Michelin Desert - How long will it last?

**jondoe** · #1 2 Apr 2003

HI!

Eny idea of how long will a Michelin Desert last on GS650Dakar in Africa?
Should I bring spare ones,some people do some not,i dont want to overpack the bike if i dont have to.

cheers

jondoe

**bayonet** · #2 5 Apr 2003

I fitted Deserts onto my Africa Twin before I left for Morocco purely because i couldn't find any room to carry the things separately. They were alarming to ride on initially but got better on the road as they wore. I tried a local dry green lane about 10 minutes after I fitted them and found they transformed th bike off- road.

Three and a half thousand miles later I returned home on the same tyres, unpunctured and with plenty of life left in the rear. the front had worn everywhere except the middle tread. i know this is a sign of under inflation but this happened to my two travelling companions as well who ran at about 30psi. I ran mine at about 15psi each.

Brilliant tyres. I'll probably use the rear again if i do the Cambrian next year. the front has gone in the bin.

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**rroberts** · #3 9 Apr 2003

I've heard that Deserts are impossible to get on and off with levers. Is this true or an exaggeration

**Vindi** · #4 9 Apr 2003

Hello. I changed my desert in the middle of sudan desert.it is not much harder than a normal tyre,just get some exsprance.
The desert is great in the sand and i had no problems.It is not true that you can ride them flat!!!My tube over heated and melted inside the tyre on the tar road to Khartoum and destroyed the desert when it went flat.Rie it hard.I do recomend the desert but a good alt is the t63.

**jondoe** · #5 10 Apr 2003

Hi!

The over heating problem,
Hear of that before,Cool Karim,I think http://www.coolkarim.freeuk.com/
How to prevent that from happening?
Wore you going realy fast when it hapen'd?
Eny other tire that is just as good for sand,but hasn't got that problem.
In other words,What's the best tire for 650Dakar in Africa from north to south,for all kind's of terain I would incounter on that journy.

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cheers

jondoe

[This message has been edited by jondoe (edited 10 April 2003).]

**Vindi** · #6 10 Apr 2003

No i was not going fast on the tar road,about 100kph.The dunlop inner tube got realy hot and melted.the road was about 100 and plenty degrees hot!to top it off i had maleria.
I have spoken to a few people that have done this trip and they recomend the desert so do i(if i had it longer)or you can go for the t63

**RichLees** · #7 11 Apr 2003

like all tyres, deserts vary in diameter, but they are much stiffer than other tyres so some are easy to fit and others take enormous effort. make sure you practice on the tyre you're going to take!
life: 5,000+ hard miles with lots of luggage on the slightly lighter XR650L with 3,000 on the road.
pressures: I normally run 20 psi, but met some italian guys who run 40-50 psi (yes, even in sand!) and never have punctures and get even tyre wear so I'm going to try it. its quite possible that this suits the tyre better than low pressures.
wet roads: don't do it! they're evil!

I would recommend a Pirelli MT21 as a better alternative than the Michelin T63. go for the wider fitment of 140 rather than 120 (if that's standard): narrow tyre = lots of sidewall flex = heat and wear.