Dulop 404 vs. Bridgestone S11 Spitfire

[OpFlash]

Ok Ive narrowed it down to these two sets of tires. Im looking for a set for my XJ 1100. I will be riding this bike occasionally on the highway to and from work and your weekend riding. I am also thinking about taking the Maxim with me to Colorado in June and leaving my 2000 Suzuki 600 Bandit in the garage. That being said Im also looking forward to some twisty backraods. I know that the Maxim will not perform like the bandit will in the corners but looking for a good compromise. So whatcya think???

[audijunky]

I have and like the 404,
however I have not used the spitfire

[dale_1]

spitfires

I have been running spitfires every since the first set I tested....... That said..... (45000 miles on the XS11)
My son swears by them on his Intruder 800. He is on his second rear and still the first front. He gets a little bit better wear than me.

I have had the tires gripping well all the way to peg scraping but only at about 45.

I have not however been low enough at any speed above that to see how they grip at a higher speed when the left side scrapes.

During my most recent MSF class I had the oldest bike and I did have the lowest lean angle of anyone in the class before scraping. (No they weren't all on goldwings) There was one guy on an old Katana 650. The XS11 was lower in the turn than the Katana. But like I said ..... 45 MPH.

I average 10 grand out of the rear and 20 out of the front.

Personally for 123 / set from americanmototire, I can't beat the quality even at almost double the price.

[webbcraft2150]

I ran Spitfires on my KZ1100 all the years I owned it and had good results as far a mileage and "stickability". Price was good to.

Then I came to my sences and bought my XS. I have run a forum favorite, K491's with excellent mileage and "stickability". However, since my new clutch install, I suspect rear tire mileage may diminish.

[Incubus]

I've run Spitfires on my Honda 750 for two years and I've been very happy with them. They are very sticky - you can really lay into turns. I have Dunlops on my XS, but I haven't put enough miles on them to compare.

Patrick

[dale_1]

stickiness

"I fear you under estimate my stickyness" oh wait that was sneakiness....... Emilio Lopez played by John Torturo (???) Mr. Deeds

OK just out of curiosity since we got started on this...... how many posters so far have scraped pegs with either or both tires?

And....... by the way the spitfires are dual compound tires just so you can go far and fast straight as well as twisty.

[mro]

how many posters so far have scraped pegs with either or both tires?

Have on my stock 80G left side, not intensionally. Don't think you can scrape anyrhing on the hot rod XS (suspension mods and engine covers are beveled)

Have Splitfire on 80G and handles best it has so far, have Dunlops on hot rod and it handles really well, but has modded suspesion so not comparing apples to ................


mro

[OpFlash]

Hey guys I just ordered a set of the spitfire's last night from american motorcycle tire's website. 135 shipped. Thanks for the input!

[trbig]

I'm glad you settled on them. I was about to chime in here and tell you that I only got 4-5,000 miles on my Dunlop 404's on back.... and that was too many miles. It was bald bald bald. They do stick well, but with my current shop charging an additional 35 bucks to mount and balance the back, your better off paying more to get a good wearing tire.
The last tire shop I went to told me that people are getting 12-15 thousand miles on Harleys and Goldwings (Heavy bikes) on the Avons. Too late now, but maybe another one to consider for the future. He also told me that he has been having a lot of problems with the Metler ME880's... coming apart even though they are new and have lots of tread left. Not something you want while on two wheels. The Avons were only about 10 bucks higher and got considerably more mileage than the Metzlers anyway.
The last time I talked to Maximan, he told me he does about 25,000 miles a year on his bike, and he's down to just 2 tires a year using the Avons. So at least 12k on his tires.

Sorry.. not trying to turn this into a "I like this tire best" thread.. just stating what I've heard. I hope the Spitfires work well.. I honestly like the looks of them best.

Tod

[OpFlash]

The other dilema i had was choosing between black sidewalls and raised white letters. wasnt sure how they would look so i went with the black sidewalls anyone have RWL on their bikes any pics to share?

[dale_1]

letters

my son has white on his....... Intruder (:-P)

got black on mine....... his whites tend to rub the shaft..... I havent run whites yet.

you can "pencil" in the white just to get an idea for next roundl. In the USAF we used white out (illegal for use in office due to chemicals) to white letter our Goodyears for the jets.

[trbig]

Speaking of jets... we used Armor all on the whole tire of General Jumper's jet one time... man it looked good. Then he got in it, started it with the brakes still on, but with the tires being slippery, it jumped the blocks and crashed into another jet. World Wide referendum.... no more armor all on jet tires.. : ) I guess it wasn't like a normal parking lot ding where you could leave your name and number under the windshield wiper of the other jet.. lol.

Tod

White- out...illegal for use in office due to chemicals

Dale_1 failed a piss test three times from sniffing that stuff!