front and rear for a '96 honda vlx600
Talk to the people where you buy the tires. You want 'touring' tires, not 'sport' tires. The sportiest tires have the best grip but wear out faster. Touring tires are harder and wear more slowly. Yes, I suppose there is a difference in handling but you probably wont' be able to tell the difference, especially if you don't ride a sport bike and if you are not constantly 'pushing the envelope'. Dunlop and Metzler are the two brands I hear of most often, but it's not the brand, it's the type of tire.
Avon, Bridgestone. But it depends very much on what kind of tire you need. I would compare specific tires rather than just manufacturers. Any major manufacturer of motorcycle tires (Avon, Bridgestone, Dunlop, Metzeler, Michelin, etc.) will have some models that are good. Having said that, the Pirelli tires that I've looked at so far always had far too little life expectancy and I couldn't find any Continental tires that would suit my purpose.
I love Dunlop - they are pretty durable and perform excellent on both dry and wet road :)
Someone will need to measure the thickness of the rotor to see if they can be resurfaced or if they need to be replaced. Not going to be able to guess on this one.
