I figured I would write a review for everyone of the Shinko 005 advances. I know a lot of people look at them, there are a few testimonials floating around, and I figure I would add to them.

Recently, my girlfriend purchased a CBR600 F2 (see my thread about them growing on trees), and due to budget constraints, pretty much went as cheap as possible on everything. I can understand and respect that, but I also didn't want to put her in harms way. I purchased a bunch of stuff while she wasn't looking, and pretty much replaced every bearing, adjusted the gearing to be weak sauce (+1 front -2 rear) and shook the whole thing down.

When tires came up, she was already a bit unhappy about the overall cost of the bike. While looking for tires, the shinko 005's showed up as the cheapest by a notable amount. Having read a bunch of reviews that all seemed proper, and a friend tell me that he had them and they gripped great, I figured I'd give it a try. So I mounted the tires up to her rims myself (I'm not good at this yet with street rims, lots of knicks...), balanced them, and then took it out to scrub them in... IN THE RAIN :scared

Anyways, they worked great on that first run. I got a good ways over on them to start them off, and scrubbed them most of the way in on a rainy day. The tires gripped fine, heated up to a decent temperature, and overall worked great in the slippery conditions. They didn't once step out even when accelerating hard out of a turn on freshly wet roads.

One ride wasn't enough though, nor was them being "most the way" scrubbed in going to cut it for my girlfriend. I went out on a dry day and tried to get as aggressive as I could with them. I killed the chicken strips as much as I could without dragging hard parts (this F2 is stock, mine is setup with better clearance).

Anyways, I railed a bunch of turns, I drove (my version of)hard into and out of them, and they held just as great if not BETTER than my pilot powers. I ran a good 100 some odd miles on them thus far, and they're GREAT. Tons of traction, great feel, fairly nimble steering... they're nice!



So if you're considering these tires and you're not a friggen rockstar, I'd say they'll treat you fine! If you're a rockstar, maybe you'll notice problems with them I didn't.

 

I am also not a rockstar and have had a rear shinko on the ol' F2 for a while..... decent grip in all conditions, nothing to complain about. When it does step out of line it is controllable. I would recommend them (for the price).

 

Aren't the Shinko's (at least some of them) made on the the old Yokohama molds? (which were pretty decent tires from what I heard - went out of business before i got into bikes) I've read good and bad about them, I was wondering how much of that was internet snobbery due to the Shinko's being a cheaper tire.

I'm running cheaper tires too, for the same reason of keeping costs down while I was building the bike up. I'm running Continental ContiMotions - which seem to have a lot bigger following in europe than here in the states. They've felt great to me, and as my riding has improved, I really haven't felt the tires limiting me - although I'm not a street-racer dragging knees in every corner.

My question is where do I sign up for rockstar school?

 

So how much were they??

 

Yep, Shinko's are good bang for buck IMO ......I have used the 003's several times, on several bikes....only negative is that the front tyre has a wide profile & therefore turn in is slightly slower...but for road use, just fine

 

I paid $130 for the pair shipped I believe? I forget the specifics.

I'll update this post when I see how quickly she wears them and what not. So far though, great traction.

 

whoa - that's an awesome deal then!

 

I put Shinkos on my F2 before I sold it. And they treated me really well never had any complaints. When the rear broke loose it was even and controlled. And it is true they are made from the old Yokohama molds. I think they are a great street tire, but probably wouldnt want to use them on the track. Never tracked put I think if I was going to I would spend the extra change

 

I did a trackday at Jennings GP back in March on my BB and I put on a set of 003 Shinko's . They worked great for a heavy bike like the BB. I got them for $180 delivered . That weekend I put almost 300miles on the track and was able to put in a 1.34 lap time on my Bird with those tires. They still have a lot of life left in them and will be going on my f4 when it is ready. I had the back try to step out a few times but it was controlled and never gave me a pucker moment..... Braking was good and handling was decent. I agree that the front is a little wide and turn in is a bit slower but I was on a BB which is a little slower on turn in anyway.
Great Bang for the Buck. I recently bought a set of he ContiMotion's on sale $150 delievered. But have not put them on yet. They are in the basement on the shelf for now... ;-)

 

i have the shinco ravens on my f2 they stick alright not like my dunlop did but for the price... the only complaint i have is the front is chopping pretty good had another guy with same tires tell me he had the same issue. but overall good tires if your short on cash.