BRIDGESTONE BATTLAX BT-023
My 1992 the Honda ST1100 was a bike I never thought I would own, but I was offered one cheap in Autumn 1999 and I thought it would make a good bike for the winter. Come Spring, I just kept riding it, and I still have it today. It makes a great every day and long-distance bike, and it’s really good for carrying loads, picking up parts, etcetera, in all weathers. After years of riding on Avons, in 2018 I fitted a pair of Bridgestone Battlax BT-023 tyres. The first thing I noticed when fitting them was that the sidewalls were made from much harder rubber, thereby making them more difficult to fit by hand with tyre levers (I do things the old-fashioned way!). Once on the rim, though, they inflated perfectly and barely needed any weight to bring the wheel into balance, with only 10g on the front wheel and 15g on the rear wheel. With the bike back together and all bolts checked, I took it out for a gentle ride, gradually increasing the angle of lean until the new tyres were scrubbed in. I’ve since covered around 3000 miles on a mix of motorway, A and B roads and back-lane riding. The first thing I noticed was an improvement in straight-line stability, and the bike holds its line better in the corners too, especially when riding over bumps and ripples in the road. The bike just feels more secure and planted. I have also noticed that there is less wear on both tyres, but in particular on the sides of the front tyre where it usually starts to wear first. Overall, I’m really impressed with them and will report back with another progress report after the ummer. ■ Allen Millyard www.bridgestone.co.uk