Topic: Bald tires and you

[74cb750]

Ahem,
so, how many of us have ridden without checking the thread left?
Huh? Fess up!
I just noticed my cb550 rear tire is near bald. Darn!! Now I will
have to work more hours to buy another tire.
Peace,
michel

[cmorgan47]

yeah, that was the first thing i did after getting my 400 "mechanically sound" [knocks on wood]

after i had the new ones mounted i was thinking i should've done it earlier.  i only rode a month or so on the old ones, but they were pretty bad.

[cbjunkie]

tires??? what are those?

i'm running a couple of bricks duct taped to my rims...

[Jeff]

I rode my Superhawk to work one day a couple months ago. When I got off the bike at work was when I checked the tire.

CORDS! 

Jeff

[supersport_CB400F]

You would get a big fine and points on your licence for that in the UK.....2 tyres on a bike 6 points and 4 bad tyres on a car = banned from driving 12 points 6 months ban  

[cbjunkie]

yeah, you guys have some anal rules, but they all make perfect sense...trust me, there are plenty of times i wish we had them...

[Chris Schneiter]

I've always thought my bike felt squirrelly anyway, so I've always been a little paranoid about tires. My first full season on my bike, I bought a new set of Chen Shins (Chinese Continentals)...they're ok, but I get nervous on wet pavement. A riding buddy on his Shadow, just plugs along, but I feel as if it's going to zip out from under me. (Note: Riding Buddy HAS layed his down in the rain, I haven't, so maybe my fear is good). Is this just how our bikes feel? Or is there something elase I can do to make it feel better.  I had Continentals originally, and I don't notice a whole lot of difference.
Does anybody take into account tire age? I once read that you should replace every two years, regardless of wear??

[Bob Wessner]

Here's an interesting article on tires. I would think every two years is a bit excessive.

http://www.canyonchasers.net/shop/generic/tires.php

[StevieMac]

I keep a pretty close eye on my tires.  I actually junked a set of tires at the beginning of this season and got a new set because they were pretty old.  The back one had started to show some small cracks between the tread (front looked fine). They had LOTS of tread left though..... 

[seaweb11]

I put a new Bridgestone Spitfie 11R on the rear last spring.
I will need a new one before winter rolls around

I did put a lot of miles on it last summer with the trip to CA and back, plus I do push it quite hard in the corners.
The tire has never let me down...slipped etc. So I'm happy to get another

[Chris Schneiter]

Yeah, That's what I mean...this is my third season on the Chen Shins, and I notice a little crackling in between..is that bad? I'll read your article Bob.

[nickjtc]

I just this last weekend put a new rear Bridgestone Spitfire on the 650. The other one (also a Spitfire) was worn down beyond the wear bars; naughty me! What a huge difference it has made. No more squirmy feeling as I cross the centreline when I'm overtaking. And I'll feel a lot more confident when it rains!

[nickjtc]

Here's an interesting article on tires. I would think every two years is a bit excessive.

http://www.canyonchasers.net/shop/generic/tires.php

Excellent article, especially because it tells you how to 'age' a tyre. That is a really useful thing to know (and a lot of tyre sellers do not know it), when it comes time to pay for the tyre. If the tyre is 'aging' as soon as it is out of the mould you have a good argument for expecting a bit of a discount if the tyre seller tries to sell a 2 or 3 year old tyre as 'new'. The fact that an older 'new' tyre has not been fitted on a bike does not alter the fact that it is still 'going off' all the time.

I'm amazed by the number of ads for classic bikes in which the owner is proud of the fact that it still has the original tyres. That is the first haggling point I look for: if the tyres are over, say six years old, I don't care how much tread is left on them. They will invariably show cracking and signs of aging, and will need to be replaced.

Of course the whole issue of tyre age is moot if you actually wear out your tyres and need to replace them on a regular basis.

[eldar]

I got my bike with some old treads on it. Back was hard as a rock and followed every little groove in the road. Got some stipfires and they worked great. Course that was a while ago not and they still have good tread left but are starting to get a bit hard. I probably will not notice too much if I get a flat on the back! Well maybe not that bad. they still corner fairly well and there are no cracks in them. the spitfires have been very good to me.

[Chris Schneiter]

Great article Bob! I think I may have the wrong shape. My tires aren't that old (made in Fall '02, and summer '03). They're Chen Shin " Marquis". Does anybody know anything about them?

[Gordon]

I've got Avon Roadrunners on the 750 and the back tire is pretty much bald now and will be changed ASAP.  The front tire is the same age (2 years) and has tons of tread left, so I'll be getting another Avon for the rear this time so they match, but I'd like to try something else next time.  I tend to go through rear tires two to three times faster than the front.

[mcpuffett]

just put a new dunlop TT 100 on the rear, and had a good long ride yesterday 3rd rear tyre to 1 front ,  mick.

[74cb750]

Old? You mean old tires are bad?
At Loudon I used the old tires for burnouts,
then put new ones on.
The rear tire lasted me 4,000miles. Hmmmm, maybe I need to slow
down and not do too many burnouts? Eh?
peace,
michel

[Chris Schneiter]

A good point: How many miles are people going before replacing? I think mine have about 3500 miles on them (in 3 years) still lots of tread.

[nickjtc]

Here in BC, with our 'half year' riding season, the average rider puts a maximum of 5,000km under their wheels, per year. (It's that figure that the motorcycle industry here uses when valuing a pre-owned bike.....if you ride any serious distance each year, say 10,000km+, your bike 'value' plummets. Sorry, rant over.)

If a typical rear will last 15,000km (I used to get closer to 20,000km out of the rears on my old VFR) then you can anticipate changing every three years, at 5,000km per year. BUT, a lot of riders do not put even that many kms under their wheels, which raises the possibility that they would never wear the tyres out before they should be changed due to the other reasons discussed on this link.

Hence the plethora of old bike being sold with the original tyres still on.

[Bob Wessner]

Not very scientific I guess, but I always went by; no sidewall cracks, good tread, and if you try to dig your finger nail into the tire, it still feels rubbery and your nail won't slide. If it fails any of these three, it's new tire time.

[Chris Schneiter]

So for we "Ugly Americans", that's roughly 3000 Miles a year, x 3? So 9000 Miles?

[Bob Wessner]

So for we "Ugly Americans", that's roughly 3000 Miles a year, x 3? So 9000 Miles?

Sounds right according to something I read some time ago about the average life expectancy of a motorcycle tire. I believe it was 8-10,000 miles. That's sans hole shots and donuts of course. 

[Klark Kent]

mmmmmmmm... hole shots and donuts...

[nickjtc]

So for we "Ugly Americans", that's roughly 3000 Miles a year, x 3? So 9000 Miles?

A lot depends on how the tyre is treated throughout its life: whether it is mounted and balanced correctly, whether it is broken in appropriately, whether it is kept at the correct inflation for the job it is being asked to do and not overloaded, whether it is exposed to inhumane treatment (burnouts, doughnuts etc), and how much UV/weather it is exposed to.

Bottom line though: ride lots of miles each year and the tyres are worn out long before any other considerations!