Tires

[kwthom]

There are many warnings on IBA sites to NOTjust rely on odometer readings since they are frequently off. So using a good mapping programand GPSis actually better than relying on your odometer.

Additionally, the odo and the speedometer errors aren't typically in sync. Thus, speedometer can be within 1% of GPS at speed (e.g. 70MPH), but the odometer may have a 3% error over 100 miles.

This is why, as you point out, that either that programmed GPS, or a good route prepared on-line (Google Maps) or off-line (Basecamp) confirms the distance traveled is adequate.

 

[cacomly]

I'm lucky, on my Sportster both odo and speedometer have almost no error.

 

[SharkGlide]

Stock Dunlop’s on my 15RGS...... Check air pressure regularly and @ 14k still have some life left in em. Cold, Heat, Dry, and Wet haven’t had any issues

 

[Sailronin]

I ride an '18 Road Glide with the OEM Dunlop tires. My rear tire had 10,500 miles when it picked up a bolt and was replaced under road hazard warranty. It would have gone another 5,000 miles at least according to the tread remaining. The front tire is original and now has 15,800 miles and will be changed in another two to three thousand miles.

As a side note, I did an SS 1000 ride yesterday and my odometer showed a total distance of 1,044 miles vs. the Garmin etrax calculated distance of 1,039 miles. I was very impressed at 0.4812 % error on the odometer

 

[Trebuh]

Recommend Michelin Commander tires, great price for high quality

 

[Marc11]

I just ran 12,000 miles on a set of Michelin Commander II tires under all possible conditions including off road. The front looks hardly used and the rear, aside from flat spotting appears less than half worn.

Gotta use caution on wet roads, but otherwise they handled and performed flawlessly.

 

[AirbusFlieger]

For any Darkside runners, whom mounts the tire for you?

I made a coupe inquiries and every shop said "H to the no".

Won't touch it.
AF

 

[Marc11]

For any Darkside runners, whom mounts the tire for you?

I made a coupe inquiries and every shop said "H to the no".

Won't touch it.
AF

I have a No Mar machine. Been mounting tires on bikes, cars and car tires on bikes for years. Easy peasy and saves $$$$

Walmart may do it if it's a single sided swingarm rim or tell them it's a trailer rim. Just expect some potential scratches because we'll...Walmart.

 

[AirbusFlieger]

I have a No Mar machine. Been mounting tires on bikes, cars and car tires on bikes for years. Easy peasy and saves $$$$$

Nice! I'm a former aircraft mechanic (now pilot) but balancing tires seems like black magic to me no matter how many vids I watch!


Thanks, I'll look into it again.

Ever have to change a Darkside tire away from home?

AF

 

[Marc11]

Nice! I'm a former aircraft mechanic (now pilot) but balancing tires seems like black magic to me no matter how many vids I watch!


Thanks, I'll look into it again.

Ever have to change a Darkside tire away from home?

AF

Balancing is the easiest part. I static balance my tires, but many swear by Dyna Beads or Ride On. Personally I don't like those products but I'm sensitive to ride quality.

Never had to do it away from home, but Walmart is your only option or spoons....yikes!

If you find yourself in NY let me know happy to have you ship a tire here and swap it. No run flats though, I draw the line in the number of curse words in the 4 languages I know to handle run flats.

 

[AirbusFlieger]

Balancing is the easiest part. I static balance my tires, but many swear by Dyna Beads or Ride On. Personally I don't like those products but I'm sensitive to ride quality.

Never had to do it away from home, but Walmart is your only option or spoons....yikes!

Thank you for the encouragement.

 

[Shawn K]

...many swear by Dyna Beads or Ride On. Personally I don't like those products but I'm sensitive to ride quality

Interesting. My experience was that my ride quality improved markedly when I switched to Dyna Beads. I had to buy a new rear tire on the road once, they insisted on lead weights, and my ride quality and tire wear changed noticeably (for the worse).

 

[Marc11]

Interesting. My experience was that my ride quality improved markedly when I switched to Dyna Beads. I had to buy a new rear tire on the road once, they insisted on lead weights, and my ride quality and tire wear changed noticeably (for the worse).

Yep a lot of people like them, just not for me. Didn't think they were as smooth as a well balanced wheel and hated the off balance feeling at low speeds, or from a stop. Plus it's a pita dealing with the beads or the mess of ride on changing tires.

Some of it or even all of it could have been just my own imagination...but since I can balance my own wheels it's NBD for me.

 

[Tep_52]

I do my own but have heard that if you tell them it's for a trike they will do it with minimal questions

 

[EricV]

For any Darkside runners, whom mounts the tire for you?

I made a coupe inquiries and every shop said "H to the no".

Won't touch it.
AF

I mostly used car tire retailers, not bike shops for Darkside mounting. They usually could not balance the tire, because it wouldn't fit their balance machine. I walked in the wheel off the bike and told them it was for a side car rig. That seemed to be something that made sense to them and mostly it was done w/o issue or complaint.

Balancing is easy. Buy a cheap Harbor Freight unit and some stick on weights, (they are steel now, lead has gone away). Use some painters tape to stick a weight on the opposite side of the natural low spot, spin and see where the low spot is. Adjust the location, or the amount of weight until you get no repeatable low point or it barely moves, meaning your darn close.

 

[Stephen!]

For any Darkside runners, whom mounts the tire for you?

I made a coupe inquiries and every shop said "H to the no".

Won't touch it.
AF

Got tired of the lies and the hit 'n miss of trying to get someone else to mount a car tire on the rear and a rear tire on the front along with paying the local Honda shop $75 a pop to mount the tires purchased from them and off the bike so I bought one of these:

Bonus: Just paid off $300+ of its cost by ordering tires direct ship to me for the wife's vehicle and mounting/balancing them myself. Between the bike tires and 4-Wheel vehicles, I already have it about ¼ "paid off" in a few short months.

 

[Shawn K]

Been looking at one of those very units myself. Almost identical to the Weaver tire changer Dad bought many years ago.

 

[Marc11]

I've changed countless motorcycle tires and dark sides too on my no mar manual changer over the years.

Last year my wife's car needed tires and was getting quotes of $800 plus....checking online I was able to find a nice set of Goodyear assurance tires for half the price of shop prices, $400 shipped to my door for 4 tires.

Figured I'd try, no problem! All four mounted and bubble balanced by me in an afternoon. Braking the bead was the hardest part, enter a Bead Blaster and problem solved.

This past weekend my son's girlfriend needed front tries bad, they were bald and she needed a state inspection. No one would take her car in over the weekend, shot over to Walmart, bought two new tires and had her mounted and balanced in under an hour with a manual tire changer in my basement.

Soon my truck will need tires and you bet I'll be swapping them myself.

I've saved thousands upon thousands ordering MC tires online and changing myself, and it's not just the money but the convenience of changing when I want and not having to bring the bike or wheels in and making multiple trips to a dealer. I can only dream of what it may be like having an automated changer and balancer, that sure would be nice.

 

[Stephen!]

Been looking at one of those very units myself. Almost identical to the Weaver tire changer Dad bought many years ago.

Indeed. There are a few different "manufacturers" painting their colors and slapping their logos on what I believe to be all the same machine from the same builder. This particular version includes the "Assist Arm" which keeps the tires in the drop-center while you muck about on the other side. Sure, there are other, cheaper, ways of doing that ranging from wood blocks to giant zip ties, but none so easy as swinging the arm into place, hitting the UP/DOWN air switch and letting the machine do all the work.

 

[Stephen!]

I've changed countless motorcycle tires and dark sides too on my no mar manual changer over the years.

Last year my wife's car needed tires and was getting quotes of $800 plus....checking online I was able to find a nice set of Goodyear assurance tires for half the price of shop prices, $400 shipped to my door for 4 tires.

Figured I'd try, no problem! All four mounted and bubble balanced by me in an afternoon. Braking the bead was the hardest part, enter a Bead Blaster and problem solved.

This past weekend my son's girlfriend needed front tries bad, they were bald and she needed a state inspection. No one would take her car in over the weekend, shot over to Walmart, bought two new tires and had her mounted and balanced in under an hour with a manual tire changer in my basement.

Soon my truck will need tires and you bet I'll be swapping them myself.

I've saved thousands upon thousands ordering MC tires online and changing myself, and it's not just the money but the convenience of changing when I want and not having to bring the bike or wheels in and making multiple trips to a dealer. I can only dream of what it may be like having an automated changer and balancer, that sure would be nice.

Putting a 205/50 on my 17" BMW wheel was a little challenging the first time. It is a very tight fit to get that second bead over the edge of the rim. I cannot even imagine trying to do it manually. The second time was a bit easier, using the lessons I learned the first time around.

Slapping the 235/70s on the wife's 17" rims was a piece of cake. I do not have a lift so I had to do one at a time, but even still it took a little more than an hour to get all four done. Well worth the $300+ I saved not having Tires Plus do them.

I do not have a dynamic balancer. I have a Mark Parnes(?) balancer for the bike tires and easy access to a cone balancer for the bigger stuff. Both the bike and the car were smooth all the way up to 90mph so I guess I cannot justify the cost of a dynamic balancer just yet.

The savings get even better when you take into consideration my shop/home is about 35-50 miles from the nearest town of any size (if I get a Big Mac Attack, it is a 100 mile round trip) so being able to get tires delivered, especially with free shipping, really helps a lot and really adds to the scheduling convenience.