BMW R1200R R1150R/T F800 K1200R R1100R/T R1250R RnineT Message Board

R1100s - Well, the 1150 r i was interested in was gone in a heartbeat so I'm looking at a 99 1100s. Tire barons - what is your opinion of this thread wear(seems like its wearing toward the left to me.

http://www.ccbmw.com/vehicle_picture.as ... 490_2a.jpg

Thx

I don't think that's a wear pattern. Mine does the same when I wheel it in and out of the garage. The bike leans to the left as you push it from the side stand position. You need a close-up of the actual tread depth to check wear patterns. That's simply a change from a clean tyre meeting a dirty surface as the bike is moved around.

Greg ~
I'm no tire expert, but I have a tale ...

I have a 2003 1150R which I bought last spring with 28K miles. I didn't know how many miles were on the tires (Metzlers) when I bought it, but I replaced the rear immediately as it was down to the wear bars.

I rode about 5000 miles this season on the front tire without paying much attention to it, when I noticed about a month ago that it was getting a tad thin. As I looked closer I noticed exactly the phenomena that you are experiencing !!

We have a 2nd hand crotch rocket dealer across the street from where I work; he's an experienced mechanic & rider so I have him do 'normal' work on my bike. When I showed him the tire and expressed my concern he said that he sees it fairly frequently. He hadn't done an official study on the matter , but in his opinion it happened on various bikes and various combinations of tires. At any rate he didn't regard it as a big deal and slapped on my new skin (Metzler to match the front) and that was that.

Maybe also the fact that you guys ride on the right..and with the camber on the road...I wonder if it's the opposite down under..we ride on the left.

I think MIXR may be correct also.

DJ

For tire wear info, check this out :

http://www.rattlebars.com/valkfaq/tirewear/

DJ, mine have always worn on the RH side with the front tyre.
It appears to be a road camber problem.

Not a road camber issue; if you drive on the right side of the road, you put more miles on the left side of the tire. And the opposite for those who drive on the left side.

In the US we drive on the right. Think of a simple intersection where you make a 90 degree turn. The radius of the arc traveled on a right turn is much less than the radius of a left turn. There's also some argument that says you're more agressive on a left cure than on an equal radius right curve (sight distance and percieved effect of over-cooking the corner).

try to find some roads with no straight bits it not to difficult in Yorkshire my last bike was a 1150gsa 13.000 on rear rubber and no flat bits

I agree with MIXR. Its on the left. Mine looks same after I push it around the garage. Take it for a ride and look at it again without pushing it after you stop

May be we should ride half the year in Austrlia and half in the U.S.A.( the warm part of the year). That would even things out!

Also, in the US the streets are designed with a bit of a slope from the center to the sides to aid whith water drainage during rains. The also affects the wear of the tires.....it isa common phenomena.

However if the vertical plane of the front/rear tire are not perfectly square with the horizontal plane of the road the wear will be more.