By Kenn Stamp



Tires. They're not pretty. They aren't sexy. They don't add much in the way of visual 'WOW" to your bike, and they sure aren't cheap.

They are however a necessity. Now we can either buy whatever is the cheapest tire that will fit on our bike, or we can buy the BEST tire that will fit on our bike.

What tire is best? Well that depends on what kind of bike and what kind of riding you do with that bike. It also depends upon what you are looking for in a tire. Every tire does different things better than other tires, even if they are from the same manufacturer.

When I first got the FJR1300, it came with Metzeler Z4's from the factory. The tire was very stable in corners but they made the bike handle like a truck and would slide around in the rain. After the rear wore out (8k miles) I went with the Metzeler Z6 as another FJR hooligan recommended them. The bike handled quicker but never felt settled in the corners. The handling in the rain was much improved and I never got the bike to slide or slip. After the rear Z6 wore out (6k miles) I decided that I was going to try the Avon Azaro tires. I used to run Avons on my Harley and loved them so what did I have to lose?

I absolutely loved those Azaros. They transitioned side to side as quickly as the Z6's but felt as stable leaned over as the Z4's. Wet weather performance was on par with the Z6's as well. The rear tires lasted about 8k miles each. The only real negative I found with the Azaros was that they did not give much front-end feedback. I ran two sets of tires on the bike and was getting close to needing a new set when Avon sent me a set of their new Storm ST tires for the FJR.

My first impression of these tires? I think it went something like: HOLY CRAP!

You are probably wondering why my first response was holy crap, right? Well pulling out of the shop that put the tires on, you have to make a sharp right turn. Normally not an issue, except these tires transition VERY fast! I almost dropped the bike it fell into the turn so quickly. Hmmm... Obviously I was going to have to adjust the riding style a wee bit.

I've put about a thousand miles on the Storms so far and they are by far the best tire I've had on the bike yet. FJR's aren't exactly nimble creatures but these tires actually make you forget that fact. The side to side transition is very quick and can be accomplished with very little pressure on the bars. This is important to me as some of my Sundays are spent chasing a couple of sportbikes around corners with a bunch more behind me. Hehehe.
 
Wet weather handling has been superb with no slipping or sliding at all. Those of you who have run Azaros on your own bike know about the 5mph "squirm". Well Avon fixed that by changing the tread pattern which eliminated the "knobby on asphalt" feel at slow speeds.

One of the most impressive improvements made by the Storms over the Azaros, is front end feedback. Azaro = almost none, Storm = quite a bit. You know what the front end is doing at all times. It isn't as good as what you would get on an R1 or the like, but it is enough to give you great confidence when dragging those peg feelers around corners.

According to Avon Tyres the Storm-ST uses 'Reactive Footprint' (RF) technology which produces a footprint that changes size and shape depending on the bike's lean angle, growing in size the further over the bike goes. I can't tell you what that means in engineering terms but in laymen's terms it means that whatever lean angle you put the bike at, that's where it wants to stay. These tires track a line through a corner so well, you have to experience it to believe it.

Sounds like a glowing review with no negatives doesn't it? That's because as of yet I haven't found any negatives at all. I am waiting to see how long they last. If the rear tire doesn't give at least 8k miles worth of use, then that will be the negative for these tires. Until I get to that point though, I'm gonna keep thrashing their little hides off. I'll update as time goes on in case a negative (cupping, excessive tread wear, etc..) happens to pop-up.

Follow the link to see more about the Storm-ST's or the other quality Avon Tyres.