Pirelli Angel evaluation

[HaulinAshe]

It seems that no matter how long I close my eyes, click my heels, and say "there's no tire like a Strada!", MY PRECIOUS isn't coming back to me. Stradas are fading into history.

Tomorrow begins the first stage testing for Pirelli Angels. Actually today began the experiment as I mounted a new Angel rear tire and will be burning about 500 miles off it tomorrow, paired with a slightly worn-in Strada front.

First Impression - Rear Angel is the MOST out-of-balance tire I've ever encountered. For the first time EVER!, I broke the bead loose and rotated the damn tire, in an attempt to improve the weight requirement. The absolute best I could achieve was two(2), count them TWO 3.0 weights close to the dots.

No matter where I placed the dots, the required weight followed them and ranged from 9.0 to 6.0 required. Not a good start. Hope it handles like an Angel and sticks like a demon, or that tire is going straight to Hell.

 

[wheatonFJR]

Not good.

They don't know that they sold a tire to the "Siskel and Ebert" of FJR tire testing.

 

[03HiYoSilver]

Hey Jeff!

Thanks for the warning and pending review...hopefully it will be an Angel for you!

 

[krotchrocketgrampa]

got about 500 miles on my new set of angels,on my third set of tires in 9k

so far am really impressed with the angels, front tire seems to be bigger and has a different profile if you were to look at it from the front of the bike,more rouned, tried running 39 f /42 rear and seems okay today I ran 42 front and rear,made a huge difference in handling,gone is the quick turn in with the other tires,now is very predictable and stcks llikes its on rails,never felt like that before,have scuffed tires almost to far edges,dont know if it will wear any longer,but sure is an improvement over last two sets,seemed to track over road imperfections well too.dont know what happens to all this when angel wears away and devil shows up hope it dosent change :yahoo:

 

[RadioHowie]

Not good.
They don't know that they sold a tire to the "Siskel and Ebert" of FJR tire toasting.

FIFY!!

 

[Intech]

Interesting about the balance of the Angel. The guy that mounted my tires said the PR2 was one of the most balanced tires he had encountered. It didn't require any weights. 10K later I will soon find out if the next one is as good.

 

[HaulinAshe]

500 miles into the rear Angel and I've learned a few things...

If there is something truly unique about the "E spec" Angel, then perhaps I do need to explore it. Because the regular Angel that I'm testing pulls up significantly short in one category, Straight Line Traction.

The rear Angel isn't very fond of foreign obstacles in corners. Much like a PR2 it will break traction across scattered gravel. The big difference between the Angel and other tires like the Bridgestone and Mich PR2, the Angel doesn't skip sideways. Oddly it holds it's line from side to side, but instead it spins in-line, making throttle management in gravel/sand the critical concern.

Angel doesn't show any funky characteristics across paint stripes or tar snakes like the PR2s I've tested. It seems to ride back and forth across them with predictable ease. I tried both Cold(48F) and Hot(80F) tar snakes with equal results.

The Angel is NOT a Strada. It definitely is more of a Touring tire than the Strada. Only time and mileage will tell if the immediately noticeable trade-offs will pay in dividends of extended tread life.

For now, I'd say the "dry Angel" is more of a perfect fit for an ST1300 that doesn't have big balls when she's all laid over like an FJR. At least the standard spec Angel clearly lacks enough grip to handle 100% of FJR torque. I give it a 95% traction rating on dry roads.

One particularly peculiar characteristic is the Angel's handling above 100 mph. Probably, almost definitely, because of the poor initial tire balance (see my first post above), the Angel loses noticeable handling around 120 mph and my confidence in the tire rapidly sinks. My experience is anytime you have to add a wad of weight to a poorly molded tire, you aren't going to achieve good balance through the entire speed range. IMHO Pirelli definitely needs to make immediate changes to improve the quality of the Angel's balance.

Next I'll see how the Angel does when she gets wet. That may take a few more days...

 

[03HiYoSilver]

Jeff,

Thanks for the followup. Some interesting characteristics on those tires.

I am wondering if you could put in about 1-2oz of Dyna Beads that may smooth out the minor imbalances at speed?

 

[bramfrank]

That tire may not be perfectly round. Have you contacted Pirelli to discuss the issue?

 

[snikr]

I know I'll be watching this thread to see the outcome. Why is it every time I find a tire that works for me they do away with it??

Tom

 

[Grumpy]

Glad to hear all of this and hopefully this is the tire you'll be running this coming wekend when I'll be trying my best to keep you within 15 minutes of my riding ability........I need all the help I can get! I'll have to slip out at night and lower your pressures to 25 psi or so.

 

[krotchrocketgrampa]

very interresting.

I just got back from a 164 mile ride on blacktop with some water,snow,sand dry mud ,little gravel on corners.

found nothing wrong with tire under hard acceleration up to 8 and 9 k thru the gears.up above 120 mph.

turning, stopping,this is the third ride on these tires and I rode it hard,dont know about wear factor,but this is the best tire I've had on this bike,but only miles will tell

 

[HaulinAshe]

very interresting.I just got back from a 164 mile ride on blacktop with some water,snow,sand dry mud ,little gravel on corners.

found nothing wrong with tire under hard acceleration up to 8 and 9 k thru the gears.up above 120 mph.

turning, stopping,this is the third ride on these tires and I rode it hard,dont know about wear factor,but this is the best tire I've had on this bike,but only miles will tell

You guys on the left coast have a very different road surface than we typically encounter in the east. It will be interesting to compare notes as testing continues for both.

 

[DarkSpirit]

Sounds like a defective tire. I have had a set of Angels for about 3200 miles. The front wheel has a 1 oz weight and the rear has no balance weight at all. I have not experienced any of the problems you mentioned. On 4/15 I did a SS1000 here in Florida, and rode on all kinds of road surfaces. Never lost any confidence in the tires at any time during my ride. Definitely contact Pirelli.

 

[pcarnut]

Resurrecting an old thread here. I've got a set of Angels mounted right now and am very pleased with their handling and ride. Currently have about 3k miles on them and they still have loads of tread left. But, I've got a 3k trip to Yellowstone coming up in May and don't want to run out of tread. What kind of mileage have people been getting with this tire on the rear?

 

[mtnhigh]

I just wore my rear Angel out at 8200miles last weekend. Best handling tire I have had yet (for me). Wish it could have lasted longer. I put a used PR2 (12k on that one)on the back for now. I'm sure I don't run like ASHE, but I'm not easy by any means. The group I ride with most of the time, all ride sportbikes and I'm usually towards the front of the pack.

I had A PR2 front slide on me twice. Never had the confidence to take a turn hard again till these tires. Fully loaded and empty, I really like how they stuck for me. Just wish I could get a few k more miles out of them.

The front might have maybe another 1k left. No feathering or abnormal wear that was common with the PR2's( for me that is)

 

[pcarnut]

I just wore my rear Angel out at 8200miles last weekend. Best handling tire I have had yet (for me). Wish it could have lasted longer. I put a used PR2 (12k on that one)on the back for now. I'm sure I don't run like ASHE, but I'm not easy by any means. The group I ride with most of the time, all ride sportbikes and I'm usually towards the front of the pack.

I had A PR2 front slide on me twice. Never had the confidence to take a turn hard again till these tires. Fully loaded and empty, I really like how they stuck for me. Just wish I could get a few k more miles out of them.

The front might have maybe another 1k left. No feathering or abnormal wear that was common with the PR2's( for me that is)

8200 miles is not bad. Thanks for the feedback. What pressures are you running?

I had a set of PR2s on my Moto Guzzi and found the ride so harsh I took them off after 4k miles and switched to the Angels. Much nicer ride and at least as good or better handling, very pleased with them, just don't know what to expect on miles.

 

[mtnhigh]

I just wore my rear Angel out at 8200miles last weekend. Best handling tire I have had yet (for me). Wish it could have lasted longer. I put a used PR2 (12k on that one)on the back for now. I'm sure I don't run like ASHE, but I'm not easy by any means. The group I ride with most of the time, all ride sportbikes and I'm usually towards the front of the pack.

I had A PR2 front slide on me twice. Never had the confidence to take a turn hard again till these tires. Fully loaded and empty, I really like how they stuck for me. Just wish I could get a few k more miles out of them.

The front might have maybe another 1k left. No feathering or abnormal wear that was common with the PR2's( for me that is)

8200 miles is not bad. Thanks for the feedback. What pressures are you running?

I had a set of PR2s on my Moto Guzzi and found the ride so harsh I took them off after 4k miles and switched to the Angels. Much nicer ride and at least as good or better handling, very pleased with them, just don't know what to expect on miles.

I run stock pressures - 39 front /42 rear

 

[JSLong]

I just put an Angel on my rear as well and it required no weights. The tire installer said he has been selling a lot of these tires.

200 miles on the tire and I like it much better than the Metzler that was on the rear.