Tyres

[Eddie Lee]

Thanks for the reminder!

Ok, so for the front, the tyre to get is the Dunlop KR106 "UK Ntec" (known as that because it's made in the UK, unlike D211s which are made in France, and KR448/449s which are made in the USA, known as "US Ntecs"). With the KR106, you must get the 302 compound, as the other 2 compounds are too soft and wear out very quickly. The 302 will last roughly forever, and are still the best gripping front tyre on the planet. Honestly, you can do things on the front Dunlop that would have you sliding down the track on any other tyre.

There's plenty of choice in rear tyres. The Bridgestones are very good, particularly the 'old' tyre (the R01). The new V01 has silly amounts of grip initially, but goes away after only 10 laps or so, whereas the R01 isn't as outright grippy but is very consistent over the whole life of the tyre.

The Pirelli rears are good for track day riding, particularly the SC2. They don't have massive outright grip, but they last forever and are consistent. It's currently too cold to be running an SC1 rear anyway (although the fronts are reversed, and you should be running an SC1 front in this weather, and an SC2 when it's much hotter).

I've heard the rear Metzlers are a good thing, but I haven't tried them yet. Similar to the Pirellis.

But these are all slick tyres. The thing to bear in mind is that for track days like Thursday (or all of this week by the sound of it), the organisers won't let you out on a damp track. So if you don't race and only do track days, a treaded tyre is probably the way to go. In that case, there are the equivalent Dunlops to the KR106 and 108, which are the UK Supersports tyre. Exxy, but awesome.

Some guys love the Bridgestone R10s (eg Stu23), but I'm personally not really a fan for racing. Again, awesome initial grip, but the grip doesn't last the life of the tyre. Great for track day pace though.

Then the Pirelli SuperCorsas are essentially the equivalent of the Superbike slicks, but with tread. They are the tyres on Condor's bike at the moment. Again, in this weather, the choice would be SC1 front and SC2 rear. These would be my recommendation for track day guys - plenty of grip, good wear rates and tyre life, and tread for days where it's damp (but don't forget that they are essentially a slick with token tread to qualify for the 'treaded race tyre' rules, so they really have no more grip than a slick in the rain. But you can at least get out on track when they should be letting slicks out but don't because they are idiots).

Hope that helps!

Hey Marshy, I am currently running treaded SC1 front and SC2 rear, what is the difference between it and SP1/SP2??
Haven't timed myself before, but I guess I have improved from >3mins on new SMP section to ~2:20sec, so should I go UK Ntec front and SC2 rear to maximize the front grip for sunny day track riding?? Thanks

[Marshy]

Hey Marshy, I am currently running treaded SC1 front and SC2 rear, what is the difference between it and SP1/SP2??
Haven't timed myself before, but I guess I have improved from >3mins on new SMP section to ~2:20sec, so should I go UK Ntec front and SC2 rear to maximize the front grip for sunny day track riding?? Thanks

Hey Eddie, do you mean the Superbike Pro when you say SP1/SP2?

There are a few different Pirelli models. There's the Superbike slicks, which are the proper 'race' slick, and also the Superbike Pro slicks, which are confusingly not for racing but are the 'track day' tyre. They have waaaaay less grip, but are designed to last a long time. As the proper Superbike SC2 rear lasts for weeks already, I cannot see the point of the Pro version and don't recommend them for anyone! By all accounts, any decent rider will quickly overcome their limited grip.

The treaded Pirellis (the SuperCorsa) are essentially the same as the Superbike tyres. They are a good tyre, and are particularly great for trackdays as mentioned, because you can get on track when it's declared 'wet' and it shouldn't be.

If you don't have spare rims to put them on, I'd stick with what you are using for a bit longer Eddie, and maybe later in the year give the UK front a go.

[Eddie Lee]

Hey Eddie, do you mean the Superbike Pro when you say SP1/SP2?

There are a few different Pirelli models. There's the Superbike slicks, which are the proper 'race' slick, and also the Superbike Pro slicks, which are confusingly not for racing but are the 'track day' tyre. They have waaaaay less grip, but are designed to last a long time. As the proper Superbike SC2 rear lasts for weeks already, I cannot see the point of the Pro version and don't recommend them for anyone! By all accounts, any decent rider will quickly overcome their limited grip.

The treaded Pirellis (the SuperCorsa) are essentially the same as the Superbike tyres. They are a good tyre, and are particularly great for trackdays as mentioned, because you can get on track when it's declared 'wet' and it shouldn't be.

If you don't have spare rims to put them on, I'd stick with what you are using for a bit longer Eddie, and maybe later in the year give the UK front a go.

I meant Diablo Supercorsa SP tyres. I know for Pirelli, there are:

Treaded:
- Diablo Supercorsa SC compound (that's what I am using on my bike at the moment )
- Diablo Supercorsa SP compound...? (Don't what that is but I heard of there is something like this if not wrong...? )

Slick:
- Diablo Superbike Slick SC (those are the SC1 and SC2 we were talking about for slick)
- Diablo Superbike Pro Slick (As you mentioned above, last long but not as gripy)

So does it mean the supercorsa sc is the same as the superbike slick sc just the treaded version theoretically speaking?

Yea true, so far I am quite comfortable on the tyres I am running, prob no point to spend a grand on spare rims and much higher value on uk ntec. By the way, what's the difference on price for uk ntec front and sc1 front?