roadsmart tires

[krotchrocketgrampa]

this is an update on my use of dunlop roadsmarts on my 09 fjr.

stock tires lasted 4,300 miles, then the dreaded cupping started on front, still not down to wear bar in front or rear,looked like about another 1,000 miles to go more or less.as usual the front had a 1 1/2 inch wide band around the center of the front,ran 39 psi front and 42 psi rear as dealer advised,went to dealer and he said, oh your not running enough psi.

bought a set of roadsmarts because the wore great on my st honda,guess what the honda wasnt a tire eater like my fjr. as per dealer ran 45 psi front and rear,didnt seem to effect traction on wet or dry and road like it was on rails as usual.

with right at 3k on the new skins,the back shows no wear at all and the *&%#$@++ front looks just like the stock tire with less miles on it,looks like I could

wear out a couple of fronts to one rear.dont know what brand of tire I'll buy next.

love my fjr, but she eats front tires for breakfast

 

[TCMike]

My front Roadsmart has a slight ridge after 5k, but my rear is showing wear bar. This is the opposite of the BT21's, which the front was done at 3k, with the rear being fine. Dealer told you to run 45psi?!?! I wouldn't reccomend any more than 42, but I'm not a tire expert.

 

[HaulinAshe]

Buy a Pirelli Diablo Strada front, run that with the Dunlop RoadSmart rear.

RoadSmart front being a total POS on the heavy FJR, is well known and well documented.

40 psi front / 42 psi rear, ignore the dealer.

 

[road runner]

Buy a Pirelli Diablo Strada front, run that with the Dunlop RoadSmart rear.
RoadSmart front being a total POS on the heavy FJR, is well known and well documented.

40 psi front / 42 psi rear, ignore the dealer.

Jeff

Have you found this combo works better then a pair of Stradas or Roadsmarts ? Just asking

I ran a Strada rear and liked the way it felt until 4000 miles then it felt like it was square.

I haven't tried the combo you mention, but if you have good luck with it I'll try it.

Thanks; A.C.

 

[Constant Mesh]

Pretty good deal on Roadsmarts here:

https://www.motoxoutlet.com/index.asp?PageA...p;ProdID=507013

Free shipping.

The rear Roadsmart has good tread life. The front Roadsmart not so good -- no more than 70% tread life of a Strada or Pilot Road.

 

[Intech]

I have my first set of PRII's on running 40 front 42.5 rear. I have over 7K on them now and you would be hard pressed to tell on either the front or rear. I ride 2 up a lot also. With this kind of performance I think I will stick with the PRII's. Just my $.02.

 

[vroompuppy]

Buy a Pirelli Diablo Strada front, run that with the Dunlop RoadSmart rear.
RoadSmart front being a total POS on the heavy FJR, is well known and well documented.

40 psi front / 42 psi rear, ignore the dealer.

Jeff

Have you found this combo works better then a pair of Stradas or Roadsmarts ? Just asking

I ran a Strada rear and liked the way it felt until 4000 miles then it felt like it was square.

I haven't tried the combo you mention, but if you have good luck with it I'll try it.

Thanks; A.C.

The tire combination Jeff mentions above has become a "cult classic" here in the SE where twisties rule. To put it bluntly, these tires stick like glue in the corners!

YMMV but I run 39/42psi as recommended in the OM, but may drop each a pound or so if I'm feelin' particularly racy! I ride 1-up all the time. My current Roadsmart rear has approx. 6K on it with what looks to be 500-1000 miles left. The FJR being what it is, a front tire eater, looks like it'll use up about 1.5 front Stradas for each Roadsmart rear based on my riding habits. Again YMMV.....

 

[feeger]

Buy a Pirelli Diablo Strada front, run that with the Dunlop RoadSmart rear.
RoadSmart front being a total POS on the heavy FJR, is well known and well documented.

40 psi front / 42 psi rear, ignore the dealer.

Based on Jeff's recommendation, I am running this combo and really like it. The stiffer sidewall on the Strada does help the front end track better.

I rode with Jeff at EOM. Dude is hella fast!

 

[fjr mississippi]

I have been running the Roadsmart front and rear and really like them. I run 39 front 42 rear with about 7K rear and 5K front. Best wet tire I have ever used.

 

[Grumpy]

Buy a Pirelli Diablo Strada front, run that with the Dunlop RoadSmart rear.
RoadSmart front being a total POS on the heavy FJR, is well known and well documented.

40 psi front / 42 psi rear, ignore the dealer.

Based on Jeff's recommendation, I am running this combo and really like it. The stiffer sidewall on the Strada does help the front end track better.

I rode with Jeff at EOM. Dude is hella fast!

The Strada is a very neutral front that you can do pretty much anything with. This seems to be a great combination.

 

[Fred W]

Buy a Pirelli Diablo Strada front, run that with the Dunlop RoadSmart rear.
RoadSmart front being a total POS on the heavy FJR, is well known and well documented.

40 psi front / 42 psi rear, ignore the dealer.

+1!! That has been my setup for the last three sets of tires, and I am very pleased with mileage and performance, though I definitely do not shag a tire with nearly as much zeal at Mr J.Ashe.

I think I may have been one of the first to have tried this magic combo. Of course now the Strada's are discontinued so we will have to see how the Angel works up front or find another front tire to mate with the Roadsmahts.

One thing you should be aware of when running this tire pairing though: You will find that you have slightly less traction from the rear roadsmart tire when braking and straight up than with a non-dual compound tire. That extra rear mileage doesn't come without a (minor) penalty. You'll feel the ABS kicking in a tad earlier than you might running a Strada or Avon rear. But I find this to be a completely acceptable compromise as I rely on my front brake for the majority of that job, and tend to use the back more for trail braking when setting up corners, and the grip from the roadsmart is superlative when on the softer side compound.

First time your back ABS fires when your just lightly braking and down shifting may be a little alarming, but you get used to it in a hurry and it's all good afterward.

 

[HaulinAshe]

Buy a Pirelli Diablo Strada front, run that with the Dunlop RoadSmart rear.
RoadSmart front being a total POS on the heavy FJR, is well known and well documented.

40 psi front / 42 psi rear, ignore the dealer.

Jeff

Have you found this combo works better then a pair of Stradas or Roadsmarts ? Just asking

I ran a Strada rear and liked the way it felt until 4000 miles then it felt like it was square.

I haven't tried the combo you mention, but if you have good luck with it I'll try it.

Thanks; A.C.

Most people can't handle, or choose not to endure the lack of good tread wear indicators on the Diablo Strada rear. I drill my own tread wear indicators in the rear Strada when it's new, so it doesn't bother me.

I find the RoadSmart rear/Strada front combo to be the best for overall mileage with a good performance twist. IMO it's an excellent combo.

I reserve the use of two Stradas (front/rear) for times when I'm serious about showing off.

 

[WWWobble]

Buy a Pirelli Diablo Strada front, run that with the Dunlop RoadSmart rear.
RoadSmart front being a total POS on the heavy FJR, is well known and well documented.

40 psi front / 42 psi rear, ignore the dealer.

I've liked the Strada front, Roadsmart rear combo-- but Stradas discontinued.

Any thoughts on 2nd best front?

One good thing about the Roadsmart front is it never did anything stupid traction wise... at least to me, better actually than the Strada in my experience. But, unacceptable wear.

WWWobble

 

[Sagebrush]

this is an update on my use of dunlop roadsmarts on my 09 fjr.stock tires lasted 4,300 miles, then the dreaded cupping started on front, still not down to wear bar in front or rear,looked like about another 1,000 miles to go more or less.as usual the front had a 1 1/2 inch wide band around the center of the front,ran 39 psi front and 42 psi rear as dealer advised,went to dealer and he said, oh your not running enough psi.

bought a set of roadsmarts because the wore great on my st honda,guess what the honda wasn't a tire eater like my fjr. as per dealer ran 45 psi front and rear,didn't seem to effect traction on wet or dry and road like it was on rails as usual.

with right at 3k on the new skins,the back shows no wear at all and the *&%#$@++ front looks just like the stock tire with less miles on it,looks like I could

wear out a couple of fronts to one rear.dont know what brand of tire I'll buy next.

love my fjr, but she eats front tires for breakfast

Have you checked your front preload? Cranking up the front forks and making the other adjustments per the fellow's posts on here is a huge help. The factory settings were mushy to me. My front Road Smarts will go almost to 5K at 42 psi and I like to ride the curves. They will cup bad though, I don't like Road Smarts on the fJR's front, too much cupping and flat spotting. My rear was totally done at 6K well into the wear bars. Which ain't that bad.

The only tire that I have found to last is the PR2's, I've got over 9K on my current set. The rear is just getting to the wear bars and the front is in good shape, no cupping and it still has pretty good turn in. The tread still shows even and the wear bars are still untouched at 9K.

I'll be putting the road 2's on till I hear of something better, all the others I've tried are 5 to 6K tires max front and rear. I like the PR2's.... this set took me out west through the twisty roads of CO, UT, AZ and the deserts were in the 112 degree range. Lots of the tight curves of KY, TN, NC and GA in the last 2K. I'm very impressed with the long tread life and lack of cupping, the front is wearing very well and actually lasting longer than the rear.

On my past Honda ST I ran the Storm ST's and got 7k out of the fronts and 5K out of the rears, kept having splits and bulges, tires that were out of round etc.. So, Avons were hit an miss quality wise, at least they had the warranty. They have a new three compound Storm out now, some one should try them...

 

[GPRIDER]

I've tried almost everything except the combos. I might try that sometime after my PR2s wear out. That may be a while. I'm kinda liking these PR2s. They are wearing good at 6,000 miles. Minor cupping on the front. Best yet for me.

GP

 

[boomerang]

I have been running the Roadsmart front and rear and really like them. I run 39 front 42 rear with about 7K rear and 5K front. Best wet tire I have ever used.

That's been pretty much my experience with them as well. I have just under 4k on the set and I am still very happy with them. They are excellent wet weather tire's.

So far my tire's have worn pretty even and equal, with lot's of good tread left on them.