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Tire recommendations for a DRZ400S

Joined
Feb 28, 2017
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Location
Fort Worth
I'm in the market for new tires and after much reading, I'm leaning to the Dunlop D606. I like the idea of the more aggressive tire tread instead of a 50/50 tire, but I just cant decide. To describe my riding, its a mixed bag: mild neighborhood outings on asphalt/concrete, rally rides on pavement/gravel and the occasional single track at places like Big Bend or Red River. I'm still open to the idea of buying the most aggressive 50/50 tire out there instead of the D606 however I just cant decide which tire that would be! Heidenau K60 Scout looks like an option.

Would appreciate the thoughts/recommendations from you DRZ owners or tire experts!
 
I had a D606 on my DRZ400 right before I sold it. In fact, I switched it over to my Husqvarna FE501. Really good tire. Don't know how many miles I have on it, but holding up fairly well. I do run a Shinko 700 on the rear for my true dual sport 50/50 rides. I have 2 sets of wheels - as I did for my DRZ400. D606 rear/ Goldentyre Fatboy front for mostly off road (Like out at Red River) and Shinko 700 rear/TKC80 front for my more dual sport more pavement riding(like the dual sport rides we do around North Texas).
 
Should be able to score a set of wheels for <$500, including rotors and sprocket.

I could switch out wheels in 15 minutes flat - including finding and putting away tools.
 
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Yep for my S I have 2 sets of wheels. Knobbies (Shinko 546 with Tubliss inserts) that never go on pavement and Shinko 700's for the street and a little dirt. Love them both great for what I use them for.
 
I'm not the most experienced dual sport rider, but mine has a D606 on the back and an MT21 on the front. It's a combination that was recommend often, both on the web and by some of the more experienced riders I've ridden with. I've got a few hundred miles of mixed riding on them, and I've been pleased so far.
 
I put Kenda K760 Track Master on mine. Works good in the dirt and smoother than I would have thought on pavement at 70-75 mph. DOT certified.
 
Yep for my S I have 2 sets of wheels. Knobbies (Shinko 546 with Tubliss inserts) that never go on pavement and Shinko 700's for the street and a little dirt. Love them both great for what I use them for.

Interesting comment on the tubeless insert. So you can buy a tubeless tire for a DRZ if you get this insert? Please explain more! I thought I was limited to only tube tires.
 
Tubliss has an inner tube inflated to 100 psi that basically locks the tire to the rim functioning as a seal and a rim lock. This makes the tire effectively tubeless. So you can run low pressures without fear of damaging the tube. Lots of information available. I love mine so far, not any issues. You do need to consider sidewall stiffness as you wouldn't want to deflate it enough to damage a rim on a rock.
 
On my 400 the d606 & mt21 combo typically wears down 2/3rds after 1200 miles of 90% dirt/10% pavement,

This is how much my D606 in rr wore down to @ 1200 miles & 40hrs...
IMG-20190224-163102129-HDR.jpg

...there's still about another 200- 300 miles of life remaining.
I've ridden on this tire d/s'ing in ARK, OK, AL, & NM.

400's are easy on knobs.
and w/ my riding style, 130mm wide is overkill, so
The new d606 rr I just mounted is a 120/90-18 (vs. old 130/90-18... )
IMG-20190227-173002971.jpg
 
Thanks. I did go with the D606-MT21 combo and like it so far. I purchased the rear 120/90-18 as well. They performed well on the Big Bend trip I just returned from.

So how is the MT21 wearing so far (assuming your not changing that yet).
 
my front knobs only wore down about 40-50% @ 1200 miles, but each center knob wore unevenly front to back.
so i put a new front mt21 at the same time I got the 606 in the rr.
 
I'm not @FWdualsportrider , but I ride that combination too. and it's the most confidence inspiring set I've had on the bike. I'm not a great or terribly experienced dual sport rider, so confidence inspiring is a thing for me. Wear seems to be good too, but I don't have a huge number of miles on them yet
 
So in the 1 year- 8 months I had them on, I put about 2,250 miles on the tires. I dont ride often and I would say I put more pavement miles on them than dirt. Even though I decided to put some new shoes on the DRZ, I kept both the D606 and MT21 for possible use out in Big Bend. Both are still in good shape with (I'm guessing) 1/3 tread left. I'd buy them again. Good, durable tires that are obviously better suited for dirt vs the street. However, they performed fine on pavement.

I wanted to see what a good set of 50/50 tires was like, so I switched it up. Bought a pair of Michelin AX41 Battleax Adventurecross and really like them so far. Very well planted on the pavement and dirt roads.
 

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Thanks @FWdualsportrider & @Crew Chief, Tires are a tough decision, especially when it is all new to you. I would like something more suited for off road or at least dirt roads than the Trailwings. They are great on the road, but very loose on gravel and soft dirt. I am leaning towards a 50/50 tire, but big knobby tires are definitely distracting. I keep thinking why not just try the Tusk DSports...
 
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I used to run Trakmaster on the back. I never found a front that I was really happy with. The trackmaster was good all round but a hard ride in shale rocky terrain ate it up.

Stock rims for street, original Tourances by far. nice on gravel but that was it, great mileage. When I went to SM rims as spares a pilot road on the back and a power on the front.
 
i just finished up a dsport rear tire on my 690. it's Ok, but after about 500 miles on it, im finding that it's not as sure footed as the d606.
the front dsport gave me the death wobble @ 55-65 mph pavement. both dsport tires were machine balanced at cycle gear, so it's not the balancing,. about 100 miles in, i ditched it, and went back to the mt21 front. in an instant, my death wobble disappeared.

im not sure why the front dsport caused this on my 690 b/c my buddy's using dsports, and he doesn't have any wobbles, i think mine must be out of round, and since tusk buys them so cheap, it's a hit or miss. plus, the dsports front or rr, howls quite loud -= ouder than mt21 & d606 ever did at hwy speeds. never had that happen before.

for a 50/50 tire, I prefer shinko 700 and dunlop d605 (not d606) for dirtbikes that's less than 350lbs weight. Dont' let the cheap price fool you...they're legit dirt & gravel rd & 100 mph interstate capable, yet They'll last 5000 miles.
 
Thanks for the information on the DSport. There are a lot of reviews that point to issues with the front tire. A 50/50 tire makes the most sense for me right now and the D605 is on my list.
 
Did you get the Bridgestone Battlax AX41 Adventurecross or the Michelin Anakee Wild? It would be great to see a picture.
 
Wow, I screwed that up completely. I meant BRIDGESTONE Battlax AX 41. There's a great video on YouTube of them : 2020 Suzuki DR650S Project Bike. I dont have a picture on my bike of them but I can if that would help.
 
@FWdualsportrider. We are now a month away from the Big Bend trip and I have yet to sort out my tire situation. I have decided to go the Bridgestone Battlax Adventurecross AX41. Now comes the part where I need to order the right size... I only see one front in a 21 for a tube setup - 90/90-21 M/C 54Q TL. There are quite a few 18s so I need some assistance on which to order. Here is a link to the Bridgestone page - ax41 LINK Next question is around rim locks or going with a Tubliss setup. I have zero experience here and appreciate the help.
 
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