Where u getting them fitted RK ?
that's a better price than gettin them of ebay (only a couple o quid difference)

i need to have a front put on my bandit , would b easier if i can just ride to fitting center , ok buying off ebay have to wait 3 days for delivery tho , then have to take loose wheel n tyre  to fitting center .

The front has the same tread pattern as the rear , so looks better matched too

It's a company called Vertical Bikes in Peterlee FJ, mine get fitted tomorrow.

verticalbikes.co.uk  Tel. 0191 5867444

I called them today to book in and they told me I was misquoted, should have been £155.00 but still a saving of £85.00. That's for the sportstouring, the sports are 10 quid dearer for a pair but i've still saved £85.00 thanks to your thread mate. I'll get you a beer at the rally
                                                                                                                                                                             

Got me tyres on today n just completed the first hundred mile scrubbing so had a little time to enjoy them before sticking the bike back in the garage. They deffo feel sure footed and confidence inspiring and I'd say probably a better profile than my bridgestones so if you wanna save nearly £100 on 2 tyres they're definately worth a look. I noticed a used busa in the showroom where I got them fitted and it had these tyres on so they must be ok                                                                                                                                                                               

If you're looking for new tyres National Tyres in Barnsley I can personally "highly" recommend them, they have a "ride in" service which you will need to book, but if you can take the loose wheel they will almost always fit you in "while you wait" People travel from all over the country to have tyres fitted by Stuart or 1 of his crew All wheels are "dynamically ballanced" as part of the service I have used them for over 20 years without trouble                                                                                                                                                                              

emzed, what's dynamically balanced?                                                                                                                                                                              

Thats where the wheel is spun up to a simulated road speed and then the machine they are on tells the operator where and how much balance wieght to attatch to the wheel. As opposed to static balancing where the wheel is just spun by hand and wieights are added opposite where the "bottom" of the wheel settles until it stops in a different place each time                                                                                                                                                                             

Ah right, I thought all wheels were put on a machine these days, obviously not and i'm not sure what they did with mine today!                                                                                                                                                                               

"I have used them for over 20 years without trouble "   Here, here.  The man with the welcoming arms and slightly odd hats is spot on.  National Tyres at Barnsley are very good.  I too have been using them for around twenty years and they've never done me wrong yet and I don't believe they ever will.   Interested in knowing what tyre is liable to work with your bike, give Stuart a bell (saying this, he's technically retired now and only comes in to help when they're understaffed for whatever reason) and he'll throw you a couple of good recommendations over the phone.   Plus they'd be hard beat on price.                                                                                                                                                                             

Are you lads on commission or summat 

They sound great geoff/emzed but I'd use a set of tyres getting there lol
                                                                                                                                                                             

They probably used a machine RK if its a modern workshop. But beware of "operator error" Try to get some feedback from someone who has used the service before The "cheapest" price is not always the "best" I'm a firm believer in you get what you pay for but being a true Yorkshireman, I always make sure I get VFM (value for money) Its always worth paying a  little  more for "peace of mind" When you consider that the average "contact patch" of motorcycle tyres is little bigger than a credit card   I recommend buying the best available tyre which is "close" to your budget, not just buying the cheapest. That said we all know that we sometimes pay a percentage of the price for the "brand name" and the "mark-up" by the retailer. Stuart will make recommendations as to which tyres give best milage or grip depending on your intented usage. He fits tyres to both race and road bikes and will always try to get you what you want. Sadly he could not find me tyres for the Duke (but he knew as soon as I asked for the size over the phone, what model and make my bike was ) He fitted the tyres for me when I finally got some from America and told me where they were made and when Hope you get some good miles from your new tyres.   By the way the tyres have a coating of silicone release agent on them which is put on the mould to help stop the tyres from sticking the mould in the production process. Its this silicone on the surface and just beneath the surface which gets in whilst they are still hot in the mould, which needs to be "scrubbed off" in order to achieve maximum grip with the tyre.   I would not recommend riding round roundabouts to try to scrub tyres in   They (roundabouts) are notorios places for oily deposits regardless of which way you circulate   Find a nice quiet country road with a "level" but "rough"surface and a good series of corners and take it steady but try to use as much of the tyre as possible on both sides. Extreme angles of lean are not neccessary but gently applied power whilst cranked over will help to roughen the tyre surface and "scrub" the slippery part of the tread off.                                                                                                                                                                             

Emzed,

It was a new company so hopefully they were cheap cos they're looking for the business and not cutting corners. He did take the time to explain to me how best to safely scrub the tyres in and i've checked tonight after doing about 100 miles on a variety of roads and it looks like the shiny surface has gone except for about 10mm of chicken strips at each edge! I did most of the scrubbing by weaving in straight lines and gentle cornering so hopefully they're ready for a bit more fun or do you think a few more cautious miles are in order?

This is a brilliant thread for info - cheers chaps/chapesses... Maybe one day I'll be able to refer to it for my own needs but it's been educational for wannabes in any case                                                                                                                                                                              

It's been great for me too Wannabe but only time will tell for the tyres. The rear bridgestone only lasted 2.5k so lets see how these ronny rubovers fair
                                                                                                                                                                             

I personally recommend 200 to 250 miles before any serious "scratching" but whatever you feel comfortable with (at least 100 miles) try to avoid "hard acceleration" in the wet before 500 even on dry roads but be especially careful in the wet particularly if its a "shower" after a longish hot spell   This is when the road surface is at its most dangerous for all vehicles but motorcycles in particular !!   This is because the rain will bring the rubber depsits and oil and spilled fuel to the surface  making it like a skating rink !   Also beware the approach to road junctions, roundabouts and large filling stations and supermarkets which have a roadside entrance/exit. This post is not meant to frighten anyone but just a timely reminder of the hazards that the climatic chaos we call the British summer can have on our riding pleasure. Of course all these points are equally applicable to "braking" on new tyres too   Oh and as for being on commission   Absolutely not Just trying to recommend a safe and reliable tyre service to fellow riders                                                                                                                                                                              

I know i've asked this before but why can't manufacturers pre-scrub tyres. If they need caution for up to 500 miles that could be 'no fun' for up to 20% of the tyres life or even worse! So in reality we could only be getting 80% of our monies worth if we're lucky, seems like a rip off to me                                                                                                                                                                               

You must rag the ass off your tyres RK to shred them in 2.5K                                                                                                                                                                             

I thought the same Mick but I was reluctant to comment   I would have thought that 5000 ish was about right but I tend to be kinder to my transmission and tyres and brakes these days in the interests of frugality If I tried really hard I could probably scrub the centre off the Duke tyre in about 4000 but that would entail lots of high speed motorway miles. My rear is a 16" so it spins faster for any given speed and as a lot of modern superbikes have 16" or 17" rears these days they tend to wear faster. I could destroy a rear tyre in 3000 miles on the MZ's 16" rear but got enormous fun doing it and they were relatively cheap But at £160 each for the Duke I try to resist the temptation to wind it up. Bridgestone make a tyre with a harder compound in the centre to increase the longevity of the tyre so you get the extra grip on the sides and the mileage from the tyre. How successful this dual compound has proved I have no idea Maybe Ghostie could enlighten us                                                                                                                                                                              

Try again as post didnt appear again. Got 9K out my last Back and 10.5K out the Front on BM Have used duel compound before but didnt notice much Diferance Have to see what get out of the Prilli                                                                                                                                                                             

Thats healthy mileage Mick, a mate of mine managed something ridiculous like 18 K on his 900 Tiger but he is quite a conservative rider and rides several bikes and drives as well so the mileage accumulated over a few years. Another mate did three rear tyres on a Exup in a season (May to September) so we all have a different story to tell and with the vast range of bikes and variety of rubber available its a never ending tide of conflicting and contradictory evidence as to the life of a tyre. maybe we should start a new competition? or two? to see how how many miles we can get out of a tyre or how quick we can tear one up ?     (burnouts not counted)                                                                                                                                                                              

You're probably right about the ragging lads, first bike in 20 years so having a little fun!