Michelin Pilot Road 3s...I joined the club

[CB4ME_imp]

Ordered a set this morning from Chaparral. $295 shipped.

[Cormanus]

To me Road Pilot would make more sense, but Michelin neglected to ask me.

I agree with popgun.

[specialist8]

Rear PR3 is on. I'm pleased with the upgrade so far.

Also that flat I got many miles back was due to this screw that my mechanic retrieved from the tire:

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[kennyw]

I just ordered my second set for $287 shipped from http://www.americanmototire.com

[flynrider]

My front PR3 just turned 10K miles. Looks like it'll make it to 12K or more.



My main complaint with the OEM BT-54 was that the front was bald at 6K miles. This is a definite improvement!

[kennyw]

My front PR3 just turned 10K miles. Looks like it'll make it to 12K or more.



My main complaint with the OEM BT-54 was that the front was bald at 6K miles. This is a definite improvement!

I have between 7K and 8K on my current set with a 4000 road trip coming up in 3 weeks. I think they would make the trip if I pushed it but I'd also hate to be wrong. I should go take some tread depth measurements and try to calculate how much useful life is really left.

I could also have the new set shipped to my hotel in Nebraska and install them half way through the trip.

[flynrider]

My front PR3 just turned 10K miles. Looks like it'll make it to 12K or more.



My main complaint with the OEM BT-54 was that the front was bald at 6K miles. This is a definite improvement!

I have between 7K and 8K on my current set with a 4000 road trip coming up in 3 weeks. I think they would make the trip if I pushed it but I'd also hate to be wrong. I should go take some tread depth measurements and try to calculate how much useful life is really left.

I could also have the new set shipped to my hotel in Nebraska and install them half way through the trip.

I know how you feel. I started a long road trip years ago with a rear tire that was a bit iffy. It seemed to me like it had enough to make the trip, so I went with it. On the road, I found that the tread starts to disappear faster towards the end of the tire's life. Long story short, I wasted a day of vacation riding around the middle of nowhere trying to find a replacement tire (and someone who would actually install it).

That experience left me very leery of starting a big trip without knowing for sure that the tires had enough tread to make it. Especially a trip that will be primarily across sparsely populated areas.

I'm still on my first set of PR3s, but I know that my original BT-54 front tire went from just barely showing wear bars, to completely bald in less than 1K miles. It'll probably take a set or two to get a good feel for the kind of mileage I can count on from the PR3s.

[Pterodactyl_imp]

Flyn, you are very right about tyre wear increasing exponentially as the tyre wears. But if you are about to embark on a long trip it is hard to throw away a tyre with, say, 3500kms left on it. Arrange for a replacement down route is a good idea. Just where to put it is the conundrum.

Cheers

[kmoney_imp]

My rear bt54 did this as well. It took 15000kms to get to 80% worn and then about 1600 to get it from there to bald in the middle.

Depending on pricing where you live it may be better to get one before you go. It's usually $50-70 more around here for shops to take your wheel of the bike to mount a tire vs. just bringing them a wheel off the bike, so it kinda kills any savings from running them till the end.

[Ulvetanna_imp]

My front PR3 just turned 10K miles. Looks like it'll make it to 12K or more.



My main complaint with the OEM BT-54 was that the front was bald at 6K miles. This is a definite improvement!

I have between 7K and 8K on my current set with a 4000 road trip coming up in 3 weeks. I think they would make the trip if I pushed it but I'd also hate to be wrong. I should go take some tread depth measurements and try to calculate how much useful life is really left.

I could also have the new set shipped to my hotel in Nebraska and install them half way through the trip.

I know how you feel. I started a long road trip years ago with a rear tire that was a bit iffy. It seemed to me like it had enough to make the trip, so I went with it. On the road, I found that the tread starts to disappear faster towards the end of the tire's life. Long story short, I wasted a day of vacation riding around the middle of nowhere trying to find a replacement tire (and someone who would actually install it).

That experience left me very leery of starting a big trip without knowing for sure that the tires had enough tread to make it. Especially a trip that will be primarily across sparsely populated areas.

I'm still on my first set of PR3s, but I know that my original BT-54 front tire went from just barely showing wear bars, to completely bald in less than 1K miles. It'll probably take a set or two to get a good feel for the kind of mileage I can count on from the PR3s.

+1 and well-said.

The single most important system on a motorcycle is the tire/pavement interface. Second most important is the brakes.

Tire wear out exponentially, much more quickly toward the end of their life because of the rapid buildup of heat.

I understand the idea of not wanting to spend money on new rubber if one can get a few more safe miles out of a tire, but this is a system that is not convenient; oil changes and other kinds of maintenance can be done near the due date, but to keep tire performance optimal, often we will need to change the tire sometime before it's reached the end of its useful life.

The way to find out just when the tire has reached this "end-of-life" is not to arrange for the rider to reach his/hers concurrently.

I"ve read several threads quite recently where every nearly every response is to encourage forum members to squeeze every last kilometer out of the tires. Few, other than Flynrider's above, stated that prudence is the better course.

Don't run the tires past the wear bars. Keep them at recommended pressures. Your tires and brakes are your life. They allow you to stop, turn, and go safely. Replace them before they wear out.