ST1100 Michelin Commander Question

970mike said:

And now the tire is going the wrong way, what benefit would there be from running it the wrong way?

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The tread pattern (or other factors?) on a rear tire is designed for acceleration, so you would reverse the rotation then it's better suited for deceleration or braking on the front.

mcthorogood said:

The tread pattern (or other factors?) on a rear tire is designed for acceleration, so you would reverse the rotation then it's better suited for deceleration or braking on the front.

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Seems like the water would not come off the tire as good with the tread in that direction.

970mike said:

Seems like the water would not come off the tire as good with the tread in that direction.

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BT-45 Rear


When rotating "backwards", the channels move from inside to outside where the outside hits a side channel that daylights. Seems to me this would channel water better than outside to inside where it hits a dead end. Of course, I do realize that the mfg. knows a bit more than I do about their tire but I also know that several have done this successfully.

I put 2 Commander II s on my Shadow Aero 750, since the Shadow Forum were very favorable to them on Shadows , mileage-wise , but the STs put out double the power or more and significantly more weight than my Shadow 750 so would the Commander II be better than a PR4 , both Michelin , considering those differences ?

TourNut said:

I put 2 Commander II s on my Shadow Aero 750, since the Shadow Forum were very favorable to them on Shadows , mileage-wise , but the STs put out double the power or more and significantly more weight than my Shadow 750 so would the Commander II be better than a PR4 , both Michelin , considering those differences ?

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This is kind of like oil... everyone has their preference. I had very good results from the MCII on the rear of my ST1100... 20k miles. It handled well for the riding I do (20% twisties, 80% slab) and I had no issues in some pretty heavy rains. I'd do a search and see how other ST1300 riders like the MCII.

TourNut said:

I put 2 Commander II s on my Shadow Aero 750, since the Shadow Forum were very favorable to them on Shadows , mileage-wise , but the STs put out double the power or more and significantly more weight than my Shadow 750 so would the Commander II be better than a PR4 , both Michelin , considering those differences ?

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paulcb said:

This is kind of like oil... everyone has their preference. I had very good results from the MCII on the rear of my ST1100... 20k miles. It handled well for the riding I do (20% twisties, 80% slab) and I had no issues in some pretty heavy rains. I'd do a search and see how other ST1300 riders like the MCII.

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I am running the Commander 130\70\18 tire on the front of my ST now and I am happy with the tire so far. I have also ran the BT-45 tire on the front but mounted it the same as if it were on the front, wore out the sides before the center on that tire.

970mike said:

I am running the Commander 130\70\18 tire on the front of my ST now and I am happy with the tire so far. I have also ran the BT-45 tire on the front but mounted it the same as if it were on the front, wore out the sides before the center on that tire.

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I would have liked to use a Commander II on the front but they don't offer the stock size for an ST11. The closest one is close but I think there would be clearance problems.

Was it a rear BT-45? Pretty cool wearing out the sides first... don't think I've ever done that, even when I was younger!

paulcb said:

I would have liked to use a Commander II on the front but they don't offer the stock size for an ST11. The closest one is close but I think there would be clearance problems.

Was it a rear BT-45? Pretty cool wearing out the sides first... don't think I've ever done that, even when I was younger!

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Yes it was a rear BT-45 tire. I told my brother who also uses one of those tires on his ST with a sidecar that he should use it after I am done with it as the center had a ton of rubber left.

Just before WeSTOC I front-mounted a BT-45 backwards on my ST11. Its longevity is guaranteed with a 9/32" tread depth. Thanks for letting be know your own experience.



Styles

After 10K miles, my reverse mounted BT-45 on the front is getting a small amount of cupping. The Commander II on the rear is still going strong.

Recently I went for a little ride of 1409 miles to a little place called Deals Gap NC. I had a Commander II on the rear and Pilot Activ on front. I left home with 900 miles on the tires and four days later with a tread gauge you couldn't tell them from NEW. I am by no means an expert rider but have spent many years on street bikes and I can tell all the ST1100 riders out there the Commander II and Pilot Activ made my bike a Dragon Slayer. It will take your bike to a new level of performance. No flat groove on rear and excellant water evacuation on wet roads. you cant go wrong with these tires.

I will try the commander on the rear but I have a 130/70zr18 exedra max on the front (paid 103) and absolutely love it. Wore out the t30 on the rear but the exedra max is still very good condition (7k). Great wet,no cupping or wearing center flat yet. I expect to get 12k. Great tire for the price!! ST1100

Has anybody yet gotten a Commander II to fit a rear ST1300 ?

TourNut said:

Has anybody yet gotten a Commander II to fit a rear ST1300 ?

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I have not seen anyone yet, maybe you could be the first??

Tournut, go dark side on your 1300.

I am wanting to try to go out to Rockstoc II next summer. probably 4K miles just to get there and back and who knows how many miles in Colorado at RockSToc , etc. I put on a rear PR4 just before my ill-fated attempt in June only to Davenport Iowa. Later in Sept. I went to western Ohio to see if my rebuilt bike was solid again and some miles around this local region before my 2nd shoulder operation re-do. So I probably put on only 1500 miles on my new rear , which I now won't have for next year's attempt since the ST has such abysmal rear tire mileage . So , either I can find a longer lasting rear tire or I have to trailer the ST to Colorado which kinda sucks just because nobody makes a long lasting MC tire & size for the ST1300 .

Is a Shinko 009 a car tire ? I never heard of it before.

TourNut said:

Is a Shinko 009 a car tire ? I never heard of it before.

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Motorcycle tire, here it is http://www.revzilla.com/product/shinko-009-raven-rear-tires

970mike said:

Motorcycle tire, here it is http://www.revzilla.com/product/shinko-009-raven-rear-tires

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Sounds good for the money.

TourNut said:

Sounds good for the money.

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Yes the reviews sound like people are happy with it for the money, Jim likes them.