Left side of Dunlop D220 (stock front tire) no tread

Joined
May 27, 2009
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7
Location
West Des Moines, Iowa
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2007 ST1300
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8431
I have 9000 miles on my ST1300, and have noticed that the left center of the stock front tire (D220) has no tread, but the right center is fine?! I ordered a new front tire to be installed next week (Michelin PR2) since I am road tripping next weekend, but thought I would post to see if anyone knows what would cause this? (Too many left turns, balancing issue??). I have not noticed any handling or pulling/wobbling/etc issues.

The rear tire is wearing evenly, and is still fine. I (hopefully) attached a picture of the front tire.

thanks!
 

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OP
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Paradigm
Joined
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West Des Moines, Iowa
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2007 ST1300
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8431
Whew...thx guys! My local Honda dealer only carries the Dunlop Roadsmart tires, and after reading all the failure posts, i decided to order the Michelin's. Just haven't ever experienced a front tire needing replacement before the back (and I do 2 up riding 30% of the time)....figured something was up. Time to hit the Quick guides for front wheel removal in prep for the tire's arrival next week. Happy 4th of July weekend to all!
 

BakerBoy

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I'll second the comments above.... I've had D220's do that as well. The bike is fine. Move on to PR2's or BT020's or BT023's and you'll be happy.
:)
 

Gus1300

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Amazing how many people attribute things to a crown in the road, that while existant, is probably no more than a couple degrees from horizontal, yet the tread on this tire is clearly affected at a much greater angle than that. Not getting into the 'pulls right' wars...but mine was corrected with a tire change, riding on the same crowned/uncrowned roads I was riding before, same route, same habits...to me, crown wasn't even contributory. My front tire prior to the change showed much the same wear pattern as this photo does. YMMV.
 
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Looks eggsackly like the Bridgestone I pulled off mine just a couple of weeks ago. We'll see if the PR2 ends up with the same wear pattern.
 

mbw919

Martin
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Just haven't ever experienced a front tire needing replacement before the back (and I do 2 up riding 30% of the time)....figured something was up.
My OEM Dunlop D220 front also wore faster then the rear, and I probably did about the same amout of 2-up riding. I think it's fairly common on this bike. I replaced them with PR2s and have been very pleased with them.
 

Two Brothers

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We see this on lots of bikes. We see it so much I researched it on the Web. Lots of speculation of what causes this. Crown of the road, ridin style, air pressure, suspension, to name a few.

My theory is that you turn left further than you do turning right. More bikes that are rode in town or city bikes will have this problem vs. someone who tours or LD rides.

By turning left on a four lane street you are going twice sometimes even more than turning right. The research I checked into showed riders in the UK had wear on the right side of the tire like we do on the left.

Les may chime in on this.

Just my input on this problem.
 

BakerBoy

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We see this on lots of bikes. We see it so much I researched it on the Web. Lots of speculation of what causes this. Crown of the road, ridin style, air pressure, suspension, to name a few.

My theory is that you turn left further than you do turning right. More bikes that are rode in town or city bikes will have this problem vs. someone who tours or LD rides.

By turning left on a four lane street you are going twice sometimes even more than turning right. The research I checked into showed riders in the UK had wear on the right side of the tire like we do on the left.

Les may chime in on this.

Just my input on this problem.
I've had this same belief for a long time after going through many tires on my motorcycles. When in twisties not only is the left hander longer, it is easier to see through and on average we go through it faster, which is harder on the tires. Due to the fact that road often goes around big objects (like mountains), right hand corners are often blind and we/I go slower.

I also make a habit of riding towards the right side of the groove made by vehicle's left tires. That surface is actually opposite of a crown (meaning, where I place my tires is where the pavement slopes up to the right). Yet my tires still wear more prominently on the left than the right due to the reasons mentioned above.
 
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The Avon Storm II I just took off LipSTick displayed the same wear. Almost like you could flip the tire over and go another 10,000 miles.

Tim's comments make sense, never thought about left hand turns being longer.

But, can we trust his judgement? He's coming off a head injury. <DUCKING!!!> :duck: :chrfl1:
 
OP
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Paradigm
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New Pr2 mounted and installed. Interesting comment/warning from the honda dealer (they did the mount/balance part). He asked what I had on the rear & I told him the stock D220. He stated that "with this sorta tire on the front, don't go too long before replacing the rear". Is this related to needing to change front and rear at the same time, or is it related to the new front being a PR2 (or is he full of poo)?? the rear tire still looks fine?
 
Joined
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san diego, ca
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New Pr2 mounted and installed. Interesting comment/warning from the honda dealer (they did the mount/balance part). He asked what I had on the rear & I told him the stock D220. He stated that "with this sorta tire on the front, don't go too long before replacing the rear". Is this related to needing to change front and rear at the same time, or is it related to the new front being a PR2 (or is he full of poo)?? the rear tire still looks fine?
One thing is the handling. The PR2 is racey and wants to fall into a turn, the D220 (rider) is happy at any lean angle.

Bill
 
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Hmm, I don't find the PR2 to fall into turns at all, in fact it feels quite round and smooth on tip-in. Very predictable so far and easy to modulate in corners.
 
Joined
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Hmm, I don't find the PR2 to fall into turns at all, in fact it feels quite round and smooth on tip-in. Very predictable so far and easy to modulate in corners.
I would expect that going from a Bridgestone to a PR2. Handling is similar. Dunlop and Avon handle much differently. I would say the difference in handling is the Bridgestones and PR2 are fun in fast corners with a fast rider while the Avons/Dunlops are fun in any corner but give away some sportiness. YMMV.

Bill
 
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and it's especially noticeable when going from a Bridgestone front with left side worn lik the first picture and a squared off Pirelli down to the cords on the back.. :scared2:
 

randy the x man

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I have 77k on my ST1300 and noticed the left side front tire wear right away. Every ST I have seen no matter what tire has this wear pattern. If it were a crown of the road issue all tires on all motorcycles would have this issue. I know for a fact there you have to have your front left fork pinch bolts set at the proper adjustment so your left brake calipers will not create drag. Incorrect adjustment will cause a pull. I do not believe I have ever been able to not have at least a slight pull to the right. I think this is caused also buy the V4 engine and the crank alignment. With the v4 facing forward and the crank aligned in the same direction as the bike. I believe the normal torque of the engine causes a pull to the right. Like on any car v8 engine when you rev it the engine torques to the right. You can feel that at idle if you rev the engine. This causes the bike to lean to the right which would cause a pull to the right.

So I think the normal torque of the engine causes a slight pull to the right that you are really not aware of unless you let lose of the bars. So I believe you are always slightly counter steering or compensating thru balance. You don't even know it unless you let your grip loose and feel the slight right drift. So the front left is getting more wear then the right.
 
Joined
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houston, tx
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91 st 1100 97
.02- Having the same problems on all my front tires . so heard all the explanations before exept 1- the wheel is not reinstalled following the manual s recommendation.
2- the brake pads are not centered as they should be following the manual.
Guilty on all counts! too often I just want to geterr done!
 

randy the x man

R.I.P. - 2013/06/23
Rest In Peace
Joined
Nov 18, 2007
Messages
77
Location
Lynnwood, Wa.
.02- Having the same problems on all my front tires . so heard all the explanations before exept 1- the wheel is not reinstalled following the manual s recommendation.
2- the brake pads are not centered as they should be following the manual.
Guilty on all counts! too often I just want to geterr done!
Even if the adjustment is correct there is a slight amount of pull
 
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