Are RoadSmart 3's Decent Tires

Discussion in '6th Generation 2002-2013' started by Zapp, Mar 11, 2019.

  1. Zapp

    Zapp New Member

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    I have a good independent bike shop about a mile from my house. He can get me Dunlop tires at his discount. I've read through a few tire threads and Dunlops do not come up often as a recommended tire. Has anybody used them? Or would it be wiser to purchase a different brand at the best price I can find on the web??

    For my part I'm trying to find that balance between longevity and handling.

    Thanks
     
  2. OOTV

    OOTV Insider

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    I know of two riders I'll ride with on occasion and both use the Roadsmart 3s and both seem to really like them. Both have VFRs and both use their VFRs in a "sport-touring" manner. Who knows, they may chime in so you can hear straight from them but IMO just about any current sport or sport-touring should work well with the VFR. If you can get them locally for a good price, I say worth doing.
     
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  3. SweViffer

    SweViffer New Member

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    I have Roadsmart 3s on my bike now. Compared to the Michelin Pilot Road 4s I had before it made my bike turn in really fast, almost so that it was scary at the beginning. As soon as you think about turning the bike reads your mind and drops a degree on its own. It could be that my dropped forks (some mm's extra) makes itself more noticed with the Dunlops, and now that I'm used to it its really REALLY fun.

    Bought them so that I would have peace of mind when going for longer vacation two up, and the longevity seems fine (slightly better than the Michelin PR4s).

    I haven't had time to go run on the gocart track with them yet, so I can't really say anything about them gripping better or worse than the PR4s. But it's soon summer again here! :) They are excellent for ordinary(?) road use though.
     
    Last edited: Mar 11, 2019
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  4. 3dcycle

    3dcycle New Member

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    I am running them on my bike right now. did a 3000 mile trip on them last year, with the first 2 days and 1000 miles on the highway (Vermont to deals gap) then 2000 mixed highway/twisties all the way home, look new still I may get 10000 miles from them but over 6000 and I will be happy.
     
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  5. Zapp

    Zapp New Member

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    Thanks for the replies. I’m going to call my shop tomorrow and see what his price will be for the Road Smart tires.

    Riding season is almost here.

    By the way 3dcycle, last year at the end of the season I rode out to southern Vermont. Was heading west on Hwy 9 towards Hogback Mountain and was going to do a circuit on Hwy 100. Literally started raining a mile or two before the Hwy. try again this year, love riding in Vermont.
     
  6. 3dcycle

    3dcycle New Member

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    Well if you come back to the area let me know I can take you to some of the better roads. May have to dodge some crater sized potholes this year though.
     
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  7. richieg66

    richieg66 New Member

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    I had the same experience. Went from pilot road 3 to roadsmart 3. My 2003 cornered more lke a sports bike with them fitted. Highly recommended...

    Sent from my ONEPLUS A6003 using Tapatalk
     
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  8. OCLandspeeder

    OCLandspeeder New Member

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    Agree on the Roadsmart 3's. That's all I use on my VFR because I like their quick steering characteristics. They will last about 6k miles. I usually will wear out the front first. I don't think you can go wrong with any of the sport-touring brand name tires out there from Michelin, Bridgestone, Pirelli, Metzeler, etc.
     
  9. Zapp

    Zapp New Member

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    Just came back from the shop with my new RoadSmart 3’s and oh my glob are they an upgrade. It’s like riding a different bike. Like was written above, the turn in response is so much quicker and the ride is much more supple with excellent road feel. To be fair I was riding on nine year old Metzlers before replacing today. Very happy with the new tires. Thanks all for the input.
     
  10. OOTV

    OOTV Insider

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    9 years old! That is not a fair comparison IMO. Regardless, I'm sure you'll be happy with them, well any tire that was made in the past year or two should be worlds better than 9 year old rubber. :)
     
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