Hi all, Im looking for my next set of rubber to follow some Metzler M7RR's. The bike came with them and Im back to biking after a long hiatus so i have no particular allegience to a brand. I had Bridgstone 010's on my 2001 blade. If anyone can remember that far back lol. I have used the search function here and checked the web but would be interested to her the opinions of those on a similar bike. Mines a 2014 with no rider aids. I only road ride but may do a track day next year. Im not particularly fast as still learning but want something confidence inspiring. I also only ride in the dry unless i get caught out. The main contenders are; Metzlers M9RR Bridgstone S22 Mitchelin Road or Power 5 I'm hedging towards the S22's as i like the idea of the tripple compound and smaller silica so better contact patch they mention in the blurb. I know this is a topic that can be very subjective but I would like to hear your experiences and thoughts.
My Fireblade is on its 2nd set of S22's. I've also had Road 5s on a couple of bikes (not a Fireblade) and S22s on another bike. I'd say the Road 5s are better in mixed conditions and last longer. Overall grip I'd say S22's have the edge but still last quite well too. I've never been on track with the Road 5s but the S22s are excellent and predictable but do start to get a bit squirmy towards the end of a session if you're giving it plenty. If you're planning to do a trackday I'd say choose between the S22s or M9's.
Think I got about 3000-3500 from the rear, I don't tend to use every last millimeter of tread though so you might get more.
S22's here as well.Would agree with Charlies comments above.Never got on with the road 5's on other bikes so just stick with the s22's on both my bikes now.(Blade and Z1000)
Metzeler M9 RR, and no more worrying about tyres ! High silica content which is the tyre wonder material. Good mileage, excellent grip, excellent water repelling properties and low rolling resistance compared to soft rubber.I had them on my Monster and stopped worrying about tyres Not done any track riding on them and I have not used S22s but when the OE tyres on this new bike have worn down a bit more I will put Metzeler M9s on it
Just ordered a m9rr for the rear, front m7rr still has plenty of life and m7rr rear lasted about 3,000 miles.
S22's and M9RR's are both excellent tyres. Can't go wrong. I have Pirelli Rosso Corsa II's on mine, and they really are good. Highly recommended.
I’ve been using Road 5s for around 3 years on my 2008 blade and my 2017 z1000sx. They suit both bikes really well, they are nice and agile (much better than the Bridgestone S20s and T30evos I had on most recently). They also have great cold weather and wet road grip and, if you take them nearly to the legal limit, you can get 6,500 miles out of a pair. They’ve never worried me about ultimate dry weather grip as the outer edges have few grooves (and there are several different rubber compounds across the tyre width from hard in the middle to soft on the edges) and they’re very stable and not squirmy at big lean angles in the dry. They’re not cheap to buy, but they actually are cheap to run in reality because they last so long.
All true, but getting 6500 miles out of them tells you all you need to know about what they'll be like on track. It will all be false economy if you bin it at turn 1. Think I'd consider Road5's on the blade myself if I was doing lots of road only miles all year round, they're an incredible tyre.
You might be surprised how good they are on track. Modern sports touring tyres are massively better than they were even just 10 years ago. The Road 5s are a lot better than T30 Bridgestones at fast road riding and look what Ron Haslam and others had to say when blind-testing the T30 on track. https://www.fastbikesmag.com/2013/06/25/rocket-ron-and-bridgestones-t30/ Ron ended up having T30s on his race school bikes (OK, would have done a deal with them, but he wouldn’t have used them if he didn’t think they were up to track use). Hopefully not much chance of binning it on turn 1 and blaming the tyres. But don’t sue me if you do!
With Michelin, I suggest you also consider pilot power 3 next to PR5. Compared to previous powers, it has become more sport touring with less sharp a profile and much higher mileage and cheaper of course. They give excellent handling from cold on road.
I guess that it depends on how experience you are and how happy you are at the limit. I used T30 or T31s (can't recall) on track when I first started in novices and thought that they were great but as a novice I was definitely more alarmed by the movement of them. When I moved to S22s they moved a lot less and gave me a lot of confidence. Sports touring tyres are easily good enough if you don't mind the movement though. Now the S22s move more as I'm getting more confident on them I have that much more time on track that I'm (slightly) less alarmed by it.
I did Ron's race school in 2005, they can easily get away with fitting sports touring rubber to the 600s because they teach you well and keep you on a moderately tight leash. But once the trackday bug has bitten and you've done a few days on your own, Sports Touring rubber is not what you need to be on as you start to explore your limits. But your point is valid, Road 5s are excellent.
Been talking to Matt at FWR and he highly recommends Michelin Power GP for road riding with the odd track day. His second choice was the M7rr's.The M9rr's dont warm up as quickly apparently. The GP's are a soft compound so the only negative was their life. Very knowledgable and helpful bloke. I am keen to hear of personal experiences with any of these tyres.
Ive had 2 sets of s22s on my 2015 blade. Absolutely mega tyre in all conditions varying from 2 degrees wet upto sunny days. Feedback from tyre is really good when you are getting to limit of grip. Nice prgressive profile is very confidence inspiring.Only downside is they wore really funny on front for me. Got about 2800/3000 miles out of a front. I have just fitted michelin power gps to my bike. Ive had these on for about 300 miles now. Ypu have to recalibrate ypur head to these tyres as they turn so quick compared to s22 and profile is much steeper so on s22 ypu wpuld be at wdge of tyre on these ypu still have 1/2inch or so. Not properly tried them in rain other than getting caught out but didnt have as much confidenc ein wet as s22 but this may be down to only having them on bike a week. They dont get as warm as s22s in cooler temps when riding same pace as a friend who has s22s on his fireblade. They are super soft though and i reckon in dry will be slightly better than s22 in dry grip.
Thanks Lowside thats very interesting. I would imagine your confidemce will grow with the GP'S in time. Suprised to hear they did not warm up as much as the s22's in the cold. I had seen comparisons about the different profiles on a Dave Moss vid
