Bought a track bike - What is the best dry/wet tire for a noob? | Page 2 | GTAMotorcycle.com

Bought a track bike - What is the best dry/wet tire for a noob?

mbroyda said:
you know whats sucks worse than missing session / days due to rain?? loading your bike into the trailer in pieces while limping .......in the rain

when asking for a tire that is decent in the wet and the dry, you are going to end up with a tire that is not great at either
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I typically don't do anything unless I fully understand the risk. There is always something more risky than the next, so its up to the individual to weigh the risk/reward. Thank you for the reminder though, never hurts(no pun intended) to bring it up.

As for the tire choice, you are 100% correct as its physically impossible to make one, but you can find tires(such as the Q3 and PP3) that do both just well enough to allow many people to be successful(as in complete a day or more) with them on track. We have already heard of examples of this in this very thread. Its about learning to ride within the limit of the tire in different track conditions. Its the same thing when on track in a car, except with the obvious safety features..

Lets not lose sight of the fact that I am new and will not be turning seriously fast times. If your argument is that I would be better off with the best possible tires for wet and dry from a purely safety aspect, then that is fair and I will take it as such! But if you 're saying there are not tires that can get you by at new rider level speeds on track, I have to call BS based on all those who have, and those who continue to do so.

So "mbroyda", you feel the Q3 and PP3 is not great at neither? I'm asking genuinely.
 
I bought Q3+ because they claim they have better centre compound for less wear from street riding and they can be used on the track. Time will tell how that works out on the street in regards to the centre and I didn't have any issues on the track, I used 28.5psi in rear and 30.5 in front on the track, green group, cbr1000rr


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ZX600 said:
That was my point about the unicorn comment. I get his point, he is knew, he doesn't want to invest and wants something to get him by.

My opinion from experience and If I would have to start from 0 tomorrow, I either run with Rain tires or don't run at all and shut it down once it starts raining. It would be a complete waste of time to be out there on street tires on a wet track. If i liked grass I would be a gardener :)
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Thank you! My only issue is still at the school where I will be tight for time switching between tires(if it even rains). Has me wondering what tires their rentals have.
 
My SV650 has Michelin Power RS tires on it.

They are new for this year, and are freaking fantastic in ALL weather conditions.
 
isn't this what they call a catch 22?
you have car track experience - you have understanding
maybe just do dry to start, and look for a 2nd set of rims for next season?
 
If you are talking near race pace, there is no such thing as a tire that is good in both dry and rain. I have q3 on my street bikes and I consider the wet grip to be only good enough to get home, carefully. Look for slicks that work over a wide temperature range. I have had good luck with Bridgestone. Get another set of wheels with rain tires mounted.

You can ride on slicks, carefully, if it is damp, as long as there is not standing water. I did the last half hour of an endurance race in those conditions, and that was on Dunlops, which have a reputation for only working when really hot.
 
Wheels/rotors for that bike are a dime a dozen. Get a decent dry tire and a set of take off rains. If it takes you more than 15min to switch tires you need to put down the tools.

You seem to already know what you want to do even though you've been given lots of good advice so, enjoy the swimming unicorn and ride free.
 
I just saw that you are new to this, so you won't be near race pace. You will be fine with q3 or any other high performance DOT tire. Just don't push your luck too much if it is really raining.
 
limitsreached said:
Thank you! My only issue is still at the school where I will be tight for time switching between tires(if it even rains). Has me wondering what tires their rentals have.
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I doubt if their bikes have rains, although i might be wrong. I have tip toed around Shannonville on street tires before, not ideal but does the job.
 
dricked said:
Wheels/rotors for that bike are a dime a dozen. Get a decent dry tire and a set of take off rains. If it takes you more than 15min to switch tires you need to put down the tools.

You seem to already know what you want to do even though you've been given lots of good advice so, enjoy the swimming unicorn and ride free.
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I have been keeping an eye on Kijiji but nothing yet. Any recommendations for places to get them?

As for the knowing what I want, I guess it looks that way but I did ask specifically about what is the best street tire for dry/wet. Since my OP, people have made some good points and I have begun reconsidering 2 sets of wheels/tires. The sticking point for me is there are two sides to this, or so it seems. There seems to be a lot of people who successfully ride on track with streets(both dry/wet) and those who say it shouldn't or can't be done. Since I am new, I am trying to make sense of it all.

I plan to reach out to the FAST organisers and see how much time they give between sessions and what tires they use. With the schools I instruct with, you got in some cases 5-10 minutes to be at mock grid.

Btw, a friend of mind races CSBK so I have take-off slicks available to me - should I just go that route for dry then?? 190(CSBK) vs 180(mine) is the only prob.
 
limitsreached said:
I have been keeping an eye on Kijiji but nothing yet. Any recommendations for places to get them?

As for the knowing what I want, I guess it looks that way but I did ask specifically about what is the best street tire for dry/wet. Since my OP, people have made some good points and I have begun reconsidering 2 sets of wheels/tires. The sticking point for me is there are two sides to this, or so it seems. There seems to be a lot of people who successfully ride on track with streets(both dry/wet) and those who say it shouldn't or can't be done. Since I am new, I am trying to make sense of it all.

I plan to reach out to the FAST organisers and see how much time they give between sessions and what tires they use. With the schools I instruct with, you got in some cases 5-10 minutes to be at mock grid.

Btw, a friend of mind races CSBK so I have take-off slicks available to me - should I just go that route for dry then?? 190(CSBK) vs 180(mine) is the only prob.
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You can run 200 slicks on your bike no problem so not to worry there. The issue is now you'd want tire warmers which brings along a generator. The Q3+ or something along those lines will give you lots of tire life and grip until you're ready to make the switch to a proper track/race tire. Try eBay for wheels, rotors are a bit of a gamble but you could swap them from one wheel to the next, it just takes a bit of time.
 
If you do slicks without tire warmers/generator and just take it easy on first lap, I am assuming there is still benefit from performance perspective by using the slick vs Non slicks correct?


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dricked said:
You can run 200 slicks on your bike no problem so not to worry there. The issue is now you'd want tire warmers which brings along a generator. The Q3+ or something along those lines will give you lots of tire life and grip until you're ready to make the switch to a proper track/race tire. Try eBay for wheels, rotors are a bit of a gamble but you could swap them from one wheel to the next, it just takes a bit of time.
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I have woodcraft warmers and a generator already. Found an incredible deal a short time after getting the bike. :)

Thank you for the input!
 
ZX600 said:
My opinion from experience and If I would have to start from 0 tomorrow, I either run with Rain tires or don't run at all and shut it down once it starts raining. It would be a complete waste of time to be out there on street tires on a wet track. If i liked grass I would be a gardener :)
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I agree 100%, its one of many lessons I learned the hard way......"its just a little we, i'll just take it easy" ended up with a destroyed bike
 
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samurai said:
If you do slicks without tire warmers/generator and just take it easy on first lap, I am assuming there is still benefit from performance perspective by using the slick vs Non slicks correct?


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do not run slicks without warmers, there are many threads on the topic that you can search up and read thru, with lots of good info in them
 
Either the PP3 or Q3/Q3+ will work well enough for "new rider" speed in the wet or dry. The chance of wadding it up if it is proper wet out is probably close enough between the two to be negligible.

No experience with the PP3, but there are guys running the Q3 in SOAR endurance on a gixxer 600 in both wet and dry and haven't died yet.

FAST school bikes(600s) have PP3's on them, rain or shine.

As multiple others have already mentioned separate wheels with rain tires are a substantially better option if the track is thoroughly wet.

limitsreached said:
There seems to be a lot of people who successfully ride on track with streets(both dry/wet) and those who say it shouldn't or can't be done. Since I am new, I am trying to make sense of it all.
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It can absolutely be done. You can ride on slicks in the rain if you wanted to. We are merely stating that the chances of wrecking your bike go up exponentially, and amount of fun and experience gained go down exponentially. We are offering this advice so you don't have to learn the hard/expensive way like a lot of other people.

limitsreached said:
Btw, a friend of mind races CSBK so I have take-off slicks available to me - should I just go that route for dry then?? 190(CSBK) vs 180(mine) is the only prob.
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180, 190, 200, they will all fit no problem.

samurai said:
If you do slicks without tire warmers/generator and just take it easy on first lap, I am assuming there is still benefit from performance perspective by using the slick vs Non slicks correct?
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"Taking it easy on the first lap" will not get race slicks up to temperature and is a great way to crash.
 
N3WMAN said:
Either the PP3 or Q3/Q3+ will work well enough for "new rider" speed in the wet or dry. The chance of wadding it up if it is proper wet out is probably close enough between the two to be negligible.

No experience with the PP3, but there are guys running the Q3 in SOAR endurance on a gixxer 600 in both wet and dry and haven't died yet.

FAST school bikes(600s) have PP3's on them, rain or shine.

As multiple others have already mentioned separate wheels with rain tires are a substantially better option if the track is thoroughly wet.

It can absolutely be done. You can ride on slicks in the rain if you wanted to. We are merely stating that the chances of wrecking your bike go up exponentially, and amount of fun and experience gained go down exponentially. We are offering this advice so you don't have to learn the hard/expensive way like a lot of other people.


180, 190, 200, they will all fit no problem.


"Taking it easy on the first lap" will not get race slicks up to temperature and is a great way to crash.
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That also sounds like noobs like me should not get the slicks. even if they are warmed with warmers, I probably won't push them enough to keep them warmed.


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