hey, y'all.

i just spent a little while poking around for tire stuff. until recently i lived near a friend who was an ex-bike mechanic who had a pretty nice garage, which meant that i didn't acquire too many tools. this is the first tire change i will have done without access to his tools.

i figured i'd pass on the results of my poking around on the internet:
tires: avon storms. 243.90 shipped from swmototires.com
head lift: 99.99 shipped from tireexpress.com
miscellaneous other tools (bead breaker, balancer, rim protectors, 3 tire irons, lubricant, weights--package set): $210 shipped from tireqwik.com

the only thing i think i need now is a stem core tool, which i should be able to get locally. all of this seems like good stuff, and these are the best prices i could find around. just thought i'd pass along the info.

cheers!
.cyb
________
Wendie 99 (http://www.lovelywendie99.com/)

Thank you for the info.
Check out http://www.ronayers.com as well. They have good prices.

a little update:

one thing to check when you're buying new tires is their age. the 599 has pretty common tires, and the avon storms are relatively new, so the chances of having someone ship an old tire are pretty low, but ... fyi. tires have a time-limited life span ... most people say that you should not run tires that are more than five years old.

i got the tires today. the date codes, which are stamped into the sidewall, are 4606 for the front, 4406 for the rear. this means that they were produced in the 46th and 44th week of 06, so pretty new stuff.

if you're buying tires in person, make sure you check this out. if you order them, make sure you check it whenever they arrive.

cheers!
.cyb
________
Mexico Hotels (http://mexicocityhotel.info)

excellent advice and info!! thanks. 8)

I have a hint for at home tire changes, especially if you're making the change in cool weather. Put the tire and rim somewhere in a warm spot to warm up. I had a Dunlop rear that may be may have been out of tolerance size wise and was hard to get on ( I dreaded changing the rear tire again). It was impossible to get off cold. After it warmed up, it came off fairly easy. I had the new tire (the Pirelli) in the front seat of my truck, in the sun, warming up. It practically fell on the rim compared with the Dunlop.

I got just about 4000 miles on the Dunlop rear tire . I had previously got 7000 miles on the Michelin OEM tire. Go figure. I had went away from Michelin because I had to change the front tire at 3500 miles. 3500 miles on the front and 7000 on the rear. On the Dunlops, I got 5500 miles on the front and only 4000 on the rear. A big go figure.

Any way, I now have Pirelli tires on and hope they do better. They do seem to ride and handle better than the Dunlop and Michelins.

I just changed the front tire and I used the Honda brand cleaner/polish to clean the inside of the rims. I never like using soap and making sure I get the excess soap rinsed off. The inside of the rim didn't have hardly any black tire residue stuck to the rim. I had polished the front rim last time that I changed the front tire so I credit that to the polish and cleaner.The Honda polish makes crome and painted surfaces slick and the tire slides on the rim easier. I still use a splash of water to make it even easier. The tire seems to pop on to the beads much easier too.

I just changed the rear tire yet again. I put the Pirelli Stradas on or about March 1. I got 3500 - 4000 miles on the rear tire. They went fast. I rode to Newport, TN last week. I looked at the rear tire and noticed the steel belts looking back at me. I did ride pretty hard on the Pirelli tires since putting them on. Most of my riding was aggressive and very little cruising. I went to Deals Gap and ran Hwy129 eleven times. Rndthought might testify that I do no 'straight line' riding.8)

I ordered Avons Thursday night the 12th, rcv'd them Friday the 29th and put the rear tire on that evening. The front Pirelli has plenty of mileage left on it, so I'll not change it right away unless I think the handling will need improvement. Two trips to the store and the bike handles good. I'll post up later about the Avon performance.

Amazing. I got an easy 14,000 miles out of the original Pilot Roads, and I don't think I'm all that easy on the tires either. I put another set right back on, and they are holding up fine.

I have near 16,000 miles on my 04'.
Rear tire Michelin OEM 7000 miles
Dunlop D205 <5000
Pirelli Strada <5000

Front Tire Michelin OEM >3500
Dunlop D205 5000
Pirelli Strada 6000 +

I wish I could get 14,000 miles on a set of tires and still ride like I do.
These last two sets were sport touring for higher mileage. I ride in mountain roads where I constantly accelerate and de-accelerate, plus the constant cornering is a left-right acceleration that the front tire has to bear the brunt of. Still, I would hope for 7000 mile on the rear tire and 9000 on the front. Not going to happen with this bike or the cruiser either. I might get 20% better milage on the VT1100C.

Well, what are you doing? Burnouts and rubber-peeling stops? You just don't rub off that much tread simply riding the bike, and (unless you're using a gumball on the track) you're almost sure to ride through the tread down the center before you use up the sides of the tire. I'm having a really hard time understanding how you could grind down a pair of Pilot Roads in 7000 miles.

Well, what are you doing? Burnouts and rubber-peeling stops? You just don't rub off that much tread simply riding the bike, and (unless you're using a gumball on the track) .

I might have to get a second opinion from Lance on whether I ride in a manner that the mileage I get is appropriate to my riding style. I'm beginning to think I'm getting what I deserve except for 3500 miles on the Michelin OEM front tire.

It's easy according to some to wear out a set of tires before 5,000 miles around here. I never spin out or come to screeching stops. The front wears down on the side and the center has very little wear. I have to replace the front because the tire is pointy more than belts showing through. The rear tire, though was wearing off much more to the chicken strips but the wear to the belts showed up in center tread as you might expect.

I heard one story (typical) of sport bike riders that stay at the Deals Gap TWO motel. This rider wears out a new set a tires each year that he comes to TN/NC to ride the Dragon. He and many other riders go back and forth all day, all week all week long.

I just added Michelin Pilot Roads to the 919 front and back -- $300 OTD installed from a local shop. If you call around and let them compete against the Internet, they often will.

I just added Michelin Pilot Roads to the 919 front and back -- $300 OTD installed from a local shop. If you call around and let them compete against the Internet, they often will.

Thanks. The internet has some good benefits and this is one. I change my tires at home both to save money and time. I paid $252 delivered for the Avons so there was no big savings there, just the satisfaction of doing it myself. I can change the tires much quicker than going through the process of getting to a shop and waiting to get it done.

...I'm beginning to think I'm getting what I deserve except for 3500 miles on the Michelin OEM front tire...
Oh, I'd say the tire gods are being generous to you Tom... :wink:

Was hoping you got a bit more out of the Pirelli tough... doesn’t leave a lot of hope for my softer Corsa III’s :lol:

And I can testify there is nary a straight road that Tom travels. I think it's the down hill turns that chew the most at the tires...log periods of nothing but alternating braking and cornering...must really heat the tires up.