What tyres do you recommend for the CBR650R

[Peter Wolf]

Just looking at tyres and have been offered the following at varying prices

Michelin Road 4
Michelin Road 5
Michelin Road 6
Bridgestone T31
Dunlop Roadsmart 2

Priced £100 difference between the road 4 and 6s!

What do you recommend and why

Thank you

 

[miweber929]

Just looking at tyres and have been offered the following at varying prices

Michelin Road 4
Michelin Road 5
Michelin Road 6
Bridgestone T31
Dunlop Roadsmart 2

Priced £100 difference between the road 4 and 6s!

What do you recommend and why

Thank you

This has been covered a lot in the past and there have not been too many changes in tires over the past few years so search a bit to get more in depth answers.

In short, tires depend on expected mileage and expected performance. Dunlop Roadsmarts are up to gen 4s now, Bridgestone T series are up to T33s and Pilot Road current gen are the 6’s so if you’re comparing pricing be sure you’re matching latest gen to latest gen. If you’re looking at those tires specifically know you’re looking at tires 2 generations old; doesn’t make them bad, they are not top of the line is all.

My dad ran a set of T31s and a set of T32s on an F4i and XSR900 and they wore and worked fine, nothing spectacular which at the time they were significantly cheaper so that was a good thing. I would expect decent performance and life from any BS tire, that has been my personal experience as well. Solid choice.

I’ve read people love the Roadsmart IV as an alternative to the class leading Pilot Roads but I do not get along with any Dunlop tire and never owned a bike with the Roadsmarts. But I rode a Tracer and Multistrada with them and they’re fine tires. Also used to be cheaper than the Michelin but that doesn’t seem to be the case anymore, at least not the IVs.

I’m a huge Michelin Pilot Road fanboy and ran the 4s, 4 GT, 5 GT and 6 and 6 GT with the 6 GT currently on my Sprint GT and regular Road 6's on my Super Duke GT. I also had 6's on a Tracer GT I sold, like I said huge fanboy. The 4s were the best rain tire that were not specific rain tires ever made in my opinion but the fronts wore uneven, they were a triangular profile in the front and flat profile in the rear so you sort of fell into corners weirdly and they were decent dry grip but only decent. The Road 5 had much better dry feel and were fine in the rain but the fronts wore out before the rears and they fell off handing wise after 6,000 miles or so, even though they had plenty of life left.

The Road 6s to me are the sweet spot: amazing dry grip, rivaling sport tires from 10-15 years ago, great wet grip provided you look at the tires and see where the siping ends (meaning they stop at deeper lean angles), great, even wear and very consistent handling over their life. The GT are a stiffer carcass made for heavier bikes, you want the regular Pilot Roads for your 650. In my experience they are worth the premium you pay, everything sport touring wise is compared to the Road 6s so that should tell you something.

Hopefully that helps.

 

[Peter Wolf]

This has been covered a lot in the past and there have not been too many changes in tires over the past few years so search a bit to get more in depth answers.

In short, tires depend on expected mileage and expected performance. Dunlop Roadsmarts are up to gen 4s now, Bridgestone T series are up to T33s and Pilot Road current gen are the 6’s so if you’re comparing pricing be sure you’re matching latest gen to latest gen. If you’re looking at those tires specifically know you’re looking at tires 2 generations old; doesn’t make them bad, they are not top of the line is all.

My dad ran a set of T31s and a set of T32s on an F4i and XSR900 and they wore and worked fine, nothing spectacular which at the time they were significantly cheaper so that was a good thing. I woukd expect decent performance and life from any BS tire, that has been my personal experience as well. Solid choice.

I’ve read people love the Roadsmart IV as an alternative to the class leading Pilot Roads but I do not get along with any Dunlop tire and never owned a bike with them but road a Tracer and Multistrada with them and they’re fine tires. Also used to be cheaper than the Michelin but that doesn’t seem to be the case anymore, at least not the IVs.

I’m a huge Pilot Road fanboy and ran the 4s, 4 GT, 5 GT and 6 and 6 GT with the 6 GT currently on my Sprint GT and Road. 6 on my Super Duke GT. I also had 6s on a Tracer GT I sold. The 4s were the best rain tire ever made in my opinion but the fronts wore uneven, they were a triangular profile in the front and flat in the rear so you sort of fell into corners weirdly and they were decent dry grip but only decent. The Road 5 had much better dry feel but the fronts wore out before the rears and they fell off handing wise after 6,000 miles or so, even though they had plenty of life left.

The Road 6s to me are the sweet spot: amazing dry grip, rivaling sports tires from 10-15 years ago, great wet grip provided you look at the tires and see where the siping ends, great, even wear and very consistent handling over their life. The GT are a stiffer carcass made for heavier bikes, you want the regular Pilot Roads for your 650. In my experience they are worth the premium you pay, everything sport touring wise is compared to the Road 6s so that should tell you something.

Hopefully that helps.

Thank you so much for such comprehensive feedback 🙂👍👏

I think the road 6s are the way to go. Expensive at £345 fitted and a ride away but cheaper than the nearest supplier.

 

[Brammers]

Road 6s here.

J

 

[Brian C.]

I concur with the Road 6 advice, i ran the Road 5 and they are a fine tyre, but the 6's offer a considerable upgrade on the front tire in particular. The 5's were a great tyre, but the addition of the revised carcass on the 6's make for greater confidence when pushing on a little, i was pleased with the 5's and amazed at the improved front feel on the 6's, i can recommend them and feel the additional cost is warranted by the performance.

 

[MacRoadster]

Road 6 here too.
I ride in all weather and can also confirm they're great! And when you consider the mileage you get from them, they're not that expensive at all.

 

[Bran]

Metzlers roadtec 02, been brilliant in the UK, ridden all year round, including 1 track day in 30+ centigrade and 1 in pouring rain where they wouldn't let us out till the conditions improved.
Regarding tires not changing much, I wonder what the new ones are like where you don't have to worry about the pressures for track or road riding. thats an interesting concept. For me the Metzler "adaptive tread" does work.

 

[Peter Wolf]

Thank you for your help 👍

 

[Mr.D]

I changed my rear original Metzeler Roadtec 01 after 23000km to another Roadtec 01. I ride them in really hot days and pouring rain and they are great for my riding style, that longevity is additional benefit that will last me few years and not one season.

 

[Motojack]

Ive ran road 6 & pirelli equivilent (angel gt's?). Id give the road 6's the edge, they last long but had some wierd wear patterns near the end. Angel gt's while not feeling as good to me wore alot better and kept their shape well even until the end.

Im trying s23's next for a bit more of a sportier feel.

Im not doing as much commuting / bad weather riding these days

 

[Wheelsdown650R]

I'm likely to get some blowback on this, but instead of spending disposable income on bling and an exhaust that's only going to contribute a few extra ponies as well as the attention of law enforcement, I'd suggest investing in things that improve the sportbike riding experience like suspension and tires. Regarding the latter, true sporting tires can give you a ton a confidence when leaning into a turn and rolling the throttle on the way out of it. You'll only get maybe 3000 miles out of them, but after you've had 'em you won't go back to high mileage tires. There's a ton of choices; I personally like Metzeler Sportec M9RR's - I'll be spooning on a set after putting a few more miles on the stock tires.

 

[miweber929]

I'm likely to get some blowback on this, but instead of spending disposable income on bling and an exhaust that's only going to contribute a few extra ponies as well as the attention of law enforcement, I'd suggest investing in things that improve the sportbike riding experience like suspension and tires. Regarding the latter, true sporting tires can give you a ton a confidence when leaning into a turn and rolling the throttle on the way out of it. You'll only get maybe 3000 miles out of them, but after you've had 'em you won't go back to high mileage tires. There's a ton of choices; I personally like Metzeler Sportec M9RR's - I'll be spooning on a set after putting a few more miles on the stock tires.

You're not going to get much blowback on this forum, we preach suspension and comfort setup before pretty much everything else, so what you’re saying is pretty sound. Tires are a big part of that.

In the past there was a giant difference in performance and more road orientated tires could be downright scary if pushed. Modern sport touring rubber gives up very little in stickiness and feedback and can be pushed much harder than the average could ever dream of going on the street and get incredible mileage. I’ve pushed Road 6s far past the point I’d ever consider even pushing sport tires 10 years ago and they just take it; the T series Bridgestones, Angel GT, Roadsmarts, etc. all have a very good feel and last 2x to 3x longer than the 3k you get from the sporty tires. Tires like Pirelli Rosso IVs, M9RRs you mentioned, Power 6s, and others really strike that balance between sport and road, erring on the sporting side but don’t discount trying a more “street” tire, especially if you commute in all weather.

I can say the last 2 new bikes I bought have had stupid aggressive tires on them from the factory, Supercorsa SPs on my Street Triple RS and Power Cup’s on my 990 RC R and they are simply not great street tires. Slow to warm up, extremely short lifespan and while they had a ton of feedback plodding down city streets banging into potholes and split pavement isn’t very fun. I have a set of Rosso IVs sitting in the garage that was supposed to go on the STRS but I sold it before I could swap so they’ll most likely go on the 990 by the end of the season. The Power Cups split if ridden below 50 degrees F so that made breaking the bike in a chore living in cold MN.