Which tyres should I get?

[krytengs]

My Anakee III need replacing but they are out of stock.
I've managed to get just over 6K out of a set

I've been offered Pilot Road 4 Trials and Tourance Next.
I don't do any off road trial riding - most I've done is riding some single tracks dirt roads.

Any suggestions which I should get? Why?

Cheers

 

[RedRick Esq.]

I have PR3 Trais and i love them so i imagine the PR4 Trails will be just as good if not better
I would certainly go for them as wet grip is brilliant and dry grip phenominal !

 

[Wapping]

From a very unscientific survey of this weekend's Wander, involving 5 GS motorcycles of the vanilla or GSA variety, I can report:

1. They all had diferent makes of tyre, as did the three other makes of bike

2. The tyres were in different states of wear and for all I know at assorted pressures

3. All the bikes stayed on the road (despite sometimes their riders' best efforts)

4. All the bikes, including a little Kawasaki ER something or other (with its small fuel tank) ridden by a girl, arrived at the stopping points at near enough the same time.

This is not an uncommon occurrence, over thousands of miles of travelling. I have therefore concluded that all modern tyres are good, irrespective of the name on the sidewall.

 

[newboy]

From a very unscientific survey of this weekend's Wander, involving 5 GS motorcycles of the vanilla or GSA variety, I can report:

1. They all had diferent makes of tyre, as did the three other makes of bike

2. The tyres were in different states of wear and for all I know at assorted pressures

3. All the bikes stayed on the road (despite sometimes their riders' best efforts)

4. All the bikes, including a little Kawasaki ER something or other (with its small fuel tank) ridden by a girl, arrived at the stopping points at near enough the same time.

This is not an uncommon occurrence, over thousands of miles of travelling. I have therefore concluded that all modern tyres are good, irrespective of the name on the sidewall.

Controversial.


Sent from my gadget using wires n string n stuff

 

[Fluffmeister]

Round, Black and not Changwangting-tong ditchfinder specials?

Tyres are such a personal choice, its a bit like picking a Sheila, some will ride better than others, some have a bit of extra meat for when the going get's mucky, some will have less meat and a more "smoother" profile, some are of a softer disposition, some are so hard they may rip your scrotum off and use it as a tobacco pouch...... which is best, I'm joining the wapping gang on this one

 

[stolzy]

If

I don't do any off road trial riding

Then you don't need Tourance's. On the other hand you might just like the way they look, which is a perfectly good reason to fit them.

Ignore the cries of "don't get XYZ they'll make the bike completly uncontrollable" and get whatever you fancy.

GSs are very tolerant of tyres, I never really notice the difference, whether they are brand new, old, squared off or completly shagged, trail or road - all the same to me.
I've known people not realise their tyres were coming to the end of their lives even when there were bits of metal showing through the carcass.

 

[Cook1e]

How about these Touratech self-adjusting ones with CANBus interface?

 

[Gix]

My personal choice would be the Road Pilot 4 if they are anywhere as goods as the PR3's. I asked the dealer if I could swap them onto my new lc when I part ex'd it last year. Unfortunately it was a different wheel size. Had the Anakee 3's for a short time before getting a puncture and couldn't get a replacement. Got the Tourance Next at the moment and so far so good but if I had the choice now. PR4 all the way.

 

[Nutty]

I've got the Anakee III on mine, and as most have reported, on certain road surfaces they hum, and are quite irritating. I'll probably go for the PR4's when the time comes.

Keep us posted if you get the PR4's.

 

[madmartin]

Dunlop roadsmart 2" . Brill road tyre. Your bike will handle like never before...

 

[dave hendy]

I love the Anakee 3's I have another rear going on Saturday yes they are a bit noisy but they perform well in all situations!

 

[krytengs]

Thanks everyone for your thoughts ....and the p*ss takers.
I've decided to give the P4s a go and will be interested to see how they perform.

I know compared to the rubber on my last bike while the Anakee are adequate, they have never felt particularly sticky or inspiring when slinging the bike around.
On the flip side I had to replace the rear tyre on my last bike 3 times in a year because of punctures. That is the good thing I have noticed about the Anakee 3s, my tyres have bits of road crap embedded in the tread and the tyres haven't lost any pressure in thousands of miles.

 

[Wapping]

Thread summary...

There are 12 posts in it, as follows:

1. OP's question.

2. PR4 Trails, based on happiness with the PR3 Trails

3. An overall observation about tyres seen on assorted bikes; they are all good enough, irrespective, arguably.

4. A bod who said nothing

5. Tyres are a personal thing, they are all good. In the post #3 camp.

6. A bod who said nothing

7. A rejection of Tourances (no trail riding) but OP might like the looks, followed by advice not to listen to objections / recommendations. Arguably veers towards post #3

8. PR4's all the way, but via a convoluted route of never having tried them, a puncture on Anakee 3's (he tried to buy another Anakee 3 but couldn't, which suggests he was happy). Got Tourance Next at the moment, which he seems happy with. Overall summary, close to post #3

9. Anakee 3's a bit noisy. Will probably go PR 4's but is not clear on why and wants to know what the OP thinks; but apparently has no idea if the OP does 20,000 miles a year or five miles to Tesco (avoiding trails)

10. Dunlop Roadstart 2's.... Awesome.

11. Anakee 3's again

12. A decision on PR4's based on nothing concrete in this thread. General comment about (unknown) tyres with three punctures and general happiness with Anakee 3's. Probably gets close to post #3.


Conclusion: Thread sums up choosing and buying a pair of matched tyres to a tee.

A decision in the mid-evening at 20:00, in 4.5 hours based on nothing in particular, beyond an impression of what a tyre might be like and what the OP (probably) wanted to do from starting at the middle of the day at 15:30. The speed of the decision is to be applauded, even so.


PS With so many punctures, the OP might be advised to ride less in the gutter. But that's a different matter, worthy of a new thread.... Or he's just unlucky.

 

[krytengs]

Well Wapping, thanks for that ....really useful.

Just to clarify:
My Anakee 3 are low on tread, the bike is going in for a service and I asked Vines to replace the tyres while its there.
I was just going to go with the Anakees by default. They can't get hold of the Anakees so I need to choose something else. So I thought I'd get some feedback from others on this forum to their preferences.

I also did a bit of research on the side and as I currently ride 99% road and 1% through some rough and ready single tracks, I concluded this time I would try a pure road tyre and see how\if it affects the way the bike rides\tyre wear.

As for all those punctures, my riding style hasn't changed. Maybe extreme positioning might have something to do with picking up road crap ....but that's just the way I roll.

The fact that the last bikes tyres punctured easily and the Anakee 3 seem to take the embedded crap in their stride, makes me think its either the tread pattern and\or softer compound on my last bike than the Anakee 3 which made them more susceptible.

 

[Titto]

My advice would be that if you ride on the road 100% then get a road oriented tyre,

Also, just try something completely different instead of sticking to the same thing all the time, you can make your own assessment then and learn from it.

 

[pistole]

I don't do any off road trial riding - most I've done is riding some single tracks dirt roads

humble recommendation :Anakee 3. It plain works without any drama.

Since its the standard fitment for the water GS , availability (eventually) shouldn't really be an issue ?

.

 

[krytengs]

The Anakee 3 isn't an option for the service this week and I cant get the bike in again before my long trip.
Decided to go with the PR4 as they are in stock - will see if there is any noticeable difference between the tyres

 

[RedRick Esq.]

The Anakee 3 isn't an option for the service this week and I cant get the bike in again before my long trip.
Decided to go with the PR4 as they are in stock - will see if there is any noticeable difference between the tyres

Would appreciate feed back on the 4s for when my 3s wear out

 

[krytengs]

Would appreciate feed back on the 4s for when my 3s wear out

Ok mate.
I'm off on a long trip in a couple of weeks and so should get a "feel" (see what I did there) for how the PR4 compare with the original Anakee.

 

[Blackal]

I'm gonna keep my bike in the garage - until I hear from you...,....