Tire Pressure-Tread Wear Affect..?

[Bart]

I know that the tread is softer in summer, and harder in winter, and that a rough road and a smooth road make a difference in how our tires will wear. I've noticed however, that many get thousands of miles more than others on the stock Dunlap tires. I run my front tire at 30 lb. & rear at 36 lb. all year around. Solo only, my weight is 200 lb. My tread measure is 3 mil on front & 5 mil on rear at 5,000 mi. Does this sound normal for wear considering the roads are mostly smooth? I don't hot-rod or brake hard, just ride. Thousands of miles difference is quite a bit to me. Does tire pressure make that big difference? My wear limit would be 2 mil. before I would replace them. It may be all relative, but if there's a secret, I'm listening.

[superwarden]

i run sidewall pressure on mine, 12000 on the front on my deuce

[XLXR]

I adjust tire presure based on what makes the bike handle best. I weigh 260 lbs and ride aggressively. Tire pressure also depends on what tire you are using. I had to run 40 psi in the stock front Dunlap to reduce sidewall flex. 30 psi is too soft for the front, for me, because the rim can bottom out against square edge bumps like big pot holes or the concrete transitions at driveways. I think about 35 front and rear is what I am using in my Avons.

Tire wear also depends a lot on how hard you ride. Easy riders get a lot more mileage out of their tires. Good balance also helps. I got about 7,000 miles stock Dunlaps, 9,000 Metzler ME 880's, and haven't had the Avons long enough to wear them out.

[Biker Farm Boy]

I weigh 185, I run 30 front and 36 rear as per the book. My tires have 6,300 miles on them and are worn evenly across the tread and still have the same rounded side to side profile they started out with. I figured they'd be worn out by now, but not even close.

[spoon]

I ran 40 psi front and rear on the Dunlap's. I weigh 150 suited up. Less pressure than that the bike was squirly. On the present Bridgestones I still run on the high side 40 to 42 on the front and 38 to 40 on the back. I can go down to 35 on the back don't see much handling difference unless I push it. I still think the best pressure setting is the 2 psi rise from cold to hot. That takes into account bike & rider weight and riding aggression or lack of.

[Bart]

I might try 35 lb. front and 40 lb. rear just to see if the bike handles any better, or different. IMHO, it seems more logical that lower pressure would wear the tread down faster regardless of road conditions...:hmmm:feedback

[Biker Farm Boy]

You have to consider that a higher pressure reduces the contact patch area and there fore would increase wear and increase squirliness.

[mid30]

I run the 40 in both and at 7000 miles the rear is looking a little thin. I will have to change it come spring.

[bigjnsa]

I was running 50+ in the rear tire before I noticed it and had to change it at 11k due to it being square. The front is still the same stock tire and range from 30-35 PSI. I know its low when the frontend washes out.

[Don Burton]

Too high of a tire pressure causes wear in the middle of the tire while too little pressure causes the opposite. That said, I'd run what handles best for you. People who accelerate hard often, brake hard, weigh more, ride two up or even corner hard often will have quicker tire wear than those who don't.

[Bart]

Too high of a tire pressure causes wear in the middle of the tire while too little pressure causes the opposite. That said, I'd run what handles best for you. People who accelerate hard often, brake hard, weigh more, ride two up or even corner hard often will have quicker tire wear than those who don't.

Every tire dealer I talk to says to fill the tires to the MAX psi. cold for the best and "even" tread wear. This is for cars, I've never asked if it's the same for bikes. MAX psi. cold, I must assume, cannot be "too high" a pressure. The tire dealer says that most people fill with less air to achieve a softer ride, but their tires will wear uneven and faster. I guess it all comes down to personal preference, it just doesn't seem possible that some can get thousands of miles more out of their same tire, riding basically the same machine.

[Don Burton]

Every tire dealer I talk to says to fill the tires to the MAX psi. cold for the best and "even" tread wear. This is for cars, I've never asked if it's the same for bikes. MAX psi. cold, I must assume, cannot be "too high" a pressure. The tire dealer says that most people fill with less air to achieve a softer ride, but their tires will wear uneven and faster. I guess it all comes down to personal preference, it just doesn't seem possible that some can get thousands of miles more out of their same tire, riding basically the same machine.

I have observed on my own cars that some cars require the maximum cold pressure stated on the sidewall while others don't. I have worn tires in the middle from having too much tire pressure. As we all know, motorcycle tires are a lot different as we lean them over on their rounded shoulders when cornering, but the general principle still applies. I'm not saying that one shouldn't use maximum cold pressure but, if it is too much, it will cause wear in the middle.

[dpiacentijr]

i run 30 in front and have 10000 on the tire with alot of life left, on my third rear tire got 2 screws

[gusotto]

[QUOTE=I have observed on my own cars that some cars require the maximum cold pressure stated on the sidewall while others don't.[/QUOTE]
________________________________________

The tire manufacturers don't know what kind of car their tire will be mounted on.
"Max Pressure" is not a recommended running pressure.

Each vehicle has to be judged by the vehicle type, purpose, load carried, road condition, season, etc., etc.

Anyone who looks at the side of the tire carcass and thinks "Max Pressure" is the proper running pressure isn't doing their homework!

[Weo]

Every tire dealer I talk to says to fill the tires to the MAX psi. cold for the best and "even" tread wear. This is for cars, I've never asked if it's the same for bikes. MAX psi. cold, I must assume, cannot be "too high" a pressure. The tire dealer says that most people fill with less air to achieve a softer ride, but their tires will wear uneven and faster. I guess it all comes down to personal preference, it just doesn't seem possible that some can get thousands of miles more out of their same tire, riding basically the same machine.

Hmmm... I've never heard this. I recently had some Goodyear Eagle F1's on my 18' Chrysler and the Goodyear dealer said 30 psi cold (theres a much higher max load listed). The same goes for my Pirelli's on my project car (16 inch rim).

It might be different if you are looking at those really low profile 21' rims, but I never looked into those.

You're bike's tires are biased (not radial). They need to flex for good traction in turns. Although we don't know what tires you're using, IMO, go with the manufacturer's recommended tire pressure (often found on their direct website for your specific vehicle) and go from there. You don't want to go too much under the recommended pressure up front as it will induce a wobble/tank slapper. The lower you put the rear, the harder it will feel to initiate a turn.

Also, you might want to evaluate different tire pressures after they've properly warmed up from riding. Tossing in a cold pressure and evaluating the ride right after will be misleading.

[Don Burton]

________________________________________

The tire manufacturers don't know what kind of car their tire will be mounted on.
"Max Pressure" is not a recommended running pressure.

Each vehicle has to be judged by the vehicle type, purpose, load carried, road condition, season, etc., etc.

:clap:clap:clap

[Bart]

There has been a lot of good information here to consider. Thanks to all of you who have given a reply. :dankesaig:xlrocks

[brprider]

I always like to use the manufacturers recommended pressures on all of my vehicles. If I find that the tread wear is not even, I check the run out and balance before adjusting pressures. With my last two bikes, I found that adding 3 or 4 lbs to the front eliminated cupping. The rear wore evenly at the recommended pressure. Currently have 7,000 miles on front with no abnormal wear (had to change at 4,000 miles because bike sat and had weather cracks in sidewall) and 11,000 on rear. The front tire has tons of miles left and the rear should be good for another 3-4000 at this rate. Stock Dunlops hauling my 205 lbs around. (33 lbs front, 36 lbs solo or 40 lbs rear with a passenger)

[stevep48]

I weigh 185 with all my riding stuff on, I run 30 front and 36 rear as per the book. 40 when 2 up
I've got 2/32 left up front, 4/32 left on the rear, 11k+.
I ride about 40% twisties, 60 just riding, not as agresive as I would like to ride

[sdjr]

Having bought my scoot 2 years ago, october 98 build, They were 10 years old, and even though less than 8,000miles, they looked like they were done in...D-U-N, dun. replaced them with metzler, hoping they make it longer, miles wise.