Weird tyre wear

[squarebore]

I've just completed a pretty fast 3500kms through some great twisty roads and some of the best in Australia. The tyre below is a front metzler endurance exp as fitted standard. It has a total of 7000kms and was fine before this trip. This wear became evident after a hard pushed 100km section through the snowy mountains. Bike was pretty heavy and fully loaded. Pressure was 31psi. Any ideas?

 

[tomatocity]

I have a Michelin Anakee 3 that is wearing with the same pattern. Have you made any suspension upgrades?

 

[offcamber]

Mine has similar wear. some will say the pressure too low, some will say you don't corner enough some will say you need to spend a ton of money on new suspension or the sag is set wrong and some will say its from trail braking....

take your pick of any or all of the above....

 

[BravoBravo]

I've just completed a pretty fast 3500kms through some great twisty roads and some of the best in Australia. The tyre below is a front metzler endurance exp as fitted standard. It has a total of 7000kms and was fine before this trip. This wear became evident after a hard pushed 100km section through the snowy mountains. Bike was pretty heavy and fully loaded. Pressure was 31psi. Any ideas?

That kind of cupping is not unusual for the front tire of large-bore bikes. Some tires are more prone to it than others, and running at improper tire pressure can certainly exacebate the situation. 31 psi sounds a bit too low to me, for street use anyway, and may have contributed to the premature wear.
I know the ZG1000 Kawasaki Concours had a tendency to wear front tires this way, since Kawasaki took what was basically a Ninja front end and used it on the Concours, which was a much heavier bike. I was told that the Ninja-style forks were not beefy enough for the Connie, and this certainly contributed to the front tire cupping I experienced.
Cheers,
Bruce

 

[squarebore]

I have a Michelin Anakee 3 that is wearing with the same pattern. Have you made any suspension upgrades?

No suspension upgrades.

 

[squarebore]

I thought the recommended pressure was 33psi. 31 psi is not that much different. Do some of you run higher than 33psi?

 

[BravoBravo]

I thought the recommended pressure was 33psi. 31 psi is not that much different. Do some of you run higher than 33psi?

You are correct. The manual does suggest 33 psi in the front tire, but I think even a few pounds can make a significant difference in tire wear.

-Bruce

 

[immigrant]

This happened to my Anakee 3. I ran it at 38 psi. Seems like low (31 psi) or high (38psi) makes no difference in how it wears. Seems it is only happening to a few of us cause there is not many posts on this issue

 

[jrb_nw]

Looks like low pressure to me. I believe 31 psi is way too low for the front tire of a 600+ lb bike being pushed on twisty roads. Don't care what bike or what tire it is. I've owned over 20 big sport tours and almost all of them would display cupping and feathering and other weird patterns of wear when run below 36 psi and driven in sporting fashion

I run the S10 at 36F/40R and the oem Battlewings are doing well at 6000 miles, especially the front which is still very rounded. And I ride the bike pretty hard on trips and in the twisties.

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[Buzz Ricer]

I have an ST and I weigh 275lbs. I was eating up Anakee 2s quick. All the wear was in the middle and it was squaring off quick. Guys at the bike shop suggested running slightly lower pressures than spec front and back to spread out the wear pattern. Its been working like a charm. Been doing the same with the same results on my fjr. It doesnt seem like there is any science to this. Results vary widely.

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[jrb_nw]

That's bizarre, unless you're riding mostly straight highways. Under those conditions a higher pressure could wear the center down more. I don't know, maybe it's an Anakee thing to need a bit lower press, but I'm confident that front tire of the OP was run too low.

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[Buzz Ricer]

Even the curviest roads are mostly straight. Think about it. You are NOT cornering about 80-90% of the time even if you live in Switzerland. I live in the Texas Hill Country and scrape the pegs as much as anybody else around here. They suggested a lower pressure reasoning that you are going to have a bit wider of a contact patch that is worth whatever extra rolling resistance and the heat and wear that you get with it. So far (got 10k out the rear and front looks new-ish at 8k...about half of that loaded down with sidecases) So far they have proven correct. Obviously there are limits..not suggesting 10lbs less than spec. Been running about 30-31 up front and 34-36 in the rear, loaded or not.

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[tomatocity]

If it is normal, why don't ALL tires where like this?

 

[Buzz Ricer]

I'm only giving my own example. Its working for me. I didnt really want to believe at first either but after swapping rears every 6k or 7k figured I hadnt much to lose giving it a shot.

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[crockett]

This happened to my Anakee 3. I ran it at 38 psi. Seems like low (31 psi) or high (38psi) makes no difference in how it wears. Seems it is only happening to a few of us cause there is not many posts on this issue

This is exactly what my anakee 3's look like. I put them on both front and rear before a long trip. I have 7700 miles on the tires and the front wear has the same high center strip. I ran them at book psi spec. This is the only tire I experienced that had that wear pattern. I contribute it to the manufacture of the tire. I'm not too worried about it, and I'll replace them as needed. It does get ugly looking, but I like the high miles.

 

[jrb_nw]

Even the curviest roads are mostly straight. Think about it. You are NOT cornering about 80-90% of the time even if you live in Switzerland. I live in the Texas Hill Country and scrape the pegs as much as anybody else around here. They suggested a lower pressure reasoning that you are going to have a bit wider of a contact patch that is worth whatever extra rolling resistance and the heat and wear that you get with it. So far (got 10k out the rear and front looks new-ish at 8k...about half of that loaded down with sidecases) So far they have proven correct. Obviously there are limits..not suggesting 10lbs less than spec. Been running about 30-31 up front and 34-36 in the rear, loaded or not.

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Thanks for the clarification. Good info.

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[cosmic]

I've run EXP'S and Anakee2 in the same way... Alone & passenger 33/39
Two up fully loaded 36/42. Never had such tire wear.

©

 

[FlaDave]

I've just completed a pretty fast 3500kms through some great twisty roads and some of the best in Australia. The tyre below is a front metzler endurance exp as fitted standard. It has a total of 7000kms and was fine before this trip. This wear became evident after a hard pushed 100km section through the snowy mountains. Bike was pretty heavy and fully loaded. Pressure was 31psi. Any ideas?

Mine looks just the same. I have 3500 mi on it at the moment.
No heavy loading, actually, no loading at all so far. Just me and I'm 205 lbs with gear.
I run the inflation rates from the manufacturer.
My rear tire is getting low as well. I'm already looking for a new set.
I may get to 4500 mi on them before I have to swap 'em out.

 

[Bappo]

I had that happen to my Anakee 3 front as well. No matter in the end. Have 9000 miles on it now and there is still a bunch of life left.

At the Big Sky ITU Rally the same wear pattern was present on a bunch of the bikes. Pretty much aleviated any fears I may have had left.

 

[Combo]

This happened to my Anakee 3. I ran it at 38 psi. Seems like low (31 psi) or high (38psi) makes no difference in how it wears. Seems it is only happening to a few of us cause there is not many posts on this issue

??? ??? ??? ???

That's just weird. I don't think you could make a tire look like that if you tried.