rockenrobert

britman,
Have to give yourself a few miles of brake in and getting use to the strange feel to get the bike to do what you want! After that, there is no advantage to a bike tire. Now, who is going to be the first with a car tire on the front of a Rocket111?
rockenrobert

Paul Hyland

#1 for me, but not just for Metz might go to Avon if they seem to be working out.

britman

Yes, another shot of a "Dark Side" conversion. I am going to ride it awhile before I post my final opinion.

Hero Blob

Take this for what it's worth as I only rode with the Riken for about 15 miles. I did highway, some curves, and in town. First off, I'm not a fan of a car tire on a bike. Maybe it's just me being resistant without warrant. I don't know.

My impressions were about 180 degree from what I thought they'd be. The bike doesn't handle oddly in turns. It's still an 800 lb cruiser with a lot of length between the axles. However, it didn't feel nearly as different as I'd expected. Where it did feel hugely different was driving straight on a slightly crowned road. The bike creeps to the left or right depending on how the road is crowned. It feels almost like the bike is crabbing down the street. This was more apparent the slower I went. Once up to highway speeds, it was less apparent but still somewhat noticeable. I can't really say I felt like I was in danger, it was just an odd sensation. It reminded me of riding a motorcycle with a side car.
Naturally, britman and I differ slightly on riding styles, so the tire may suit him well. There's no denying the price difference.
For me, I think I'll stick the ol 180/55 for my Zed. Even if it melts every 3k.

TxRIIIRider

As squared off as my last Metz was before I changed it, I'm betting a car tire handles about the same as it did. Which may convince me to try the dark side with my next set. As much as I'd love to run some twisties from time to time, most of my riding is highway or high speed sweeping curves, which a car tire would work just fine for.

I do have to say, when I had the Avons installed and rode off, at first I felt like I was running on a knive edge! I was so used to the square Metz, I forgot how easy the Rocket will go into turns with a good tire.. The Avons are good and scuffed in and they do handle great! I think they stick in the curves better than the Metz's, which also makes me wonder how long they will last? But, we'll see..

britman

I have put about 200 miles on the CT, did a little over a 100 miles today on a ride to the Virginia foothills. First let me say, check your air pressure. I am running around 30 pounds and it seems to be best all around. On my first outing it had around 43 pounds from the tire shop where it was mounted. Scared the hell out of me. Between the crowns of the old subdivision roads and the over inflation I was thinking what the hell have I done. Hero Blob took it out next after reducing the pressure and I think his assessment is fair. I have found that the more time you spend in the seat the less you notice the tendency to climb road crowns, you just automatically adjust. I find the handling in curves to be equal to or better than the Mez. I really can tell no difference. I cracked the throttle today and went a little above the 120 mph mark. At high speed handled like a dream. The thing I do notice and it is not horrible, are sunken or indented road sections from traffic use. Since most of these are located at heavily traveled intersections you will feel the ass end of the bike move at low speeds. I even took a short spin on a gravel road today and the CT was no better or worst than the Mez. At $88.00 vs $200.00 I am sticking with the Rapture and I really like the look.

Gunshots

Glad to here your update, I was starting to wonder after no updates for a few days. Another 300 miles and you wil never notice the changes, I have over 13,000 on mine and I won't go back...

goodfellow

man,
that is one very red motorcycle. how do you manage to keep the cops from pulling you over all the time and making conversations about it?

just kidding Brit. nice color. and,Welcome to the dark side.......


greg

tdragger

I saw Britman's Red Rocket for the first time last week and it has to be the shiniest thing I've ever seen. The photos simply do not do it justice. You can't see it in the photos (due to the shine!) but he has a small stencil on the fender just above the license plate that reads "Fat Bottom Girl" in a subtle script. Looks great.

Welcome to the Darkside. I hope you enjoy the Raptor as much as I do.

TonyMac

Gunshots, did you have any difficulty finding a local shop that would mount your darkside tire?