1000th tire thread. E07's vs. the new TKC70

[Scott Williams]

Yeah, a lot has been written, but maybe not specifically for me. For reasons known only to me, aften reading tons of posts, I will replace my original Battlewings with either of the above. Would some of you more experienced riders mind helping me with this choice? I respect if you like something else, but hey we don't all eat the same food or like the same women. (Mine is the best, though). We ride the 2014 S10 mostly 2-up on "paved" third world tarmac, macadem, chip and seal, lousy concrete, and other s---ty types that they call pavement here in HN. The scenery, however, is terrific. We ride only in the dry season, encountering dry loose sand and loose gravel sometimes on the highways, also loose gravel and loose round stone when pulling off the primary road for food, gas, rest or a roadside pee. The Original Battlewings, God love 'em, have given me no trouble, but are not what I call confidence-inspiring, having felt them slip a few times. Hell, some of you may even tell me to keep them and hone my skills! After all, I now have 15,000km and they have some tread left. I mostly ride 100kph with a nudge up to 130 2 or 3 times during a 5 hr. ride so I can feel alive. All on "pavement". might add here that i am 73 and don't want to hit the ground again. I might have to hang it up if I do. I for sure will lose the missus. So here I am...a 90/10 rider wanting some more bite than the 90/10 Tourances, Dunlop, Anakees, etc. , but with decent dry road handling and off-road grip. No Heidi's, please. Or TKC80’s. Or Shinkos. No disrespect. . Just the two above. Am hoping my more-conservative style would get me another 15,000 km. on the next set. Thanks guys. Much appreciated! C'mon down. Scott

 

[Rasher]

I would guess the more modern high tech tkc70 is the one. Should outperform the ancient bw's on and off road.

 

[squarebore]

Not sure about the wear yet but my TKC70s have performed really well on the road and off. Did some track work last week and they were solid and gripped well all the way to the edge. The best thing about them is the wet weather grip, outstanding.

 

[yamabob]

I really like the handling of the TKC70's. The back is wearing fine, but my front is cupping and wearing very bad at only 3300 miles. I'm now looking for a suitable replacement. I won't be buying them again. But I loved the handling up until the wear started.

 

[Scott Williams]

Thanks guys. . Any ideas behind tne front tire cupping? I read one post where a Conti rep suggested the RS1200 was the cause, over on the ADV board. This is about the fifth or sixth time I nave heard the cupping or uneven wearing comment on the 70 front. Conti has taken a few back. Makes me a bit wary. Living in Honduras, it would be financially insane for me to return a tire to a US supplier. Would surely buy them if I could feel more confident and/or had a dealer nearby.
Sorry I created this post twice. Damn internet down here. Comes and goes..

 

[tomatocity]

Low tire pressure is the usual culprit.

 

[Checkswrecks]

I've got the TKC70s and they are wearing OK so far. I do keep close watch on the pressures and only have a couple thousand on them so far. Unfortunately, there are what seem to be more people than expected who complain about the from cupping.


I have yet to hear anybody who does not like the Mitas tires, including in use like you describe, and those will be my next set.

 

[Stoned]

I have 3k miles on TKC70 s and the front is cupped badly. I am religous about tire pressures and check regularly. They have handled great, on and off-road, but I am not sure how long the front is going to be usable.
The rear is wearing fine. I run 40 in the rear, and 36 in the front and ride solo. Maybe that is not enough.

 

[tomatocity]

Too many examples to be just tire pressure. The Mitas E07 is looking better.

 

[escapefjrtist]

I've got about 3600 miles on a set of TKC70s. Pressures have been religiously maintained at 38 front and 40 rear, most of the miles were put on during a trip to Bella Coola and Hyder in July.

Overall, I'm very pleased with the performance of the tires. Wet grip is outstanding, cornering is very neutral and holds a line once set. Dirt road grip is excellent and very confidence inspiring, can't comment on mud or sand performance.

Rear tire is half gone, so I say it'll go 6 - 7K pretty easy. Front tire is wearing better, maybe a third gone but...the cupping is there. It began about 3K and has gotten steadily worse since then. I've recently increased front pressure to 40 and that seems to have slowed down the cupping, we'll see. If it continues then I'll run the front until I can't stand it and then find a replacement. Doubt it will be another TKC70 unless higher pressures can control the cupping. Rear tire is definitely a do-over.

--G

 

[Scott Williams]

I want to thank all of you guys who helped me out with this. After learning as much as Possible here, I went over on the ADV board and learned a bit more. Some of tne tires out now are winning people over and able to do a lot more than just road, or just dirt. For my specific needs, with an eight month dry season and lots of loose gravel, dirt and sand on some roads, plus potholes, half-finished roads, etc. , i almost went with the TKC70's, but want to give them some more time to prove themselves. So , replacing the original Battlewings this fall will be a Mitas E07 rear and a TKC80 front. Lots of good reports on these two tires and I think I will be nappy on tne pavement with my more conservative riding style. Thanks again. I really appreciated reading your posts.
Cheers,
Scott

 

[caillou]

Regarding cupping, the TKC80 in front will be worse than TKC70 (I tried both).
So if cupping is an issue for you (it is not for me), beware...

 

[Scott Williams]

Calilou,
Thanks for the post. I will pay attention to that. I have never experienced cupping on the BW's at 33f/42r. However, for the vast amount of TKC80's out there compared to the limited amount of TKC70's, I am seeing too many vibration and cupping complaints for the 70 in direct comparison to the 80's. A few people posted that the cupping issue is low air pressure. I plan to run 37 or 38 lbs. in the 80 front. Riders who have done so report decent grip on pavement....both wet and dry, lots better grip than the BW's off road, and no cupping. This is on big adventure bikes. So, I appreciate your report....just have to go with my head on this one. Will be watching the air pressure closely, as well as the tread. Thanks again. I very much appreciate your feedback.

 

[Scott Williams]

Found this from Dunlop:

There are steps that can be taken to minimize cupping and uneven wear on a motorcycle:
Maintain your motorcycle and particularly your front forks and suspension.
Avoid hard braking whenever possible. Braking causes the tire to grab and
wear in one direction. When braking is applied to the front tire, the load transfer
over-flexes the tire and increases the tendency for cupping and uneven wear.
Maintain your tire pressures. Underinflation or overinflation in motorcycle
tires are significant causes of cupping and uneven wear, particularly in
association with hard braking and/or trailer use.

 

[RidinandFishin]

Which do you prefer now, TKC70 or E-07?

Thanks

I've got the TKC70s and they are wearing OK so far. I do keep close watch on the pressures and only have a couple thousand on them so far. Unfortunately, there are what seem to be more people than expected who complain about the from cupping.


I have yet to hear anybody who does not like the Mitas tires, including in use like you describe, and those will be my next set.

 

[Checkswrecks]

Which do you prefer now, TKC70 or E-07?

Thanks

I've run both the TKC70 and E07 and am just about to replace a set of E07s. The Dunlop TKC70s had the same cupping problem that so many others write about and I was glad when they were gone. I really was thinking to try something new and different and looked into all sorts of options. In the end, it's funny you ask because, the FedEx guy came by just a couple of hours ago to drop off the fresh set of tires. They are another set of E07s.


On the others -


I absolutely hated the Anakee 3 for the howling which got worse as they wore, loss of grip off of pavement (especially sand), and being able to ride off the shoulder of the tire in fast corners. In normal handling they were great and lasted for 17,000 miles.


The Mitas MC30 has good write-ups but people don't seem to get the miles I want for commuting. They may work for you though.


Avon has two tires that I considered and and I almost bought the Trailrider to try something different. There are just too many reports that they don't last long at high speed in hotter places (DC highways in summer) or when playing sport bike. If lots of hot highway miles and fast corners aren't part of your thinking, you might check into them. The Avon TrekRider is more dirt oriented than you probably would want.

 

[RidinandFishin]

Thanks for the reply. I just ordered the E-07.

 

[tomatocity]

I purchase my tires from a local dealership. We keep a set of tires on their rack. If they sell that set they order another for stock. Also have them mounted at the dealership. I could probably save a couple dollars by purchasing and mounting the tires myself but... I'm lazy and don't want to buy a tire machine and balancer.