I want to replace my stock IRC tires on my '09 with a better quality tire. I'm looking for something that grips much better in turns and has good durability. (I want the best tires you can get for this bike, money is not an issue when it comes to what connects me to the road)


I am also thinking about going a size up from stock, 120/70-17 front and 140/70-17 rear.

What tires would you guys recommend? Any help would be appreciated :D

I'd check out these two threads:

Thread 1 (http://www.ninjette.org/forums/showthread.php?t=9780)

Thread 2 (http://www.ninjette.org/forums/showthread.php?t=6599)

I'm partial to the Sport Demons, but either the BT-45's or the GT501's would likely also be significantly stickier than your IRC's. Going to 120/140 would not provide any better traction, but could hurt steering feel and balance without suspension mods, though likely not in a very large way.

Do you plan to track the bike at all? if so, what percentage of the time?

Thanks for the links Alex, I never saw those threads. :thumbup: I think I'm gonna go with the Pirelli Sport Demons, but I can't decide on 110/130 or 120/140. Do you guys really think going to 120/140 would hurt the bike's handling? Do you know of anyone that has done it?

Do you plan to track the bike at all? if so, what percentage of the time?

No track for me. :(

For street riding, I'd recommend the Pirelli Sport Demons or the Bridgestone BT45. Both are great tires that seem to stick well.

The 120 width on the front is over the recommended size of the rim of the 250. The 140 rear is acceptable on the rim on the back.

I would go with the stock 110/130 sizes to preserve the handling characteristics of the bike. Why is it that you want to go to bigger tires?

I dunno, looks maybe. Something about the thought of having larger tires makes me feel more comfortable riding. So 120 wont work on the front? What do you think about 110/140 combo with the Sport Demons? I can't seem to wrap my head around a wider rear tire affecting the handling negatively.

I have a 140 rear tire (only because it was the smallest rear size made in the bt090 tire) and I could feel a difference in the twisties. It slows down the rear end a bit and doesn't feel as easy to flick from side to side. When the 090s wear out, I'm going back to a 110/130 combo in either the sport demons or bt45s, unless a better tire surfaces in those sizes. It's not so much about the width of the tire as it is the rubber compound used. For me, the stickier the better.

If most of your riding is done on streets and freeways, I don't think you will feel a difference. I think I've seen people use 120/150 on these bikes, but I would think that would ruin one of the best traits of the 250... it's flickability. :2cents:

Cool, I'm gonna try the 110/140 combo in the Sport Demons. What pressure do you maintain in your tires on a regular basis? Is there any circumstance where you would use a different pressure?

I dunno, looks maybe.

Nobody but you will notice the difference in width. 110 to 120 will not look different to an observer, and a 140 or even 150 in back still looks like a skinny tire and in no way makes the back of the bike look like a literbike with a 190 or a cruiser with a 250 or even wider.

What do you think about 110/140 combo with the Sport Demons? I can't seem to wrap my head around a wider rear tire affecting the handling negatively.

Motorcycle tires aren't like car tires. A wider car tire puts a wider footprint on the ground, no question about it. A motorcycle tire is rounded, and the actual footprint on the ground is a very small oval that changes as the bike leans over left and right. Putting a wider tire on the same size rim can actually cause the profile to put a smaller footprint on the ground at certain lean angles, and a larger footprint at other times. The bike's geometry & suspension was designed for 110/130, and playing with that will cause changes to the handling of the bike. Much more often than not, negative changes. Only way to confirm it is to play around with different size tires and realize how they change the feel, and/or take them out to the track and run them at their limits to see how the changes affect lap times. Richard (racebikerentals) has run some very wide tires on the back of his trackbike with reasonably good results, but as Kkim said, I believe it is because the tires he put on were incredibly sticky and competent tires, that would have behaved even better if they were available in the correct sizes. In other words it was the compound that caused the greater performance, while the increased size didn't hurt as much as it would otherwise.

I wanna put a tire on the bike that's too big to fit.
Why? There is literally zero benefit and potential for negative impact on handling.
Mmm, I dunno, no legitimate reason.
Really, there's no benefit, I've got a wider back tire and will go back to stock when it is worn.
Okay, I've decided to put the bigger tire on.

I am in the hunt for tires and reading all these posts is making my head spin. Im thinking of rolling with the Pirelli Sport Demon's and I just want to see if anything sounds wrong with this set up.

Rear = 140/70H-17
Front = Keeping stock tire on. Still looks good...

Or should I replace both at the same time to be safe? Also im having a hard time finding the front tire in the 120 size in the Pirelli Sport Demon's???

I can find the Battlax in 140/70/17 rear and also the front in 120/70/17 though.

try 120/60/17 rear 150/60/17

That seems a little wide. isnt it?

I have a 140 rear tire (only because it was the smallest rear size made in the bt090 tire) and I could feel a difference in the twisties. It slows down the rear end a bit and doesn't feel as easy to flick from side to side. When the 090s wear out, I'm going back to a 110/130 combo in either the sport demons or bt45s, unless a better tire surfaces in those sizes. It's not so much about the width of the tire as it is the rubber compound used. For me, the stickier the better.

If most of your riding is done on streets and freeways, I don't think you will feel a difference. I think I've seen people use 120/150 on these bikes, but I would think that would ruin one of the best traits of the 250... it's flickability. :2cents:

You know kelly, if you wanna go back to the bt45s, you could sell my your 090s as takeoffs before you wear them out. I could use them. :D

Nobody but you will notice the difference in width. 110 to 120 will not look different to an observer, and a 140 or even 150 in back still looks like a skinny tire and in no way makes the back of the bike look like a literbike with a 190 or a cruiser with a 250 or even wider.



Motorcycle tires aren't like car tires. A wider car tire puts a wider footprint on the ground, no question about it. A motorcycle tire is rounded, and the actual footprint on the ground is a very small oval that changes as the bike leans over left and right. Putting a wider tire on the same size rim can actually cause the profile to put a smaller footprint on the ground at certain lean angles, and a larger footprint at other times. The bike's geometry & suspension was designed for 110/130, and playing with that will cause changes to the handling of the bike. Much more often than not, negative changes. Only way to confirm it is to play around with different size tires and realize how they change the feel, and/or take them out to the track and run them at their limits to see how the changes affect lap times. Richard (racebikerentals) has run some very wide tires on the back of his trackbike with reasonably good results, but as Kkim said, I believe it is because the tires he put on were incredibly sticky and competent tires, that would have behaved even better if they were available in the correct sizes. In other words it was the compound that caused the greater performance, while the increased size didn't hurt as much as it would otherwise.

Alex has a good point, but there is even more to this conversation then just compounds.

Motorcycle brands come in different profiles as well as compounds. Pirelli is notorious for its very triangular profile. Meaning the center is very high and the sides fall away sharply, making the bike tend to fall into the corners quickly. Continental on the other hand tends to have a very flat, rounded profile. This makes the bike lazy to corner but stable all the way round. Michilin Pilots tend to be similar to the Pirellis, but Michilin's sport touring tires are half way between the Conti's and the Pirelli's. Bridgestone also has a varied profile depending on the use of the tires. Rounded for touring/sport touring or just high mileage tires, then going to the triangular profile as they get closer to their track day/race day tires.

So if you take a 120/70/17 Pirelli, with its very triangular profile and squeeze it onto an undersized rim, you could end up with a very tall tire that is very twitchy as you have made the fall on the sides sharper and more pronounced.

If you took a 120/70/17 from Continental and squeezed it onto an undersized rim, you could end up with a very mushroom top looking tire. Making it very slow to respond to input.

The other thing is a 120/70/17 was made for a heavier bike. Its stiffer carcass would need a different tire pressure to work with our lighter bikes. An SV650 for instance weighs 375lbs dry and ours weighs in the neighborhood of 333lbs. That 40lbs makes a difference. Or take my old Buell for example, 460lbs wet, running a 120/70/17...the same tire your thinking of using on a 333+lb bike...Running a tire pressure that is not right for the bike your riding is going to make that tire wear in very bad ways. In this gambit you can not go by what Kawasaki states for tire pressures, and if you call up the tire manufacturer, they will tell you not to run it since the tire was not designed for the rim size.

Doing this with the rear is a little less drastic. There are tires in larger sizes which do match the rear rim, so the profile of the tire is not affected as much.

I have made these mistakes in the past, I did it for the spread of tire types available at other sizes, and I can say that I have seen tires that should have lasted 3000-5000 miles tore to hell, and cupped so bad you had headshake just riding around normal in less then 1000 miles. On the flip side, I have taken touring tires and put them on a light weight bike and found they tended to slip and slide all the time, even running up and down through and back some canyons in the HOT Arizona desert, not a greasy feeling, but a hard, lack of traction feeling. They just never built enough heat in them to get traction because the carcass was made and designed for a bike that weighed 2-300 pounds more.

Just some food for thought.

verbal diarrhea over:D

Wouldn't having a radial 140 tire be better than 130 bias?

I dunno. My 08 came with Bridgestone BT-45s, and I find they are pretty decent - I have never felt that they didn't stick well and give me good traction in all conditions. My understanding is that some 250r's come with IRCs or Dunlops and those don't stick as well as the Bridgestones....

in the NA market the 08s came w/ Bridgestones or Dunlops. In 09, they all come with IRCs.

guess it's just me, but I don't have any problem with the stock IRCs. I'm able to do full leans at 130-140kmph with no problem....bike always feels like it's stuck to the road. I am thinking of going with the Pirelli Sport Demons just to see the difference when the time comes.

I wanna put a tire on the bike that's too big to fit.
Why? There is literally zero benefit and potential for negative impact on handling.
Mmm, I dunno, no legitimate reason.
Really, there's no benefit, I've got a wider back tire and will go back to stock when it is worn.
Okay, I've decided to put the bigger tire on.

lol way to sum up the conversation so far

At how many miles do you usually need to replace your tires with no track time?

guess it's just me, but I don't have any problem with the stock IRCs. I'm able to do full leans at 130-140kmph with no problem....bike always feels like it's stuck to the road. I am thinking of going with the Pirelli Sport Demons just to see the difference when the time comes.

I still got about a cm of "chicken" strip on the front and a couple millimeters here and there (not really a full strip) on the back. Doesn't feel sound then again i think i got the rear preload wrong.

Anybody know or have a link to the preload setting for the 08-09s?

I got mine on 3 being 160lbs without gear. I'm thinking it's too high a setting.

At how many miles do you usually need to replace your tires with no track time? My Dunlop GT501 front had to be replaced at about 12500kms. I have now got a Sport Demon and it feels much nicer.

I still got about a cm of "chicken" strip on the front and a couple millimeters here and there (not really a full strip) on the back. Doesn't feel sound then again i think i got the rear preload wrong.

Anybody know or have a link to the preload setting for the 08-09s?

I got mine on 3 being 160lbs without gear. I'm thinking it's too high a setting.

I'm 160-165 and mine is set at 3 as well, it does feel a little stiff but i usually ride hard so it handles better in the hard corners.

guess it's just me, but I don't have any problem with the stock IRCs. I'm able to do full leans at 130-140kmph with no problem....bike always feels like it's stuck to the road. I am thinking of going with the Pirelli Sport Demons just to see the difference when the time comes.

They're not entirely bad for grip and you can definitely drag pegs on them when they're fully warmed up. But I've had some slips when they're warming up, they're less inspiring than the pre-gen Dunlops I have and they're dreadful on grated roads/bridges and even some railroad tracks.

now i m using thec 120/60/17 and 160/60/17 Pilot Power,so far so good, the rear is OK but the front so so., yup i still like it.bit heavy for corners but i got use to it now after 1 week, just came back from a 650km journey, manage to get 185kmh.have more confidence in coners too. that is my record till today. i will be away till end of this month.take care my to all of u my friends

Wow, tires over there are getting fatter and fatter by the moment.

do it.

110/140 or 110/150/60

lost yet?

Alex and wyckedfish's posts are spot on, and raise all the points you need to considder when searching for tires to suit your machine, style of riding, and riding surfaces. You're going to want something different from a commuter than you are for a sport ride than for a track bike, and it's more than just simple rubber compound.

I pulled a set of GT501s at 4000 miles. They still have at least that much more left on them, to be sure. They are good tires, and have EXCELLENT wet weather traction, but almost impossible to get replacements for on this side of the pond. Good choice for this bike, I just wanted something different that suited my needs as an in town/out of town sometimes commuter sport ride for my bike.

I just put a set of race take off BT090s 110/70 and 140/70, and the whole character of the turn changed for me for the better, partly due to the profile of the tire and partly due to the compound. As kkim points out, it takes just a tiny bit more to get it to lay over into a turn or to flip flop on the twisties over the 130 series rear, but 100% more planted IN the turn than the 501s that I took off. Haven't tried wet weather, yet, though, but they are more responsive than the 501s in the dry.

Oh, and yes, everyone else is right in that you can feel that the bike needs just a little more ooommmpffff due to the greater mass/size of the rear tire, but not in a bad or unmanageable way (to me). It does not handle heavy or anything, hard to put my finger on it, just 'different'.

I've ridden Sport Demons on a buddy's 250, and they're good tires with really good road feel and performance. If I was doing more commuting than I am, this would be my tire of choice, and will probably be putting a set on after my BT090s and GT501s both wear out.

I've ridden the IRCs that are coming on late model bikes, too. I believe the term I used at the time was "Greased hard rubber dog s#$t on a wet slip-n-slide".

I feel that I traded just a touch of 'flickability' for a load of 'stability' where I want it most, in the turn. Never mind the perfect deal of $105 delivered! I got butt reamed on mounting/balancing, though, with most places not even wanting to work on something they didn't sell. Finally got an independant sport bike shop that works for $25/rim.

Many good points in this thread



Never mind the perfect deal of $105 delivered! I got butt reamed on mounting/balancing, though, with most places not even wanting to work on something they didn't sell. Finally got an independant sport bike shop that works for $25/rim.

Same same here.. I paid $35/rim (cheapest I could find in my area) to install my 016 raceoffs I paid $120 shipped for. For future changes I'll be buying locally instead now at a place that installs them for cheaper.

I'm kind of considering going with the Sport Demons, but I may stick with what I have now as I think the 016s may last longer. I'm ok that the rears only come in 150/60 smallest as I'm pretty used to them now. I and Alex both noticed that for a 150 tire, they actually don't look oversized at all and the rear doesn't touch the chain guard chain like some have said.

Are they 150/70/17 or 150/60/17? I thought they were 70's, but a comment from Richard made me wonder.

oops typo. it's it's 150/60 Rear.. fixed post as to not confuse

front's are 110/70


on another note. I forgot to mention that on my stocker Bridgestones BT045s I was able to get about 9000 miles on them before changing them out. Miles consisted of both twisties and commuting city/hwy streets, but mostly used on twisties.
For me personally, I felt the tires were great for commuting an non aggressive riding in the twists. However as I started to get better at riding, I was not confident riding fast in the twisties as they didn't grip so well; other riders told me the rear was doing mini fish tails while going fast in the turns

Looks like sports demon is the way to go? What size do they come in?
Posted via Mobile Device

They are available in the stock new-gen sizes (110/70/17, 130/70/17), as well as a variety of other sizes for other bikes:

Fronts:

110/70 - 17 M/C 54H TL
120/70 - 17 M/C 58V TL
110/80 - 18 M/C 58V TL
120/80 V 16 M/C (60V) TL
100/90 - 16 M/C 54H TL
100/90 - 18 M/C 56V TL
100/90 - 19 M/C 57V TL
110/90 - 16 M/C 59V TL
110/90 - 18 M/C 61V TL


Rears:

130/70 - 17 M/C 62H TL
130/70 - 18 M/C 63H TL
140/70 - 17 M/C 66H TL
140/70 - 18 M/C 67V TL
150/70 - 17 M/C 69V TL
120/80 - 18 M/C 62H TL
130/80 - 17 M/C 65H TL
140/80 VB 17 M/C (69V) TL
150/80 V 16 M/C (71V) TL
110/90 - 18 M/C 61H TL
120/90 - 18 M/C 65V TL
130/90 - 16 M/C 67V TL
130/90 - 17 M/C 68V TL

now i m using thec 120/60/17 and 160/60/17 Pilot Power,so far so good, the rear is OK but the front so so., yup i still like it.bit heavy for corners but i got use to it now after 1 week, just came back from a 650km journey, manage to get 185kmh.have more confidence in coners too. that is my record till today. i will be away till end of this month.take care my to all of u my friends

How did you get 160's to fit on the 250?

How did you get 160's to fit on the 250?

They mod the hell out of their bikes out there in Indo, so I'm betting that's the only way they were able to fit the 160.
IMO, many of their mods are a lot more for looks as oppose to practicality, but if that's your thing then go for it.. to each his own :thumbup:

how is sport demons compared to BT-003 RS?

I'm not sure we know all of the details yet. But I'm expecting we'll find out soon enough, and I hope the first folks with 'em post up their impressions here... Only person I know who has run the 003RS's on a ninjette so far is Richard (racebikerentals), and AFAIK he was only using them on track. He said they are great tires, but feels that they'd wear relatively quickly on the street.

How did you get 160's to fit on the 250?

------------------------------------------

no problem at all,just nice.
but for next change,i will be using 110/70/17 and 160/60/17.

http://img5.imageshack.us/img5/2038/image009oim.jpg (http://img5.imageshack.us/i/image009oim.jpg/)

I replaced my IRC tires w/ Bridgestone Battleax BT-021s a few days ago. I put a 120/70-17 on the front and a 150/70-17 on the back. I have maybe 1.5 mm clearance on the back tire. The back tire was touching when I went to the shop to pick them up but I assured the mechanic that they would fit, so he fiddled with the alignment for a minute and got the smallest amout of clearance imaginable.

They cautioned me against keeping them on there, but I have put about 60 miles on the tires and so far I absolutely love them. I feel like there is much more solid contact w/ the road and there is no wiggle when I take turns. My confidence w/ the bike is vastly improved thanks to the new tires.

My only thing would be that if I could do it over again, I would probably go w/ a 140 in the back so that I definitely had no issues w/ rubbing, but so far so good w/ my 150s.

Aaron - welcome to the forum - glad to hear that you're happy with the new tires!

Aaron,

How does the bike feel when flicking through the twisties?

It's a little heavier, so it isn't quite as flickable, but it will go into the lean a little faster and will stand right back up whenever I hardly even think about it. It isn't quite as flickable as it was, but there is really only a small amount lost w/ the new tires.

I was going for more stability on the straight-aways and a little more solid contact on turns when I bought these tires. That really is exactly what I got. It is still a very nimble bike.

why the 70 series tires?? why not go with the 120/60 150/60?

^ All of the posts that I read said that the 60s would be too wide and that the profile of the 70 is just about the only 150 tire that would fit. I believe the 60 would have flattened out more and then rubbed. I think it might not have pinched as much (although I haven't really noticed any pinching on the rim), but I didn't want to risk the tire rubbing on the swingarm.

um,?? OK a 150 wide is 150mm weater its a 60 or a 70 series. Someone correct me if im wrong here.

Someone correct me if im wrong here.

You're not wrong. :)

Aaron - how many miles did you get out of the IRC's? Is this ninjette your first streetbike?

I got 260 miles out of them before I took them off. Yes, this is my first bike.

I came to the conclusion that the 60s would be wider after looking at quite a few forums w/ threads about putting wider tires on the bike. The general concensus that I saw was that the shorter profile of the 60s vs the taller 70s would flatten out the tires and cause them to pinch on the rim less, but that they would become wider, thus potentially causing some rubbing on the swingarm. My main concern was to avoid the tire making contact w/ the swingarm and hurting the integrity of the tire.

Maybe I am wrong. I don't claim to have any expertise in this area, but I did do quite a bit of research before buying them and I saw numerous threads that mentioned that a 70 would fit while a 60 would potentially cause problems, so I decided to go w/ the 70.

Hi there

Has anyone tried ContiGo?

http://www.conti-online.com/generator/www/de/en/continental/motorcycle/themes/motorcycletires/allround/conti_go/contigo_en.html

Look a good tread pattern not sure about Continental tyres though!

dave

I don't know if anyone on this board has used the Continentals yet. The review posted in this thread (http://www.ninjette.org/forums/showthread.php?t=9780) was reasonably positive on that tire. But just to play devil's advocate, that review also liked the Avons, when other members here have tried 'em on our ninjettes with very poor results.

I don't know if anyone on this board has used the Continentals yet. The review posted in this thread (http://www.ninjette.org/forums/showthread.php?t=9780) was reasonably positive on that tire. But just to play devil's advocate, that review also liked the Avons, when other members here have tried 'em on our ninjettes with very poor results.

Thanks for that Alex. I had read that article, I had forgotten it included the ContiGo. I had Avon's on my Fazer 1000 (FZ1) which were quite good but this is for my wifes 250R. I like the sound of the Speed Demon.

BT-016 R/S is out..probably the best one for now...It's available for 250's size.

John - do you mean the BT003RS's? (relevant thread (http://www.ninjette.org/forums/showthread.php?t=17636)). The BT016's are available in a 150/60/17, but the new 003RS's are available in an even narrower 140/70/17; that's about the closest you can get to our stock 130/70/17 in an uber-sticky tire.

Yeah. Sorry Alex. I meant the bt003rs.
Posted via Mobile Device

I'm going to try the sport demons at my next track day i think - 110/70 and potentially 140/70. The pirelli guy is going to be there anyway, so why not. :)

The stock IRCs, once heated up, did a fine job (I couldn't beleive it) at my track day last weekend at Infineon (technical track). They looked pretty beat after though. I was running 27 front and 27 rear.

Ok nevermind. He only carries DOT race and race tires from Pirelli. He said people were running Diablo Super Corsas at 110/70 and 160/50 with good results on the track. $345 + tax including mounting and balancing (if you take off your own wheels). I'm torn on going that large and paying that much though.

I'm going to try the sport demons at my next track day i think - 110/70 and potentially 140/70. The pirelli guy is going to be there anyway, so why not. :)

The stock IRCs, once heated up, did a fine job (I couldn't beleive it) at my track day last weekend at Infineon (technical track). They looked pretty beat after though. I was running 27 front and 27 rear.

wow you used the IRCs at Infineon? I'd be scared to go even with the 2008 250Rs bt045's.. or at least be confident going all out at the track with full lean on those tires.

If you decide not to go with the Pirelli's try out the new Bridgestone BT003RS mentioned in this thread, especially for the track. after having the BT0016s which are a great tire, I have confidence the 003rs will be even nicer and give you more confidence to do full leans with ease at the track

Turns out the pirelli guy only carries race tires, so the sport demons aren't an option for thsi weekend. I'm going to have to stick with the stock IRC's for this last weekend of tracking the bike, but I have bt 003 race street tires coming early next week from moto superstore at around $200 shipped. Wish they could be here in time, but oh well!

I went with 110/70 and 140/70

wow you used the IRCs at Infineon? I'd be scared to go even with the 2008 250Rs bt045's.. or at least be confident going all out at the track with full lean on those tires.

If you decide not to go with the Pirelli's try out the new Bridgestone BT003RS mentioned in this thread, especially for the track. after having the BT0016s which are a great tire, I have confidence the 003rs will be even nicer and give you more confidence to do full leans with ease at the track

I crashed mine at Infineon running 016s due to losing the front end. Just ran out of traction. I think 090s would be a minimum at that track. The 016s were just not up to the task. IRCs..... I dunno.... I'd rather jump off the GG bridge :)

Well, they have two more trackdays to make it through this weekend up at thunderhill, given that I couldn't get the new 003rs's in before friday...

how are the bt003's on the street? i do alot of mountain riding here and the stock irc tires seem good at times , but are squirley in other times. i just ordered bt003 110-70-17 140-70-17 for my bike. hope my rear hugger doesnt have to come off:(

how are the bt003's on the street? i do alot of mountain riding here and the stock irc tires seem good at times , but are squirley in other times. i just ordered bt003 110-70-17 140-70-17 for my bike. hope my rear hugger doesnt have to come off:(

I think the bt003 may be a little overkill for the street. But they'll definitely give you grip so that's a plus. Plus if $ isn't a problem, then go for it.

Otherwise I suggest the bt016 instead for street riding. More practical, grips well, and they'll last longer. You'll lose some flick in the bike tho.

the bt016's come in 140's? i was on solomotoparts.com and the smallest size they had were 150's

the bt016's come in 140's? i was on solomotoparts.com and the smallest size they had were 150's

correct... smallest 016 rear tire is a 150.

It would be nice if there was sort of a "master" thread about 08+ replacement tires.

I changed out my rear tire yesterday/today. Yes it took me two days. What a PITA.

My stock IRC rear tire was very near the wear bars at about 8.5k mi.

I put a kenda K671 tire in the stock size on, from bikebandit.

Personally I am probably going to switch to the Bridgestone BT003 in a 110/140 set. I have been pretty happy so far with the bias ply gt501 that were stock but I do want to see how a set of radials will feel.

I agree with the idea that going to a 120 in front and a 150 in rear will eliminate the quicker turn in that you get with the smaller profile tires but you may gain some better grip on the highway as far as straight line high speed stability.

Anyone here ever try the Shinko tires. I am a long way from replacing the stockers as I just got the bike. I had a friend who used to own a moto aftermarket business, his income was gear and tires. He sold the crap out of shinkos for all sizes of sportbikes because they were a big saving over the other brands. Motorcyclesuperstore.com has the front 110/70VR-17 front for $62.99 and the rear 140/60VR-17 for $86.99. Free shipping over $75 I have heard good things about them and will prob buy them when replacement time comes.

For a good review on these tires check out this post on another forum, it is simply the best writing review of anything I have ever read.



http://www.sportbikes.ws/showthread.php?t=106588

I'm not sure we know all of the details yet. But I'm expecting we'll find out soon enough, and I hope the first folks with 'em post up their impressions here... Only person I know who has run the 003RS's on a ninjette so far is Richard (racebikerentals), and AFAIK he was only using them on track. He said they are great tires, but feels that they'd wear relatively quickly on the street.


I'm running BT003s on my ride.....120s in the front....150s in the rear.....I mainly ride twisties....ALL I can say is that I couldn't go back to the 110/130 set up...simply because I love the look and the feel....I did notice the bike is slightly heavy in the rear--but totally worth it to me....youll notice less flickability but after awhile--it comes back.....I rode the 50+ miles of twisties Sat and felt zero slipping.....I am able to lean the bike more and the tires' grip are amazing...I had on the stock Dunlops- hated them compared to these BT003s....

I'm running BT003s on my ride.....120s in the front....150s in the rear.....I mainly ride twisties....ALL I can say is that I couldn't go back to the 110/130 set up...simply because I love the look and the feel....I did notice the bike is slightly heavy in the rear--but totally worth it to me....youll notice less flickability but after awhile--it comes back.....I rode the 50+ miles of twisties Sat and felt zero slipping.....I am able to lean the bike more and the tires' grip are amazing...I had on the stock Dunlops- hated them compared to these BT003s....

Adrian,
I'm going to 120/70, 140/70 BT45s soon!
If you can flick the fast switchbacks on GMR with your setup, that's more than flickable enough!

Leo I forgot to mention....I do bench press 230...so flickability is not a problem...lol. Can't wait to see your new set up. I might stay with the BT003s though....I have put 500 miles on the rear 150 so far...mostly twisties
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Leo I forgot to mention....I do bench press 230...so flickability is not a problem...lol. Can't wait to see your new set up. I might stay with the BT003s though....I have put 500 miles on the rear 150 so far...mostly twisties
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I can bench press my body weight too!:p

Nice job Leo!!! That should be a mandetory requirement when riding a ninjette.
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Nice job Leo!!! That should be a mandetory requirement when riding a ninjette.
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But the truth is I don't use any upper body strength to pull the bike down quickly! More of shifting weight on my outside peg while pulling the body
and head toward the inside and counter steering as if you're going to put
the bike into a slide! Hard to explain!

I just had these put on last weekend and what a difference...

6959 6960 6961 6962

Super sticky 120/70/17 front and 150/60/17 rear

Hi there

Has anyone tried ContiGo?

http://www.conti-online.com/generator/www/de/en/continental/motorcycle/themes/motorcycletires/allround/conti_go/contigo_en.html

Look a good tread pattern not sure about Continental tyres though!

dave

I have a set. I put them on my 2009 after getting over 10,000 miles on the stock IRC's. There is now, a definite difference in the ride and handling. They handle real well. They do not feel as unstable as the OEM's before. Responses are smooth and agile. Corners nice and tight. Seemed to take a tiny bit more to lean over at first, but I quickly dialed it in no problem. Since putting them on, I've have also taken them across the State to Deals Gap and ridden the Tail of the Dragon and other roads in that area with no problems. The tires handled great and gripped well. So far I have over 2,000 miles on this set of tires. As far as Continental tires go and their reputation, they are a major motorcycle tire sponsor and produce excellent products. Also check the NinjetteWiki for my review and tire updates.


Continental Conti Go Tires
New developed cross-ply tyre for all-round use.

• Perfect grip under all weather conditions for all-year-round use

• Excellent mileage due to up-to-date compound technology

• Innovative tread pattern design for even wear and good water dispersement

• Improved carcass construction for easy handling and high stability

The specs;

Size 130-70-17
Width 5.59 (in.)
Overall Diameter 24.64 (in.)
Radius 12.55 (in.)
Section Width (aspect ratio) 5.07 (in.)
Circumference 72.99 (in.)


Size 110-70-17
Width 4.76 (in.)
Overall Diameter 23.46 (in.)
Radius 11.92 (in.)
Section Width (aspect ratio) 4.33 (in.)
Circumference 69.68 (in.)

Here's my $0.02.

Earlier this week I replaced the stock IRC's with Bridgestone BT45 Battleax tires. I should have done this sooner.

While the IRC's were great for longevity (20,000KM), they just never give me much confidence when cornering but I always thought this was me just being cautious and not deciding to push things.

I was wrong and the Bridgestone's give me tonnes of confidence and I'm leaning the bike like never before. The difference is like night-and-day. Before I was just grabbing the the road - now I seem to stick to it.

I kept the stock sizes and have put on about 800KM since they were installed. Most of the roads are twisty back roads with maximum 80KM/H limits with some highway thrown in.

While I have not tested them in the rain (yet), they've handled damp pavement exceptionally well and I expect them to be just as good when the clouds open.

I fully recommend Bridgestone's Battleax BT-45 to anyone looking for a great tire for all-round conditions. :thumbup:

Whooooo boy! Now THIS is a thread:thumbup:. I learned A LOT! I'm sick of these dumb posts like "Favorite snacks" or "Do guys like more butt or boobs". Nice to see a real thread come together. Shout out to "wyckedflesh" and "Alex" for some awesome details and information.:thumbup:

:ohno::peep:

i have been racing my 09 250r ninja on bt003 for two years now not to good in the wet in the dry ok but a few of us running them have had the front wash out if you get to pushing them to hard:

Thanks for that Alex. I had read that article, I had forgotten it included the ContiGo. I had Avon's on my Fazer 1000 (FZ1) which were quite good but this is for my wifes 250R. I like the sound of the Speed Demon.

Well after thinking about it for a while and after the Pirelli's were a bit too pricey I have fitted Avon's to my wifes bike. So far I have only done 11 miles on them as the weather isn't great but they seemed fine.

Dave

My bike came with Dunlops and I managed to put 12,000mi on them. Replaced them with the same thing. I like them a lot.

How did you get 160's to fit on the 250?

I too have 160/60/17 Michelin Pilot Road2 and no issues what so ever. As long as you stay with 60s for the profile, you will be fine. Best money spent on mods to date, wish I did it sooner.

I cast another vote for Sport Demons in the factory sizes. Excellent grip and decent mileage, what more can you ask for in a street tire...

I was thinking about when I get my 250 to get bigger wider rear tires just for the look. But since I've read most of the threads. I will stick with the 110/130 size it was made for. Hey... Plus I get to save money:thumbup:

I too have 160/60/17 Michelin Pilot Road2 and no issues what so ever. As long as you stay with 60s for the profile, you will be fine. Best money spent on mods to date, wish I did it sooner.

Are you fnnn kidding me??

160/60/17 MPR2? Please put up a pic! I have the PP1 150 on the rear and I could swear they look small and I even thought a 160 would fit.

Pics please~~~~!!!!!

Nice job Leo!!! That should be a mandetory requirement when riding a ninjette.
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Guess i am out of luck there, me no can bench near my body weight....anybodywanna buy a ninja? :-D

I am running the perelli's 110/70 and 140/70 and what a diff on ride comfort and handling from the stockers.

I don't know if anyone on this board has used the Continentals yet. The review posted in this thread (http://www.ninjette.org/forums/showthread.php?t=9780) was reasonably positive on that tire. But just to play devil's advocate, that review also liked the Avons, when other members here have tried 'em on our ninjettes with very poor results.

One factor not mentioned is the composition of the roads where you live. From what i have seen here and on other forums is the roads out west in california need stickier rubber than we do here in va where the roads are fairly abrasive. Here we can get by with harder tires and still get decent grip. Out in the promised land road composition is different. Avons might work better here than there....can anyone confirm my supposition.

I don't think road composition is that uniform anywhere to make sweeping determinations like that. We have the smoothest new asphalt, we have torn up gravel, we have concrete, and everything in between. It differs from highways to regional roads to twisty mountain roads to coastal roads; and each of those vary depending on when the last time they were attended to.

This has been a great thread to read through. I hope people keep posting their impressions, especially updates as the mileage ticks away!

I am going with the BT-45s, stock size. I wanted to go bigger just for the look, but Ive read a lot of negative feedback from people that have done it.

I am going with the BT-45s, stock size. I wanted to go bigger just for the look, but Ive read a lot of negative feedback from people that have done it.

Depends on the tire you get, I dont like bridgestones, they require high temps to work properly, but rarely will that be achieved on the street. Michelin, Pirelli or Metzlar seem to be the better street tires in my opinion.

Once you DRII you never go back. Night and day difference from IRC.