Pirelli vs. Bridgestone, what's your opinion?

FlyingTigresse

FlyingTigresse

New Member
I'm a real newbie to the world of sport bikes and track days, so good advice is needed and appreciated!

I ride a 2003 Kawi ZX-6R, and bought the bike about 4 months ago. It's time to replace the tires. I've heard great things about Diablo Corsa IIIs and BTO 16s. I've taken the bike to the track a few times this summer and fall, and will probably ride the bike a FEW times during the winter. I live in the Pacific NW and anticipate lots of wet roads this winter.

I'm an aggressive beginner at the track, but I'm not tearing up the tread as much as you faster riders. The hope is to use the same tires at the track the first few sessions next spring.

Any suggestions? Thanks.
 
J

JVance

Member
Previous to ths year I ran nothing but Pirelli's. This year I spent most of the year racing and ran the Stones. I am not sure the BT016's are what you want for the track. I think the BT003 RS are the street/track tire but I could be wrong. Both are great tires but if you are going to be doing track days with NESBA there is probably not a better deal out there than buying them at the track from whoever the tire guy is in your region. The Pirellis rock, NESBA prices are great and include mounting and balancing. So I say go with the Pirelli's.

John
#607A
 
soxxerms

soxxerms

New Member
i ran the stone's 002 rs and had slip problems on 2 different tires. ( back only ) but im going to pirelli's

stone's 002 great for the street i have better results on the street than track.

just my .02
:dunno:
 
snikwad

snikwad

New Member
I run pirellis.
But I've heard nothing but good things about them 002 stones, except for the previous post.

With pirellis, the only thing I've ever heard anyone say bad about them is that they wear out slightly quicker than most.

I love pirellis and I doubt I'll ever run anything else.
But again, they say those 002s are the sh1t, especially the fronts.
 
S

stevemcc

New Member
for the type of riding you are going to be doing, the pilot powers would be your best bet, in my opinion. great wet weather tire, great handler and great wear. currently, i run pirelli dragons, doing trackdays. have run the super corsa pros', on my 07 600rr, work great too, but cost more. about 50.00 more. just about any current tire out there would be way better than most people in general.
 
snikwad

snikwad

New Member
The biggest difference I've seen between the brands besides grip. Is feel.

For example, michelins have a sharp pointy profile, so when you lean over it feels like it wasn't to go all the way down, to knee draggin, no middle ground. They're slips and slides tend to come suddenly, one minite you're like ooo these things are grippy, the next you're on your ass. Just ask anyone who's fallen while leaning on michelins.

Pirellis/metzlers to me feel perfect, they go exactly where you want, give great feedback, so you know they're squirming, if they are or if they're ready to grip, slips and slides come on very progressively.

B-stones to me feel almost too flat, like they love half leans, and feel on edge when cranked over. Great feedback tho, similar to michelin. But I understand their newer tires have a different shape, and hence handle and turn in differently. But I've never tried those, so I can't say.

Dunlops, to me, handling is good, excellent thread wear, but man they are squirmy, they don't slip away completely, or atleast, never did with me, but they never seemed comfortable, or totally hooked up, almost as if they're complaining. That's why I can't run em, I feel nervous on em, and not confident at all.
 
FrostyFire

FrostyFire

New Member
The BT016s came stock on my 750. I've heard that the stock ones versus the retail version were different, (retails are better) something to do with them not being completely ready when Suzuki needed them. Anyway they were great as a street tire but didn't last very long, they were great for the first 1800 miles they were great, but the last thousand miles they weren't very good, showing wear bars on the fronts already. A lot of people on the gixxer forum are liking them for the track though, but I still consider them to be a street tire than a track day tire.
 
snikwad

snikwad

New Member
Aren't those bt016s the dual compound tires. With 5 layers on the rear, and 3 on the front?

also I've been told that a LOT of oe tires are slightly different from the same model, off the shelf.

I know the supercorsa dragons that come on the 675 and the ducatis are different from the retail ones, they even carry a slightly different part #.

Same with the dunlop qualifiers, and the old diablos.

Usually they say the OE spec one is a harder compound for more longevity.
 
ronhix

ronhix

New Member
Pirelli, Michelin, Dunlop and Bridgestones all make very good tires...especially at "mere mortals" pace. They all have plenty of outright grip, but they all have their own "feel".

I run the Pirelli. Pirelli supports NESBA and I like to support those who support us.

In addition, I prefer the way the Pirelli feel and am comfortable running them to the cords.

For most track day folks, I would recommend the DCIII's. If you are running a strong A group pace, graduate to the Diablo Supercorsa and/or Slicks.

If you are NOT running "race" pace, you will not be able to keep a true "race" tire in the optimum operating temperature range. As a result, the tire will often run too cold and you will have poor grip and poor longevity with a race tire.
 
FlyingTigresse

FlyingTigresse

New Member
I've heard the same thing -- BTO16s make better street tires than track tires. Fun factoid for ya -- many control riders at Pacific Raceways say they have picked up far too many beginners (and some "I"s) crashing with the Pilot Powers. Don't know if it's this particular track or the sharp, pointy profile mentioned by Snikwad. BTW, Snik, I think you're right about the dual compound feature on the BTO16s. I think they'll hold alright on the street during the friggin' northwest winter. Everyone's hot on the Pirellis, so I think I'll run those at the track next spring. :cool:
 
jimgl3

jimgl3

Member
of course Robert Jensen is setting new track records on Michelins at about 1/2 the tracks in the country... not that i like Michelins, i don't
 
soxxerms

soxxerms

New Member
ronhix;21904 wrote: Pirelli, Michelin, Dunlop and Bridgestones all make very good tires...especially at "mere mortals" pace. They all have plenty of outright grip, but they all have their own "feel".

I run the Pirelli. Pirelli supports NESBA and I like to support those who support us.

In addition, I prefer the way the Pirelli feel and am comfortable running them to the cords.

For most track day folks, I would recommend the DCIII's. If you are running a strong A group pace, graduate to the Diablo Supercorsa and/or Slicks.

If you are NOT running "race" pace, you will not be able to keep a true "race" tire in the optimum operating temperature range. As a result, the tire will often run too cold and you will have poor grip and poor longevity with a race tire.
Click to expand...

would this be a reason to watch you times ? and check temps on your tires to insure you have them were they need to be to max out preformance ?
 
riddler

riddler

New Member
I ran Michelin 2 CTs all year and loved them. Also, I took my last set off and put them on my street bike and love them there too (not too many miles on them on the street so I don't know about their street longevity, but I have an endless stream of track take offs so I don't worry about it!). On the street it seems hard to differentiate, but I got caught in a massive downpour and they seemed pretty confidence inspiring at that time.

I switched to Pirellis (DCIIIs) for my last weekend at Putnam cause I hear good things about them and wanted to support our trackside vendor. Didn't get the chance to form an opinion though... threw the bike down heading into turn 8... sticky calipers make it impossible to be smooth on the brakes! Couldn't get it slowed, then as I squeezed harder... all my braking came at once... (Sorry for the red flag Sat afternoon guys). :doh:

The only experience I had on the Pirellis was the difficulty of scrubbing them in and bringing them up to temp on probably the coldest track temp I have ever rode (Sat morn). Is that more a function of the track temp, or should I have dropped pressure a little more??? I think it is the temp cause everyone seemed to be struggling Sat morn, but I was just curious if anyone had an opinion of Pirelli vs Mich on grip while scrubbing in? They seemed to be coming on strong so I am not soured on them, but I just wanted to know if the grip of brand new DCIIIs can be especially tricky?

Oh and sorry if this is a thread jack... :eek:
 
ronhix

ronhix

New Member
riddler;22675 wrote: but I was just curious if anyone had an opinion of Pirelli vs Mich on grip while scrubbing in?
Click to expand...
I NEVER scrub in Pirelli's. Not sure what other guys do on other brands. I just put them on the warmers, set the pressures once they get hot, and then go straight out there and run them at 100%.

This is kind of a funny pic. You can see the label still on the front tire during the first lap of the race...no scrubbing in at all.

2008-bhf02-0145.jpg
 
snikwad

snikwad

New Member
ive been told that michelins dont need any scrubbing in because they dont come with any of that "grease" on them.
 
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