my bad!! 400 miles

 

For another comparision, I am current running a set of the new Michelin Commander II tires. Now, that is on my Ultra, so the final results will be different that on a Sporty, but so far it's a GREAT tire.

 

While the 401's may have longer wear, they suck in the handling and wet stuff.

I run Kenda Kruz on my Voyager, and they are incredible! They run great in the rain, and have great traction in the twisties. I like the so much so, I just mounted them on my Custom.
The bike handles night and day different. I can push it over further, and maintain a higher speed through the curves.

I am not saying the Kenda 673 is the end all be all, but compared to all the other tires I have ran, it's one of the best for the cruisers.

 

I say to each his own, I personally hate Dunlop's, all I can say about them is they keep the rims off the ground . I really like Pirelli tires. They have so much more traction, the bike feels like it's glued to the ground.
If mileage is most important in your book, have at it.
Us how say Dunlop's are crap are using our bikes in a different way.

 

So how exactly do you happen to know what tires other posters have run or not run on their bikes? Making statements like the above is uninformed in my view.

 

Ah, perhaps you did not realize that David knows it all?

 

Gonna revisit. My original D401 had 11k. I'm sure i could of gone another 5k with ease. The front who knows. i changed both of them do to age not mileage or wear. It's not uncommon for riders to get 15000 miles or more out of a rear D401.

Handling is subjective when you are speaking about wet weather driving where NOBODY pushes the tire. In town oil slicks during a rain are something only conscious riders can navigate. Other then braking on non polluted ie contaminated road surfaces handling is purely subjective.

It is known that Avon's and Metzlers are a softer rubber then the Dunlops. In fact Metzlers have according to some of my web research had chunking issues from what i have read. If you go to a major tire reseller and check reviews. The Dunlop tire is a highly regarded and recommended as a replacement on HDs. Yes Elite 3 touring Dunlops are rated higher in quality and wear although i would not pay the extra cost for slightly if any longer wear.

I will say this handling and braking is exceptional on my D401 tires. You don't push motorcycles in wet weather expecially in city driving. Your not going to stop as fast on wet as dry pavement regardless of tires. I treat every wet sharp turn as ice and drive accordingly. After many hours of research i determined the Dunlop to be my first choice. It does everything i ask of it.

If i had to replace a freaking tire at 6k miles i'd scream. In fact if i had to change my tire at 10k miles i wouldn't be happy. I posted this thread initially do to all the hate posts of Dunlops here on HD forums. My first motorcycle when i was in my early 20s were Lops and my current ride has them and im 50+ now

I'm a daily rider rain or shine so i would like to hear what you define as superior wet weather handling. My Dunlops kept me on the road during a 90mph rainstorm/crosswind ie Derecho in June of this year lol. At least that was only a 2 mile ride to the house. It wasn't a fun ride lol

HD's are not performance or handling machines compared to anything else. Nobody knee drags on a Sportster on a curvy country road. Harleys are crusing machines and nothing more performance wise..

 

Can't remember the mileage when i replaced my stock Dunlop's, but when I did I replaced them with the HD Dunlop's same as stock. They are damn good tirs and I see no need to run anything differant.

 

I must have a dud. My stock front Dunlop isn't looking too healthy after 7k. Rear looks good though.

 

Hard for me to remember what the stock Dunlops were like when they were new, but my new Metzler ME880's are making me happy. I only have about 35 miles on them so far due to a knee problem that has kept me off the bike, but I'm looking forward to getting rid of the mold release to really test these tires out. I wasn't dissatisfied with the Dunlops but figured I'd try something else that were tried and true according to so many reports. If I don't try something new, how am I going to know I am not in a rut? I'll report back after a few hundred miles with my honest opinion of the ME880's, just not sure I will be able to give a direct comparison with the original Dunlops since they were new 8 years ago!