It's been a really long time since I've logged on here. In fact, I'm not sure I've even typed a post, but today's conversation on tire wear piqued my interest. I just uploaded my avatar of my 1985 Gen 1. In this picture it still has the old Dunlops. I've been riding bikes since 1980 and I've always used Dunlops, selecting their higher level performance tires since I never really cared how long they lasted. My biggest concern has always been sticking in the corners regardless of how long they last. When using the Dunlops, no matter what bike I had, the rear tire got 5000 miles or close enough to it that I'd keep them on till 5000 miles, while the fronts could get almost 15000 miles. In recent years I've gone on several promotional cruises where different motorcycle companies would take you on a group ride to try their bike. Each time I went on one of these, when I got back on my Vmax it felt, for lack of a better word, rickety. I came to the conclusion that it was because the test rides all had radial tires. Well, as most of you know, the Gen 1 Vmax has a 15 inch rear wheel and nobody makes a 15 inch radial tire. So, I started looking around for an inexpensive way to get an 18 inch rear wheel and while I'm at it, I might as well look at getting a modified swing arm so I can fatten up the rear tire at the same time. Well, needless to say, this was going to cost a fortune and with many other priorities in life, this just wasn't going to happen. Then last year my favorite motorcycle mechanic told me about some new tires called Michelin Commanders that not only stick better than anything, but they last longer. I was skeptical, but I had him put a set on my Gen 1 and I'm still in disbelief! It's like I got a new motorcycle! Smooth, Steady, Confident, and unbelievably STICKY! I don't know how long they'll last, but I don't care. They've got about 2000 miles on them and they still look like they were put on last week. So, maybe some of you have tried these and know how great they work as well as how long they last. As for me, I'm no longer looking for radials.