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I own a 2016 220F and was in dire need of new rubbers.
You can see from an image below how flat profiled the TVS Euroslips had become. And I still hate the bajaj dealer to this day for not providing with MRFs and I had to do with Euroslip, which are knobby and hard tyres.
So I thought of Ceat and MRF, but considering my past crashes, and my love for cornering, decided to get some Michelin or Pirelli or Bridgestone tyres.
Also I had felt the need to upsize my tyres. I don't care about top speed or mileage. All I needed was grip and a radial profile.
I upsized the puny front tyres to 110/70 radials.
The rear was only upsized by one size to 130/70.
Instantly, the bike handled like brand new. Maybe even better than it ever did!!
It's important to note that I had set the rear preload to max stiffness and increased the rear suspension height by little less of an inch. This loaded the soft front forks.
Also, due to 110/70 profile, the front tyre to rim height of P220 remained same.
But the rear 130/70 had a lower tyre to rim height than stock tyres. And the raised suspension maintains the front heavy posture while minutely raising the overall ride height.
Result?? Shorter Gearing!!!!
And it really helped that I have a 38t sprocket at the back, which turns the gears even shorter.
P.S. My intake is fully tuned except for the head porting. But I haven't yet fit an exhaust due to all the legal reasons and pollution issues. So the torque is mind blowing but the bike still resists to rev like an r15 or ninja300. Hope a big bore kit will solve this. [emoji41] #plans.
Now, coming to the tyres,
I chose "Pirelli Sport Demon"s of the above sizes simply because I got it for the cheapest among the rest.
But... "Once I went Pirelli, I never went back to other tyres for my 220F". You just don't need better ones on the 220, trust me.
I have had really hard breaking moments, so I can now comment on them sport demon radials . It is really hard to lock the front, and even if you do, a microscopic release of the lever puts you right back in traction's limits.
Just don't try this in corners, you won't get time for that microscopic release.
The Rear? It just moves around under really heavy braking. There's absolutely little you can do about it if you're hard on the brakes of a 220. It's the frame, it's not your riding!! [emoji14]
Although the slide from the Pirellis now feels more controllable and progressive rather than alarming.
But, there's an untold secret. Use all the grip from the Pirellis and with an easily slide-able rear frame structure... You just need to downshift hard and rev match just right to go "backing it in" hard in corners.
A blessing in disguise, because there's hardly any bike under a certain pricepoint (else wth would I have gone for a 220? I'm kind of poor you know), that's powerful and vague enough to even attempt trying this through which you can practice "backing it in" if you want. The 220F let's you exploit it's bulkiness under braking points to train you to use your tyres and suspension.
But, you'd think why I'm talking so much about the 220?
It's because..
These Pirellis are perfect and more than anyone can ever ask for a Pulsar 220F.
Note. Just be sure to warm them up a bit. Once warmed enough, they stay warm for long times. Even in rains.
Hope you like the short review. Thanks a lot.
Also, I use 26 psi up front and a whopping 38 psi at the rear. It suits my style. It helps me practice and play with traction a bit.
P.s. How do I persuade Pirelli to provide me with free tyres to review? [emoji12]������������[emoji41]
Thanks and warm regards,
Rajdeep Das @racing.the_an_a
Here's a short 1.5 mins clip of my bike and some corners... As a bonus!
You can see from an image below how flat profiled the TVS Euroslips had become. And I still hate the bajaj dealer to this day for not providing with MRFs and I had to do with Euroslip, which are knobby and hard tyres.
So I thought of Ceat and MRF, but considering my past crashes, and my love for cornering, decided to get some Michelin or Pirelli or Bridgestone tyres.
Also I had felt the need to upsize my tyres. I don't care about top speed or mileage. All I needed was grip and a radial profile.
I upsized the puny front tyres to 110/70 radials.
The rear was only upsized by one size to 130/70.
Instantly, the bike handled like brand new. Maybe even better than it ever did!!
It's important to note that I had set the rear preload to max stiffness and increased the rear suspension height by little less of an inch. This loaded the soft front forks.
Also, due to 110/70 profile, the front tyre to rim height of P220 remained same.
But the rear 130/70 had a lower tyre to rim height than stock tyres. And the raised suspension maintains the front heavy posture while minutely raising the overall ride height.
Result?? Shorter Gearing!!!!
And it really helped that I have a 38t sprocket at the back, which turns the gears even shorter.
P.S. My intake is fully tuned except for the head porting. But I haven't yet fit an exhaust due to all the legal reasons and pollution issues. So the torque is mind blowing but the bike still resists to rev like an r15 or ninja300. Hope a big bore kit will solve this. [emoji41] #plans.
Now, coming to the tyres,
I chose "Pirelli Sport Demon"s of the above sizes simply because I got it for the cheapest among the rest.
But... "Once I went Pirelli, I never went back to other tyres for my 220F". You just don't need better ones on the 220, trust me.
I have had really hard breaking moments, so I can now comment on them sport demon radials . It is really hard to lock the front, and even if you do, a microscopic release of the lever puts you right back in traction's limits.
Just don't try this in corners, you won't get time for that microscopic release.
The Rear? It just moves around under really heavy braking. There's absolutely little you can do about it if you're hard on the brakes of a 220. It's the frame, it's not your riding!! [emoji14]
Although the slide from the Pirellis now feels more controllable and progressive rather than alarming.
But, there's an untold secret. Use all the grip from the Pirellis and with an easily slide-able rear frame structure... You just need to downshift hard and rev match just right to go "backing it in" hard in corners.
A blessing in disguise, because there's hardly any bike under a certain pricepoint (else wth would I have gone for a 220? I'm kind of poor you know), that's powerful and vague enough to even attempt trying this through which you can practice "backing it in" if you want. The 220F let's you exploit it's bulkiness under braking points to train you to use your tyres and suspension.
But, you'd think why I'm talking so much about the 220?
It's because..
These Pirellis are perfect and more than anyone can ever ask for a Pulsar 220F.
Note. Just be sure to warm them up a bit. Once warmed enough, they stay warm for long times. Even in rains.
Hope you like the short review. Thanks a lot.
Also, I use 26 psi up front and a whopping 38 psi at the rear. It suits my style. It helps me practice and play with traction a bit.
P.s. How do I persuade Pirelli to provide me with free tyres to review? [emoji12]������������[emoji41]
Thanks and warm regards,
Rajdeep Das @racing.the_an_a
Here's a short 1.5 mins clip of my bike and some corners... As a bonus!
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