Going to the Dark Side

[user 213]

@Mattster - good pics. Ok, I now see what you are talking about. Wow, you had that wheel up there in the fender!

@Doug555 - I don't know why, but that one made me laugh out loud. :lol:

@BigD - If I'm around, we'll get together and have lunch when you come through St George. Got a lot of riding planned this year. Need to keep up with the Missus, don't cha know.

@Palerider - I've lived there too, at least the Cali one. Courtesy of the USMC and MCAS El Toro.

 

[mattster31]

@Mattster - good pics. Ok, I now see what you are talking about. Wow, you had that wheel up there in the fender!

Yeah I thought the same thing I'm heavier than I think or the shock is really toasted! I am hoping that the new(er) 05 shock I just installed will help. Either way, it's just rubbing in that one spot so I'm not really concerned. I would be more worried if I was seeing marks on the brake arm. :dribble:

OH YEAH!!!! Post 2001..........A THREAD ODYSSEY :yahoo:

 

[RaYzerman19]

@Mattster - good pics. Ok, I now see what you are talking about. Wow, you had that wheel up there in the fender!

Yeah I thought the same thing I'm heavier than I think or the shock is really toasted! I am hoping that the new(er) 05 shock I just installed will help. Either way, it's just rubbing in that one spot so I'm not really concerned. I would be more worried if I was seeing marks on the brake arm. :dribble:

OH YEAH!!!! Post 2001..........A THREAD ODYSSEY :yahoo:

Whew!! I was just glad we survived Y2K!!!

 

[Brodie]

OCfjr, I am due for a new front tire soon. I live in Fl and do about 80% highway and 20% curves. What front tire do you prefer for IB type riding? Currently I am using a 2CT on the front with the Exalto on the rear.

I've been running the PR2 also, and have about 16k on one now. It's toast, but not to cords. I'll probably order another one unless I read some awesome reports about the PR3.

Gentlemen,

The following are pictures of my PR3 showing some tread block wear after 1500+ miles. I installed it 2 saturdays ago. The tire handles as good as a new tire should. It tracks straight, only has a hint of a deceleration Yamawobble around 40mph, holds the curves well, and no surprises in the rain. My barn door of a Rifle +8 windshield is reflecting some tire noise back at me. It makes a noise similar to a 4x4 truck with mud tires, though not nearly so objectionable. You will notice there is no continuous rubber down the centerline of the tire, I believe that is where the noise is being generated. The old POS Metzler Roadtec tire was much noisier, I'm glad it's gone!

Air pressure is 42 front, 30 rear. PR3 front, Exalto rear. Stock suspension front and rear. Rebound damping turned near full stiff front & rear. I'm 6'6" at 210 lbs. Moderate load in both bags for my trip. Rain ride a good portion of the ride coming and going. Both tires self mounted & balanced - no Dyna Beads.

Interesting to note, my last bike had over 9K on the 019Grid at the point of impact. The front tire was a Michelin Pilot Power 2CT (sport bike tire) that I got in Bend Oregon on the way back from WFO 8 in Moscow. The front tire still had plenty of life in it save for the massive rim pinch and the truck license plate numbers embedded in it.

We shall see how this new PR3 holds up with time.

Hope this helps.

Brodie

 

[petey]

I don't like the looks of that :glare: reminds me of the POS Roadsmart front...

 

[Fred W]

Oh man. This doesn't bode well for PR3 fronts. With all that cross tread siping, there is no way that these things aren't going to wear into a noisy mess as miles accumulate.

Time to go stock up on PR2's and hope they never discontinue them.

 

[TriggerT]

YIKES! I really don't like the looks of the PR3 front. I hope the PR2's are available until something else is found. Thanks for posting.

 

[beemerdons]

I don't like the looks of that :glare: reminds me of the POS Roadsmart front...

+1, Gunny! I am with petey, Fred W and TriggerT on this one!

That PR3 front does look ominously like the POS Roadsmart!

 

[petey]

Oh man.

Time to go stock up on PR2's and hope they never discontinue them.

Those and Pirelli Angels fronts do a pretty good job as well...IMO

 

[palerider]

Time to go stock up on PR2's and hope they never discontinue them.

Is there any treatment that will preserve unused tires and keep them from hardening?

 

[RadioHowie]

Time to go stock up on PR2's and hope they never discontinue them.

Is there any treatment that will preserve unused tires and keep them from hardening?

Show 'em pictures of Beemerdons......they'll NEVER get hard! :lol:

 

[FJRay]

Time to go stock up on PR2's and hope they never discontinue them.

Is there any treatment that will preserve unused tires and keep them from hardening?

I think the best way is to keep them out of the sun and don't store them around anything that creates ozone. Electric motors and welding are ozone producers. Some forum members may be contributors but that is usually Methane and useless hot air. :yahoo:

 

[LowAndSilent]

So...about that. I'll go order a new PR2 now. Thanks Brodie!

Also, I finally had my first issue with the CT. Almost took out a fellow motorcyclist the day before yesterday during a lane change, and it was the CT's fault. Setup: I'm traveling on the I5 Express Lanes northbound, middle lane of three, traveling at a reasonable speed, traffic 30 yards ahead traveling my speed, ~100 yard gap behind me with no vehicles in between. No vehicles to either side of me.

I almost always check my blind-spots before changing lanes, but I didn't that day because 1) I was moving faster than traffic, 2) had a ~100 yard cushion behind me with no traffic (I check my mirrors frequently to get an update on hazards, police, and traffic), and 3) had checked that lane two or three seconds beforehand, as I knew traffic would be slowing ahead in my lane. As predicted, traffic began to slow ahead of me. I put on my blinker and started to change lanes. As I did this, I gave a quick glance over my left shoulder to see if somehow someone had magically appeared there. There was now a motorcycle there. WTF? They moved to the side and back and waved me over. So I got over ahead of them and kept on.

So why is this the CT's fault? As I would find out later, the other motorcyclist (a friend of mine, actually) had seen a funny shaped tire on the back of the FJR and had decided they wanted a closer look. They hit triple digit speeds to cross that 100 yard gap...thus why I missed them when I had checked before. Lesson learned: Check my blind-spots even when I am pretty sure they are supposed to be clear, and expect stupid stuff from other riders/drivers.

 

[TriggerT]

Well there is the proof, CT's are deadly, especially when people want to get a closer look at them.

 

[Brodie]

Well there is the proof, CT's are deadly, especially when people want to get a closer look at them.

I can attest to that! I had the opportunity to follow my own bike this past Saturday when I let Lawence drive it home from Vista to Oceanside. That thing is hypnotizing. I caught myself several times not paying attention to traffic.

 

[TriggerT]

If the fooking snow ever melts I might be able to get back on the bike to further test / enjoy the CT. Temp on the way in to work this morning was 22 degrees, which might be OK for a 20 mile ride, but not for an 80 mile one.

 

[SacramentoMike]

Time to go stock up on PR2's and hope they never discontinue them.

Is there any treatment that will preserve unused tires and keep them from hardening?

Show 'em pictures of Beemerdons......they'll NEVER get hard! :lol:

"LOL" is usually just an expression. Not always though.

 

[beemerdons]

Time to go stock up on PR2's and hope they never discontinue them.

Is there any treatment that will preserve unused tires and keep them from hardening?

Show 'em pictures of Beemerdons......they'll NEVER get hard! :lol:

"LOL" is usually just an expression. Not always though.

What in the world are you two dorks talking about?

 

[RadioHowie]

 

[garyahouse]

So...about that. I'll go order a new PR2 now. Thanks Brodie!

Also, I finally had my first issue with the CT. Almost took out a fellow motorcyclist the day before yesterday during a lane change, and it was the CT's fault. Setup: I'm traveling on the I5 Express Lanes northbound, middle lane of three, traveling at a reasonable speed, traffic 30 yards ahead traveling my speed, ~100 yard gap behind me with no vehicles in between. No vehicles to either side of me.

I almost always check my blind-spots before changing lanes, but I didn't that day because 1) I was moving faster than traffic, 2) had a ~100 yard cushion behind me with no traffic (I check my mirrors frequently to get an update on hazards, police, and traffic), and 3) had checked that lane two or three seconds beforehand, as I knew traffic would be slowing ahead in my lane. As predicted, traffic began to slow ahead of me. I put on my blinker and started to change lanes. As I did this, I gave a quick glance over my left shoulder to see if somehow someone had magically appeared there. There was now a motorcycle there. WTF? They moved to the side and back and waved me over. So I got over ahead of them and kept on.

So why is this the CT's fault? As I would find out later, the other motorcyclist (a friend of mine, actually) had seen a funny shaped tire on the back of the FJR and had decided they wanted a closer look. They hit triple digit speeds to cross that 100 yard gap...thus why I missed them when I had checked before. Lesson learned: Check my blind-spots even when I am pretty sure they are supposed to be clear, and expect stupid stuff from other riders/drivers.

My Exalto CT is causing me problems as well. Some random guy came running across the parking lot the other day toward me. I was wondering if it was some fool that I did wrong sometime back in my sordid past. By the time he got close enough to ask, "Is that a CAR TIRE? What kind of bike is this anyway?"... it was too late. The adrenalin was pumping and I was a split second away from laying a rather wide black stripe on the asphalt. Once I calmed down, we actually had a nice chat about the tire and all of you fine people.
Gary

darksider #44