I put a new set of trghe Shinko 705's on my Wee and can now make an accurate report on the performance, quality and tread life. First, I wuill say that the tires look very good on the V Strom. The tread in very deep and appears to be a higher milage adventure tire. On the road it feels really good, great cornering stability. Off road, on dirt or gravel, it also feels great with minimal spinning.
Now, the bad part. I couldnt even squeeze out 5k from the rear. the front is practicaly new still. There are many reports of the tires cracking badly and/or chunking. After about 1500 miles, I noticed there were cracks in the rubber around all of the tread blocks. This really doesn't bother me since I realize I would have to replace it very soon because of the unusualy fast wear rate. I ride 90% on rode with a pillion 25% of the time. When the tire was new, it was very impressive...but that lasted for a whole 6 weeks. At 3k miles of wear, I knew it wouldn't last much longer.
I hope this helps anyone who may be considering the tire for their bike. Overall, its a good looking tire that grips well on and off road but that lasts about 5k mileas. I guess you get what you pay for. I just ordered a Bridgestonbe BW-502E which is the OEM Yamaha Super tenere tire. The "E" stands for heavy load which should be great help considering i have a pillion alot of times and will have ahve the luggage fully loaded from time to time. My report on the BW-502 will be coming soon.....