tire ?
 

I need a new rear tire. The front of my f3 has a bridgestone bt-014. The only 014 I have been able to find is a 170/60. Would it be better to get that tire or a bt56 in the stock 160/60 size?

not sure what the bt56 is....but its not a good idea to change tire compounds between front to rear.....if the front is not as "sticky" of a tire as the rear...the rear could actually push out the front in a full tilt corner.....but if the rear is "less sticky" you should be good to go

as far as changing tire sizes......you should be good going from a 160 to a 170....however the tilt in characteristics will change.....hope this helps

well it has the 014 on the front and right now there is a 180/55 pirelli on the rear(it was like that when I got the bike) the bt56 is what came on the bike

Yeah, as said. you dont want to mix tires.

Especially mixing different brands or models. Even though you are planning on running both bridgestones, they are different model tires. They have different profiles and will not match up correctly. Think of a straight line, you want your front tire on the same line as the rear. If you are running tires that are different profiles, the front tire will not be on the same line as the rear. You will have all sorts of handling issues once you push the bike at all.

I would imagine once you switch both tires to match, you will realize the handling your bike actually has.

thats what I am hoping. I actually found an 014 in my size. So will be ordering soon.