How to get over a fear or cornering
 

Alright so, I recently got my first bike, a '91 CBR600F2. When I got it, it didn't have great tires on it. Sadly I have those same tires on it now, although it's only been like 2 weeks and a combined 5 miles at most of riding. Anyways, the tires need replacing, but there is still some tread. It's shallow, but it's there, so none of it is 'bald'. When I take a corner, even at a fairly low speed (At the limit or below), and even on a slight corner, no rain, etc etc I'm terrified my back tire is going to lose traction, and I'll low side and hit a tree and die or something. Who knows. Anyways, is this a legitimate fear? Or do my tires have to be pretty bad to just lose traction on a sunny, dry day? As soon as I get some money I will be replacing them, which will only be a week or two now. Which leads me to another question. What do I replace first? I sadly can't afford to replace them at the same time. And as a beginner who won't be riding like crazy, can I get cheap tires? Or do I really need the best tires? Sorry for all the questions, I'm just worried.

Ride within your comfort zone and get full use of tire. No sudden increase or decrease in speed during cornering. Carved your line thru a corner...stay clear of any debris, rock, sand, water, pot holes..see & imagine your line before actually carving it all the way thru the corner. Get comfortable with each gear, the need for lowering gear ( down shifting ) for speed control. Rear tires tends to wear out faster than front..change the rear when needed to. But be extra careful with fresh tires, give it time/ 100-200 miles of breaking in. It'll take some time for any rider
to build trust & confident with bike.

If you haven't taken the MSF course, take it. Just like anything else, in order to become proficient at something, you have to gain experience doing it. How do we get experience? By repetition. Keep riding, it'll come. When talking about turns, the main thing is to always look (with your eyes) at where you want to go. Look, and your ass will follow.

All of that can depend on the brand, age, type, wear, etc. of the tire. If you're not seeing any cords, you shouldn't be worrying THAT much. What kind of tire is it?

I'm going to have to agree with the above. ^^^. I'm pretty new to riding myself so I understand your fear. Sounds like you really need to take the MSF course. I haven't taken it myself but I've done a ton of reading on riding and understanding how turning works and everything. This was my first bike. The day I got it my friend dropped me off and I rode it home. I rode it for about 3 minutes a week before when I decided I wanted it. If you have that much fear of going thru turns then please take the course. They will teach you and help you understand. I would hate for you to get scared thru a turn and highside bc that is usually worse then lowsiding.

For everyone who responded,t hank you very much. I feel a little better, but I'm still scared. I'll have to get over it. For the people suggesting the MSF course, it's actually tomorrow! Half tomorrow, half tuesday. I'm pretty excited. As for the person saying if I don't see cords, I shouldn't be worrying that much, is that true? As for the tires, one is a Bridgestone and the other is a Dunlop. I'm sorry I can't be more detailed :-\ Does anyone know of some inexpensive tires that are atleast decent?

Well if you're truly worried about your tire condition, snap a pic and post them up. The guys here will tell you best they can how good they are.

LOL, it's pretty embarrassing, but I was riding around on tires that had very little tread left in the middle on my last bike. I decided to have one last hurrah through some mountain twisties and when I finally got to the shop, there were several spots where cords were showing (that might have also had something to do with me leaving a long black line by locking up my rear tire a bunch to make a fancy entrance). Unless you're a really really quick learner, you probably weren't riding as hard as I was that day and I didn't have any issue.

raylee, how long you been riding? How many times have you slipped the rear? Locked the front?

Difference between you and him is experience. Things that might make you blink in surprise may cause him to wreck. So it's really bad advice to say he's fine so long as he doesn't see chords ;)

to the OP : Being a new rider those fears are quite normal and will lessen with time
on the bike and experience gained the more you ride it. When making turns always
look through the turn and resist the urge to lower your head and look down. The bike
will follow where you are looking trust yourself on this. Take a few more classes it may
help your self confidence

Change the front first , then the rear since your budget dictates your need to do one
at a time.