Pedro Posted July 24, 2022 Share Posted July 24, 2022 I´ve used the Heidenau K60 on all Morocco trips before, they're not a tire you want when going fast on tarmac, it's a very hard carcass tire with a very hard rubber compound, that makes them last immensely but also makes them shit in the wet, and not a performance tire. However, what I like about them is that they're as tough as it gets regarding protecting the wheels from rocks and really nasty potholes, and they're better offroad than the lovely TKC70 I have been using and love for the road. I really dislike how noisy they are, too. Looking for an alternative I'm mostly looking for something quieter with adequate traction offroad, hard and tough so it takes a beating while relatively safe on tarmac so no proper knobbies as the majority of use is going to be tarmac. I am discarding soft stuff like the Karoo since I imagine that by the time I'm actually using them for a little dirt they'll be squared off and gone. Was about to order a set of MotoZ Tractionator GPS since they're supposedly way quieter and a match of better than the Heidenaus at everything else, but they're out of stock for my sizes and nobody knows when they're going to be available. Next suggestion is Mitas E07+, they're a harder carcass harder compound than the normal EO7 but I've got no experience with them. The rear tire hasn't got a center strip so probably better traction in softer terrain. Any suggestions? The bike is obviously my GS with 170/60R17 at the rear. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
boboneleg Posted July 24, 2022 Share Posted July 24, 2022 Pirelli STR ? They are the O/E tyre on the Tenere 700 and the Desert Sled. My Tenere had 8,000 miles on it when I sold it and there was still some life, the Sled has 5,200 miles and will probably need replacing in 1,000 miles. They are a great road tyre , decent grip and will do a job on gravel. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pedro Posted July 24, 2022 Author Share Posted July 24, 2022 10 minutes ago, boboneleg said: Pirelli STR ? They are the O/E tyre on the Tenere 700 and the Desert Sled. My Tenere had 8,000 miles on it when I sold it and there was still some life, the Sled has 5,200 miles and will probably need replacing in 1,000 miles. They are a great road tyre , decent grip and will do a job on gravel. I never really looked into those, I rode an Aprilia Tuareg with them on, they didn't feel very offroady in offroad, felt soft too with very shallow thread depth and I didn't feel like they'd be much use on a heavy bike after a couple thousand kms in hot tarmac. My TKC70 would be my preferred choice but they would be no use in sandy places for traction and they're fragile when half worn, I can see little gauges after riding some rocky paths, I'm thinking these will be similar. I don't need them to last more than 6 or 7000km, but don't want the last couple of kms to be something that's on it's last legs. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pedro Posted July 24, 2022 Author Share Posted July 24, 2022 This is a TKC70, with some use, after a short bit of rocky roads, don’t know if you can see it but being a soft tire for good road use it gets easily damaged by jagged rocks in hot weather I’m happy with that in Portugal but not in Morocco Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sir Fallsalot Posted July 24, 2022 Share Posted July 24, 2022 You can get a Dakar version of the Mitas E07 supposed to be tougher tyre https://www.mitas.co.uk/product/e-07/ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pedro Posted July 24, 2022 Author Share Posted July 24, 2022 1 minute ago, Sir Fallsalot said: You can get a Dakar version of the Mitas E07 supposed to be tougher tyre https://www.mitas.co.uk/product/e-07/ That’s exactly what I refered to in my first post, but I don’t know anyone that can tell me how confortable they are on road, and to be honest I don’t put mutch vallue on american’s opinions about this issue, and that’s all I find on youtube. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sir Fallsalot Posted July 24, 2022 Share Posted July 24, 2022 2 minutes ago, Pedro said: That’s exactly what I refered to in my first post, but I don’t know anyone that can tell me how confortable they are on road, and to be honest I don’t put mutch vallue on american’s opinions about this issue, and that’s all I find on youtube. I cant remember if I've ever used them i'm sure i have so cant comment on them myself, i was just saying there three different models of this tyre E07, E07+ and E07+ Dakar. Just to make your choice easier 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pedro Posted July 24, 2022 Author Share Posted July 24, 2022 1 minute ago, Sir Fallsalot said: I cant remember if I've ever used them i'm sure i have so cant comment on them myself, i was just saying there three different models of this tyre E07, E07+ and E07+ Dakar. Just to make your choice easier I thought the + and the Dakar were the same. Great… Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
yen_powell Posted July 24, 2022 Share Posted July 24, 2022 I did a search and was surprised to see that you can still get Michelin Desert tyres. I would buy a back one again, but would opt for something different on the front. The front stopped me going round corners on the road till it was half worn, it had way too aggressive a tread pattern. But I ran them at about 12-15psi and they didn't squish, even with the weight of all my luggage. They were brilliant off road. The front was a totally different shape after 3,000 miles, the rear was still doing its job though. Further searching shows that they only do 18 and 21 inch now. But a few choices on link below for other road legal tyres. https://twotyres.co.uk/road-legal-enduro-tyres-guide/ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pedro Posted July 24, 2022 Author Share Posted July 24, 2022 2 hours ago, yen_powell said: I did a search and was surprised to see that you can still get Michelin Desert tyres. I would buy a back one again, but would opt for something different on the front. The front stopped me going round corners on the road till it was half worn, it had way too aggressive a tread pattern. But I ran them at about 12-15psi and they didn't squish, even with the weight of all my luggage. They were brilliant off road. The front was a totally different shape after 3,000 miles, the rear was still doing its job though. Further searching shows that they only do 18 and 21 inch now. But a few choices on link below for other road legal tyres. https://twotyres.co.uk/road-legal-enduro-tyres-guide/ A Desert is not something I’m happy riding on for 8000km, though, Ian. They’re the definition of a desert racer with noise to go with that. No good having the best traction for those hipothetical 20km of sand if I fall over 5 times getting there. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pedro Posted July 24, 2022 Author Share Posted July 24, 2022 39 minutes ago, Marcel said: I'll be watching..... One thing I can't stand is tire noise... I can and did, but don't really want to. However, the worst tyre I had for tire noise was the original tire that came with my GS, the Michelin Anakee 3, it's made in trail sizes but its a road tire, it's complete shit though. At least with the Heidenau K60 the road noise was a trade with a tough as nails tire that lasts 10000 miles, with the anakee 3 it was all complete shit! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sir Fallsalot Posted July 24, 2022 Share Posted July 24, 2022 I'm running the TXC70 rocks on my Africa twin great tyre on the road not done any off road through so no comment on that again https://www.continental-tires.com/motorcycle/tires/motorcycle-tires/off-road-enduro/tkc-70-rocks Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pedro Posted July 24, 2022 Author Share Posted July 24, 2022 1 minute ago, Sir Fallsalot said: I'm running the TXC70 rocks on my Africa twin great tyre on the road not done any off road through so no comment on that again https://www.continental-tires.com/motorcycle/tires/motorcycle-tires/off-road-enduro/tkc-70-rocks From what I've read they ride pretty much similar to the tire I have been using for two or three changes now on my bike, which is the normal TKC70. All that's different is that mine has got a continuous center band in the read tire instead of the little gaps you have in yours, and that translates to a little less traction offroad and a little more tire life overall. They're great tires, my absolute favourite road tire ever and I love them, but a little too soft for killer rocks and I'm either going to go with those or something harder and rock proof. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
boboneleg Posted July 24, 2022 Share Posted July 24, 2022 On tyre noise, if it isn't making a noise it's a fucking gay tyre 4 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pedro Posted July 24, 2022 Author Share Posted July 24, 2022 4 minutes ago, boboneleg said: On tyre noise, if it isn't making a noise it's a fucking gay tyre 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pedro Posted July 24, 2022 Author Share Posted July 24, 2022 If whatever tire I get doesn't make a noise I'll stick a whistle to the front forks, @boboneleg, can´t have a gay tire on my way South! 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pedro Posted July 24, 2022 Author Share Posted July 24, 2022 I'm ordering the E07 + Dakar tomorrow, calling a guy first to see if he managed to get the MotoZ or not, probably not, and then ordering. I'm going to like getting some less gay tires back on my bike. Will also get a rear shock plastic protector, and see if that fits, my bike runs a little taller than normal and as such there's less clearance between the tire and swing arm than on stock bikes. I'll also buy a leg's worth of surf suit and make a neoprene suit for the shock, just in case the plastic protector doesn't work with the more chunky tire. Game on for rocky roads and sliding on roundabouts! All this is just for fitting in mid September, but products have been failing so I'd rather have stuff ready than rushing around last minute. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pedro Posted July 25, 2022 Author Share Posted July 25, 2022 Ordered a set of E07+ Dakar, ordered them online despite my dislike for online shops, but the Mitas importer said they didn't have a front and didn't know if they'd get one before September. To top it up they were 50€ more expensive on the rear tire alone, let's see if the online stock is true. The normal E07 is apparently a very good tire but not available for my sizes, the E07+ is supposedly nice but some people don't get much miles out of them, I like the comfort of having a really resistant tire to protect my wheels so there's that. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
boboneleg Posted July 25, 2022 Share Posted July 25, 2022 14 minutes ago, Pedro said: Ordered a set of E07+ Dakar, ordered them online despite my dislike for online shops, but the Mitas importer said they didn't have a front and didn't know if they'd get one before September. To top it up they were 50€ more expensive on the rear tire alone, let's see if the online stock is true. The normal E07 is apparently a very good tire but not available for my sizes, the E07+ is supposedly nice but some people don't get much miles out of them, I like the comfort of having a really resistant tire to protect my wheels so there's that. Not sure about the E07+ Dakar but the E09 Dakar's are notoriously a bastard to fit and worse to remove. I've had to saw one off a mates bike before now 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pedro Posted July 25, 2022 Author Share Posted July 25, 2022 1 minute ago, boboneleg said: Not sure about the E07+ Dakar but the E09 Dakar's are notoriously a bastard to fit and worse to remove. I've had to saw one off a mates bike before now As long as they seal properly, I'll get a machine to fit them so not too worried. Being really hard is what attracts me to them as the chances of problems go way down. Mustn't be harder than the Heidenau K60 I used before. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sir Fallsalot Posted July 25, 2022 Share Posted July 25, 2022 4 minutes ago, boboneleg said: Not sure about the E07+ Dakar but the E09 Dakar's are notoriously a bastard to fit and worse to remove. I've had to saw one off a mates bike before now Your not doing it right Bob LOL Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sir Fallsalot Posted July 25, 2022 Share Posted July 25, 2022 23 minutes ago, Pedro said: Ordered a set of E07+ Dakar, ordered them online despite my dislike for online shops, but the Mitas importer said they didn't have a front and didn't know if they'd get one before September. To top it up they were 50€ more expensive on the rear tire alone, let's see if the online stock is true. The normal E07 is apparently a very good tire but not available for my sizes, the E07+ is supposedly nice but some people don't get much miles out of them, I like the comfort of having a really resistant tire to protect my wheels so there's that. The normal E07 front is noisy as hell and the mountains will erode away before they wear out so your stuck with the noise forever, i gave the one i was using away Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pedro Posted July 25, 2022 Author Share Posted July 25, 2022 Were you both waiting for me to order them before coming up with defects? 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sir Fallsalot Posted July 25, 2022 Share Posted July 25, 2022 19 minutes ago, Pedro said: Were you both waiting for me to order them before coming up with defects? You said you only ordered the rear E07+ that's fine its just the old E-07 front i found noisy Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pedro Posted July 25, 2022 Author Share Posted July 25, 2022 37 minutes ago, Sir Fallsalot said: You said you only ordered the rear E07+ that's fine its just the old E-07 front i found noisy Ordered both the E07+ Dakar front and rear. I'm curious to try them now, as people comment it's way less noisy than the K60, which I found noisy. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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