To reduce the effect try running a couple more psi. Sport-touring tyres have a sharper vee profile that allows the bike to lean in and stand back up more easily. Michelin Pilot Roads make the Vara feel almost nimble!

Cornering grip: I never had any problems with cornering grip in the dry on Pilot Roads, Trail Wings, Distanzias or Annakees. In the wet I had less confidence on Distanzias.

Braking grip: It's difficult to judge grip under braking since my bike has ABS, but I've never noticed the ABS come into play with any of the tyres I've used.

I've said before, if you want a more sporting feel go for a road-oriented tyre. The Pilot Road is a great tyre, but Battlax BT-020 and Pirelli Road Attack etc. come in Vara sizes too. If you want the dual-sport look, Trail Wings and Anakees will do the job just fine. Don't make the mistake of believing these tyres will give your bike any real off-road ability. In the mud dual sport tyres will slither around all over the place.

[Curzon]

Anyone got any views / experience of Bridgestone Battlewings 501 / 502 on the Varadero?

Seem to be deriguer on BMW GS's and the like!

[sparklymarkly]

Michelin Pilot Roads make the Vara feel almost nimble!

Dead right! That's what I found & I've only done a few miles on them.
I had the Bridgestone 020s on my Tiger and rated them very highly too.

[richie]

Dead right! That's what I found & I've only done a few miles on them.
I had the Bridgestone 020s on my Tiger and rated them very highly too.

Only done 3k on my Vara on Irish bendy roads.... The Battleax that came with it are so good that I replaced the rear with the same tyre. Why change when they work so well. That being said on my previous 11GS I loved Anakees so maybe I will go that way when the pair are done... maybe not... I have no intention of taking it off road and if I did it would be on contis

[StumpyFingers]

Only done 3k on my Vara on Irish bendy roads.... The Battleax that came with it are so good that I replaced the rear with the same tyre. Why change when they work so well. That being said on my previous 11GS I loved Anakees so maybe I will go that way when the pair are done... maybe not... I have no intention of taking it off road and if I did it would be on contis

The Engineer at work has kept to the original Bridgestone tyres when he replaced the rear on his bike due to a puncture, he says they are fine.

[richie]

The Engineer at work has kept to the original Bridgestone tyres when he replaced the rear on his bike due to a puncture, he says they are fine.

I meant Battleax 020....

[Andyroo]

Without doubt it has to be battlewings from Bridgestone, they use the same carcass as the 020 and im on my second set, they grip really well and lean way past the chicken strip, the grip is fantastic in the wet way way better than the trailwings they replaced and leave metzeler standing (they dont step out like the metzeler and are , in my opinion a much better tyre all round for the Vara

[africajim]

Anakee 2's, no contest.

[Dee Duble Yuh]

When you say, "without a doubt" or "no contest" I assume you've actually tried a variety of tyres on the Vara and found your favourite to be better in some way. So, can you explain in what way they are better?

Pretty much any tyre will grip in the dry until well beyond the pegs touching down. And an emergency stop in the dry should be no problem. So... what else? Wet grip in corners? Wet grip under braking? Turn in? Holding a line? Altering your line? Exiting a bend? What about S bends? Wear rates? Solo/under load?