Tire question

I've been riding my 700 for a year or so and not thought about this too much until I rode a friends Triumph Tiger on Saturday. My bike seems to grab at small imperfections in the road whereas his goes right over them with no problem. I was thinking that this is due to a much narrower rear tire on my bike vs a wider on his. Is this rational thinking or am I full of it?

My experience has been that the problem you describe is related to the tread pattern. My bike came with Dunlops that would track every rain groove, steel grating on bridges, or irregularity where blacktop had been stripped for repaving. This was quite distracting as I felt like I had to drive VERY slowly to control the bike. When I switched to Michelin A48/M48 tires the problem totally disappeared. Those tires are no longer available. The Michelin Macadams I use now are not as good as the 48s, but they still don't try to follow irregularities as bad as the Dunlops. Take a look at your friends tread pattern to see if it is much different than yours. Ed

Thanks!!! I need a new back tire, have a Macadam on the front and was going to get one for the rear this summer, but if it will solve this I'll be at the shop this weekend.

I've found 2 tires that will fit, one's a Macadam and the other is a Pirelli. Any idea on which would be better?

I think my next tire is going to be the Michelin Pilot Activ, you should check those out too.

195 got me a matching pair of avon roadriders from motorcycleproshops.com...they have the best price i could find with shipping and tax.....try surfing their site,,,this was tip to me from a member here and i found them to be 15-30 cheaper for any given brand and model of tires... and i compared against about five online big name discount shops....i checked a long time before settling on the avons....and was almost gonna get another make from the same folks then finally settled on the avons....seemed the avons offered everything i was after and had good reviews......good luck craig

I have a Macadam up front, would it be best to get another MAcadam for the rear or doesn't it matter?

I think it does matter. Mismatching tires isn't a good idea. Ed

Thanks, Macadam it is then.

EDIT: Just bought it! $103.99 w/ free shipping.

So I got the tire mounted and the wheel back on, but noticed a wobble when spinning the tire while the bike was on the center stand. So I loosened everything back up and reset the wheel making sure that it is on straight and still I get the wobble. I took it for a ride and it feels like I'm constantly running over bumps. Could the tire has an imperfection to it? Has anyone else had this happen before? Any ideas on how to correct it?

Your tire bead may not be seated fully. Roy

Oh, and how are the Avons?

thanks roy. I like the tires alot, in fact the ride felt better than before, without the bumps of course. It's a Michelin Macadam, i feel like I got a good deal and I've heard god tings, so hopefully it all works out. Figures about the bead, I let the dealership do one thing and this is what happens.