Bridgestone BT45

Used them on a 1984 Moto Guzzi V65SP and 2009 V7 Classic. Ideal tyre for all round mid range bikes.Allow me toget into sharp bends much deeper than the original Metzelers

Bridgestone BT45 is a great tyre in wet or dry conditions!

Having a XJ 600 S Diversion, Bridgestone BT45 tyres were recommended to me by a series of XJ6 users. Although I have had Metzelers and Michelin tires come with the bike originally neither could come close to the grip that the BT45's provide.

Like riding a new bike! Only just fitted these to my Pegaso 650 (replacing the Pirelli semi-knobblies). The difference is unbelievable, excellent grip true ride, it's like riding a completely different bike. If you ride an urban traillie, I'd highly recommend them. And if you live in South Cumbria, go to GS Motorcycles for excellent service.

The Bridgestone BT45 tyres are great for older/commuter bikes. Got about 10-11000 miles on the last rear from my GS500, mostly cross london commuting, with some motorway/faster roads.

I've never had them slide on me, even in the mid winter wet/frost, and they let me comfortabley get the pegs down in the dry.

Their abilities far exceed that of my 16 year old scooter (and its 16 year old brakes).

An excellent all round tyre. Bags of grip, they've never let go on me in the wet or dry no matter how hard I've pushed them. A good choice of tyre for older bikes.

Having them fitted thinking they are radials this may be an expensive lesson.

The Bridgestone BT45 tyres have helped me out of trouble a few times. Considering I`ve got them fitted to an old CBR 600, with basic suspension, from going into corners way to hot to keeping up with far more experienced riders. They`ve never let me down. After 6000 miles, they`ve got loads of tread/life left in them yet!

Used BT45s on my Kawasaki ER5 for a while.

But don't get me wrong, they havn't been subjected to the daily commute alone.

Though for that matter they have served me very well on the commute, the grip is fine for stop/start riding and they seem to give good mpg figures.

However, they can take a while to warm up, which sometimes doesn't happen on the shortest commutes (sub- 10 minute.)

The reason for this seems to be the surprising grip they provide, considering the modest dimensions which the come in.

This has told during numerous weekend blasts, which have varied from fast A-roads to twisty B-roads to the tightest unclassified lanes, all of which have been gripped well.

On tighter stuff and gravel-strewn roads, any tyre will oneday lose grip, but this is where the BT45's other bonus kicks in: progressiveness. They have no snappy breakaway like some stickier rubber, so you can not only catch slides, but even play with them if you so desire.

They give plenty of mileage too, so long as you keep them pumped to the correct pressures: I think neglect of this has worn mine a touch quicker than expected.

Fine solo or 2-up. Mine did the 135 mile trek to the NEC bike show 2-up in '04, no problem. And back 135 miles too. At higher speeds it was evident that they didn't have endless grip, but there was always plenty of feel to tell you which way the rear end wanted to go.

They seem to grip well in the wet too, although other bikes would probably be a better judge of this, knowing the ER5's tendency to slither the rear a bit in the wet. Characterful fun, I call it.

One drawback is the price: they are a good tyre and now utilise Bridgestones firm centre/ soft edge technology, but many owners of the commuter bikes which they are intended to fit wouldn't consider spending that much on tyres.

But you get what you pay for, and in my experience they're worth the cash.

Their latest competitor seems to be the new Michelin Pilot Activ, which according to the short snippets of review I have found, appears fractionally better than the BT45 in all areas.

However, the BT45 still triumphs over the original Michelin Macadam and other competitors (dunlop d103 and conti avenue.)

If they were cheaper and warmed up quicker, I would give the BT45 10/10. As such, they only get 8.