BMW R1200RT/R1250RT Forum

When I was having my tyres fitted I mentioned that the Z8 was being given a bad rep on the RT owner's forum. The guy who runs the place was pretty surprised. Apparently they have a reputation as a good tyre. So perhaps it's just the RT. I know when he fitted Anakee IIIs to my GS they were horrible, not because of the handling but because they would whistle at anything over 30 mph. I guess from that I learned that not every tyre works on every bike.

Having seen the RS III's again recently at BikeWise, I was tempted to get a pair next time round. Looking back at this thread etc., have decided against it & will stick with RS I's whilst they are available. As discussed earlier, I prefer the tread pattern of the RS I's, less cuts (more slick, except in the centre) surely gives a better contact patch. The RS I's do work in the wet, but tyre manufacturers seem to be developing tyres that they claim work better in the wet by increasing the cuts in the tyre.

RS I     RS III

I recently had a pair of RS III fitted and the first outing was our little Welsh jaunt a few weeks ago which went well. Since then it's been no luggage with the appropriate ESA settings.

I've always run my tyres 36F/42R loaded/unloaded on my RTs, GSs and FJRs with varying brands of tyre.

I'm now finding the ride w/o luggage very 'solid' and changing the ESA settings has little effect. Last time out, I reduced the tyre pressures to 32F/36R which seemed to be the advised pressures a few years ago.

The ride comfort was greatly enhanced, the ESA had the required effect and I didn't notice any deterioration in handling in either wet or dry compared to previous pressures or previous tyres.

Anyone else had a similar experience with these tyres?

k9doc wrote:I've always run my tyres 36F/42R loaded/unloaded on my RTs, GSs and FJRs with varying brands of tyre.

I'm now finding the ride w/o luggage very 'solid' and changing the ESA settings has little effect. Last time out, I reduced the tyre pressures to 32F/36R which seemed to be the advised pressures a few years ago.

Anyone else had a similar experience with these tyres?

The TC RT does have two sets of tyre pressures depending on the loading, 32F/36R or 36F/42R. As a lightweight rider, I've always used 32F/36R when solo & 36F/42R when two up. Have tried 36F/42R when solo & likewise found the ride is too firm. Switching the tyre pressures accordingly seems to work for me, the RS I tyre wear is consistently around 5,500 miles F&R, similar to that achieved previously from Metzeler Z6's.

Since your previous RT, am I right in saying you had a Honda which may have only had one set of tyre pressures 36F/42R for all loadings.

David. wrote: Since your previous RT, am I right in saying you had a Honda which may have only had one set of tyre pressures 36F/42R for all loadings.

This is true, and since my last RT I have also shed 40 lbs. (18 kg new money) in weight but didn't think that would make much difference.
The comparison I am making, however, is with the same bike, same rider weight and only a few weeks before on Z8s. Never had to bother altering pressures on other bikes/tyres, which makes me think these tyres are better suited to the heavier tourers.
Thanks for your observations and input.

Chris, how do I shed 40lbs without cutting an  arm off and taping my mouth up? Lost 10lbs and its killing me to get any lower-well done you.

scunny1 wrote: Chris, how do I shed 40lbs without cutting and arm off and taping my mouth up?  Lost 10lbs and its killing me to get any lower-well done you.

Basically counting carbs and a sensible amount of exercise. Happy to discuss at some point but 10 lbs. is pretty good going.

k9doc wrote:Basically counting carbs.

RT's have two cylinders with FI.

Being a fan of the original Roadsmart I see that National Bike Tyres (www.nationalbiketyres.co.uk) have them listed at £184 a pair. Not sure if this includes fitting but a good buy.

If you fancy a pair of RS III's, they are currently £234 & are definitely fitted FOC until 31st August 2017 at NBT.

I've used roadsmart 111's on my 2010 rt and now on my 2015 rt, the tyres are superb and wouldn't use anything else.
The grip both in wet and dry conditions is confidence inspiring, not once have I experienced the tyres letting go, and believe me just recently I've had to hit the brakes  so hard to avoid a lorry pulling out of a driveway and thinking my days were numbered, even then the tyres didn't let go.
Having confidence in your tyres is a must, and makes riding far more enjoyable.

Look carefully at the picture that David posted on reply #21.  The small sipes are significantly more shallow than the rest of grooves on these RoadSmart IIIs. I wonder why that is a good idea.  Those sipes will wear out long before the tire has reached the end of it's life.  Also, a few of the regular depth sipes are broken up.
I bought a pair of these tires recently for my 2016 RT, and have 2500 miles on them.  Not a safety issue, but on some road surfaces, they feel a little less stable at cruising speeds than the original fitment PR4s. They do seem to give me a bit more confidence in corners than the fitment PR4s that I had, so I am enjoying them.
You can see the smaller sipes already starting to wear down in spots.[attachimg=1][attachimg=2]