Ahhhh! FINALLY the weather is starting to break! They’re calling for a high of 72 today but unfortunately it’s also calling for rain the rest of the week.
Anyway, I finally installed my new tires on the FJR on Saturday. Because I got such good wear and performance out of the Bridgestone Battlax BT-023 GT tires, I decide to stick with Bridgestone tires this time as well. The BT-023 have been discontinued (tho a few places may still have limited stock) and replaced by the T30 Sport Touring Tire. As with the BT-023, the T30 tires are also available in a GT model intended for heavier motorcycles like the Kawasaki Concours, Honda ST1300 and of course the Yamaha FJR 1300. The GT model of the tire features a cross-belt construction with a slightly modified pattern on the front and a stiffer (more on this later) construction on the rear for additional stability. The front tire is a single compound while the rear is dual compound. I can attest that the my BT-023 tires wore really well with the front only having some slight cupping and the rear ended up pretty square (lots of 2 up riding).
So how much? The list price for the front is $172.95 while the rear is $226.95. I ordered mine from Motorcycle Superstore and they ran me $254.84 ($108.99 front, $145.85 rear) total, shipped to the door. I also ordered 2 new valve stems.
The installation of the front was pretty straight-forward. While I had the wheel off I checked the front brake pads (I’ll be good for the summer). The front tire balanced perfectly and went back on without issue.
The rear tire on the other hand was a bit more difficult. The side wall of the rear (55 series) is SUPER STIFF. It kept wanting to jump on the bead before we could get the yellow mark lined up on the valve stem. After breaking it back down we were able to get it on the second try. The rear tire didn’t balance quite as quickly or as well as the front tire but it still balanced fairly well. I doubt I’ll have any issues with it.
I took it easy on the way home as to not spin the tire on the rim so aside from them feeling much smoother than the worn ones they replaced, I don’t have much of a review at this point. While I only rode a total of about 16 miles (8 on the old tires and 8 on the new), I could definitely tell a difference with the newly rebuilt shock. I can’t wait to put the new shock and new tires to the test. Until next time!
