Being an aircraft tire guy, on the premium front, you have three choices, the Goodyear Flight Custom III, The Michelin Pilot , and the Specialty Tire of America SuperHawk . The GY FCIII is considered the longest life new tire, at the highest price point , but the new Michelin two groove Pilot is right behind and closing in on that price . That being said, GY has reduced prices on common GA size tires until the end of the 3rd quarter, so prices have come down 15 to 23% , depending on size. The -10 uses15/6.00-6 6PR on the mains, and the 5.00-5 6PR on the nose.The main tire retreads, have about the same depth of tread rubber as the new GY FCIII, so wear is similar , and are about 1/2 the cost of the new GY , and these are available in many casings, including GY, Michelin & Condor and Specialty Tires. The lowest price points are Specialty Tires , Air Trac and Air Hawk models., and the retreads. the "tweeners" are the GY Flight Special II and the Michelin Condor branded tire.
We always get asked the question, " how long should my (insert tire model) last?" It is a very subjective question, it depends on many variables such as , how many cycles(not hours) do you do per year, is it kept tied down or hangared ( weather and ozone checking ) , how often to do check pressures? ( pressure is paramount in tire wear) how do you land/taxi ( let the plane run out on the runway, brake slightly , taxi moderately , or hit the brakes to get the first turnoff because it is close to your hangar. So much depends on your type of flying. I will usually recommend new, lower priced tires to infrequent cycle fliers.(less than 50 cycles per year), and premium tires for high use, flight school , or multiple owner AC who fly more than 150 hours per year, as they will use the extra tread depth and longer wearing rubber on premium priced tires.
There are 8 manufacturers/models for the 15/600-6, and #11 for the 500-5 nose wheel, so the options from good, better, best are their for your choice of which tire is right for your type of flying, and your budget.
