Tyre choice for 961

Hi John

After the Dunlops I have fitted tyres of Bridgestone (Battlax S20 Hypersport).

You may find some more useful information in the following thread:

Tyres on 961

Raphael

Previously john_mcnicoll wrote:

I have just replaced the tyres on my bike and I'm now on my third set. Originally it was fitted with Dunlops and when they wore out I replaced with the same Dunlop type. This time I decided to replace them with Pirelli Diablo Rosso Corsa's as I was impressed with them on my other bikes. Although the handling was OK with the Dunlops and stability was good I found it slow to turn. The Diablo's have transformed this and the steering is much quicker and I prefer the overall feel. I would be interested to hear if anyone has fitted any other tyres to their bike and how they compared to the original.

Cheers, John Mc

Hi all

First of all ignore my previous message about selling my bike, as I've managed to persuade the other half that I need two bikes...right...tyre choice for me has been the most important change I made to my bike. Factory choice was Dunlop qualifier with setting 34psi and 38 rear. I remember riding the bike for first time and thought it was the worst handling bike I had ever ridden with dreadful slow steering and wallowing feeling in the rear when changing direction. A slight suspension change and tyre change to Bridgestone with 36 front and 42psi rear transormed the bike. It's still slow steering compared to a modern bike, but it holds a line beautifully and I can really crank it over on roundabouts (would not be that confident on fast corners mind).

So where Norton got 34 and 38 psi from I do not know. I can't believe I'm the only person who has noticed this.

regards Richard

Thankfully there is no such thing in todays world as bad tyres, I think it's all down to personal preference/riding style. As previously stated in another thread I now have Bridgestone S20s (using 36/42 psi) fitted and I am really happy with them and Ihave much more confidence in them than in the Dunlops. That said I have been using Bridgestones for the last 10 years or so.

Richard - Good to hear that you have managed to convince the other half that a second bike is vital.

Dave

I had Dunlop Qualifiers on my Harley XR1200x as well as now on my 961. I've got no real issues with them apart from the fact that they seem to wear relatively quickly.

When I replace them I'll probably go for either Dunlop Roadsmarts or Bridgestone's T30 sports touring tyre as either are good enough for the riding I'll be doing. As for pressures - After reading the previous posts I may well try running 36/42 combo rather than the 34/38 and see what, if any difference I can feel.

I have replaced my qualifiers with Dunlop roadsmarts which look the same but have more tread. They ride just the same to me , but I am not Rossi just an oldie ! Took me ages to decide but I think I have got it right.

Clive Wilis

I also think tyre pressures play a big roll. When I ran the dunlops at 34/38 I was very very careful to check the tyre pressures before every ride as the loss of even 1 psi made the steering noticably heavier and tubed tyres do tend to lose pressure quicker than tubeless.

I am not positive on the Sport but on the SE,SFand CR the suspension is fully adjustable and changing the rear ride height will have a major effect for those who want quicker steering with a certain tire combination!

Bob

I can report that the rear ride height is also adjustable on the Sport model. I've just reduced the preload on my Sport's forks by one ring as I wasn't using as much of the travel on the front end as I wanted to.

This change will make the bike slightly more 'Pointy' and I always try and stick to the 'Make one change at a time' school of thought when it comes to suspension adjustment. I suspect that this will have a similar effect to raising the rear ride height so I'll be interested to hear how anyone gets on with this.

Lee sounds like a good plan!

Has anyone tried Dunlop Roadsmart 2s at all? If so what are your impressions?

Previously john_mcnicoll wrote:

Previously raphael_vonaesch wrote:

Hi John

After the Dunlops I have fitted tyres of Bridgestone (Battlax S20 Hypersport).

You may find some more useful information in the following thread:

Tyres on 961

Raphael

Hi Raphael, The Bridgestone S20 is another option I considered but I have had the Pirelli's on other bikes for the last few years so I went with them. How do you find the Bridgestone's do you prefer them to the originals?

John Mc

Hi John

Let me say it like this: I again just let fit a new Bridgestone at the rear wheel for this season...

Raphael

Previously lee_blackburn wrote:

Has anyone tried Dunlop Roadsmart 2s at all? If so what are your impressions?

Lee, have you tried your new adjustment yet?

Not yet Bob. The bike's having its first service at present. I'll let you know more once I get the bike back. Plus it'll have its louder pipes fitted. Yum!

Previously lee_blackburn wrote:

Not yet Bob. The bike's having its first service at present. I'll let you know more once I get the bike back. Plus it'll have its louder pipes fitted. Yum!

You will have a much better bike after the first service and louder pipes really make it great!

Previously lee_blackburn wrote:

Not yet Bob. The bike's having its first service at present. I'll let you know more once I get the bike back. Plus it'll have its louder pipes fitted. Yum!

You are going to love the pipes, different bike!

Hi all, I took delivery of my 961 SF on 9th April and I'm really loving the bike so far. It's due for its first service now and I'm going to have the de-cat pipes and short after market system fitted. Got a bit of a shock the other day when I was caught out by a bit of wet weather on my return from a long ride. The handling of the bike is impeccable in the dry and the Dunlop Qualifiers worked well in the wet as well. The only down side was the state of the bike which had only done 30 miles or so in light rain! Took ages to clean it up and it's still not fully clean now. Hopefully the picture will come out so you can see what I mean. Any similar experiences out there?

Regards, Paul

Hi John, thanks for that. I may investigate the possibility of a longer front mudguard but I'm loathed to do anything to detract from its looks. I'm certainly not going add to the existing carbon fibre item! It's a shame that good looks can't go with practicality all the time! Has anyone considered a guard or protection grille that could go between the front down tubes? Might stop the stones and other shite going over the connector at the front of the crank case? I also agree with you that this short mudguard theme is now a trend with most modern bikes. Still, if I wanted a practical touring machine, I would have bought one!

Kind regards,

Paul

If it's any consolation Paul all the bikes I've owned in the past 15 or so years have had inadequate mudguard protection, regardless of brand. I've not considered placing something between the down tubes though. Not a bad idea though I'm unsure how one would go about it. Thoughts anyone?

Don't forget it is air/oil cooled, anything that might lessen the airflow round the cylinders may not be such a good idea. Just a thought.

Very true David.

Just got mine back from having its first service complete with louder pea-shooters fitted. It sounds V nice now. I can't wait to take it for a spin!

Hi Lee,

Mine is due in next week! Do they make a charge for the first service?

Kind regards, Paul

Previously lee_blackburn wrote:

Very true David.

Just got mine back from having its first service complete with louder pea-shooters fitted. It sounds V nice now. I can't wait to take it for a spin!

Paul

Yes they do but I've yet to receive my bill so I can't tell you what the cost was.

Hi Paul,

I paid about 470GBP 2 years ago, but that was including a new rear tyre - don't ask - so probably about 350

Thank you David and Lee, I'll let you know what happens!

Regards, Paul

Previously John McNicoll wrote:

Previously Paul Watkins wrote:

Thank you David and Lee, I'll let you know what happens!

Regards, Paul

Hi Paul, my first service cost £100 but that was over 3 years ago. They even came and serviced it in my garage at no extra cost but they probably don't offer that now!

Cheers, John Mc

I had my first service carried out at the factory a few weeks ago, the cost is £200.

Cheers Andy

Hi Andy,

Thanks for that. Gone are the days of a free first service!

Cheers, Paul