Pirelli Scorpion Rally now in 150/70-17

[HappyHighwayman]

My F800GS came stock with the Pirelli Scorpion rallys.

[SaTaNaX]

HappyHighwayman, put pictures of you bike

[Westy99]

Originally Posted by HappyHighwayman

My F800GS came stock with the Pirelli Scorpion rallys.

Scorpion Trails maybe? That's what mine had on it from the factory.

[HappyHighwayman]

Originally Posted by Westy99

Scorpion Trails maybe? That's what mine had on it from the factory.

That's what I meant, Not sure why I said rally or why anyone would care anyway :)

[browneye]

Originally Posted by HappyHighwayman

That's what I meant, Not sure why I said rally or why anyone would care anyway :)

Because one is a road tire and the other is a knobby.

Seriously, every freakin' tire they make they call a 'scorpion', even for vehicles.

I have the trails on my Versys and they are a fantastic tire. Also come stock on the Multistrada, which I think was a collaboration between Ducati and Pirelli.

I finally got to eyeball a rally in 140-80-18 this weekend for the husky and it looks like a nice tire. The center knobs do have a shallow space between them, looks like it would wear to a solid block at about 50% tire wear.

I dunno, if it's good on road and lasts it could be a good option for me. I run the T63 which has really good road manners, hooks up good everywhere including dirt, and lasts about 1500 miles. Best part is it's $65, give or take. Only problem is it doesn't come in the 140 width so I have a lot of interest in the Rally in 140. Guess it's worth a try.

The sad part is a brand new D606 has knob height at least another 1/8 to 3/16". I hate running half worn tires. All of the FIM knobbies start out with short knobs. they don't do that on the fronts, I would love to know why they do the rears that way.

[HappyHighwayman]

Oh no, I know people care the difference between the tires, I'm not sure why I thought anyone would care what tires came stock on MY bike. I was basically critiquing myself for not adding anything to the thread.

That said, I will add this: I did 400 miles on them this past weekend, 95% roads but 5% the most beat to shit road I've ever been on with rocks and pot-holes etc and I cruised over all of it while my friends who were on F650GSs and V-Stromg 650s were driving around everything. They seem like good tires. I felt equally safe riding over rough stuff as doing 80 on the highway.

[Westy99]

Any more updates on these from the folks that are running them?

I'm itching for knobbies and plan on getting something once I return from my North Carolina trip at the end of the month. My stock rear should be shot by then and if it not a smokey burnout should finish it off.

[BMW_BIKER_KEITH]

I recently installed the Scorpion Rally on the front. Have about 400 miles on them. They are excellent in gravel and mud. Better than a TKC becuase the knobs are much further apart.

Some very slight cupping, but I am expecting that.... its a knobbie!
If I can get 2000 miles or so, I am going to be pleased. They are cheaper than a TKC too.

At first, they feel a little unstable on corners at speed. Once rubbed in they are fine. I wouldnt take a super high speed corner tho. I have a Scotts stabilizer so I think that has to be considered too. Its a great knobbie for the price. Dont expect them to last long. Running them at 23# air. They bite great. Had them at 32# and you can tell the difference immediately in gravel. Running a Heidi in rear, which is OK, but it's easy to break loose in gravel. Had a TKC rear last summer... it was great but didnt last long as is too $$y. I may consider a Scorpion on the rear next time.

[itsatdm]

I posted my pics in post 100. Not at all whats pictured in Motorcycle Superstore, nor what I have seen in previous bike pics in the past.

Frankly I did not like what I saw. These tires looked like they were just the ticket for mud, deep sand and gravel and not where I typically ride.

They sat for a couple months, but finally mounted them. Before I did, I deepened the shallow sipe on every other center knob.

Tonite I decided to scuff them in, they had zero miles. Air pressure about 32 lb.

On pavement they were fine. I expected some vibration and I got it at about 70mph through the frame. No hard cornering, but seemed to be ok. They seemed to slow down turn in on a bike that is already slow enough. I may have to reset my preload.

The only dirt was hard pack with a covering of gravel or silt. Powered up through the corners and rewarded with the rear kicking out. My bald TKC's got better traction.

Not a fair test with 35 miles on a new tire, but not looking too good so far.

I suspect this tire works better in more hard core terrain, but not exactly what I was looking for, but we shall see.

[bodhizafa]

Originally Posted by BMW_BIKER_KEITH

I recently installed the Scorpion Rally on the front. Have about 400 miles on them. They are excellent in gravel and mud. Better than a TKC becuase the knobs are much further apart.

Some very slight cupping, but I am expecting that.... its a knobbie!
If I can get 2000 miles or so, I am going to be pleased. They are cheaper than a TKC too.

At first, they feel a little unstable on corners at speed. Once rubbed in they are fine. I wouldnt take a super high speed corner tho. I have a Scotts stabilizer so I think that has to be considered too. Its a great knobbie for the price. Dont expect them to last long. Running them at 23# air. They bite great. Had them at 32# and you can tell the difference immediately in gravel. Running a Heidi in rear, which is OK, but it's easy to break loose in gravel. Had a TKC rear last summer... it was great but didnt last long as is too $$y. I may consider a Scorpion on the rear next time.

Pretty much agree with this. I only have the front, love it off pavement. OK on pavement, it did feel quite sketchy for the first 50 miles or so but is fine now. It does seem to feel softer than the TKC front I had, I doubt it will last nearly as long.

[PatoM]

I mounted Scorpion Rally on my 8GS for my last vacation...





After the tripe (around 6500 kms) they ended as follows:


Rear:





Front:







Note that I gotta ride on asphalt more than I had planned.... Now I'm trying Metzeler Karoo T

[Snowy]

What pressures did you run them at?

Thanks.

[PatoM]

If I'm not wrong, I ran them with 25 (rear) and 20 (front) psi.

[Snowy]

I would have guessed close to that just looking at them. Well, the front anyway.

I've found higher pressures will stop or slow the saw toothing effect on the front knobs. It's caused primarily by the knobs flexing when braking forces are applied to them. The higher the pressure the less flex.

Some people seem to think this affects traction to the point that you don't have any. This simply isn't true. Yes, you MAY notice the difference between 35 and 20 PSI in the front tyre, but it's not as exaggerated as some seem to think. I would rather run an enduro knobbie on the front at 35psi and get 8000km out of it, than run a more dual sport oriented tyre like the Scorpion AT at whatever pressure it works best at. The knobbie will always deliver more traction off road, regardless of pressure. For the record I have run a Dunlop D952 front at 40psi and got an easy 6000km out of it. It's good for a few thousand more. It worked the best of any tyre I've used off road in shale and rocks, in gravel, and in sand. It was tolerable on road. Better than some, lacking compared to others. But predictable.

At the end of the day, remember you aren't riding a 140/170kg dual sport, or a 120kg enduro bike where 20 psi and lower works well. You are on something that weighs at least 210kg before you even look at adding anything or anyone to it. It stands to reason that higher pressures will still give you the same bagging in the carcass of the tyre that lower pressures in lighter bikes get. The bagging of the carcass is what delivers the gains in traction. The spreading of the tread pattern over a slightly larger area.


The difference is the tyre will last twice as long. Literally.

[PatoM]

Great Snowy, thanks for sharing your experience!

I imagined that the "problem" of that kind of wear was related to low tire inflation pressure... I've also read this somewhere else, too! But we're so used to reduce our tires pressure.... :P