Pirelli MT21
 

I fitted MT21s recently mainly because they are reasonably priced and I've covered many miles with them on other bikes.At first I was rather dissapointed in how they feel on tarmac, certainly nowhere near as good as when I had them on a DRZ.
After playing around with the pressures and dropping from 30psi to 25 they felt better.

Whatever, much better than the motorcross front I had fitted previously:toothy10: where the phrase ' handles like a pig on stilts' comes to mind.

Offroad I can't fault the Pirellis and conversely they suit the Tenere better than the DRZ. Possibly down to the extra weight and smoother power delivery, getting very little wheelspin and less front end slithering at low speed in really sticky mud despite running higher pressures than I would normally.

But given that I'm doing a fair bit of road riding also, sometimes with a pillion, they are too 'offroad' and spoil the Tenere's handling on tarmac.

Good job I have a very large tub of tyre soap.

Here's a pic below for anyone who hasn't seen the Pirelli for comparison with the TKC posted in the other thread.

Now after a few hundred miles they have improved vastly on tarmac.They still spin up easily in the wet and the front starts to 'wobble' above 80mph but both can be avoided with a gentler throttle hand.The wobble may be because I still have the old balance weights fitted.................. must remember to prise them off.

I'll report on wear at a later date :) overall I'd say they do the job well.

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3125/...25968c9d52.jpg http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3133/...50ebc79c45.jpg

gregor,

The best 50/50 road / off road tyre you will get. I have used them for years now for my enduro/green lane fun i have in the winter months.

Enjoy

WB

Brilliant tyre ,i use it when doing adv rides up north so there's a few road miles to do before the lanes and they are fantastic but dont be suprised if your changing them before the 1,000 miles mark

I've used both MT21s and TKC80s on my Tenere, and I have to say the TKCs are far better (more predicable) on the road, and just as good in the dry off-road - in fact they are better on the front end as the Ten' tended to wash out a little on loose dirt with the MT21 and I could never truly trust it in the same way.

For info, I tended to run 25psi both front and rear in both sets of tyres, and would certainly agree that the MT21 needs to be significantly lower than the factory 30psi to get the best from it.

The TKCs also lasted pretty much a thousand miles more - 3500 vs 2800 for the rear Pirelli, that's mixed highway and dirt/road off road use. (The cush drive is worth something then...)

TKCs cost more it's true, but in my opinion, they really are the best tyre on the Tenere for on/off road 'dual-sport' style riding and usage.

xxx

Hey hey Jmo, how are you going to spend your Xmas and where? Yours truly is still waiting for pics and reports..... 'member? ;)

Have a good one:blow kiss:

Jmo, must be going round in circles, all those days and still at N39�00.395' W120�14.666'. bigwink

Loved the second installment in TBM

Enjoy your Christmas where ever you are.

I'm back in Vegas, baby... where better to spend Christmas than the city of excess?!

Actually, the place is snowed under - they had about 8 inches of snow here (right in the city) for the first time in years... in fact the whole of the south west was deluged in a mighty storm this past week or so - I've been utterly soaked and frozen... and it was surreal to see cactus in the desert covered in snow!

I've just passed the 10,000 mile mark this afternoon, and the bike is going better than ever! I will need to put a new chain and sprockets on before I head east in the new year, and new front tire... (TKC again of course x)

I've also come up with a rather nifty way of losing the rear indicators (that is until Clear Alternatives get on the case) and have chopped the tail properly - looks much better! I'll get some pictures up in a day or two...

Best wishes to you all this festive season...

Jenny xxx

Hee hee - believe me, if you get that far, it's damn difficult to get out again!

xxx

I have a set of wheels for my super tenere with MT21's on. Quite a few of the lads from xtz750.com use them. On a wet and muddy ride we did in December they were better than those riding with TCK80's. The TCK's clogged up where as the MT21's gripped better and cleared the mud from the knobs.

Well I have changed the rear after 1200miles, there is still plenty of life left for road riding but not for off road in Winter.Now it has squared off a bit the handling betters the Tourances in the damp, which is all the time at the moment.

Despite saying I would try the TKC I have opted for another MT21 because they are nearly �30 cheaper.

The new one feels excellent from the start so it must have been the front that was giving me the heebie jeebies on tarmac.

Started with 23psi this time and have marked the tyre and rim to see if there is any slippage when I drop the pressure right down.