honda already made recommendations.
dunlop d222 or metzeler z8 interect.

with your style of riding you ought to stay with ST tires. there are few tires better than those 2.

dunlop roadsmart 3
pirelli angel gt
michelin pr4
metzeler roadtec s01
bridgstone battlax t30
continental contimotion
avon storm 3d x-m

but not necessarily in that order. we have personal preference and sometimes we have some brand loyalty too.

 

My rear tire is starting to square off a bit (though there's no abrupt transition from straight line to leaning - yet). There's probably a millimeter left before the wear bar is even with the surface of the tire, so I figure I've got a little time left . . . right?

I don't recommend judging a tire by the profile only. I just got a new tire which looked great, lots of profile, but I noticed that it was made in 2012. Tires still have about 5% of natural rubber in them and they dry out. If you can see cracks in the side wall you should have changed it already!
I'm not saying that your tire is old, it probably is not because your bike isn't that old, but thinking that since there is a millimeter left it's okay to ride may turn out to be a mistake.
I've also learned - the hard way - that an almost bald tire picks up nails more often than a new one.

Edit: I stick with Pirelli Diablo Rosso - pun intended!

Edit again: why are you looking for "not expensive" tires? Tires are what connects you to the road and can change the entire riding experience. My CRF250M was okay to ride with the stock IRC, was more fun with Michelin Pilot Radials which lasted forever, but the real fun started after I spooned on the Pirellis.
Before I spend money on adjustable levers, better fork internals, slip-ons or even bling I try to get the best tires I can get for the lowest price.

 

I don't recommend judging a tire by the profile only. I just got a new tire which looked great, lots of profile, but I noticed that it was made in 2012. Tires still have about 5% of natural rubber in them and they dry out. If you can see cracks in the side wall you should have changed it already!
I'm not saying that your tire is old, it probably is not because your bike isn't that old, but thinking that since there is a millimeter left it's okay to ride may turn out to be a mistake.
I've also learned - the hard way - that an almost bald tire picks up nails more often than a new one.
Edit: I stick with Pirelli Diablo Rosso - pun intended!

Cracks in the sidewall are nothing to mess around with, that much I know for sure! Fortunately though the sidewalls still look brand new.

The Diablo looks like a nice tire, and the price seems very reasonable, but I just got done reading a couple reviews, and they say it sticks really well, but that it also wears fast. Has that been your experience with this tire?

 

The BT 023 is a ST tire with an emphasis on sport. The T 30 is more of a straight touring tire so I'm thinking less grippy.

 

Bridgestone T30s are fitted to fleets of cbr1000 & 600rr and used at Ron Haslam Racing school @Donnington Park race circuit.

 

BT 023 is a dual compound tire that uses a harder rubber in the middle and softer on the edges.
They are very long lasting grippy tires.

 

Just had the tire put on today. Cycle Gear wanted $25 to put it on, but that's if I brought the wheel in (and it would've been $50 if I hadn't purchased the tire from Cycle Gear). Turns out there's a place here in town that does it ride in/ride out for $25 (plus $2 disposal fee). They had it done in under 30 minutes. I asked, and the labor charge to install new brake pads is $15 per rotor. And I really got the sense that these guys really know what they're doing.

I think this is where I'll go from now on for any routine maintenance I don't want to do myself.

 

Any sports touring tyre from the modern era will be good enough. I swear by the first generation Dunlop Roadsmarts. I did about 15k miles on them fitted to my 97 ZX6R. A set lasted 8000 miles on the rear and about 10,000 on the front. Bearing in mind, the ZX6R had 96bhp at the crank, so double what the CBR has.

I did 40,000 miles on my 929 FireBlade exclusively on Dunlop Roadsmarts, before I decided to switch to Dunlop SportsSmarts. 6000-7000 for the rear depending on how many motorway miles you do, and about 8000 for the front. But that bike was whacking out 130bhp at the back wheel, so almost 3x the CBR. Perfect for wet grip. I even rode in the snow on a few occasions with it. It rains all the time in the UK, so you want something that would give you confidence, whilst also being able to warm up quickly.

My R1 has been running Bridgestone S20 Evos. Fantastic warm up time, very good on fast roads. I've had it sliding a few times on track, but we're talking about getting on the gas hard in 2nd gear at 70mph... which I doubt nobody will be doing on their CBRs. I did run the T30s on the R1 for 7000 miles, solely for commuting purposes. Performance was on par with the Roadsmarts (which I felt were better than the BT023, which I felt were comparitvely wooden and hard).

Generally speaking, I wouldn't waste money on sports tyres on the CBR. The profile of sports tyres such as the Bridgestone S20/S21, Pirelli Diablo Rosso/Supercorsa, Micheline Pilot Sport 2CT, Dunlop Sportsmarts et al is more like a V, which permits a stupidly fast turn in, and a lot more contact patch at higher lean angles. Fine if you've got a 190/200 section rear tyre. But the sports touring tyres generally have a more progressive U profile, meaing they're more predictable on turn in.

As an aside, the reason T30s are used at Ron Haslam is that, whilst they are a decent tyre, they're not exactly a track day tyre. Those CBR600s and Fireblades get ragged around track and the last thing they want to do is replace tyres sooner than necessary. My mate's experience of the race school is that of "congratulations, well done, you get a medal, you're now allowed to go up to the next level!" meaning more £££ for Ron and his buddies. You'll learn more about YOUR bike by sticking it on a track day, so you'll have a better understanding of how you gel with your machine.

Besides, I've found the stock suspension on the CBR to be utter wank on the back roads, coupled with the high bars and light feeling front end, it's a bit vague feeling. Stick to sports touring and you'll be fine.

 

Bridgestone BT 023 tires are excellent and a good bang for the buck. They are sport touring tires. Good grip dry or wet.
I use them on heavier more powerful bikes and get 10,000 miles out of them.

What tires do you have now? The Dunlop d220?
How many miles did you get out of them.

 

I've got the Dunlop Sportmax that came with the bike. Right now, I'm at about 7,200 miles.

Personally, I love Michelin Pilot Roads. The stock Dunlops are OK, but they're gone as soon as I get within shouting distance of the wear bars. IIRC, my LBSes charge something like $40 each to mount and balance.

What's LBS?

honda already made recommendations.
dunlop d222 or metzeler z8 interect.

with your style of riding you ought to stay with ST tires. there are few tires better than those 2.

If by ST you mean sport touring, then that's what I'm leaning toward. I'm more interested in durability than anything.

 

Personally, I love Michelin Pilot Roads. The stock Dunlops are OK, but they're gone as soon as I get within shouting distance of the wear bars. IIRC, my LBSes charge something like $40 each to mount and balance.

 

I use Pilot Road 4s. 6,500kms so far, no signs of squaring yet.

Pilot Road 2 or 3s do just as well.

 

i replaced my rear tire around 8500 miles with a DUNLOP ROADSMART 2 160/60r17. it looks identical to the stock D222 but seems to be lasting a little longer... i now have almost 18,000 miles and it looks like i have a few thousand more miles of tread before hitting the treadwear markers.

 

I commute a lot on my bike. I milked 11K miles out of the D222's down to the wear bars, but really they were done after 9,000 or so, front and rear. Granted, I had about 20 miles almost daily of milled/scarified/ground/whatever-you-call-it highway for 8 months take to beans out of those poor OEM tires. When it came time I mounted Michelin Pilot Road 4's front and rear and I'm at 24K miles now with only some slight squaring but none of the wobbling and on transition edge traction issues I had when I dismounted the Dunlops.

Downside, they're pricey. Looking at $500 or more for the pair.

 

I'm quite happy running Michelin PR4 tires on my "adventure bike".

 

Ordered a Bridgestone T30 EVO tire from Cycle Gear today. The price is right and it seems to be well-reviewed.

 

I'll have to give the T 30 some thought since it's a supposed upgrade from the 023's.

I have to say I'm happy with the Dunlop D222 which came on the bike though I haven't ridden them in every condition yet. They have good grip on the dry.
I did however pick up a nail at just 1100 miles in my back tire over the weekend.
I patched it and went on my way.

I'd be interested in seeing how you get on with the T 30.

 

do the pads yourself... u'll laugh at how simple it is compared to cars... the front is 1 bolt to release the pads and they litterally fall out. the back you need to do the same bolt but additionally have to remove one of the caliper bolts to rotate it a little out of the way to release the pads.

 

I'm torn between michelin pilot 3 or 4 ...... I do big touring weekends ( 1300klm) or riding twisty mountain roads where I try to make up ground on corners after my mates that pull away on straight sections ( had to replace standard pegs )