The dude at the tyre shop said that the stock Michelin scorcher tyres are absolute shit and I should replace them with the Metzlers. I think the Michelin scrochers seem okay however I did have the front one replaced under warranty due to an annoying shudder above 90kph, the scorchers also have this little buzz through the bars when you lean the bike very slightly. What do you think are the best handling?
 

Mate, I have never used Michelin but I do swear by Metzler ME880's. They wear well and are good in the wet and dry for grip. I have had them on my last two Road Kings. These were originally recommended by a mate who had a dealership (not Harley) and used them on his own big tourers and cruisers.

How ya goin Paul , i ride all year round , hot /cold , wet /dry and frosty and have tried alot of different tyres , used the avon vemons for a while and were a bit slippery in the wet for me , have tried brigdestone batalax which were pretty good , as was metzler , but now im using michelin commander 2 tyres , awesome in the wet and dry and getting good mileage out of them , usually get about 8,000 - 10,000 kms out of a back tyre , have done about 15,000 kms on this one and recon i have still got about 5,000 kms left, have let a few mates know about them and they have swapped over and love them to , i will be using them again for sure , Wal

Metzler v Michelin? Why narrow your selection down to just two brands?

I've had a few cruisers and used lots of different brand and model tyres inc all the ones mentioned above among others. Metzler make some good bike tyres as do Michelin but my preference for my flstf is the Pirelli night dragon. Good in wet and dry. And they wear pretty well too. Use the search function on tyres and you'll see lots of opinions. More and more people using the night dragons now. Kelly tyres in Sydney sell them for $495 del for front and rear which is a good deal.

Oh thanks guys, My Street Bob with the 100 front and the 160 rear I thought i was a bit limited on tyre brand selection, No? can I get night dragons in my size?

The scorchers are crap

I swapped mine out for commander II's

38,000 on the rear

44,000 on the front

Neither were at the tread markers, the rear was square and the front was starting to show tiny splits on the tread grooves.

Both replaced for a second set of commander II's

I'm a heavy rider who scrapes pegs often too.

You need to add the Night Dragons to the mix as we'll. they are the bees knees for grip, but do have a lower mileage life...circa 10,000 km at the moment.

Metzlers have a white wall option, puts them into another mix as well ?

Priced a rear for my RK today. $239 incl GST fitted. $20 of that is for fitting.

Well I decided on Pirelli night dragons for the bob and the dude at the tyre place said the Metzeler marathon were better tyres. Pirelli own Metzeler so both very similar I guess, I want sticky over mileage though...

I haven't got them fitted yet, but I'm finding the stock Michelins fine in the twisties, but I guess if they're as crap as people are saying with Metz or Pirellis it'll be amazing.

Paul, I don't think any of them are crap. It probably all gets back to the fact of whether one has had a slip with XXX brand of tyre, thereby rendering that tyre a heap of crap in the rider's humble opinion, without taking into account perhaps riding too fast for prevailing conditions. I have never had Michies and have had only good experiences with the Metzelers. Therefore I am unqualified to pass an opinion as to which may be the better tyre, if indeed there is any appreciable difference. I have however not had the sort of mileage that Steve is getting from the Commanders.

I have just fitted a pair of Michelin Commander 2 to my Fatbob.
Very impressed with them, smoother, quieter and handle so much better than the Dunlops.
If I get the mileage that other people have got I will be a happy man.

I had a Metzeler Marathon ME880 fitted to the rear yesterday for $209 all up. I did take the wheel in though. I'll actually take note of the odometer this time and see how it goes.

I have Night Dragons front and back and feel far more confident in the wet then any other time.
They just track so well.

Big Steve,
Will take some pics in the morning and post them for you.
Any particular angles you would like?

John.

Sorry about the crap pictures, camera is us so used my phone.

John.