[Checkpoint Chicky]

I was noticing the road dust on the tread of the front tire the other day and noticed it was just dirty at the very center of the tire all the way around. Also, when I hit a bump, it feels very rough and hard. Does this sound like there is just too much air in the tire? I know a lot of people advocate running a tire pressure other than the manufacture's specs but would it be OK to have the tire pressure where it belongs?

 

[SteveU]

I was noticing the road dust on the tread of the front tire the other day and noticed it was just dirty at the very center of the tire all the way around. Also, when I hit a bump, it feels very rough and hard. Does this sound like there is just too much air in the tire? I know a lot of people advocate running a tire pressure other than the manufacture's specs but would it be OK to have the tire pressure where it belongs?

What tire are you running & what pressure do you have in it? I am running a Bridgestone 709 @ 37 psi & a rear Kumho @ 30 psi and can feel bumps with both tires though they are not harsh unless it is a big bump. When I was getting a lot of jolting thru the handlebars this spring it was caused by the steering bearings loosening up, once I re-torqued them to 25 ft lbs it now rides smooth again with no jolting. Another thing that could cause roughness is the anti dive sticking. If you have stock springs it is possible they are allowing the front end to bottom out, mine did this when I first bought it with 42K. Replacing the front springs with progressives makes the bike ride higher, sag less & stops it from bottoming out over bumps that caused the stock springs to bottom.
Too much pressure in the tires can make it ride rough but there are also other things that can cause it.

 

[31261]

Hey:

Motorcycle tires have a round profile. Only a small percentage of the tire makes contact with the road at any one time.

Messing with air pressure other than the recommended factory pressure with a few exceptions such as very heavily loaded, is not wise.

What you see is normal.

 

[Strohmboli]

Could be a lot of different things. What year and how much mileage? Stock front end? Anti-dive valve could be sticking. That would contribute to the front end being rough. I know when I took my Bridgestone front tire from 41lbs to 37lbs, my bike seemed a little smoother.

 

[WingMan71]

Messing with air pressure other than the recommended factory pressure with a few exceptions such as very heavily loaded, is not wise.

CC,

+1 to what Kit says about tire pressure.

Also, what is your rear suspension preload setting?

If you have that set too high for your weight plus the weight of your luggage you're gonna have a rough ride.

***

 

[ChgoD]

As long as we are on the subject of tire pressures, I recently installed Bridgestone G709 (front) and G702(rear). Bridgestone recommends 41 psi for both.

But I don't ride at max weight. Virtually all my riding is solo, so would I be better off with slightly reduced pressures?

 

[Waldo]

Contact patches illustrated.

 

[Checkpoint Chicky]

Yeah, my stripe looks like that except straight.

 

[Sandy]

Stones Pressure

My local wing shop reccomends stones be run at 40F and 42R. I get 21K out of the front and 15K on the rear. Softer pressures will hurt handling and shorten tread life.

 

[nedro]

my local wing shop reccomends stones be run at 40f and 42r. I get 21k out of the front and 15k on the rear. Softer pressures will hurt handling and shorten tread life.

wrong!!!

 

[Richard Clem]

tire pressure

wrong!!!

Nedro,

I agree with you, but why not elaborate? Just because someone is wrong doesn't mean that all is lost.

Richard

 

[WestWing03]

The words 'Chicken Stripe' comes to mind.....