Front tire shred!

[NSPbiker]

I just noticed it, after days of hard riding (and having a blast!). My front tire is showing broken steel cords and it’s 7pm Saturday at Sturgis SD. I was going to post tonight to ask about an odd wobble I get when hands-off, but I may know. I cannot safely ride, live in Washington. Any ideas?

 

[ChriSTian_64]

Well... a few things.

1- Your tire is dead, and need to be replace right now. That means you are stuck there, yes, until stores open monday morning.

2- Use that time to find a place to buy a new one. You can still ride directly there, beeing extra carefull, very early, monday morning, when temperature is still cool and when there is less traffic.
And avoid braking with the front, if possible. The idea is to minimize friction and wear.

3- I am tempted to ask : how come you didn't saw it coming. You don't inspect your tires for unusual wear once every thousand miles ? As I said, I am tempted to ask you. But I won't.

4 - As for the possible causes of that uneven wear now, my bet is a disaligned fork. Or, only one side of the fork is working as it ahould, and holds all the front weight.

 

[Sadlsor]

Wow.
I may know, too, if the picture is of your tire.
Hopefully someone closer than Alabama can help.

 

[NSPbiker]

Well... a few things.

1- Your tire is dead, and need to be replace right now. That means you are stuck there, yes, until stores open monday morning.

2- Use that time to find a place to buy a new one. You can still ride directly there, beeing extra carefull, early monday morning, when temperature is still cool.

3- I am tempted to ask : how come you didn't saw it coming. You don't inspect your tires for unusual wear once every thousand miles ? As I said, I am tempted to ask you. But I won't.

4 - As for the possible causes of that uneven wear now, my bet is a disaligned fork.

1-very much agreed.
2-there is a Yamaha shop100m from my hotel.
3-my bad, inspection when purchased in California it was great, 1200 miles until this trip now. Visual I did not notice uneven wear or deep wear. I am over 2000 miles this trip in 5 days, high speeds and very fun, hard run mountain passes.
4-I am reading this forum now about my front forks. Will check oil level for sure or anything I can figure out in a parking lot. I am about 1500 miles from my shop…
Thank you!!

 

[ChriSTian_64]

Oh. So it's a new bike to you. OK.

Yeah, say a fork seal started leaking some times ago, before you bought it...

Also, there is record heat since a few days in the mid-west. When the temperature is around 120 F (they had 127 in dead valley a few days ago), the asphalt temp is way higher than that.
So those excessive temps could explain the excessive wear in that short period, but why an eneven wear ? You'll find out.

I had a blow out once, during a heat wave. Well, not a real blow out, the tire didn't explode. I just loose the thread layer. And then I notice that my tire pressure had sky rocketed, due to excessive temps.
So, before riding on it, maybe double xheck the pressure and lower it just below normal, to reduce the stress. You want to reach that garage on two wheels, right.

 

[bdalameda]

May I ask what type of tire this is? Reminds me of some problems with Avon and some Dunlops years ago.

 

[Larry Fine]

All other things being equal, lower pressure means greater temperature.

 

[Ron]

Do a search for an independent dealer in the area. Some dealers don't want to put anything other than Honda specified size tires.

ABS size 120-70 x 18

non-ABS 110-80 x 18

 

[Bush]

May I ask what type of tire this is? Reminds me of some problems with Avon and some Dunlops years ago.

Looks like a Metzeler to me, from what is left of it. Since the OP admits to hard run mountain roads and high speed, and since some riders feel more confident in bending 'er left than right, I'd say he wore it out from his riding style.

Still, this should not have happened. Part of a long distance tour should include a tire inspection, not only for tread wear, but for foreign objects embedded in the tire daily. I always do mine after the days ride, so no surprises the next day.

 

[kiltman]

Too low a tire pressure can cause a weird wobble as well as accelerated wear. It should be 36 PSI in the front. I’d be curious what it’s reading now.
once you get the new tire on and it’s the correct pressure you can check for a wobble. You could ask the shop to check for worn steering head bearings whilst they replace the tire, and the check the wheel bearings too.

 

[Sadlsor]

While the wear is definitely uneven, it could be attributed to the crowned roads here in the USA.
When I replaced my first ST rear tire, it was crazy uneven, but not as worn as the picture here. The indie mechanic told me he had seen lots of wear like that, especially on heavier bikes.

 

[ST1100Y]

... how come you didn't saw it coming. You don't inspect your tires for unusual wear once every thousand miles ...

Definitely the issue here...
TWI bars are not the "legal limit", in fact they're far beyond that...
TWI only indicate that till this point the tire MFG ensures performance abilities...
Go further and you're in a way softer rubber compound functioning as a glue to hold the rigid tread surface on the tire construction... like bubblegum will this wear really fast... within a few hours...
Add road crest and faster LHS cornering to this... and get the shown result...

How often have I trashed 3/4 or 1/2 way used tires before a longer trip cause I just wouldn't make it through...

 

[Sunday Rider]

You are on Sturgis and a few Harley Dealers are there. They should have that size in case Yamaha dealer doesn’t have it across the street.

 

[Ronn]

Can't really tell which motorcycle this is, but if it uses the 110 x 80 x 18 tire, it's an odd ball size. Doubt HD or Yamaha would have in stock. Had tires replaced once in Sturgis for the ride home here: Only one in stock, back then so limited choice. Might have to order on line and ship to installer. Good luck.

 

[Paul]

The picture indicates the bike is an ST1300.

Front tire size is 120/70 ZR 18 regardless if ABS or not. Tire pressure is recommended @ 42 PSI.

 

[ChriSTian_64]

A nice little tool to keep with you, while on a longer trip, is a tread depth gauge.
Many times, a visual inspection with your eyes only, can't perceive the beginning of an uneven wear.
That thing, can measure 1/10th of a milimeter, that is 1/10th of the thickness of a dime.
It only cost 3 or 4 US dollars (here, it is $5 canadian dollars). Neat little tool to have.

For my canadian fellow riders, it is available from princess auto. ;-)

 

[gmtech94]

Amazing dealer in rapid city and very good to deal with . They have a lot of brands of tires and are flexibile for travellers .

 

[ColinW1981]

Wow! all those posts roasting the OP?!
Well now, NSPbiker, me thinks you are an extra ordinary lucky man and if I was you, I'd buy a lottery ticket before hitting up the bike shops tomorrow. You can use your winnings to fly you and the ST home in style in that new Lear Jet. Me, I'd go to Arizona and buy IGOFAR the best steak and lobster dinner to go over your bike.
Very glad to see this is an example of 'Wow! That could have been ugly! And not it was ugly.'

 

[ToddC]

First... welcome from another WA rider.. hope you find your tire. Keep us posted!
T

 

[Upt' North]

Well, you've definitely had your monies worth out of that.
I'm glad you noticed it when you did. I won't kick you whilst you're down, enough have done that already.
It's a PITA replacing good tyres before a trip but it's definitely worse if you don't.
Good luck with the replacement.
Upt'North.