Metzler for no reason other than that's all I have ever replaced tires since I rolled the dice the first time and tire are too expensive to experiment with. I am happy with them and will replace them with the same

 

I had Michelin on the 1800 I like the way they handle even in the rain. Could not comment about miles, I did not have it long enough. The Magna...Mets are a habit.

 

You will find lots of satisfied ME880 users on this site, myself included. They are all I've ever run on my 1100 and I've been very happy with them. Great traction in the rain and they handle the dirt road I live on just fine. The Commander 2 is a relatively new tire but I've read lots of good things about them and I can't recall seeing anything negative. You really can't go wrong between those two choices.

 

I would not get the metzelers!!! I went through 5 tires 2 weeks ago 3 of them ordered from different suppliers. All of them were defective. They gave me a severe shake in the handlebars, I was able to return all of them but I was still stuck with $200 in labor fees. I called metzeler they said that they have been having some recent problem with some of their batches that they are trying to fix. So if you have to get them here soon I would stay away from the metzelers.

 

Happy with my Commander II's so far.

 

From the research I've done both are good, However the Mets ME880 are discontinued now, The have the new ME888 to replace them so if you find any 880's there probably existing stock and will be replaced soon. I'm waiting to hear how they are. Still have plenty of tread on mine so I have time but I'm pretty sure next season I'll be looking at tires.

Dauntae

 

Commander IIs for tubed tires and Avon Venoms for tubeless.

John.

 

Yeah after searching through a few sites last night seeing the Metzeler's are discontinued and I don't think I found the new 888's as of yet in my size I might steer towards the Michelin.

But thanks everybody for the input.

 

LOVE my Metzeler ME880s. Got 14k miles on them now and expect another 4k+. Great handling, better MPG and not a bit of trouble since the day I put them on. I'd be targeting them for my next set if they hadn't been replaced by the ME888. Near as I can tell, that's Metzeler's answer to the Commander II's higher mileage claims.

Here's a hint: Use Metzeler's recommendations for tire pressure rather than Honda's. Honda recommends lower pressure based on the assumption that you'll be running Dunlops. ME880s perform MUCH better at higher pressures.

 

I have the commander II and have put about 5,000 miles on them so far. I ride daily on them rain or shine and have never had a problem they handle well in both conditions.

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I've got Kenda's on my Shadow and my Sabre (and both are wearing great, and handle great dry or wet)... but back to your question... I've heard good and bad on Metz, but also heard good and bad on just about any tire out there.

From personal experience, my son's bike (CB750 NightHawk) had Commander IIs on it, and they rode and gripped well. He just recently changed his tires for Michelin Road Pilot 3's, and I must say... riding his bike on those tires is much improvement over the Commander's... and they were not even worn out yet either! How long they'll last, nobody really knows yet because they just came out with the Pilot 3's, but the Commanders had more than 10K on them, and still had tread left... probably could have got another 3-4K on the rear, maybe more on the front?

 

I'm about to swap out my ME880 rear for another 880.

It has about 18,000 miles on it - possibly a few more, I just can't be arsed to check. I have been very happy with it - far, far better than the slippy slidey Dunflop it replaced.

Collector

 

yep know nothing about it but

Darn sport bike riders always get the newest tires.
went to site and like the looks of the Michelin pilot 3 videos.
closest I could find for my bike was a listing on their site of

Honda vt 750 c2 shadow 1997 - 2013
MICHELIN Commander II tire

Front : 120/90 B 17 64S F TL/TT
Rear : 170/80 B 15 77H R TL/TT

Now in specs on Honda VT750CA Aero website lists my tires as

front - 120/90 - 17
rear - 160/80 - 15

So for the people That DO know ( I do not ) will the difference in rear tire size make any difference?

Need tube tire unfortunately

 

yep know nothing about it but

Darn sport bike riders always get the newest tires.
went to site and like the looks of the Michelin pilot 3 videos.
closest I could find for my bike was a listing on their site of

Honda vt 750 c2 shadow 1997 - 2013
MICHELIN Commander II tire

Front : 120/90 B 17 64S F TL/TT
Rear : 170/80 B 15 77H R TL/TT

Now in specs on Honda VT750CA Aero website lists my tires as

front - 120/90 - 17
rear - 160/80 - 15

So for the people That DO know ( I do not ) will the difference in rear tire size make any difference?

Need tube tire unfortunately

To answer you question first, yes. Both your diameter and circumference will change some.

As far as sport bikes getting all the new stuff part of the reason is many sport bikes have the same size tire needs. Also, if you buy many of the offerings good luck with getting more than 4000 miles on them, but they will stick like glue when warm. Then there are the ST bikes, heavier than Sport bikes and need a hardier tire but many last over 10k.

 

Well I went ahead and ordered the Michelin... should have it installed in a few days.

Just remembered that I do have inner tubes, should of ordered a new one.

 

I am shocked to see that I am almost to 4k miles on my 2009 Aero and the Maxxis tires that are on it are very near needing replacement.

I'm shocked too!?!? I've got 11,300 miles on my stock Maxxis tires, and I expect to get another 2000-3000 miles on them before it's time.

Good luck with your new tires.

 

I am going with the Metzler myself, but can't decide which ones. The first is the ME880 and the second is the ME888. The 888 is the new model, but I like the looks of the 880 tread better. What do you guys think? Should I go with the new model or with the old favorite?

 

I believe the ME888 is the replacement for the ME880. You might have a hard time finding the 880's.

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I think it might been the age of the tires and also the 50 miles a day I ride and 40 of those miles have a lot of turns in them and I would think for a cruiser I ride pretty aggressive on the Shadow. That and also the few dirt roads I run down from time to time.

I have heard nothing but great reviews about Metzeler but when I used to sell car tires and I know they are not the same but we used to always praise Michelin. That is why I went with the Michelin.

 

Doing a quick search, Plenty of places still have the 880 in stock but once there sold they will replace them with the 888. So if you want a 880 I would order them soon.

Dauntae

 

Doing a quick search, Plenty of places still have the 880 in stock but once there sold they will replace them with the 888. So if you want a 880 I would order them soon.

Dauntae

Yeah, that's the thing. I have an appointment with the shop down the street to change my tire this Saturday and they have both tires in stock. I really like the tread of the 880, but feel like the newer 888 should be better if Metzler is changing to that one.

 

I like my C II's so far. Handle like a dream. Not really a fair comparison though because it's coming off a worn out Dunlop. Of coarse the Dunlop had about 5k miles. I've got well over thaton the C II right now and there's virtually no wear so far. It will be interesting how much I can actually get out of it.

 

The Me888 is supposed to last more miles then the 880. Tread pattern on a cruiser tire shouldn't make much difference unless it impacts wet weather handling. I've got about 18,000 on a set of 880's and still some left. If it's as good as the 880 is/was then it's golden IMHO.

 

One thing I learned, almost the very hard way, is about having tread grooves on the center of the rear tire.

Im very glad the new Commanders II's have them. No more sliding through an intersection in the rain that scared the crapp out of me one day.

 

I also looking to buy new rear tire for my Spirit 750; have changed to Metzeler 880 on the front last year and love it;
Now looking for the rear and not sure what to do… I was planning got go with Metzeler 880 but the one I can find are 170/80B-15 and from everything I have read “B” indicator means (bios-belted) tire and is meant for heavier bikes (translates into harsh ride for light bikes)… anyone has any comment on that?

 

I have them on my 08. Can't say it rides any better or worse then the factory recommended bridgestone that was on it when I bought the bike. Plus, the 170 corrected my speedometer!

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