Tyre choice for adventure riding? (Mixing road and off-road)

[oneblackflag]

They arn't a bad tyre.... work well on 90% of the type of ground I ride the XTR on..
I can't see the point in buying tyres to suit the other 10% I don't ride often..

Yea exactly, put another one on for that stuff. They are awasome on road and do gravel decently.

[george formby]

It's time for new boots on the DT. I have knobbies on me spare wheels so am looking at a good tar seal & bit of gravel tire. Checked prices on Pirelli MT 90 A/T's, nay bad. I have this tire on the front of the TDM & am very impressed indeed with it's performance on the road, wet & dry, also gravel. Never had a moment.
Any thoughts on comparable tires before I splurge?

[Oscar]

It's time for new boots on the DT. I have knobbies on me spare wheels so am looking at a good tar seal & bit of gravel tire. Checked prices on Pirelli MT 90 A/T's, nay bad. I have this tire on the front of the TDM & am very impressed indeed with it's performance on the road, wet & dry, also gravel. Never had a moment.
Any thoughts on comparable tires before I splurge?

On a lighter bike, I'd look at the road legal Pirelli knobs - MT21?

[george formby]

On a lighter bike, I'd look at the road legal Pirelli knobs - MT21?

Part of my reasoning is to get extended mileage, could be moot, the Pirellis are very soft. A road legal semi knobbie is struggling to live more than 3000km. The current one has about 3mm left in the centre at just under that mileage, er, kilometreage
Most of our riding is tar with the odd gravel stint. Loosing a bit of grip on gravel is no big deal. As you say the bike is light enough to forgive over enthusiasm. I also intend to go back to standard gearing with road oriented wheels, poor wee thing gets a flogging on big roads on the lower gearing.
When I want to role in the mud I just swap the wheels over, 15 mins. Done.

[XF650]

Part of my reasoning is to get extended mileage, could be moot, the Pirellis are very soft. A road legal semi knobbie is struggling to live more than 3000km. The current one has about 3mm left in the centre at just under that mileage, er, kilometreage
Most of our riding is tar with the odd gravel stint. Loosing a bit of grip on gravel is no big deal. As you say the bike is light enough to forgive over enthusiasm. I also intend to go back to standard gearing with road oriented wheels, poor wee thing gets a flogging on big roads on the lower gearing.
When I want to role in the mud I just swap the wheels over, 15 mins. Done.

GF
Like you, I have two sets of wheels for my DT230.

For seal, gravel & most adv riding I use Dunlop D605's: http://www.cycletreads.co.nz/product...tstreet_t.aspx They suit light bikes, last well & perform bloody good on seal & gravel. You can find near new sets quite cheap, I assume because they come std on some trail bikes & are changed out for full knobblies.
D603's also suit light bikes but more trail focused than road.
For knarlier adv rides my other wheel set is fitted with BF Goodrich Crossengo's, but getting hard to find. AC10's are similar tyre.
Have also tried EO7's & EO9's on the DT but I think they suit heavier bikes better..
XF

[vegeman]

I also rode Pirelli MT21 front and rear for the DB1K, and was really happy with the grip. The front hasn't worn much at all, the rear is noisy and worn ie <3mm. (I also was riding with rear wheel consideration, ie not trying to power out of every corner with the goal of keeping as much of the knobs on as possible...which at times was boring, having to think about wear)

All in all, I thought they gripped well during all sections, and it coped with the tarmac ride from Welly there an back. I'd say that I have done perhaps 3000K's maybe a few hundred more.

I like the front, and will leave it on for all road and stuff...the rear was put on specifically for the ride, as I wanted good off road traction for the grass/mud and stuff which it did effortlessly. Now that I know it wears as quick as the TKC80's rears, I will have to put them on for specific events. thinking back to the event I would have got through the event with E07 rears, as their longevity and grip makes for a good alround tyre. So, if I had to do a ride greater than 3000k's...I'd got with the MT21 Front, and E07 rear.

[george formby]

GF
Like you, I have two sets of wheels for my DT230.

For seal, gravel & most adv riding I use Dunlop D605's: http://www.cycletreads.co.nz/product...tstreet_t.aspx
They suit light bikes, last well & perform bloody good on seal & gravel. You can find near new sets quite cheap, I assume because they come std on some trail bikes & are changed out for full knobblies.

For knarlier adv rides my other wheel set is fitted with BF Goodrich Crossengo's, but getting hard to find. AC10's are similar tyre.
XF

What sort of mileage do you get? The Pirellis are cheaper but I note that they also say designed for big bikes. Not sure how lack of weight would affect the performance.

[XF650]

What sort of mileage do you get? The Pirellis are cheaper but I note that they also say designed for big bikes. Not sure how lack of weight would affect the performance.

Because I swap the wheel sets I've lost track of mileage on the 605's but they seem to last well - better than other tyres I've tried. For your mainly road / gravel wheel set I think you will be impressed, even cornering on wet seal.
Not sure why but there seems to be a difference in (same) tyre performance between heavier 4 strokes than lighter 2 strokes. Obviously a lot comes down to the rider but Vege's comment re MT21 front / EO7 rear is also the ideal all-round combo for my XF when I have the 21" front fitted, but not my preference on the DT230.
Weirdly I also got great performance out of worn 19" EO9 front on (dry) seal, with lean angles well onto the side knobs, back when I still had my mojo, peg scraping through the Catlins:

[george formby]

Because I swap the wheel sets I've lost track of mileage on the 605's but they seem to last well - better than other tyres I've tried. For your mainly road / gravel wheel set I think you will be impressed, even cornering on wet seal.
Not sure why but there seems to be a difference in (same) tyre performance between heavier 4 strokes than lighter 2 strokes. Obviously a lot comes down to the rider but Vege's comment re MT21 front / EO7 rear is also the ideal all-round combo for my XF when I have the 21" front fitted, but not my preference on the DT230.
Weirdly I also got great performance out of worn 19" EO9 front on (dry) seal, with lean angles well onto the side knobs, back when I still had my mojo, peg scraping through the Catlins:

LOL. No rubber unloved on ours either, secretly that's another reason I'm looking at this style of tread, more lean angle
I've dropped the DT doing gymkhana when I ran out of front, didn't fall far, though. I've also had the current rear cut loose exiting corners on the road. We have mile after mile of sub 80 kmh bends round here & the DT loves em.
Scraping the pegs might be a degree or two beyond my abilities. I have a very healthy fear threshold.

[oneblackflag]

It's time for new boots on the DT. I have knobbies on me spare wheels so am looking at a good tar seal & bit of gravel tire. Checked prices on Pirelli MT 90 A/T's, nay bad. I have this tire on the front of the TDM & am very impressed indeed with it's performance on the road, wet & dry, also gravel. Never had a moment.
Any thoughts on comparable tires before I splurge?

Shinko 700... Done

[george formby]

Shinko 700... Done

It's 704's that are being replaced, I like em apart from the early retirement. Get it? Sorry.
I have a 705 rear on the TDM which is a sterling tire but huffs occasionally in the wet. One of the reasons MT 90's came to mind, they stick like poo to the blanket in the wet.
How do the 700's fair for longevity & wet grip?

Last time I had road biased tires on a trailie they were Avon Gripster's on an XT 350. Oh, the fun I had. Must have been nearly 30 years ago. Crikey.

[oneblackflag]

It's 704's that are being replaced, I like em apart from the early retirement. Get it? Sorry.
I have a 705 rear on the TDM which is a sterling tire but huffs occasionally in the wet. One of the reasons MT 90's came to mind, they stick like poo to the blanket in the wet.
How do the 700's fair for longevity & wet grip?

Last time I had road biased tires on a trailie they were Avon Gripster's on an XT 350. Oh, the fun I had. Must have been nearly 30 years ago. Crikey.

Just replaced a 704 with a 700 700 is better.... Best one I've had on there but I'm a newbie anyway. Looks like I'll double up on k's switching from the 704, dont know about the wet yet but in the dry I've never had the bike right over before now; grip seems boundless, ok in the gravel if you like to slide around a bit.

The MT90 does look good, might try it next TBO.

[george formby]

Just replaced a 704 with a 700 700 is better.... Best one I've had on there but I'm a newbie anyway. Looks like I'll double up on k's switching from the 704, dont know about the wet yet but in the dry I've never had the bike right over before now; grip seems boundless, ok in the gravel if you like to slide around a bit.

The MT90 does look good, might try it next TBO.

I'm still leaning towards the MT 90's. If I put em on I will keep ewes posted. Speaking of gravel & sliding, I gave myself a wee scare this arvo. Rode into lovely deep gravel right in the middle of a downhill hairpin, dry hard pack to deep poo in a blink. Front immediately started to wash out off camber on a moderate throttle. It was a win not a bin but bugger me it's hard to grit your teeth & use the throttle when your almost tits up. Gave me a proper flutter.

[NordieBoy]

It's 704's that are being replaced, I like em apart from the early retirement. Get it? Sorry.
I have a 705 rear on the TDM which is a sterling tire but huffs occasionally in the wet. One of the reasons MT 90's came to mind, they stick like poo to the blanket in the wet.
How do the 700's fair for longevity & wet grip?

Last time I had road biased tires on a trailie they were Avon Gripster's on an XT 350. Oh, the fun I had. Must have been nearly 30 years ago. Crikey.

705's would be sweet on a little bike.
Not enough power to huff.

[george formby]

705's would be sweet on a little bike.
Not enough power to huff.

That has crossed my mind but each wee slide has been on minimal throttle. In fairness, think I've mentioned it in the past, it has always been on a sub par surface not decent tar seal, patching, overbanding, white line & possibly diesel. The MT 90 never moved so it's a mental thing for me. Practising braking in the rain was the same result, no probs at the front but relatively easy to lock the rear. Unfair comparison I know, weight bias under brakes etc but I reckon the best tire is the tire you trust.
My G/F rides the DT & she is still a bit vague on her limits, she happily drifted over the Mangamukas in the rain on the 704's thinking nothing was amiss so the whole wet weather thing is a big consideration. It's a bike preservation exercise.