Mixing tires?
 

Two years ago I put a set of Bridgestone BT 021 on my '93 Kawasaki ZR1100

It's time for a new front tire ( the back still has plenty of life left in it ) but it seems the BT 021 has been discontinued. The front tire is 12/70-18 ( kawasaki thought an oddball size was a good idea? )


http://www.bikebandit.com/bridgeston...otorcycle-tire

BT 021
http://a2.bikebandit.com/assets/prod...BT021FrtLG.gif


BT 023
http://a2.bikebandit.com/assets/prod...eBT023FtLG.gif


I don't race, rarely go over 80 mph but like to corner ( within reason on a 1993 cycle ). See any problems?

Here's the product description from Bike Bandit
Looking for consistent performance between touring and sport riding? Bridgestone's BT-023 has a new tread pattern and rubber compound that deliver long mileage, a high level of wet performance, a comfortable ride and good grip. The rear tire's 3LC (Dual Compound) technology provides good stability and wear life in center and strong grip and bump absorption in shoulder of tire. Silica plus RC polymer (assists silica effect and controls rubber properties) enhances wet performance and wear life.


Between my AMA discount ( 10% ) and a $10 BB gift card I got with my AMA renewal, I can get the tire for $107 shipped.

Thanks
Jeff

I always just replace both. The front may not be as worn out as the rear but it's just as dried up and cracked as the rear.

If its the same brand/profile I would swap it. a lot of track guys will use two rears to every front tire.

It's the front that wore out before the rear.

Thanks Tommy.

This. I've replaced fronts first and vice versa with same brand and profile though it's rare for the front to go first

I'll tell you from experience that using vastly different tires on the front and back can have devastating consequences on handling. A few years ago, possibly 02 or 03 I had a pair of DOT race tires on my ninja, the front tire was fine and I was broke so I replaced the rear with the cheapest decent tire I found in the right size with the expectation that in a few months I would be able to afford the $300 Dot race rear. The tire I put on wasnt a no name brand tire, if I remember correctly it was a dunlop sport touring tire.

The handling was super sketchy, it felt like the back end would way over rotate in every corner, almost like it was washing out on me. the bike would twitch, become unstable jerk around and became very unpredicatble. I was told by others that it would wag back and forth a 6 inches in either direction mid turn. I thought it was just the new tire curse and took it easy for a while, but it never went away. Basically the bike was next to unrideable.

I wound up asking online and the general consensus was to dump one of the tires and put on a matching tire. So I dumped the front for a matching tire and was fine.

Now this is a very extreme example, super grippy up front and long lasting and harder in the rear, two tires with vastly different profiles. To say it was just plain dangerous is an understatement. It was a big lesson learned and since then I have always put on matching tires. But i have heard of people who put on similar performance and profile tires and been fine, but my experience was bad, and it was a stupid thing to try on my part.

Key here is that it's the same brand/profile. I think derf highlighted this best. I'm about due for a new rear tire. Stock front is still okay, but I don't want to stay with the stock tires. May buy another stock rear just to get me through till next tire change, though. But I really want a better tire, both front and rear.

The previous two owners went thru fronts faster than rears. Maybe it's the nature of the bike or all three of us use the front brake heavily.


Thanks derf. I'm thinking in addition to different styles ( race vs sport touring ) you may also have been mixing radials and bias. Doing that in any vehicle ( two or four wheels ) makes for an interesting (ie, butt puckering ) experience.




There are same brand and profile. I'll need to check more but I think the BT 021 was replaced by the BT 023

yeh it was almost a decade ago so my memory is shot on this one, but it sucked, just regular riding was very difficult, anything spirited was downright impossible.

It was also a good lesson on how much tires actually slide around on the road

Don't mix radial with bias and you'll be OK. And yes, those '93's were weird for eating front tires.