Ruttly wrote on 03/28/16 at 19:02:49:Try leaning the bike when making turns , really look at your pics! Next Continentals , Dunlops , Metzlers , etc. When you only have 2 tires that's not the place to skimp to save a few bucks. It could be a life or death decision !
Ruttly, I'm probably not the most aggressive leaner around, especially since I'm new, but I don't want to wear my tires flat. I have been on purposely commuting in the twisties. You have to look more closely at the pics. I do have chicken strips, but the extent of the darker patches represent my full lean angle. The center is simply dirty from being run on dirt roads. The rear tire seems slightly rounder than it looks in the pics, but, yes it is still worn pretty flat. Some of that wear was from the previous owners. I do have some 4-lane in the commute, though. There's a decent chance that Metzler is the replacement for the stock IRC tire. It is probably the second (or third, at most) tire that rim has ever touched.
Also, from what I've gathered, Shinko 712 gets pretty good reviews for the price, especially the rear. It's not like they are jinxed into being slick as axle grease just because they're cheap.