Continental TKC 70
 

Any opinions on the Continental TKC 70 ?
(Have tried to search the forum without luck)

I've been riding Michelin T63 the last year, but considering a slightly less knobby tire for my commuting.

I've riddin Heidenau K60 in the past on both a XTZ750 and XT600Z and thought that i would just go with the known until i saw that the TKZ 70 was announced.


I've had TKC80 on the old rides as well but prefer something smoother for my 95:5 (onroad:offroad) but still with close to 50:50 preference between tarmac and gravel roads since its the 5% that makes up for 95% of the fun

The front is available now, but the rear is still not being manufactured.

Shouldn't be long now.

Needed new rubber desperately so gave up waiting. Someone else will have to be guinea pig! ;)

Apparently the rear is due April 16th according to a German motorcycle magazine. Continental UK (Cambrian Tyres) seem little less forthcoming with this information...

Hot from the press......

http://www.conti-bike.co.uk/tkc-70/

My rear can just about hold on that long. Looks like it will be me then!

What tyres have you gone for now, Pleiades?

Changed out my last TKC80, and refitted a part worn Heidenau K60 I had lying about (hated it which is why I took it off early), but sadly that went bald too and I couldn't hold out any longer!

Wanted something a little more road orientated than the TKC80s (which I've been using consistently for the last three years) but still good enough for wee jaunts on gravel/dirt tracks and something that'll get you off a wet camping field without embarrassment. (Not actually that sure the TKC70 would actually be too clever with respect to the last requirement?)

In the end I went back to a trusted old friend - Metzler Enduro 3 Sahara. Always got on well with them going as far back as the 90s. No good in anything sticky or too muddy, but fine elsewhere and very capable on the tar. I've always found them to be more stable than the TKC80 on the road at speed and they don't do the falling over thing either! The only trade off being they are slightly less off-road capable. Wear rate is about the same as the TKC80s for me, about 7K front/3.5K rear.

http://www.tpimotorcycleparts.com/dr...iresbanded.jpg

Look forward to your thoughts on the TKC70... if you ever get your hands on a pair!

My off-road time is limited to my choice of tyre.
Currently, Trail Attack 2 - my second pair.

Sadly, I could not deal with changing a rear tyre every two months! (Yep, around 1,300 miles a month at the moment)

What don't you like about the K60?
The Scouts were going to be the next thing I put on, until I heard of the TKC70

I'm going to be doing 10-15,000 miles in Europe this summer, off-road for a bit in Morocco and Turkey too which is why I need the road wear and the half-knobbly style of the K60.

I LOVE the trail attacks, but it makes the bike look poo!
(And any grass or mud... Forget it!)

In a word (well three) - Lack of feedback!

This is only my opinion, don't take it as gospel! The K60 has a very stiff carcass (just try fitting one) and this, paired with a very hard compound, makes for a tyre that lasts a long time but one which doesn't have any flexibility. You just don't know what the tyres are doing - they feel disconnected from the bike. You'd really notice this going from sticky and supple Trail Attacks to rock hard K60s!

Having said that though, they never caused any drama, they worked, did what was asked and lasted ages (too long in fact!) It is literally just how they "feel" that was my beef with them.

But hey-ho, one man's meat is another man's poison!

I think the TKC70 is probably going to be much more up your street, so to speak, than the K60?

+1 for Sahara Enduro 3,

Although I haven't had these on my Ten yet they are high on the list for a replacement, as I've had them on a TDR 250 & found them to be pretty much as Mr Pleiades says about them. These tyres have been around for a while so there must be something in that.

I think the new TKC 70's will be a good tyre. The tread pattern looks similar to the Metzler tourances and I'd expect similar performance. I'm not a fan of the Sahara 3's, think they're an awful tyre that don't work well in any situation, lethal in the wet, but that's just my opinion, I know others like them.

I've used a set of TKC 80's twice on trips to Morocco; on a Honda Dominater in 2005 and a KTM 640 Adv in 2007. I have to say they performed as well as can be expected both on and off road. Lots of confidence leant over on the tarmac, work well off road and NO punctures! Just a little lacking in feedback on wet roads.

Just received a press release from Continental UK by email today. Here's an excerpt...

http://i864.photobucket.com/albums/a...psej4ug0fl.jpg

It would seem that the TKC will be available in sizes to suit the X and R now!

As I said earlier, "one man's meat is another man's poison." ;)

Have you tried them on an XT though? The same tyre can, and often do behave very differently from one bike to another. I even thought Tourances were a good tyre on my GS, but they were (IMHO) hateful on the Tenere!

Seconded!
They were horrific in the wet, on white lines, on bumps, on gravel. Swapped after 2,000 miles and I just left them with my dealer! Yuck.

Yep, I didn't care for them, although with 9000 miles on the OE set they certainly lasted!

I once tried Anakee 2's on the Ten.... after hearing other rave about how good they were. A wet trip to Scotland and I catagorised them as 'poor', then getting stuck on a grassy field sealed their fate. However, a member from here took them to a warmer climate and loved them :confused2: Goes to show it's a combination of factors.

I had Sahara 3's on an old KLR years ago and more recently on a 640 Adventure so no, haven't tried them on an XT. Considering the amount of space between the blocks they just dont work off road. I guess they grip ok on dry tarmac but wear very quickly. I prefered the Sahara 1 and 2's; think the 3's must be a 25 year old tyre now!!!!

...and I've been using them on and off for 25years. There's a good reason they're still in production. Sahara 1/2 are even older designs and have even closer blocks. ;)

If you read my OP, you'll see I don't want them to do serious off-road, which is why they've gone on and the TKCs have come off. They work at least as well as TKC in the wet, better in the dry on tar and they are far more stable in a straight line on the Ten IMO. The TKC is indeed far superior off-road, particularly in mud and anything sticky and better than it has any right to be on the tar. They are both good tyres, but fit for different purposes, just like I'm sure the TKC70 will be a good tyre, but again it's for a yet another different purpose so not really comparable.

Too many choices, too many opinions and too many uses. Tyre discussions are always a minefield!

Tyres are like marriage I suppose, there's always going to be a compromise somewhere along the line...

Email arrived first thing this morning:

So, they're turning up at my dealer this week and I should have a report for you by the weekend!

Excellent. The TKC70 has finally landed. XT660.com official guinea pig to the ready...

http://i864.photobucket.com/albums/a...pssio2rzly.jpg

https://dl.dropboxusercontent.com/u/...311_141005.jpg

http://i864.photobucket.com/albums/a...pszcppjpwp.jpg

https://dl.dropboxusercontent.com/u/...311_144029.jpg

They certainly look a jack of all trades type of tyre. Looking forward to hearing how you go with them.

Side tracking slightly are your plastics coated with Plastidip WeaveMcQuilt?

They look good, better suited to the style of the bike IMHO. I've always thought road only tyres (and I've tried a few) look a bit out of place on bikes like the Tenere. But of course, looks aren't everything, especially when it comes to tyres!

Let's hope they perform as well as the TAs on the tar - I think they should, given the technology incorporated in them. I'd be interested to see they perform in the "getting off a wet camping field up slight gradient" test. The central band on the rear is what gives me slight reservations about their "claimed" 80/20 on/off road capability?

You state 80/20, but i've read different numbers on different sites

60/40 on Continentals website:
http://www.conti-online.com/www/moto...tkc_70_en.html

70/30 in this review:
http://www.ridermagazine.com/gear/co...es-review.htm/

60/40 according to Revzilla:
http://www.revzilla.com/motorcycle/c...l-tkc-70-tires

So what is it? :)

I'm really interested in this tyre because i plan on doing some allroad trips in the Alps and Pyrenees this summer. So i need a tyre to last on the return trips to the playgrounds....

I have had K60 in the past. it was good in the terrain, but on tar i didnt feel a 100% confident

80/20 came from one review. Can't remember which, there have been so many, and like you say they all appear to be different in their take on the road/off-road balance?

Based on looks alone (which doesn't really count for a lot), I'd be inclined to think they'd be comparable off-road to something like Michelin Siracs. Most reviewers seem to have raved about the off-road ability for such a tyre, however all the reviews I've read have been based on the same "staged" tests riding "big" bikes at Nick Sanders place in Wales on light gravel trails to which all the press were invited to. We'll be much better placed to see what they're really like when a few more "real world" reviews start filtering through from people who've actually paid for their tyres! You tend to get much more honest opinion from folk who have shelled out their own hard earned cash!

So here goes - 150 mile report:

0 - 20 miles - Absolutely horrific.
A sense of toppling every time I turned the wheel, and it felt hideous under braking.
20 - 80 miles - I can feel it starting to soften up, the rear tyre feels no different to the Trail Attack, the front still has a little way to go before I can trust it.

80-150 miles - Well that's more like it. I feel like I can really trust these tyres.
I've got a predictable amount of feedback from the front (i can feel it skipping on gravel corners but it stays grounded and I can expect it)
Lean angles seem to be just fine (just needed a bit of scrubbing in)
Noise levels are not much different to the TAs
Spun the rear up on some dirt, dropped the clutch and let her rip, feels good.

Road test included A + B roads, Motorway, gravel farm tracks and some dirt.

�154 delivered and I'm expecting a good 10-12,000 miles out of the rear.

I'm pretty happy.

I plan to try a set of these , on the rear I think I have choice of these two
130/80-17 M/C 65T TL TKC70 M&S 140/80 R 17 69T TL TKC70 M&S

I guess 130/80 would be the tyre but I want as much width on the rear as possible, so was thinking of the 140/80 R does anyone know what the difference between the 140/80 is other than just a bit wider ? What does the R mean ?

I've run various brands of 140/80s and have found them all to square off more quickly than a 130 due the the beads being pulled inwards and the tyre takes on a more oval/pointy cross-section. A 140 is at the extreme of what a 2.75" rim will take. 140s don't seem to be as good on loose surfaces either and don't appear to improve on road handling either IMHO.

The 'R' means it is a radial tyre.

Hi, my first post.
I'm looking to fit new tyres next week, interesting reading all the feedback but where would you say the Mitas E-07 tyres fit in with the ones listed above?
I am looking for something that'll do well in the wet - on tar so swaying towards the Sahara 3's due to Pleiades experience with them.
Thanks

I've been using E07s for a number of years now and find them great. They perform very well on tarmac and in the wet and also on tracks of gravel etc. But as has been mentioned already - tyres are very personal choice and Mitas suit me well, and they're very competitive price wise.