For my Alaska trips I've been looking for a tyre which will not only do the mileage of around 8500 miles but cope with just about every road and weather condition you can think of. I was told the Heidenau's were the very fellows so duly put them on.
1st impressions were that they were decent tyre on the road but a little noisy. As the mileage builds they really start to behave very well and are very secure on good tarmac and rough bumpy roads on a loaded GS. The interesting bit would be when we hit the Dalton to see how they were and I have to say they did a great job on gravel, rough roads and in mud. There is a little movement from the front but once you get used to it the grip is good and predictable. The wear rate is excellent and even when they square off, they still perform well. The pictures show them after about 9500 miles and although they have worn a little strangely, they still have some life and offer decent grip on that road when you get used to the bars waggling about a bit.
They are fairly susceptable to pressure and I was advised 34 front and rear which is good in all conditions although I ran 36 in the rear on the road.
The side walls are as tough as old boots and punctures I would think are rare. If you had a flat, I'm sure you could ride it gently to a safe place. One of the guys on the trip had one down at 10 psi and the only thing he noticed was a bit of vagueness on the front which prompted a pressure check
Having said all that, in my opinion they aren't quite as good as tourances etc on the road and not as good as TKC's on the dirt but as a compromise, they are a really good tyre. One thing I did notice is when you shut the throttle, they seem to act like brakes and you slow very quickly.
Bad Points: Tough to mount as the walls are hard. Bit vague on gravel but predictable and not as good as TKC's on gravel. Noisy.
Good points: long tyre life, acceptable on road in wet and dry, you can go from tarmac to dirt with confidence.
Overall, probably the best dual purpose tyre out there at the moment and if you are planning a trip to say Morocco, they will do the job easily. Also if you are green laning or like going of road a bit, they are well worth considering. If you just ride on the road, I wouldn't bother as the noise will probably piss you off after a while and you will get better grip elsewhere.
Up in Alaska, it's the most common dual purpose tyre now and Adventure Cycle Works in Fairbanks fit around 80 per week for the Dalton and Dempster Highways and they only heard of 2 punctures last year with the K60's. Everyone knows they do the job and will last the distance
I'm having a new set fitted tomorrow
1st impressions were that they were decent tyre on the road but a little noisy. As the mileage builds they really start to behave very well and are very secure on good tarmac and rough bumpy roads on a loaded GS. The interesting bit would be when we hit the Dalton to see how they were and I have to say they did a great job on gravel, rough roads and in mud. There is a little movement from the front but once you get used to it the grip is good and predictable. The wear rate is excellent and even when they square off, they still perform well. The pictures show them after about 9500 miles and although they have worn a little strangely, they still have some life and offer decent grip on that road when you get used to the bars waggling about a bit.
They are fairly susceptable to pressure and I was advised 34 front and rear which is good in all conditions although I ran 36 in the rear on the road.
The side walls are as tough as old boots and punctures I would think are rare. If you had a flat, I'm sure you could ride it gently to a safe place. One of the guys on the trip had one down at 10 psi and the only thing he noticed was a bit of vagueness on the front which prompted a pressure check
Having said all that, in my opinion they aren't quite as good as tourances etc on the road and not as good as TKC's on the dirt but as a compromise, they are a really good tyre. One thing I did notice is when you shut the throttle, they seem to act like brakes and you slow very quickly.
Bad Points: Tough to mount as the walls are hard. Bit vague on gravel but predictable and not as good as TKC's on gravel. Noisy.
Good points: long tyre life, acceptable on road in wet and dry, you can go from tarmac to dirt with confidence.
Overall, probably the best dual purpose tyre out there at the moment and if you are planning a trip to say Morocco, they will do the job easily. Also if you are green laning or like going of road a bit, they are well worth considering. If you just ride on the road, I wouldn't bother as the noise will probably piss you off after a while and you will get better grip elsewhere.
Up in Alaska, it's the most common dual purpose tyre now and Adventure Cycle Works in Fairbanks fit around 80 per week for the Dalton and Dempster Highways and they only heard of 2 punctures last year with the K60's. Everyone knows they do the job and will last the distance
I'm having a new set fitted tomorrow
and the tyres, again performed very well.
