Tire Wear Update:

[Jet86]

Just thought i would share some basic tire info from my log file Notepad:

REAR TIRE
Jan 1st 2011 - New rear tire 150/80/16 Shinko 777 bike miles 64,500.
So i got 11,000 miles from the tire so i'm happy with that, good all around tire,
i liked it so much i replaced it with the same tire
Nov 2 2012 - New tire Shinko 777 bike miles  75,510

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FRONT TIRE
Avon Front or Rear AM26 Roadrider 110/80V-18.
June 17th 2009 Installed New Front Tire, Avon RoadRider bike Miles 57,140.
I'm hoping to see 20,000 on this new tire.

update: ok i got 18,920 miles on the avon road rider, I could had have gotten maybe 200-500 more, it was close to the wear bars so i changed it, cupping wasn't to bad but it did wear strangely on both sides even though 95% of riding was on the hiway.
very good all around tire and would use it again and recommend to anyone but i wanted to try something different.

Dec 1st 2012 Installed new front tire, BRIDGESTONE Battlax BT45 Front 110/80/18 bike Miles 75,780.

if i remember i will update my results on my next tire change.

[RFH87_Connie]

Thats good to hear about the Shinko 777.  I keep hearing mixed results on this tire.  I have one of those mounted on my other bike but it has yet to see the street.   The RoadRider has been a great tire for me.  I has stuck like glue but I have slid it in a hairpin turn pretty consistantly at one of the cornering clinics I go to.  It is cupping a little but I think it is from the abuse I have given it.

Also attached is the picture from switching from a BT-021 to the RoadRider.  The BT-021 was a VERY nice handling tire (for me).  It handled and stuck very well right up until the end.  It never cupped.  The rubber was soft so the mileage was not what I wanted (last from late spring to fall).  You can see the distinct soft/hard rubber areas in the photo.  You would need to wear a muffler off to use up all of the sidewall area.

[RFH87_Connie]

Oops.  I just realized I have an Journey 890, not the 777 for the rear.

[Jet86]

WOW man and i thought my front tire looked bad befor i changed it. do you do alot of cornering mountain riding? that roadrider looked pretty much like mine in the area of cupping.

[RFH87_Connie]

I've done at least 5 advanced cornering clinics on a flat asphalt surface at MCB Quantico plus quite a few of my favorite local roads over and over.  The course has a few high speed sweepers and a few very tight turns.  It has you constantly leaning (Its a corning class).  It's on an area that is about 6 football fields and the track is probably over a half mile.  The local roads would probably only equal about 15 minutes on the course.  I guess the sidewalls are somewhat soft and allows the tire to conform to the road because I can't feel the cupping yet.

[Jet86]

at about 12k on the roadrider i started to feel the cupping, i couldn't realy tell going in a straight line unless i Loosen my grip on the bars and at 35-45 the bars would start to shake very quickly/tank slapper,, that never really bothered me because i'm not gonna be riding with no hands, but occasionally as a test to see if any front end work may be needed i will loosen my grip and let go of the bars with my hands right there to grab it if it starts going foul.

i could really feel how bad the tire was when i made U-turns, it's kind of hard to describe but in U turns i could feel every area that was cupped, it was not a smooth cup by any means as i said befor the tire wore strangely on both sides and when it first started i thought it was a head stem bearing problem and till could be but the new tire has mask the problem for now, but really i don't think it's the stem bearings, just a case of a worn tire..

[Jet86]

Oh i just wanted to make it clear that everything i said about the tire is Not really a Negative and it is a good tire and i was just trying to point out some things about the tire that was on my bike, on other bikes it could better or worse but on my bike if i had to rate the tire 1-5 five being the best i would give it a solid 4...

[connie_rider]

Being Frugal, I discovered that;
If you have a tire that is cupped (but still has tread) and want it to handle better in slow speed corners,,,,
Put the bike on a center stand, raise the front tire off the ground, give it a good spin, and reshape the tire with a Body Sander....    (Angle the sanding wheel so that it grinds the rubber and spins the tire/approx. 45*)
Works on the rear too but turn the wheel with the engine as you reshape the tire.

Better than throwing the tire away,,  and Works like a champ.

Ride safe, Ted

[SteveJ.]

Being Frugal, I discovered that;
If you have a tire that is cupped (but still has tread) and want it to handle better in slow speed corners,,,,
Put the bike on a center stand, raise the front tire off the ground, give it a good spin, and reshape the tire with a Body Sander....    (Angle the sanding wheel so that it grinds the rubber and spins the tire/approx. 45*)
Works on the rear too but turn the wheel with the engine as you reshape the tire.

Better than throwing the tire away,,  and Works like a champ.

Ride safe, Ted

Hey Ted, I a$$ume you're talking about a really aggressive grit, 36? I wanna try this out on a slightly out of round Shinko890 rear radial, the second in a row. They did comp me for the first, cool.

TIA

[RFH87_Connie]

I was going to mention this but thought others would bash it.  I've done this for years - dad taught me back in the 70s.  I think my hand grinder has a 10" or 12" 40-grit disk on it.

I still have a "special" hack saw blade he made that has the back edge ground down like a knife.  A few years after he made one you could buy them in bike shops.  We would use it to square up knobbies on our dirt bikes.  Still hanging on the wall...

[Summit670]

I've used a woodworking rasp on my rear tire.  Bike on centerstand, idleing in 1st gear.  Just make sure the tire is "pulling" the rasp in case it gets loose.  Works very easy and only takes a few minutes.

Front tire, thanks for the ideas on how to keep it turning while sanding.  Maybe I'll have the sander running on one side to keep the tire turning and lay the rasp on the other side.  hmmmm

http://www.ebay.com/itm/woodworking-tool-rasp-file-plane-auto-body-tool-filler-grater-grader-/150909720169

[Roadhound]

[quote author=RFH87_Connie link=topic=11778.msg144514#msg144514 date=1354628740
Also attached is the picture from switching from a BT-021 to the RoadRider.  The BT-021 was a VERY nice handling tire (for me).  It handled and stuck very well right up until the end.  It never cupped.  The rubber was soft so the mileage was not what I wanted (last from late spring to fall).  You can see the distinct soft/hard rubber areas in the photo.  You would need to wear a muffler off to use up all of the sidewall area.
[/quote]

Looking at your picture it appears that the BT-021 you were using was too wide for the front rim. IIRC the original Dunlop K105F designed for the first Gen Concours was undersized much like the 120 on the later model bike, it's actual measurement was about 100 mm not 110.

[RFH87_Connie]

That very well may be true, but i've seen lots of them worn this way.  And yes, mine is the early model C-10 and I ran the stock size of 110/80-18.  The 2008 C-14 came with this tire as OEM also (maybe others).  They wore just the same way if they were run as long.  You can actually feel the softer rubber on the side with your finger nail.

[connie_rider]

Someone will probably say it isn't safe to do this but we've been doing it for a long time.

Yes, I used a rough grit to do the project.
Can be done with a Body grinder rather than a sanding disc if your careful.

Be aware that when your through, you and your garage will have fine black rubber all over it.

RFH, I also did the Dirt Bike Tires with a knife.
Later discovered we could use an abrasive cutoff wheel to do the work.
We also cut slots in each square on the dirt bike tires. Made an amazing amount of difference in the handling, but tires wore out more quickly.

Ride safe, Ted