Hey all, My front tire has a little age on it (probably 5-6K miles or so) and is wearing funny, not sure why. It doesnt really look bad, but it is kinda wavy on both sides just off of center line...like it raises and lowers in a very consistant pattern. Some people ive talked to said it might be caused by over inflation, or by the crown in the road. Im running 32-34 pounds in the front with Mich. Pilot Power 2ct. No wobble in the wheel, so I can only assume its something either about the tire or the pressure. Any input would be much appreciated. Thanks

 

That is called cupping or checking. The trailing edge of a tread block wears more than the leading edge due to the rubber rolling under due to rolling resistance and mostly due to braking resistance. That happens on the front and is more pronounced as the tread blocks get smaller. A dual sport tire with small blocks will really show cupping, sport treads where there are usually few grooves don't show cupping as easily. It's just the way the tires wear.

Even the rear tire cups a bit, but not front to back. It happens side to side. If you run your hand over from center to outside you will feel kind of a smooth surface, but run your hand back the other way and you will feel the raised edge of the tread. That part of the tread rolls under a bit and doesn't wear down the edge just opposite will take the brunt of the wear.

 

A brief write up: http://www.dunlopmotorcycle.com/infocenter_faq.asp?id=9

The suspension setup is really important. Under dampened bikes will normally show this pattern.

But 5-6k miles on a set of tires is darn good in my opinion.

 

On a different note, if you have dual compound tires they can give the appearance of uneven wear at thepoint of the compound switch, especially if you ride them hard.

 

Thanks for the replies, I figured it was a pretty common issue, but wanted to know if there was anything I should be doing differently. When you say "under dampened" is that too stiff or too soft?