Phantom Tyres

[cheeryble]

PHANTOM TYRES

Hi there

I just bought a second hand Phantom.

It has a little used engine and body only 7800km....it looks and sounds like new.

The tyres have plenty of tread but are the age of the bike.....9 years.

I intend to change them as I believe old tyres get harder and less sticky to the road and do not hold a line so well. Maybe OK for the spare on a car but not a bike.

I will not be racing or going mad, but using the bike around town and cruising.

The question is:

IRC tyres at 2800 the pair?

Or Dunlop from Japan at 5700?

Constructive criticism welcome.

[craigt3365]

Let's try this over in the Bikes in Thailand forum.

Topic Moved.

[bunta71]

What is your life worth? Good tires CAN save lives. Doesn't mean cheap tires will necessarily kill you, but why scrimp on tires whether a bike or a car? Riding or driving in Thailand successfully (not crashing) demands good equipment.

[CBR250]

I have found IRC great for everyday use - and you won't be doing too many knee scrapes on corners with a Phantom. Having said that, I just replaced my Wave tyres with Dunlops due to minimal price difference at that size.

[thequietman]

go for the dunlops everytime.

my honda dealer didnt have the dunlops in stock so I put on the cheaper version.

they lose air every week even though checked for punctures. My previous dunlops lasted me years, never had to put more air and they gave me a sure grip on the road. if you can afford it go for quality.

sounds like you got a good bike there. wat did you pay for it if i may ask ?

[cheeryble]

Thanks for the replies and sorry about mistaking forum

go for the dunlops everytime.

my honda dealer didnt have the dunlops in stock so I put on the cheaper version.

they lose air every week even though checked for punctures. My previous dunlops lasted me years, never had to put more air and they gave me a sure grip on the road. if you can afford it go for quality.

sounds like you got a good bike there. wat did you pay for it if i may ask ?

I looked up IRC and it seems they're like 50 years old and seem pretty together. Was just thinking that maybe they're selling exactly the same quality product.

Would be interested to know the difference.

Could it be the tyres that lost the air were not IRC but a genuinely ropey brand?

As to the price I thought i was getting a really good deal at 42,000 plus 2000 introductory commission.

Then i paid 3250 for a jammed brake master piston and a full lube and check and new battery. If I pay say 10,000 for panniers or box plus tyres it doesn't work out such a superbargain, but I would be getting a very well and newly equipped low mileage bike.

Good deal?

Edited March 13, 2012 by cheeryble

[cheeryble]

Something else occurs to me.

Given Dunlop agents must pay for shipping and duty, the original price of the two alternative tyres would not be so different, certainly nowhere near the double which the end prices are.

Edited March 13, 2012 by cheeryble

[CBR250]

A low mileage Phantom for 50k sounds like a good deal to me. And if tubeless tyres are losing air, there must be a slight puncture/leaky valve/damaged rim. Nothing to do with brand of tyre. And it seems all tubes lose some air - brand is also irrelevant. I do weekly air checks and need to top up both my rear IRC tube, and front hi-tech Japanese manufactured tube.

[cheeryble]

Just bumping.

I'd still love to know the specific difference in quality, if any, between Dunlop and IRD tryes for the Phantom.

cheers

[billd766]

I have had my Phantom nearly 3 years now.

It is a 2005 model and it had 5,5xx km on the clock and I replaced the IRC tyres a year ago with Dunlops at 4,400 baht the pair.

The IRC had done 31,xxx but the first thing I noticed with the Dunlops is that when I went over the painted lines on the roads the tyres didn't shimmy at all and I feel it holds the road better.

I have ridden it in the dry, the wet and even when I got caught in a thunderstorm and I personally am happier on Dunlops.

[aitch52]

I have had my Phantom nearly 3 years now.

It is a 2005 model and it had 5,5xx km on the clock and I replaced the IRC tyres a year ago with Dunlops at 4,400 baht the pair.

The IRC had done 31,xxx but the first thing I noticed with the Dunlops is that when I went over the painted lines on the roads the tyres didn't shimmy at all and I feel it holds the road better.

I have ridden it in the dry, the wet and even when I got caught in a thunderstorm and I personally am happier on Dunlops.

Yes it sounds like you got a good deal. I replaced the second set of IRC's on my bike with a different type of IRC here in Phitsanulok, as the shop I use could not get hold of the Dunlops which I wanted. I have IRC Wildflares fitted now, according to the shop they are manufactured in Japan. They were slightly more expensive and in my view are well worth the extra money, the bike does handle better and they give me much more confidence. They seem to have a softer compound and have much more grip.

Greetings to Mr Bill!!!

[cheeryble]

I have had my Phantom nearly 3 years now.

It is a 2005 model and it had 5,5xx km on the clock and I replaced the IRC tyres a year ago with Dunlops at 4,400 baht the pair.

The IRC had done 31,xxx but the first thing I noticed with the Dunlops is that when I went over the painted lines on the roads the tyres didn't shimmy at all and I feel it holds the road better.

I have ridden it in the dry, the wet and even when I got caught in a thunderstorm and I personally am happier on Dunlops.

Who put the old tyres on the newish bike? That's a bit much.

Also not surprising these 31,000km tyres didn't quite perform the same as yr new Dunlops....

Yes it sounds like you got a good deal. I replaced the second set of IRC's on my bike with a different type of IRC here in Phitsanulok, as the shop I use could not get hold of the Dunlops which I wanted. I have IRC Wildflares fitted now, according to the shop they are manufactured in Japan. They were slightly more expensive and in my view are well worth the extra money, the bike does handle better and they give me much more confidence. They seem to have a softer compound and have much more grip.

Hmm might be worth a look

It's not that I'm a cheapskate if I knew the Dunlops really had substantially superior performance I'd be perfectly willing to fork out. Just that psychology often makes people feel they are getting better performance if they think they bought the best.....not necessarily accurately.......and I just like to get to the facts if I can.

Thanks to all in any case

[aitch52]

I am of the same opinion Cheeryble and I really wanted the Dunlops. I got 18 k out of the first set of IRC's, handling became very skittish. There was loads of tread left on them, I guess the compound is so hard.

Second set I got 12k, still looked new when I changed them for the Wildflares. There is a noticeable difference in the handling and I will probably buy them again. I figure 10k ~ 12k is max life of tyres here due to Temperature, UV's and conditions irregardless of tread depth remaining.

[billd766]

I have had my Phantom nearly 3 years now.

It is a 2005 model and it had 5,5xx km on the clock and I replaced the IRC tyres a year ago with Dunlops at 4,400 baht the pair.

The IRC had done 31,xxx but the first thing I noticed with the Dunlops is that when I went over the painted lines on the roads the tyres didn't shimmy at all and I feel it holds the road better.

I have ridden it in the dry, the wet and even when I got caught in a thunderstorm and I personally am happier on Dunlops.

Yes it sounds like you got a good deal. I replaced the second set of IRC's on my bike with a different type of IRC here in Phitsanulok, as the shop I use could not get hold of the Dunlops which I wanted. I have IRC Wildflares fitted now, according to the shop they are manufactured in Japan. They were slightly more expensive and in my view are well worth the extra money, the bike does handle better and they give me much more confidence. They seem to have a softer compound and have much more grip.

Greetings to Mr Bill!!!

G'day Aitch

I got my tyres sent up from I think BigBendum tyres in BKK and got them fitted fairly locally. It was definitely worth it.

[cheeryble]

Thankyou for the info Aitch....

Bill could you post or send details of BigBendum please....I cannot find a local google result for that......nor for Bibendum which funnily enough is a name assoicated with Michelin.

(I'm in CM)

cheers Cheeryble