[DALankford]

I have a question about a new tire on my new to me 2005 Wing. This bike was running 8 year old Dunlops; so I bought new 'Stones Exedra. Took them to my tire guy today which I've been using for 10 years on previous bikes (Valkyrie 1500 & BMW K1200) now I am home to reinstall on the bike & noticed the rear is mounted backwards on the rim. Front rim has arrows; rear does not. I called him. He says no big deal about rotation --- they do it on race bikes all the time. This wing is not a race bike ---- anyone have any experience with this situation, is this okay ?? The new rear tire is a G704. Only issues I see are rain dispersement and tread pattern. What about design and construction of the tire ?? Tks in advance and God Bless

 

[GLblinded]

I’m not advocating running it backwards, I’d actually bring it back and have him change it, if for nothing else, peace of mind. But here’s my story with this. Buddy came over and we BS’ed our way through maintenance and tire replacements. He actually was the one that picked the rotation but we didn’t notice it was backwards. He rode it for 12,000 miles or so and picked up a nail. That’s when he noticed it was backwards. Never had an issue, but it DID catch a nail .

 

[Joen]

I have a question about a new tire on my new to me 2005 Wing. This bike was running 8 year old Dunlops; so I bought new 'Stones Exedra. Took them to my tire guy today which I've been using for 10 years on previous bikes (Valkyrie 1500 & BMW K1200) now I am home to reinstall on the bike & noticed the rear is mounted backwards on the rim. Front rim has arrows; rear does not. I called him. He says no big deal about rotation --- they do it on race bikes all the time. This wing is not a race bike ---- anyone have any experience with this situation, is this okay ?? The new rear tire is a G704. Only issues I see are rain dispersement and tread pattern. What about design and construction of the tire ?? Tks in advance and God Bless

The rear wheel does not have an arrow because it cannot be mounted backwards, how ever the front can. The tires have arrows, if the tires were meant to be multi directionally mounted they would not place an arrow on them. If it were my bike I would take it back... JMO best of luck

 

[greyhound]

I have a question about a new tire on my new to me 2005 Wing. This bike was running 8 year old Dunlops; so I bought new 'Stones Exedra. Took them to my tire guy today which I've been using for 10 years on previous bikes (Valkyrie 1500 & BMW K1200) now I am home to reinstall on the bike & noticed the rear is mounted backwards on the rim. Front rim has arrows; rear does not. I called him. He says no big deal about rotation --- they do it on race bikes all the time. This wing is not a race bike ---- anyone have any experience with this situation, is this okay ?? The new rear tire is a G704. Only issues I see are rain dispersement and tread pattern. What about design and construction of the tire ?? Tks in advance and God Bless

I have the G704 Bridgestone. I'm pretty sure it's designed to be mounted only one way or Bridgestone wouldn't bother indicating with the arrow which way it's supposed to rotate. Tread design for best performance was made with direction of rotation in mind IMHO.

 

[Shuswaper]

Here's what I do to avoid potential problems...When bringing the wheels in "loose", I always affix some masking tape to a disc, long enough to mark with an arrow pointing the direction of rotation with a black magic marker on both wheels. FWIW.

 

[The prophet]

Correct tire rotation is for rain sipes to work effectively. End of story. As long as you are not riding in the rain, no issues. He is correct about the racetrack running tires whichever direction. Not a biggie to flip the tire but the rear goldwing tire is a bitch with a very stiff sidewall.

 

[JW.]

My understanding of the direction is two fold: one is the tread pattern for best water dispersal and second is the construction; the tread layer of rubber is applied using a scarf joint so the rubber joint is thinner as it reaches the tread surface. If the tyre is run backwards there is a tendency for the joint edge to be picked up. Just how likely that is I've no idea, but that's the theory.

It's the same theory as running a rear tyre on the front but fitting it backwards.

 

[awingnut105]

I live near the Michelin plant. A friend worked there in R and D. The first thing that he was taught was that a directional tire should never be run in reverse rotation due to the internal construction of the tire. I’m sure it’s more of a liability issue than anything else. That is the reason that some are designated as directional and others are not.

 

[philipintexas]

You said the tire was mounted backward.. And you said there was no arrow. If there is no arrow, why do you think it’s backward?

 

[MountainRider]

There's no arrow on the wheel since the wheel can't be mounted but one way. There is an arrow on the tire, hence he knows it is mounted backwards.

 

[GoldWingrGreg]

Dunlops 709 and 704s are directional. That's why there's an arrow on them showing their direction of rotation. Be sure to install them correctly. Putting them on backwards greatly affects wet weather handling. They can also have handling problems as well as sooner cupping issues.

For safety reasons, most m/c races do not happen in the rain and certainly not during heavy down pours.

 

[DALankford]

You said the tire was mounted backward.. And you said there was no arrow. If there is no arrow, why do you think it’s backward?

The rear wheel can only be mounted one way --- lug nuts on left side when facing forward. I returned this morning, and my mech remounted the tire correctly, Thanks for all the info.

 

[Kiwi]

The rear wheel can only be mounted one way --- lug nuts on left side when facing forward. I returned this morning, and my mech remounted the tire correctly, Thanks for all the info.

Thats great. It would do my head in knowing it was ass backwards riding into some wet roads.

 

[Pigeon Roost]

Our tires are symmetric directional. Looking at the sipes, you will notice a more or less "arrow head" like pattern on the tread with the pointed end of the pattern facing the direction of greatest need to "dig in" for traction. Thus the front is oriented for maximum traction in braking and the rear oriented for maximum traction in thrust. Either way will disperse water as well as the other, if not, the front pattern would be at a disadvantage and the front is most important. If the pattern is reversed the tire will tend to push away from the road surface when stressed; front under braking or rear under thrust. If this was a front tire bassackwards, I would change it ASOP! We want all the front brake efficiency/traction possible. The rear, well; I would change it too (actually I did screw this up on my last change and did not notice until I was ready to seat the beads -- arrrrgghhh, I did it over); but it may not matter so much on rear. I would have tire man correct his mistake at no charge; but I might tip him well for the courtesy.

prs

 

[Joen]

Our tires are symmetric directional. Looking at the sipes, you will notice a more or less "arrow head" like pattern on the tread with the pointed end of the pattern facing the direction of greatest need to "dig in" for traction. Thus the front is oriented for maximum traction in braking and the rear oriented for maximum traction in thrust. Either way will disperse water as well as the other, if not, the front pattern would be at a disadvantage and the front is most important. If the pattern is reversed the tire will tend to push away from the road surface when stressed; front under braking or rear under thrust. If this was a front tire bassackwards, I would change it ASOP! We want all the front brake efficiency/traction possible. The rear, well; I would change it too (actually I did screw this up on my last change and did not notice until I was ready to seat the beads -- arrrrgghhh, I did it over); but it may not matter so much on rear. I would have tire man correct his mistake at no charge; but I might tip him well for the courtesy.

prs

PRS Thank you for the technical decimation I always appreciate it, we’ll done ??

 

[Roger Eastman]

As a Darksiders for over 40 years. I also run a rear motorcycle tire on the front. In doing so, I also mount that tire in front reversing the tire rotation. Why you ask??
Because, if you notice on any motorcycle tires...the directional pattern is opposite from the factory.
So, to get the rain siping benefits from that rear tire on the front, you must mount it backwards, or with the directional arrow running backwards...
After over 40 years of safe driving, with no incidents...
May I encourage you to trust me!
BTW...I'll never go back from the double darkside !

 

[Zee Fifty]

I would correct the orientation of the tire.

Arrow on the tire is for the tire regardless of the wheel.
The arrow on the wheel is for the wheel.

If the tire is marked for rotation the technician is responsible to insure it’s mounted correctly. If there is no rotation on the wheel they are mounting it on then they need to take the next step and find out. I’m guessing if one is to read the instructions for mounting a tire on a gold wing it’s all spelled out clearly.

It’s really no different than cars.

 

[FZ1guy]

We flip tires at the track all the time. One track we ride has 7 lefts turns and one big right. We flip on Saturday night and burn up the other side on Sunday.
The arrow is only important for the rain sipes.