Going to the Dark Side

[user 213]

Welcome to the Darkside BikerGeek99. You know many of the brethren already. They have been sharing their cookies with you already, now it's your turn to bake some.

I hope the CT works well for you and you can enjoy more miles and less tire purchases. As well as the fun comments and questions that come along with choosing to travel the path that freaks out so many people. You have been added to the Darkside FAQ as Darksider #71.

 

[HotRodZilla]

I'm in.
Thanks to yamafitter, RaYzerman, Bust, huron52 and TripperMike for the assist in slapping on this Exalto at Tech Day on Saturday.



And thanks again to TripperMike for swapping brake arm thingamabobs.

And where the hell are my damn cookies??

They're in the mail. Barry sent a dozen along with a case of Syphilis. Enjoy *******!!

 

[Fred W]

It arrived at noon today: I'm not going to waste *all* of that tread on the PR2, so it'll be a while until it's mounted. Time to burn some fuel and wear out some rubber...

Good Luck with that. That is the exact same tire that I tried and dismissed after thorough testing as being completely unworthy. I hope that it works out somewhat better for you.

Here we are at 37,000 miles after coming home from the EOM trip. Not much left of the right side, still got some left side. Center is down to the wear bars as you can see. Funny, the right side of my front tire has a similar wear pattern. Obviously, I have to stay out of WV and NC, too many right hand turns..............

That is quite strange. Normally everyone wears out the left side of their tire first due to a combined effect of road crowning and longer turn radius in the left turns.

Theories?

I'm in.
Thanks to yamafitter, RaYzerman, Bust, huron52 and TripperMike for the assist in slapping on this Exalto at Tech Day on Saturday.



And thanks again to TripperMike for swapping brake arm thingamabobs.

And where the hell are my damn cookies??

Et tu, Brute?

 

[user 213]

That is quite strange. Normally everyone wears out the left side of their tire first due to a combined effect of road crowning and longer turn radius in the left turns.
Theories?

Not sure what to say there Fred. I don't know of a single person that's worn out tires on the left side consistently. Do you? Minimal crown on most roads in the west though. I didn't get up to the NE this summer. More down around PA and a bunch of time in Ontario.

I do know lots of people that are more comfortable turning one direction over the other. And on bikes it's a natural tendency to add some throttle when leaning to the right for some folks.

My CTs always wore evenly on the bike. But I'm pretty smooth and steady on the throttle. Very few big throttle movements.

 

[yamafitter]

I'm in.

Thanks to yamafitter, RaYzerman, Bust, huron52 and TripperMike for the assist in slapping on this Exalto at Tech Day on Saturday.

(snipped photo, I can't bear to look at a car tire on a FJR)

And thanks again to TripperMike for swapping brake arm thingamabobs.

And where the hell are my damn cookies??

Et tu, Brute?

It was a sad and rainy day in Owosso when Andy decided to go to the dark side. I think the FJR was protesting what was about to happen to it when it decided to let the steam out.

 

[RaYzerman19]

I should have posted a picture of my front tire....... I normally wear tires relatively even on both sides. For whatever reason while at EOM, both the front and rear wore significantly on the right side probably due to pushing hard on the right handers. I don't recall mostly right handers vs. left, but musta been. It was the lowest mileage I ever got on a front tire, a bit more than half of normal. Left half of the front looks good still. So, just chalk it up to we don't know, but it happened.

 

[John d]

I should have posted a picture of my front tire....... I normally wear tires relatively even on both sides. For whatever reason while at EOM, both the front and rear wore significantly on the right side probably due to pushing hard on the right handers. I don't recall mostly right handers vs. left, but musta been. It was the lowest mileage I ever got on a front tire, a bit more than half of normal. Left half of the front looks good still. So, just chalk it up to we don't know, but it happened.

I must of done the your route backwards because my front wore out on the left side.

 

[Fred W]

Not sure what to say there Fred. I don't know of a single person that's worn out tires on the left side consistently. Do you?

Yes. That is why I made the comment. It is pretty much "normal" to see left sides a little more worn that the right.

Tire wear reference

 

[Bustanut joker]

I call FOUL!!!!

Ray musta took a grinder to that tire.. Everybody knows you can't lean a car tire like that!

 

[yamafitter]

Here we are at 37,000 miles after coming home from the EOM trip. Not much left of the right side, still got some left side. Center is down to the wear bars as you can see. Funny, the right side of my front tire has a similar wear pattern. Obviously, I have to stay out of WV and NC, too many right hand turns..............

You need to stop doing **** like this....

Rushes told you it was a crazy idea.

 

[RadioHowie]

Damn, Andy....at least it's good to see you haven't wasted any time or effort washing that damn POS!!!

 

[bgross]

<<Good Luck with that. That is the exact same tire that I tried and dismissed after thorough testing as being completely unworthy. I hope that it works out somewhat better for you.>>

Though "completely unworthy" probably doesn't need explanation... Can you give me a couple examples?

Being a Bear of Very Little Brain, I bought this tire because 1) of so many good reports on the Hondapotamus board of its RF version and 2) it was so cheap (like me).

I don't usually allow price alone to drive my decisions, but "it seemed like a good idea at the time".

 

[BikerGeek99]

Damn, Andy....at least it's good to see you haven't wasted any time or effort washing that damn POS!!!

Nah. I washed it before CFR in June. The last wash before that was before NERDS. The first one - the one in 2011. Luckily, on the way home from Tech Day, I rode in some rain so any dirt that got knocked off over the weekend got replaced.

 

[Bustanut joker]

No report back from Andy has me worried... Flaming aluminum and plastic come to mind.

 

[BullCBX]

24k+ miles on mine and still going strong. This was last weekend out on the Cherohala last weekend.

 

[Fred W]

<<Good Luck with that. That is the exact same tire that I tried and dismissed after thorough testing as being completely unworthy. I hope that it works out somewhat better for you.>>

Though "completely unworthy" probably doesn't need explanation... Can you give me a couple examples?

Being a Bear of Very Little Brain, I bought this tire because 1) of so many good reports on the Hondapotamus board of its RF version and 2) it was so cheap (like me).

I don't usually allow price alone to drive my decisions, but "it seemed like a good idea at the time".

Sorry, I thought I already replied to this. My experience with the Yokohama is somewhere in this excruciatingly long thread. I'll see if I can find it.

OK, I mustered up my best searching skills and found them.

Post about getting the tire mounted

Post where I gave up on the tire and put a moto-tire back on

Maybe the most important for your question is the post where I detailed what I did and did not like about the car tire

This will be old news to all the seasoned darksiders, but you may find it of limited interest.

 

[bgross]

<>

Though "completely unworthy" probably doesn't need explanation... Can you give me a couple examples?

Being a Bear of Very Little Brain, I bought this tire because 1) of so many good reports on the Hondapotamus board of its RF version and 2) it was so cheap (like me).

I don't usually allow price alone to drive my decisions, but "it seemed like a good idea at the time".

Sorry, I thought I already replied to this. My experience with the Yokohama is somewhere in this excruciatingly long thread. I'll see if I can find it.

OK, I mustered up my best searching skills and found them.

Post about getting the tire mounted

Post where I gave up on the tire and put a moto-tire back on

Maybe the most important for your question is the post where I detailed what I did and did not like about the car tire

This will be old news to all the seasoned darksiders, but you may find it of limited interest.

Thanks, Fred, for taking time to respond and for the links.

As I read the posts at those links, I realized that I'd read them about a year ago - when I'd read through the entire DS thread. It's my fault that, at the time, I was impressed by the thoroughness of your evaluations - but "interpreted" them more as the impressions of a new Darksider and less about the specific tire (even though you clearly stated that you'd wished that you'd tried the Exalto so that your experiment would have been a comparison of the "best" choice. Mea Culpa.

On my Hondapotamus I'm currently running a cousin of the Exalto, the Michelin Alpin. Like most 'Wing DS choices, it's a Runflat, so the comparison isn't a direct one. At the time I first went Dark on the Wing, the most popular tire was a Kumho RF. By the time I'd worn it out, the Michelin Alpin had supplanted the Kumho in popularity, with it's more rounded shoulders offering an easier turn-in.

Lately, the Yoko RF has become another favorite for the 'Wing, with many riders evaluating it as a more nuanced improvement over the Exalto.

There is a lot of discussion in the Wingabago World DS regarding comparisons among tire choices - and many reviews from riders who have worn out several different options. Once in a while a tire 'new' will get mentioned and the evaluation will end with "don't waste your time - stay with one of the 'tried and true' options" and list the NKOTB's shortcomings, such as poor traction wet/dry, wears out too fast, etc.

Though I'm not new to the DS generally, I will be on the FJR. Having bought the Yoko, I'll follow Eric's suggestion and offer my impressions - once I wear out the current PR2. Like you, I'll be comparing it to a Moto tire since it will be my first on the FJR. Unlike you, my roads are mostly slab, I rarely find rain, and the minority of my miles are true twisties - and I'm already familiar with the general differences in DS versus moto tire performance.

Again, thanks for the time you took evaluating!

 

[RaYzerman19]

Had a Goldwing once and chuckle a bit at how they chase trends and factual evaluations are a bit lacking IMHO. There may be something to it, but for example, I don't see why one would want a stiffer runflat, might be something to it, and I guess somebody has to experiment and find the tire of best choice...... having said that, if I had a Hondapotamus again, a DS tire would be top on my list of things to do. OTOH, the ST13 guys have found there's only a couple of tires that will fit between the swingarm. One being a Hankook that seems to have soft sidewalls and must be run at 38-40 psi, and lasts only ~15k miles. They have since found a Goodyear that works. I'll only offer up that tire pressures can affect your impression on the FJR, being a much lighter machine, and you shouldn't be afraid to experiment at lower pressures of 28-30 to get the best handling.

 

[rbentnail]

I'll only offer up that tire pressures can affect your impression on the FJR, being a much lighter machine, and you shouldn't be afraid to experiment at lower pressures of 28-30 to get the best handling.

+1. Even minor tire pressure changes make a huge difference in handling characteristics so don't hesitate to experiment a bit. I like mine 33-34 psi but please note- I chose a General tire so YMMV.

 

[philellis123]

Hey All,

I KNOW nobody who has installed a CT would ever dream of trying to do a wheelie, it goes against all the conservative, logical reasons for putting it on in the first place, BUT has anyone tried? I gave a quick look over on YouTube and did not see a video for this particular brand of foolishness. If you have tried it, do you have a video? BTW, really enjoying my Exalto, only 3,500 miles so far, but everything is running great. Thanks in advance.

Phil

P.S. I don't have the gumption to find out on MY bike, just happy to learn from others experiences by watching and reading.