Tire Life Report - Metzeler Z8 Interact

[jimgl3_imp]

cupping front tire is from two things really, low pressure and fork rebound. our rebound is not adjustable, so keeping fresh fork oil is imperative. at about 10,000 miles, so if you are changing tires at 8,000 why not go ahead and change it at the same time. you might consider a heavier oil too. most stock oil is very light.

[Pauley]

The ONLY gripe I have with the CB1100 is the tire selection; not a lot of options out there in the stock sizes. The Metzeler Z8s come in the 110-80-18 and 140-70-18. I've had the Metzeler Z8 tires on my 2013 since late 2019. I like them and will probably replace with the same. A nice improvement over the Bridgestone BT54. Noticeably grippier, turn better, and feel a lot more confidence. Definitely better in the rain. I have about 5100 miles on the set. The front is wearing out mid way between the center and edge and might make it to 6000 mi. The rear is just starting to square off and could probably push it to 8000 mi. I got a little more mileage out of the Bridgestones but I like the Metzelers better.

Pauley, have you had any issues with cupping?

Pauley, have you had any issues with cupping? I experienced bad cupping on the Dunlop D205 (not made any more) tires the bike came with. Never had problems with cupping with the Bridgestone BT54s (went through several sets) or the Metzeler Z8s I am running now. Just replaced the front Z8 with another Z8 - it made to to a little over 8k miles. The rear Z8 is now at about 6k and will probably go to 9 or 10k.

[Scotty_imp]

The BT54 front on my bike didn't last long at all. The rear is wearing satisfactorily, so I switched brands and put the Metzler Z8 on the front. It's has been on the front for almost 1000miles: it's wearing well (evenly) and I like the way it feels. I'll be putting a Z8 on the rear when it's needed. I'm still doing the stock/OE sized tire thing...

[Gus_imp]

Greetings again and thanks everyone for the comments. I have a couple of additional Z8 comments and a tech question.

I ended up riding the CB a lot less than planned this summer (I have two bikes), so the wheels just came off today, 8,100 miles The dealership was able to get Z8's in about a week, so there are no shortages in North America, as far as I can tell.

Really, the wear bars are just showing on the rear tire, but the handling went off about 300 miles ago. You "wear it to the cords" guys could probably easily get 9k out of them.

Replying to Rox, there is some cupping, front and rear, but I would call it minor, especially compared to the last 2 sets of Michelins I have put on my Triumph Sprint GT. They cupped really badly, in comparison.

I forgot to mention noise with the Z8's. On certain kinds of asphalt (especially worn) the front will make a noise just like a wheel bearing going out. I am used to noisy on road/off road tires on dual sports, but this is the first time I've heard noticeable noise from a pure street tire.

A tech question. I have never taken a wheel off of a dual sided swingarm. What performs the cush drive function on a single sided swingarm?

Ride on,

Gus

[Tev62]

Greetings again and thanks everyone for the comments. I have a couple of additional Z8 comments and a tech question.

I ended up riding the CB a lot less than planned this summer (I have two bikes), so the wheels just came off today, 8,100 miles The dealership was able to get Z8's in about a week, so there are no shortages in North America, as far as I can tell.

Really, the wear bars are just showing on the rear tire, but the handling went off about 300 miles ago. You "wear it to the cords" guys could probably easily get 9k out of them.

Replying to Rox, there is some cupping, front and rear, but I would call it minor, especially compared to the last 2 sets of Michelins I have put on my Triumph Sprint GT. They cupped really badly, in comparison.

I forgot to mention noise with the Z8's. On certain kinds of asphalt (especially worn) the front will make a noise just like a wheel bearing going out. I am used to noisy on road/off road tires on dual sports, but this is the first time I've heard noticeable noise from a pure street tire.

A tech question. I have never taken a wheel off of a dual sided swingarm. What performs the cush drive function on a single sided swingarm?

Ride on,

Gus

My EX shod with Bridgestone T31's make a similar noise on certain roads. That noise was not their with the OEM Dunlop's. But that noise is nothing like my Triumph. The Tiger 1200's are very well known for this on the standard Metzeler Tourance Next tyres, few buy them a second time round, they drone loud enough to cause a permanent headache.