Michelin Race tires

[Paul_E_D]

There's a nice write-up of the power race tires in RRW. They are all dual compound tires to varyining degrees. Softer on the sides, harder in the middle. I would think that on a 300+ lb bike making 100+ HP this would be a big advantage at all tracks.


The review stated that slow heat up is a thing of the past, along with unpredictable slides. Since those are really the only things preventing Michelin from being superior to Dunlop in every way, I would think these are worth checking out. I wonder if they give up some ultimate grip in favor of smoother slides?

[Karaya One]

Michelin has been superior to Dunlop for about 20 years now. All those trophy's for WSB and GP look rather sweet.

Only in America does Dunlop have such a strong foothold, and only because Michelin chooses to spend it's money winning World Championships. The amount of cash spent on the US program by Dunlop is staggering - you can see this on the club level with so many riders having Dunlop tire deals.

Yes, it is fucking embarrassing to not have a top-level US Superbike team on Michelin but Michelin France's Competition Department has final say on what happens, not the US office. It's not right, but they can spend their money how they see fit.

As for the Power Race, we do have some in stock. There are two levels of Power Race - track day tires based upon the Pilot Power casing, and the PR series Power Race. THESE are the real race tires.

It is a superior tire to the 2004 series Race 2 in every way. At the Homestead tests last fall, the tires were good for 2 seconds a lap. That's a very nice improvement.

$350.00 a set. I have a bunch in stock right now.

[Paul_E_D]

There is no question Michelins have more outright grip than other brands. Dunlop is next, followed by Pirelli.

However, it's also true in my experience that the Pirellis are the easiets to ride, followed by Dunlop, then Michelin. More grip would seem to be a blessing and a curse to an intermediate racer. My thinking is that because you really don't slide much on Michelins, you just have less knowledge of what the tire will do when it lets go and it suprises you.

Perhaps club racers prefer Dunlops because they don't require as much skill to ride them. $$$ doesn't hurt either. It's my understanding that Pirelli nearly gives away its tires at the semi-pro club level.

This article really stressed that the new tires had a different feel from previous generation michelins in the slide dept. It could change things for Michelin at the club level if they are easier to ride, but they will have to give some tires away to attract customers...

p.s. I meant to say dominant in the US, not superior. It's pretty clear Michelin has the best product at the highest level.

[Karaya One]

I bet if you put more riders on Pirelli on the upper levels, they do just as well as the Dunlop. The current Super Corse tire is an excellent tire, and will only improve as they get more info from their WSB control tire work.

And since Pirelli sells direct to the trackside venders, they cut out the formal distributor and this savings is passed on to the rider. For the club racer, it's win-win all the way.

The new Pilot Power Race is the best tire on the grid. Michelin just won't give them away.

[trackdog]

Where does Bridgestone and tyres such as the Metzeler Rennsports or M-1's fit in? Both at club level and abroad?

[Paul_E_D]

They don't! They're street tires.

[GMAN226]

I hear that the Brickstones have come a long way. No one is riding them so there is no opinion..


G-man

[Paul_E_D]

A lot of 125 guys ride the 'stones cause their dirt cheap. or even free for the fast guys. I've heard mixed reviews. Some say they handle way better than the Dunlops, others say they will sometimes just fail to come in and dump you when you start to push. At least one fast guy from Canada is on them, so they must be useable.

I don't know if their new GP efforts have resulted in new tech for their DOT tires yet...

[Pookie]

Interesting thread. What's the opinion 3 years later?

[a13x]

Be a few more guys on Pirelli next year on the AMA grid.

[Crash Dummy Denno]

new michelins

[13]

I rode bstones last year and liked them alot. Had badly shagged ones for the ROC @ Daytona and they slid ALOT, but never made me feel very uncomfortable. I actually felt quite good and impressed myself being able to control slides, front and rear, at steep lean angles. Then again I've never been really unhappy with any race tires I've tried. I've always improved my lap times, on whatever tires I was using.

I stuck with B/S because they had a good contingency program, and I started collecting money while I was on them. It didn't make sense to switch while they were rewarding me. I'm sure I won't collect, at least for a while, next season.

I'm sure it's not a good thing, but I'll probably continue to try out new tire choices until the different products actually affect my laptimes.

[Karaya One]

new michelins

Power One.

We will most likely see them in September. They are still being tested and finalized.

[Crash Dummy Denno]

Power One.

We will most likely see them in September. They are still being tested and finalized.

very cool - i wonder how they'd be in a sprinkle....

that was from willow - where else are they being tested?


Denno

[Karaya One]

We had a four hour meeting yesterday with Michelin. Most of it was about road race tires, support, etc.

There are a lot of things coming, and tires that are a huge leap over the Power Race. Michelin has also increased contingency this year which is good for our riders. I hope to have those $$$ numbers in a few weeks.

There is not much we can say right now. Some of it is obviously confidential, but also because since tires designs and sizes aren't finalized as of yet it makes no sense to talk about stuff that may not see mass production.

It was very positive overall. Good things are coming to club racers from Michelin.

[hammadown]

I just got some tire rubber samples from Michelin to do some compound analysis on. I cant say too much, but Im pretty sure they don't go on your kia

[Crash Dummy Denno]

I rode bstones last year and liked them alot. Had badly shagged ones for the ROC @ Daytona and they slid ALOT, but never made me feel very uncomfortable. I actually felt quite good and impressed myself being able to control slides, front and rear, at steep lean angles.

Are you really sliding the front? Wow. I didn't think that was possible



Denno

[s a x m a n]

Are you really sliding the front? Wow. I didn't think that was possible

Think what was possible?? Sliding the front??

NHMS Turn 2 is a great place to get both wheels sliding

[RyanNicholson]

Are you really sliding the front? Wow. I didn't think that was possible



Denno

haha you'll learn soon enough just how possible it is

[Crash Dummy Denno]

Think what was possible?? Sliding the front??

NHMS Turn 2 is a great place to get both wheels sliding

haha you'll learn soon enough just how possible it is

hmmmm - controlling a front wheel slide huh? damn - shows how little I know

[Degsy]

[s a x m a n]

hmmmm - controlling a front wheel slide huh? damn - shows how little I know

its not so much controlling it, but not making ANY input while it happens ... which being completely loose on the bars after turn helps with this

once you turn the bike, steering happens with the throttle and not bar input

[gmdboston]

its not so much controlling it, but not making ANY input while it happens ... which being completely loose on the bars after turn helps with this

once you turn the bike, steering happens with the throttle and not bar input

Sort of, but not quite. You still need some input before and after the apex to make it turn, but just at the apex you reduce bar input to zero, just for a moment. Also, you control the front slide by turning the bars into and counter corner on the way in. That's why trail is so important. It's what gives you the feed back and feel to know what the front tire is doing and the leverage to save it if needed. It's how we scrub the last 2-3 mph off just before and after turn in.

[Degsy]

...and I doubt there are more than 3 people at Loudon who can do it even marginally, and even then, they are controlling the edge of grip, not the amount and attitude of front tire slide.

Slide the front going anywhere but in a straight line and you're down. End of story.

[s a x m a n]

slide is the wrong term probably, i guess it would be more of a push ... which I know I have felt at times when running low 18s and the couple of 17s ... not saying by any stretch of the imagination that this is something I do on purpose, or that I expect it everytime, but I do have movement of the front ... call it what you will