OK - for those of us who are not sponsored or winning contingency money (yet) for tires ... who has the best deal on track-oriented/racing tires? Bonus question: Which manufacturer (in your opinion) has the best all around selection of tires for multiple applications (street riding, track days, racing, full wet). Pirelli? Michelin? Bridgestone? Dunlop? Thanks for the input!
Try Street & Competition they have a racers discount and have a good selection of tires. Here's the link : Street & Comp
Tires Street & track days- B-stones Superstock- B-stones or Pirelli's/Metzeler Rains- Bridgestone are the Best, ask around Full slicks- IMHO Pirellis, more about your style & feel contact "Stickboy" here for your B-stone racing needs; & the 'stones are good on price. parts411 or buymoto.com(s) are pretty good If it matters to you Michelin is a French company.
Tires I talked to my local guy that is great on tires, he can get street & DOT's (sorry, NO SLICKS) of 'stones, 'slops, Mickeys, & Pir/Metz if you can wait a few days, i.e. order in advance. He is probably cheaper than your local Big 4 shop. Avon's too, I think. e-mail him [email protected] or 863-686-9391. Won't hurt to price check him.
Thanks for the info - I'll definitely check it out. FYI ... I just ordered a set of BT-014's for my '02 GSX-R600 from Chaparral (they have ads in most motorcycle mags) for $199.71 shipped (they have a package deal for a set right now)! Figured those would be good for basic "track day" use ... I'm looking into the BT-002's for race days. What about rain tires? Anyone know where to get those cheap? I'd imagine buying rain tires from the tire guy at the track while it's raining is not the best situation for the buyer.
Rain tires You'd be surprised that there is no price gouging on rains at the track. Racers are a fickle bunch & loyalty is key. CMP, late August, '04, SE region, a tropical storm was coming through (Gaston). The vendors did sell out of the rains they had, but the price did not budge. The Bridgestone guy (Stickboy) will even swap back your 'dry's ' if you bought the rains from him for no charge. The Michelin guy, Buzz, said that on the straights, slicks displace water just like rains, just be very careful in the corners. It must be true because the guy I'd been racing all season went out on Mich slicks, & had a tinted visor (during the rain!), I had a rain front & DOT rear, & he beat me badly. If you can afford to buy rains, do it! Do it when you have the $$. They are good for more than one race; how you store them is the key. Ask your brand's tire guy about that. I got a rain front for $0 because the guy had used it & thought it was 'done'. I raced on it & it gripped better than my DOT rear. Rain tires are 'Race Only', & B-stones are the best, just ask around. Stickboy= DB Motorsports can send you a set; they're priced about like 002's I think. They'll get torn up in drying conditions. Rains are made for when there is water on the track. Stick can answer any other ??'s The tire guy I mentioned is 'Bryan', Sensei Performance is the shop name.
Re: Rain tires The BT-014's are a great street and track day tire. I just picked up a set of good used rains for $50. They can be found. I set of cheap used rains are better in the rain than a new set of DOTS. I won a race at Barbers two years ago in the rain while riding slicks on an FZR400. Its not advisable though. I dont buy the "slicks disperse water on the straights" either. I got the bike to spin up in 3rd gear while straight up and down where there was a river crossing the track. This was on a lowly 400 pushing maybe 60hp . . . Maybe rains would have spun up too, but I doubt it.
Thanks for the info! This is my first year that I'm going to make the leap from the occasional track days to getting into regional WERA competition ... I'm excited. I'm not going to be able to do all of the North Central events, but I will get to as many as I can. Tires, of course, will be a constant issue. Just out of curiosity, is there anyone out there actually competing on BT-014's?? I'm going to be in the Novice Supersport class, BTW.
For the past several years we have sold mor Bridgestone's than enybody, but non of the 14's for the track. We use the 002's they are fast.
014's I had to use a 014 rear because of an oddball size (Vintage). It gave good grip for a street tire, wear was very good. The profile is definately street. Use the 002's: available at the track & online in 3 compounds, good triangular profile, long lasting, predictable grip, they don't 'come on' or 'go off' with temp, so for the novice that can't yet afford warmers, they are very friendly. They warm up quick, also, not like the Mich's. Only cost a little more than 014's, the same in some places, but a boatload more grip & better turn-in (quicker). The top thing I learned last year was get the best tires you can afford. Don't worry about race gas, or slipper clutches, or that $1200 Penske shock.Buy good tires! Like Melch sez,"The cheapest insurance you can buy." & B-stone pays to 3d in almost every class on the grid.
Update Quick update on the BT-014's: I rode at Putnam Park over the weekend (April 3rd) at a trackday event with my brand new BT-014's on my 2002 GSX-R600. It was cool in the morning (50 degrees), and I had 31psi in front and rear with cold tires. I think I should have lowered it to 30psi, but forgot to do so later in the day. Overall I was very happy with the tires. I took it easy the first two sessions, as the track was cold and the tires were new. By the third session I was knee-down in almost every corner. By the first session after lunch I was pushing things harder and having a great time. The tire profile is definitely street ... very round. It gave good grip, but turn in was slower than other triangulated tires I've used before (e.g. Michelin H2's). I think I'm going to retain these as street tires and get some BT-002's for the track only. I'm eager to find out how the 014's feel in the wet ... anyone ridden on the 014's in the rain yet?
Let us know if you need any 002's, we have lots of them sitting here. Glad you had fun, keep up the good work
I run the 014's on my street bike (YZF600), which also sees a couple of track days per year. The 014s work awesome in both the rain on the street and at full tilt boogy in the dry on the track. Ive put quite a few street mountain rain miles on the tires and they were excellent IMO. Great all around tire. Its tough to get a good sticky street tire that works in the rain anymore, since most real DOTs are looking more and more like slicks. Be prepared for the 002's to feel more triangulated than the 014.
