Front tire is cupping

[justrideit]

The front tire is cupping. I can feel and see the wear. I can hear the tire "waa - waa - waa" as I ride. The sound increases when I turn left. The tire shakes the bike as if it is out of balance. About 100MPH is all I can stand to do. The tire is an Avon ST. About 6K miles and good tread life left.

Is this just an inconvienence or should I change the tire?

 

[SkooterG]

Primarily an inconvienance. Though if it's getting as bad as you make it out to be, then handling and stability are being compromised, albeit only slightly. It's a personal call at this point. I am a cheap S.O.B. and try to squeeze every last mile out of my tires, so putting up with some bad habits from a well worn tire is not too big a deal for me. For others it is.

My front Avons don't really cup until well past 12,000 miles. What tire pressure are you running? I run about 41-42 psi in the front which aids in reducing cupping.

IMHO, the biggest contributor to cupping is hard braking, especially when leaned over.

 

[jimbemotumbo]

Your call - but I don't screw around with the only thing between my *** and the pavement. I had a great amount of tread life left at 3500 miles, but swapped em out for a set of Pilot Roads. Couldn't be happier. $200 for tires, $60 for mounting = cheap peace of mind and possible accident avoidance.

 

[twowheelnut]

Um, just ride it? Wada I win?

 

[conwest]

The front tire is cupping. I can feel and see the wear. I can hear the tire "waa - waa - waa" as I ride. The sound increases when I turn left. The tire shakes the bike as if it is out of balance. About 100MPH is all I can stand to do. The tire is an Avon ST. About 6K miles and good tread life left.
Is this just an inconvienence or should I change the tire?

...what tire pressure are u running there just.? I suspect 2 low !

 

[C&C]

If you don't need that final last bit of grip when you're cornering (I rarely take my bike to its limits) then you probably can just ride it till you can't stand it anymore. You may also be limiting your braking ability but I would think only minimally. You have to remember, if the tire is cupped, that part is not contacting the road at its maximum potential (if not cupped).

 

[ShinyPartsUp]

This month's Sport Rider answers a reader's question about cupping. The basic answer they gave was: due to natural forces on motorcycle front tires in changing direction, braking, etc. it happens. Both underinflation and overinflation accelerate wear.

Personally, if I can't go over 100 occassionally, I'd ditch the tire :clapping:

 

[justrideit]

I keep the tires inflated to the recommended pressure which I believe is 37 PSI front, 42 PSI rear.

 

[ShinyPartsUp]

I keep the tires inflated to the recommended pressure which I believe is 37 PSI front, 42 PSI rear.

Here is the entire answer for a question submitted by a rider with an R1:

From Sport Rider October, 2006 issue, page 98:

"Tire cupping, especially on front tires, is natural, and you should expect it to some extent. Deformation of the tread blocks, especially under braking, causes uneven wear on the face of each block, leading to cupping or scalloping over time. That said, you should still check your bike's stearing head and the wheel bearings for wear, as well as the front fork for any sloppiness. Cupping that is uneven around the circumference of the tire is a sign of improper balancing. Both overinflation and underinflation can cause excessive cupping; on our R1 test units with D208 and D218 tires, we generally see little cupping after a couple of thousand miles using 32 psi in the front tire."

I hope this more complete answer helps with your problem, and gives a couple things you could check.

 

[SkooterG]

Here is the entire answer for a question submitted by a rider with an R1:From Sport Rider October, 2006 issue, page 98:

Both overinflation and underinflation can cause excessive cupping;

I have read that before, but I am still a firm believer that upping tire pressure reduces cupping. Lower tire pressures will definately accelerate cupping.

 

[paste007]

Scooter: What tire and what pressure do you run?

 

[Feejer/Weejer man]

Did you see that article is for sport tires on a bike with about half the weight. 40-42 psi on the front of sport touring tires and no cupping. Originally had two fronts cup but I was running 36-38 psi. No good!!! Plus look to the LD riders who put on way more and harder miles and they get milage and performance running on the upper end of psi's.

 

[Nightshift]

Did you see that article is for sport tires on a bike with about half the weight. 40-42 psi on the front of sport touring tires and no cupping. Originally had two fronts cup but I was running 36-38 psi. No good!!! Plus look to the LD riders who put on way more and harder miles and they get milage and performance running on the upper end of psi's.

Cupping is a function of the suspension system, at least this is what I was told by a cage mechanic. Incidently, my FJR I bought had 12600 mi on it and I noticed the front tire had the cupping wear. I bought a Mettzler sport tour tire and it rides much snmoother. Time will tell if the cupping issue is still there as I get more riding in.

 

[Bounce]

Another data set. My oem BT020's on my 2003 were more cupped in 4000 miles than I have ever had a set of tires show.

I just swapped out the Avons with ~7500 miles on them. The rear was down to nothing (0/32") and vaporized in a very short time after I noticed I was getting close to the wear bars. What I didn't notice until taking the front wheel in to get a new Pilot Road installed (my 3rd pair) was that each center lug of the tire had an abrupt and pronounced scoop out of its leading "point". These scoops (cupping) were probably 1/32nd deeper than the surrounding tread and consistent on all tread blocks. It didn't adversely affect handling it was just interesting how the tread pattern cupped differently than the tread pattern of the BT020.

I'm thinking that I'm even more persuaded to stick with the PR's after this experience with the Avons. Handlng seems about equal between the two for the vast majority of the riding and roads I see. Longevity for the PR is better (9200 miles vs the 7500 and the PRs were just nearing the wear bars), and none of this cupping stuff.

Perhaps there's a marginal handling difference for the Avons for those who get to ride the twisties more than I do. Or perhaps in the hands of a more skilled rider, they can tell an improvement. To me it's a wash with the PR's being more stable on rain grooves and roto-mill while the Avons turn in a little bit quicker.

 

[Geezer]

If the cuppping is interfering your your enjoyment of the ride then replace the tire.

 

[krashdragon]

The front tire is cupping. I can feel and see the wear. I can hear the tire "waa - waa - waa" as I ride. The sound increases when I turn left. The tire shakes the bike as if it is out of balance. About 100MPH is all I can stand to do. The tire is an Avon ST. About 6K miles and good tread life left.
Is this just an inconvienence or should I change the tire?

My 05 which I bought used, was noticebly cupping when I ran out to Cali.. My friend is a very good mech, said since that I lowered the bike so much, and also since I was riding solo, to lower the tire pressure a bit..

I had the front at 41 and the rear at 42....

The rear evidentally had been underinflated, wearing flat iinstead of round.

Lowered the front to about 38, by the time I got back to Ohio, I could see where the wear on the front was more even. way less cupping. They both need replaced now, got about 10,000 on them. Just a bit too much wear to take them to Vegas and back... (

Mary