After 6,000 miles on the Donflops it was time for fresh rubber, I went with the Pilot Roads with a 180/55-17 in the rear. The freakin' dildo at my local dealership put 40 lbs. in the rear and 36 (or so he said) in the front, turned out to be 34 after I checked them after cooling off at home. I was literally HATING life having the dreaded "death wobble" at anything over 75 mph, boy was I pissed off, not so much at the wobble but at the previously mentioned dildo that swore the bike needed 36 psi in the front. Anyway, after I put 42 psi front and rear the wobble was completely gone, I recall reading a post about them being sensitive to pressure and I can now second this sentiment. I also read about how compliant they were and I can tell y'all this, at 42 psi they are significantly softer a ride than the Dunflops at 38 psi, definitely a plus! About the howl, I could hear a it a bit if I really listened for it but by no means an issue for me. And now about the performance: I was really leaning toward the Z6's for their sticky reputation but I took a role of the dice and decided the added mileage might be worthwhile, I had the Dunflops break traction more than once and it was truly unnerving, I would definitely consider my self an agressive rider and my previous two Hondas were an RC51 and CBR1000RR so it's safe to say I approach tire limits fairly easily on the ST, all I have is praise for the traction the Pilots offer after my maiden 120 mile backroad blast. I scuffed them in for about 25 miles then let 'em have it, not one break of traction! I'm totally sold, these will be the only tires I mount on my STeed from here on out, I highly recommend, thanks for listening!
I'm just giving Ray a hard time. Everyone likes a different tire for a different reason although I don't know if I've seen anyone that preferred the Dunlops yet.
