Pirelli Angel ST tyres
Posted: Thu Aug 07, 2014 1:32 pm
It's been a long while since I've bought sports bike tyres so I engaged warp factor Google and got reading. From the reviews I read, as a manufacturer as a whole, Pirelli seemed to be getting the most consistent favourable opinions on a wide variety of their tyres. In contrast Dunlop seemed very much in the love 'em or hate 'em camp.
I found a pair of Angel STs (with a 180 section rear) for £150 (excluding fitting).
I was due on the track in a few days but decided I'd still be spending most of my time on the road so a sports touring tyre was the the way to go.
I managed the obligatory 100 miles of running-in before turning up at the track although they felt fine straight out of the mould..
At the track they didn't give me any drama. But given all the race tyres around me on that day they never had a hope of keeping in touch - although neither did I as a rider and I was riding well within their limits.
Afterwards the surface of the rear tyre has a texture like orange peel (I don't know if that's good or bad) and both had plenty of rubber balled up at the edges.
Back to road riding and I haven't had any issues. The bike always feels planted and easy to turn. I got rained on coming down the A505 at 11pm last night and the only reason I slowed down was because I couldn't see the road through a wet visor. No reason to complain about the tyres though.
For the second track day I must have had my weetabix as I'd gone from nervous newbie to Rossi's long lost older cousin (in my head at least). Suffice to say the tyres kept everything sticky side down - even carrying a tiny bit of front brake into the start of some turns. There was one moment trying to chase the track-hire bike uphill out of a turn where the back broke away for an instant but it was just letting me know what was available. A sportier tyre would have given me more drive.
I'll report back on mileage when I've worn them out!
Grip all the way to the edge:
(image credit: Peter Wileman Photography)
I found a pair of Angel STs (with a 180 section rear) for £150 (excluding fitting).
I was due on the track in a few days but decided I'd still be spending most of my time on the road so a sports touring tyre was the the way to go.
I managed the obligatory 100 miles of running-in before turning up at the track although they felt fine straight out of the mould..
At the track they didn't give me any drama. But given all the race tyres around me on that day they never had a hope of keeping in touch - although neither did I as a rider and I was riding well within their limits.
Afterwards the surface of the rear tyre has a texture like orange peel (I don't know if that's good or bad) and both had plenty of rubber balled up at the edges.
Back to road riding and I haven't had any issues. The bike always feels planted and easy to turn. I got rained on coming down the A505 at 11pm last night and the only reason I slowed down was because I couldn't see the road through a wet visor. No reason to complain about the tyres though.
For the second track day I must have had my weetabix as I'd gone from nervous newbie to Rossi's long lost older cousin (in my head at least). Suffice to say the tyres kept everything sticky side down - even carrying a tiny bit of front brake into the start of some turns. There was one moment trying to chase the track-hire bike uphill out of a turn where the back broke away for an instant but it was just letting me know what was available. A sportier tyre would have given me more drive.
I'll report back on mileage when I've worn them out!
Grip all the way to the edge:
(image credit: Peter Wileman Photography)
