Softail Tire Wear Question???

[41bigdawg]

I was inspecting my tires yesterday and noticed that my front tire is cupping on throttle side. I had the shop look at it and they didn't have any answers for me. Does anyone know what might cause this to happen??
The tires have 5500 miles on them! The tire pressure is always good so I am not sure what the problem is or if this is normal.

[wndchsr]

I know there was a warrenty issue with this but I think it only effected the touring models though.

[autotec]

I'm having the same issue with my front tire. It also has around 5500 miles on it and was installed back in 08. I started hearing a noise while turning, so I replaced my front wheel bearings. As it turns out, the noise I was hearing was/is coming from my front tire due to it being slightly chopped/cupped. When I checked the bearing preload before I removed my front tire, it was way loose. The only thing I can think of is the wheel was bouncing around causing uneven tire wear. I don't know if that was the case, but it's the only thing I could find.

[Crocodile56]

Cupping is caused by improper alignment, if the tire dosen't ride on the road surface properly, it will cup, check see if the forks are ture and the rim isn't at an angle in the forks!

Just my 2 cents!

[DevilDog]

Cupping is caused by improper alignment, if the tire dosen't ride on the road surface properly, it will cup, check see if the forks are ture and the rim isn't at an angle in the forks!

Just my 2 cents!

Croc's 2 cents are in 1960's ( old school dollars ) so they go farther in today's market.... Just saying :croc

[41bigdawg]

Cupping is caused by improper alignment, if the tire dosen't ride on the road surface properly, it will cup, check see if the forks are ture and the rim isn't at an angle in the forks!

Just my 2 cents!

Thanks for your input Croc...your two cents are worth a lot to me!!! Did you mean to make sure the forks are true? Wasn't familiar with what ture meant? How can I check that to make sure?
Thanks again...BigDawg

[wndchsr]

Dawg, did a quick search and found this, it may help you out a bit. This was done on a Honda but the principle should be close anyway.

http://www.motorcyclistonline.com/howto/string_align_motorcycle_wheels/index.html

Simple Motorcycle Wheel Alignment
A length of string and a few minutes are all you need to make sure your motorcycle's wheels are in line.

Let it not be said that we at Motorcyclist are unresponsive. Recently (er, make that about three and a half years ago), after running a short bit on how to make sure your bike's wheels are in a line, we received several suggestions for a better method. Our original thought was the time-tested string method -- wrapping the string around the front wheel and checking alignment at the back. We tried the alternative method, and it works, further proof that we have smart readers.

In fact, the second string method is nearly the same as our initial suggestion but backward, using the rear wheel as the primary reference and checking for misalignment against the front wheel. Here, we'll walk you through it.

Obtain an eight-foot or longer length of thin string or fishing line. (We prefer brightly colored string because the fishing line can be awfully hard to see in a dark garage.) Find the midpoint of the string and pass it through the rear wheel (1). The idea is that you will wrap the string back across the trailing edge of the rear tire. Choose a location on the tire that will allow the string to run to the front wheel, parallel to the ground, without hitting the bellypan or stands (2). Pass the string around the backside of the tire and pull it forward toward the front wheel (3). If you want, tape the string to the tread where the two free ends to keep it from shifting (4).

Now bring the free ends of the string forward to either side of the front tire. Turn the front wheel so it's pointing approximately straight ahead. (It's not important to have it exactly right just yet.)

Get yourself down on the ground ahead of the front wheel so that you can see all the way to the back wheel. Grab the string ends and pull them taut. Start with the free end of one string several inches from the side of the front tire and draw it toward the tire, looking at where the string touches the sidewalls of the rear tire. Your job is to place the string so that it just touches the front side of the rear tire's sidewall (5). Hold it there. Repeat this step on the other side of the tire, being careful to hold the other string in the position you just established.

When the string is taut against the rear-tire sidewalls and pulled straight forward, it will form a reference for the rear wheel's alignment, in effect projecting the angle of the tire toward the front.

Now, with the string still carefully positioned, see how it looks against the front tire. Have a helper nudge the front tire left or right to get it parallel to both sides of the string (6). That done, compare the distance of the string from one side of the wheel to the other. Properly aligned, the string will be both parallel to the front wheel and equidistant on both sides (7). If the string is closer to the right side of the front tire -- as you are viewing it, looking back -- then the rear wheel is cocked leading-edge right (8). Obviously, if the string is closer to the left side (looking back), the rear tire is leading-edge left.

Make your adjustments at the rear axle and check your work. Once you have the front and rear tires tracking the same line, just be careful to make subsequent chain adjustments equally on both sides.

[wndchsr]

The following web site walks you through ensuring your Harley is lined up properly.

http://www.bikernet.com/avon/PageViewer.asp?PageID=212

[Boss]

Nice work wind!

[41bigdawg]

Thanks WND that was Awesome, I will give it a shot and see what my bike looks like, hopefully that will solve my cupping problem?

[Crocodile56]

High Tech String!!! How ture...true! :fatbob

[Blackdog 15]

I was inspecting my tires yesterday and noticed that my front tire is cupping on throttle side. I had the shop look at it and they didn't have any answers for me. Does anyone know what might cause this to happen??
The tires have 5500 miles on them! The tire pressure is always good so I am not sure what the problem is or if this is normal.

Sounds normal to me...Mine were done at 4K....The Dunlops are JUNK......I changed over to Metzler ME 880 front and rear and even with all the weight on my scoot they run and look great...I put new rubber on at 10K front and rear as I changed my front rim out....Bike is at 24K now and tires look like they will run another 8-10K easy....check your tire inflation often..41 psi front and rear...and the Metzlers handle so much better in either dry or wet roads...

[yochanon]

I gotta disagree that Dunlops are junk. I've got 17,600 on my front (and pretty sure I'll get to HERDstock and back on them) and got 10k on my first rear, and I'm 250 pounds and most driveways around here are gravel...even the bars and bar parking lots. I run the front at 36 psi and the rear at 36 also.

[Crocodile56]

I gotta disagree that Dunlops are junk. I've got 17,600 on my front (and pretty sure I'll get to HERDstock and back on them) and got 10k on my first rear, and I'm 250 pounds and most driveways around here are gravel...even the bars and bar parking lots. I run the front at 36 psi and the rear at 36 also.

Same here as Yochanon, I have Dunlop's on all my bikes and never have any problems with them, the new build bike has an Avon on the front and Dunlop on the rear, so class is still out on this one!

[Blackdog 15]

Guess you guys got the two only pairs of Dunlops worth a chit in a paper bag...They aren't worth squat in desert heat conditions....lots of blown sidewalls, etc....and the rubber compounds are too hard for real cornering traction compaired to Avons & Metzlers....we run our tires at 41 psi....

Just seen too many bike crashes with Dunlop sidewalls blowing out, mostly on the rear.....one was a brand new Dunlop...last one was a close friend of mine...bike was totaled, he broke his left arm & his wife had lots of road rash....was within 100 miles of HD dealer installing the new tire...ironically the worn tire was a Metzler and dealer replaced it with their Dunlop instock even though they do install Metzlers....new tire out their for Harley sized wheels is Pirelli...used to run them on my Porsche.....