I've got a 2004 Sporty 883, it still has the original tyres on it. Even though there is still plenty of tread they are starting to go off & harden. I want to put new ones on but I am unsure which would be the better tyre for me whether it be Metzler, avon or dunlop. I don't ride hard so which would have the better compound.

Any advice or recommendations would be greatly appreciated.

hi  your name is sportygirl, cool my name nik name is sporty bob, ive had sportys since 1980, i have another nik name but it's got to do with cyl  head porting  the old race team boys ?                                                                                                      if  the tyres on your bike are 6 yrs old it's best to put new ones on  any thing over 3-4 yrs is bad the front tyre lasts longer than the front  if they still look good people leave them on then they go hard & NEVER WEAR OUT  but would be very slippery on a  cold winter wet road  ,front esp, i recommend bridgestone  BT45 are a very well $ tyres & very good handling all round  in all types of weather ,

ive had the dunlops and bridgestone battel axe on me sporty now have avon venoms out of all the venoms are the best for wear and grip i feel

I replaced the stock Dunlops with Metzler ME880 Marathons and find the bike handles much better.  You'll find that the general opinion on tyres is that the Dunlops get better milage than both the the Metzlers and the Avon Venom with the Avons being the most expensive and being the softest obviously wear quicker.

Ive decided to change out my Dunlops for Avon Venoms White Walls. ( only 2500kms on the bike )
mostly for the look as im going to begin a slow bobber project.
$520 all in the dude even offered me 150 bucks a tire for the old dunlops.
All the reviews i have read said that the venoms handle great both wet and dry.
bit stickier so wear faster but for more stick i dont mind too much love that traction baby.

btw the dealer told me 640 for the same tires hahahaha
no money for him!!

I've only had my 2010 XL883C for a few weeks (purchased in Darwin) but with under 4,000km on the clock the tyres don't look too bright to me - of course, living in the north west of Australia our roads get seriously hot, which can't do tyres much good.
'tis only Spring but we had a 39C air temp one day this week (34C the other days).

BTW: how much tread depth is there on OIM tyres anyway?

On previous bikes I've used Metzler Marathon ME880's and always found them long lasting.

John Kennedy

Broome, WA

I have metzeler lazertecs on my Sportster and love em. Replaced my dunlops at 13000. Done about 3000kms so far on my metzelers. the traction difference is awesome. I am now starting to scrape the pegs..

I managed to scrape the pegs pretty well on the bog standard tyres without a hell of a lot of effort. At the moment $/Km is my main guide and the dunlops seem to be pretty reliable by all accounts. But this is just me on my bike and my opinion.

If you're looking for Venoms, I just bought white walls out of the States. Cheap as compared to prices in Sydney, look for a post in the Product Review section called 'Jake Wilson'. I have always had Dunlops, however will be giving the Avons a go for the next few months..............reasons, they're white walls look great!

Whilst, I've not personally used them, I've had Jake Wilson recommended to me in the past - in fact I'd already got a quote for shipping a pair of white-walls's to Broome and that came to A$355 delivered.

John Kennedy

I was really surprised, they recommend four days for shipping and im thinking.........................your kidding, however they arrived USA to Sydney in exactly the time quoted. The price was great and they continually follow you up to make sure you're happy with the price, delivery etc................cant fault them, its actually a pity they don't sell more HD parts

Just to confuse you further, I recently put Pirelli Night Dragons on mine and its been a different bike since (had Dunlops on before). Corners so much better. Not tried in the rain yet, but reports from others have been positive.

yep, i'm a fan of pirelli night dragons too. 140 for a front, can't remember the back. On the dunlops i used to get a huge squirm as i came back across the centerline on the road, pirellis don't move.