Any experience with Dunlop D404?

[bwringer]

Brian...funny that i saw the IRC Durotour on that list. I was pondering tires a few weeks ago for the Skunk and i chose those for it. Seems to be a good tires so far..but yet here in Oklahoma there arent too many twisties to punish them on.

Well, go hammer the snot out of them for a while (make sure you work in a blizzard or at least a few thunderstorms) and give us a report!

It's for SCIENCE!


I've installed these, but I haven't ridden hard on them. Fine tire, and some very useful oddball sizes are available, but they are an older design.


In my experience, the biggest difference between the older designs and the newer ones (and by "design" I mean tire construction, not the tread pattern) is that the newer tires retain far more consistent handling as they wear. They feel much the same, and you don't see nearly as much scalloping up front and uneven wear out back. For the most part, tires all start off sticky and feeling good.

[Chromedome]

Iv just a few days ago removed a 404 from the rear of my GS1100L, it had only been touring, always with 2 up and was down to the limit at 7000 miles, no issues during this time with grip, wet or dry, or with pressures

[Allie]

To the OP: you'll be fine. Enjoy.


To everyone else: I am a large galoot, I ride very hard, and I tend to get much worse mileage out of tires. Just to show you the variation between riders, I wore out a set of 404s on my 850G in 3,600 miles, and they turned just plain evil during the last 800 or so. The Dunlop 404's short but glorious time in service included a summer trip to the mountain twisties of North Carolina -- 2,500 miles total, including many miles of very hard riding on very abrasive twisty mountain roads. When reasonably fresh, they stuck to the road quite well in wet and dry conditions and handled nicelyl. They were particularly good in the wet, thanks to a soft, sticky compound and lightweight carcass.

Again, normal people will get far better mileage than I did, and most riders will be very happy with these tires. They're a good choice for a lot of people; that said, they weren't the best choice for me.

If you are one of those rare demented types who enjoy exploring the outer limits of shaftie handling on a regular basis, there are choices that hold up better to this type of abuse, such as the Avon AM26 RoadRider (my fave) or the Pirelli Sport Demon (short lived, but probably a few percent stickier).


There are lots of excellent, modern design tires on the market nowadays for our bikes:
Avon AM26 RoadRider - $$
Pirelli Sport Demon - $$$
Shinko 230 - $
Shinko 712 (no 17" rears) - $
Bridgestone BT45 - $$
Continental Go - $$$
Michelin Pilot Activ - $$$
Dunlop E3 (No 17" rears) - $$$
Dunlop 404 (traditional Dunlop tread pattern on a somewhat more modern carcass; can be short-lived) - $$


There are also some still on the market that are rather old designs; there are much better choices now, even if some of these names are fondly remembered:
IRC Durotour
Bridgestone Spitfire
Avon RoadRunner
Dunlop Arrowmax GT501
Dunlop 491 (no 17" rears; replaced by the E3)
Metzeler Lasertec, ME88, ME77, etc.


Not recommended -- reports of problems:
Kenda K657 Sport Challenger
Duro
Several older Dunlop models; many still available, but performance is poor
Several older/OEM Bridgestone models; many still available, but performance is poor


No longer available:
Cheng Shin <== used to make a great budget tire -- look at the Shinko 230 if you need to save a few bux
Continental Milestone

Tire time for me too. My current skins are by Duro and I'm not entirely pleased with them. I have limited exposure to different brands, I used Maxxis for pretty much the entire time they made streetbike tires and never had a reason to try anything else. They were very affordable, had decent wear, and absolutely never felt like they lacked grip.

I'm not really a fast or aggressive rider, but the Duro rear has felt jittery when I ride enthusiastically. On a couple of sharpies recently the rear stepped out noticeably... not a nice feeling. Front has been fine, and handles hard braking without complaint. Wear doesn't seem great either but my co-pilot is a frequent flier and he chews up tires almost as fast as he chews up groceries. He does plant that rear tire to the pavement when he's on though!

Thinking about trying the Battleaxe out, for only about $10 more over a Duro it sure seems worth a shot.

[A-train]

Just purchased these tires for my 81 850G I hope i made the right choice. It was kind of overwhelming.

Put a set on my 550 last year.

No complaints. Not a sticky tire, but good durability.

[tkent02]

I have limited exposure to different brands, I used Maxxis for pretty much the entire time they made streetbike tires and never had a reason to try anything else.

Which Maxxis did you use?

I was wondering if the Maxxis Hi Max was the same as the old Chen Sheng Hi Max everyone loved?

[Allie]

I've been trying to remember. I thought it was Promaxx but could be wrong. There was a sportbike oriented tire, (Sportmax?) which is not what I had.

[Griffin]

Which Maxxis did you use?

I was wondering if the Maxxis Hi Max was the same as the old Chen Sheng Hi Max everyone loved?

They look the same tread pattern anyway.

The Hi-Maxes were ok, but there are now tires similarly priced that offer better performance than the Cheng Shins did.

[Allie]

I took a ganderizer on google and they were definitely Promax tires that I used to get. No mistaking that tread pattern. Sportmax was the sportier tire. How Ironic. I've never tried the Himax.

[mrbill5491]

I've run Dunlops exclusively since I've had my bike, Qualifier 491s and the 404s, no issues with any of them.