So many good tires, so little money...
I went through 16 rear and 7 front front tires on my R1 between January and June of this year. I was unemployed and had little else to do, you see...
Anyway, I've sampled the following tires on the R1 in that time frame:
Bridgestone BT012SS
Pirelli Diablo
Pirelli Diablo Corsa
Pirelli Supercorsa
Pirelli Dragon Evo
Metzeler Sportec M1
Dunlop 208ZR
Dunlop 208GP (not A)
I paid close attention to performance and wear characteristics on these tires and I can say without a doubt that most of them have bad points, and some of them have good points.
Before I offer a recommendation RE the tires above, I'd tell you that if wear longevity is an issue for you, a sport touring tire like the Pilot Road or Macadam 100x, Dunlop 220, or whatever will give acceptable performance at 7/10ths on the road and will last a quite a while. I was just getting ready to sample some ST tires when my riding season was summarily ended by a TLS rider w/ a peabrain.
Of the tires above I would NOT recommend any of the Dunlops. The 208ZR gave my R1 a slight but noticeable headshake on deceleration that I was unable to dial out w/ suspension or air pressure tweaks.
The 208GP was even worse. But that's a DOT race tire, and I can forgive it's unruly tendencies because of that fact.
The Pirelli Dragon is an old tire that you won't want and probably can't get anymore. Good thing, too.
The Sportec M1 is a decent tire that has good performance characteristics, but is a bit lacking on the longevity issue. I was able to get better wear out of both the BT012SS and the Diablo Corsa, which are both softer compounds than the M1. The M1 front also felt really viby on the brakes, so much so that I lost confidence in the front somewhat. Not too good.
The standard Diablo, contrary to what even Pirelli will tell you, is not a twin of the M1, save tread pattern. This is marketing FUD. The Diablo is a dual compound tire that is great for straightliners and city riders who like to carve once in a while. The tire will, however, wear into an abnormal shape if you beat on it really hard. The nature of the tire compounds become apparent when you thrash them, though. All in all, good tire for Tasty-Freeze posers due to anti-flatspotting. Not too good for hardcore canyon carvers due to lackluster side compound.
The Pirelli Diablo Corsa is a superb tire and ended up being my tire of choice by the end of the spree. Surprisingly, even though it's touted at hyper-performance item, it shows excellent wear longevity. It performs perfectly for me, as it stands up to extreme corner exit abuse outstandingly. My normal rides consisted of leaving 50 foot long ******* on 200 mile routes through west central Wisconsin farm country (from April on, before that it was Colorado's front range, where riding can be done all year, for the most part). All in all, I feel that the Corsa is a superb tire that should be looked at by sport bikers everywhere.
The BT012SS performs superbly, as well. Of the tires listed above, it offered me the best longevity. And that's incredible since it is such a soft compound. Who knows. Anyhow, the BT012SS seems to come in several forms. The BT012 that comes stock on honda and suzi bikes IS NOT the same as a commercially available BT012SS, and I have seen "BT012 SS Type" tires, as well. These are all different compounds and/or tread patterns, it seems, and I can tell that they are not up to par w/ the over-the-counter BT012SS. So look closely at what you buy.
The BT012SS is a good, confidence inspiring tire, IMHO, and while the front's tread pattern is kind clunky looking, it offers a lot of grip and good feel. All in all, a great tire, minding that you get the right ones, that is.
Supercorsas are not good for the street. Much like other DOT race tires, the compounds do not like repeated heat cycling. I found that the Supercorsa was a great tire during the first few canyon bombs,
then it hardened up and lost a lot of grip. Not good for the street, this tire, unless you plan on trying to impress the local squids w/ semi-slicks.
In the end, if you can live with the type of wear characteristics you'll get from a hyper-sport oriented tire, I would do the Pirelli Diablo Corsa or the BT012SS. For me it's the Corsa. It's just the bees knees in so many areas.