Why is my MPT so low?

[Inlaw1]

Personally I run 40psi front and 42psi rear.

The CBR is a 929. Ran 42 rear, 36 front which is the recommended max, unless I was at a track day and then pressure was adjusted as needed and tire wear was no concern. I averaged 3k on those rears.

The FJR also gets the Max recommended in it's tires.

 

[FJRMGM]

no problemo at all getting that mileage out of Avon Azarro tires. Have done it on three different sets now.

 

[RenoJohn]

Sooo, 20k on the 06A. OEM Z6, 2 sets of Stradas, 1 set of Pilot Roads currently on are done, finito.I've been poking through threads about tire life. Even TWN reports 8k and more on a set. IIRC, Bounce stated 9k. WTFO? How are you guys getting that many miles outta your tires?

I weigh 240, run with bags slightly full almost all the time. Tire pressures are checked every other day and typically run at or very near max stated e.g. ran the Stradas at 42 rear and 40 front. I don't consider myself an agressive rider. As a comparison, Jeff of SportBikeEffects was much faster, consistently, in corners at WFO Big Dog ride than I. My daily ride is about 20 miles of twisty stuff and 15 of freeway. Normal avg speed on 2ndry hiways is 70 - 90.

So why am I getting less than 5k MPT (miles per tire?)

LOL, I'm not *quite* as Fat as you mr CBA, but I'm not getting near the mileage as others either. Got my bike slightly used, immediatley threw on some BT-014's which is not the ideal tire, ....I didn't put enough thought into how fat/heavy this bike is. I toasted them (both front/rear) in one huge weekend. I don't think I got 2K out of them. My fault, soft tire, pretty aggressive riding (wanted to see what the new bike could do). They did stick pretty darn well though.
Then went to Michelin Pilot and rear was gone in about 5K ...front was still "OK" threw on the first of two Azarro's on the rear and it got between 5K and 6K ...now I'm about half way through the next Azarro with less than 2.5K on it and trying to decide what tire will be the next victim. Leaning toward the new BT-021 ....but really I think all the popular radials for this bike, I bet they're all relatively close in mileage so I don't expect that I'll all of a sudden get great mileage all of a sudden via andother tire change.

I ride pretty hard, ...but geeze, not that crazy. Highlander is my only refence in the FJR community and I'd guess our pace is pretty comparable -or at least it was for about 3hours of hwy1 twisties, he may be a tad smoother but that comes from his really old age (oops I mean maturity) (and we were on his turf -but next time we'll be on mine). :blink:

I don't load the bike down, in fact only have panniers on about 50% of the time. Road surfaces are not always perfect, but not all that bad, some triple digit cruising, but not all the much. I do a fair amount of twisties.

Maybe it is the CBA jinx that you attempted to put on me. Until I figure it out I'm sticking with that as the cause.

low MPT in reno .....john

 

[Bounce]

These guys getting 9k out of tires must be driving the speed limit all the time and never WFO the thing.

I'll confirm never WFO. I'll accept your proclamation in a public forum about the other. h34r:

I keep my tires pressured properly and I'm not running a ton all the time, nor am I rarely running with the bags on or a passenger, so why am I not getting 7-9k out of a rear?

how quickly you get to cruising speed has as much affect as the actual speed itself; more actually.

 

[Wanderer]

This has been on my mind for a good long time now, especially since lurking this forum. I'll go ahead and post my tire life.

My FJR was bought in Aug 02. it now has 51k on the meter. I ride always with side cases, mostly solo, don't pack especially light, avoid slab- lots of 2 lane hwy. A 'day ride' for me is 300-400 miles. I have small chicken strips and no flat spots or cupping. I'm 5'10 170lbs.

Mile-wise, my tire were raplaced at:

OEM Z-6 Metz R @ 5800 (damaged in flat)

Metz Z-6 F/R @ 12,050

Pilot Road R @ 21,600 rear only (not impressed)

Z-6 F @ 25,410

Z-6 R @ 32,150

Z-6 F @ 38,275

Z-6 R @ 42,250

expected........F/R @ 54K-ish gonna pair Avon Storms I hear so many good thing about...

basically I'm getting 10-12k from a Z-6 rear and 13-15K from a front...It amazes me how some people trash an ST tire at 6k...

 

[John_Dumke]

basically I'm getting 10-12k from a Z-6 rear and 13-15K from a front... It amazes me how some people trash an ST tire at 6k...

My guess is that is would have a lot to do with cruising speed. Coming back from Alabama across the western portion of the US. I held it around 90-100, for good distances. If wind resistance is a function of Velocity Squared, then 100mph would produce about 3 times the resistance as 60 mph. So my resistance is 3 times greater per a given time, but I am only racking up around 60% more mileage.

While two up, weight, tire pressure, road surface, screen size/up/down and acceleration certainly all play a big part. I would think the wind resistance (highly dependent upon speed) might be the biggest factor.

Wanderer, you must cruise around 60-70 max, that is my only guess as to how you acheive such high mileage. 12k from a rear! Wow that is awesome.

 

[Parachutist]

I debated wether to send this or save myself the comments I think I'll get.

I 've got 21.8 K on my original set which I'm replacing now.

I'm retired, pushing 80, riding since I was 18. I like to run in the 80s, seldom go for short rides, almost all my miles are trips of some distance never less than 300 miles. Had the bike, FJR, two years now. This summer will be it's third. I like to push it down the road some where between 70 -90. Love the curves but Mich. does'nt have many roads like that so I'm frequently heading west to find some more challenging roads in the Mtns.. There is no tread left on the face of my Bridgestones but no cord is showing either.

 

[twowheelnut]

I 've got 21.8 K on my original set which I'm replacing now.

:blink:

You will be skooter's new hero!

 

[SkooterG]

I 've got 21.8 K on my original set which I'm replacing now.

Dayem! You are my Hero!

Chanting begins....................I'm not worthy. I'm not worthy.

 

[twowheelnut]

See?

 

[HaulinAshe]

I 've got 21.8 K on my original set which I'm replacing now.

Does that make me Scooter's arch Nemesis?



I wanna be loved too, even if I do destroy the ozone layer with vaporized rubber.

 

[Grumpy]

I would be interested in your, or anyone's opinion for that matter, as to how or why yourself and many others can get twice the mileage than, say, many of us.
I keep my tires pressured properly and I'm not running a ton all the time, nor am I rarely running with the bags on or a passenger, so why am I not getting 7-9k out of a rear?

I don't get it and while I won't loose any sleep over it, I am wondering if anyone can offer an opinion. :huh:

Don't discount road surface type and treatment. We may say "two-laners", "blacktop", or "mountain twisties", but each of those can have totally different road types.

I think the technical name of cheaper roads (usually county roads in the West) tend to be bitumous asphalt or "chip seal". That's a layer of asphalt oil that they then drop gravel on the top of. Traffic then packs it down and it turns darker. These roads vary in aggregate size and if viewed very closely are very hard on our bike contact patches. Sharp edges wear tires more quickly.

The other type is hot mix asphalt that is layed down and poured like big, black, sick marshmallow and then gone over with a compacting roller. I think these road surfaces are much smoother at a close-up level and friendlier to our bike rubber.

I think the other big factors are throttle hand discipline.....Lifting front tire off ground.....very very hard on tires. And another is loading.....fat rider asses and loaded down bikes. But, being a fat ass with a loaded bike I can get 7K+ if nice to my throttle and tend to stick on the rolled asphalt roads, local streets, and Interstates.

Well I stayed out of this discussion as long as I could stand. Jeff and I both have some of the chip seal "stuff" with perhaps a little different twist? The NCDOT folks use crushed granite for an aggregate which is rather hard on tire life, but wonderful whenever it rains!....not slick at all.

Now that I have ridden with Haulin' Ashe, I can confirm that Slapnpop assessment is absolutely right on.......Jeff's major tire life problem resides in the rapidness of the movement of his right hand .....let's be kind and call it a "twitch". Actually, it's closer to a binary ON-OFF switch. As an aside, Haulin' wanted to attend the WFO cause that's the way he rides!

Now if tire mileage is an issue for anyone move over to a set of ME880's. How many of you guys ran, or maybe still run, ME880's on your Wings? I ran an ME880 rear up to Nova Scotia and back and then did EOM on the same tire. While trying to keep Haulin' Ashe in sight likely effected the mileage, I still got 9,000+ miles out of the back tire. The ME880 is only available in a 170 X 60 configuration which I attributed to it's much better turn-in charteristic.

jim

jim

 

[FJRinFL-Dale]

Pilot ROAD front and rear here... Front has about 10k? and the rear for sure has 6100 Weight 185. most of those miles are all ironbutt fully loaded! Neither tire even close to replacing.... I did 6,000 miles just last month in 33 days... yes I know only 31 days so add last two days of February . Don't know what to tell you....

 

[HaulinAshe]

Now that I have ridden with Haulin' Ashe, I can confirm that Slapnpop assessment is absolutely right on.......Jeff's major tire life problem resides in the rapidness of the movement of his right hand .....let's be kind and call it a "twitch". Actually, it's closer to a binary ON-OFF switch. As an aside, Haulin' wanted to attend the WFO cause that's the way he rides!

My buddy to the rescue!

You see, I don't really consider it "a problem". I've had this twitch since age-3. I take medication for it. It comes in a checkered flag bottle and it's activated by blue light.

Pilot ROAD front and rear here... Front has about 10k? and the rear for sure has 6100 Weight 185. most of those miles are all ironbutt fully loaded! Neither tire even close to replacing.... I did 6,000 miles just last month in 33 days... yes I know only 31 days so add last two days of February . Don't know what to tell you....

My typical ride is about one hour, where the throttle is anything but steady. IronButt riding would definitely extend my tire life since it would involve other road surfaces, far away from my home, with looooong, steady throttle.

 

[dcarver]

Now that I have ridden with Haulin' Ashe, I can confirm that Slapnpop assessment is absolutely right on.......Jeff's major tire life problem resides in the rapidness of the movement of his right hand .....let's be kind and call it a "twitch". Actually, it's closer to a binary ON-OFF switch. As an aside, Haulin' wanted to attend the WFO cause that's the way he rides!

My buddy to the rescue!

You see, I don't really consider it "a problem". I've had this twitch since age-3. I take medication for it. It comes in a checkered flag bottle and it's activated by blue light.

Pilot ROAD front and rear here... Front has about 10k? and the rear for sure has 6100 Weight 185. most of those miles are all ironbutt fully loaded! Neither tire even close to replacing.... I did 6,000 miles just last month in 33 days... yes I know only 31 days so add last two days of February . Don't know what to tell you....

My typical ride is about one hour, where the throttle is anything but steady. IronButt riding would definitely extend my tire life since it would involve other road surfaces, far away from my home, with looooong, steady throttle.

You need a good dose of CBA'itis mi dirt amigo Jeffro..

 

[FJRandy]

FWIW, I had a little chat with a guy who works for Pirelli. He's the guy who changes all the tires when the Semi rolls into a race or event. AND......he just so happens to own an FJR!

I immediately asked him the never ending question of why I can't get more than 5-6k MAX out of a rear tire.

His answer was...."Weight and throttle control have EVERYTHING to do with rear tire wear on the FJR. You don't realize it, and never feel it 99% of the time, but the rear tire is actually breaking loose, however minute, every time you accelerate. Adding MORE weight, or a passenger will extend the life of the tire because it will slip much less under acceleration. I always have my bags on, bring my wife along most of the time, and I run my pressures at 40F 42R. I'm getting approx 14k (yes FOURTEEN THOUSAND) out of the rear tire and 19-20k out of the front." (Stradas BTW)

He also said once he learned to control the throttle a little smoother on takeoff, the tire lasted much longer. Notice he said MORE weight will extend tire life because the tire will "slip" much less. I thought it to be very interesting. This is right from the mouth of the guy who changes the road race and dirt tires, and travels across country to whichever event Pirelli sponsors.

This particular event was the World Enduro in Hancock NY last August. He was mounting dirt tires all weekend for the sponsored enduro competitors.

Also, here's where I have to (somewhat) agree with him. My original tires (Metz Z4's) got the most mileage than any I installed after. I feel this is because I was very nervous (read wimpy) for at least the first year of ownership, and twisting that throttle just plain scared the SHIT outa me! 9k on the front and rear. Rear was showing threads....front was triangulated bad.

Since then, I haven't gotten more than 6k front and 5k rear, although this latest Strada rear went 6k after a LOT of hard riding last season. Now I'm jumping on the bandwagon to see how long the Avon Storms will last. New set arrives this week.

 

[charismaticmegafauna]

There's a kernel of truth to what the Pirelli guy is saying, imo. Long tire mileage starts between the ears.

Two guys I know: one an old guy with an '07 FJR, who has ridden all his life, just told me his rear tire is shot with about 3500 miles; another guy, much younger, with an '05 ST1300 recently told me he put on new tires -- got 12,000 miles on the original set. Speed and where you ride have something to do with it, I think? If you just ride a lot of short trips and never get the tire hot for extended periods of time I think you'll get lots of miles.

But, the all time high mileage tire guy I knew was Fr. Tom Bouchard, Catholic priest, who rode a Honda 4 and got the most miles of anyone I knew. It's all about the thoughts (good thoughts?) and how they're transmitted to the throttle -- I think a 'tire wearer' can ride right alongside a 'tire saver', the difference is in how they're thinking.

I, btw, get relatively poor tire mileage -- always have. :dribble:

 

[Lester from Tampa]

I guess hard acceleration wears on the rear and small puffs of smoke from the front(when it lands)is the culpret. I replace my rear every 3000 miles, and my front every other time. Its the price for playing hard. I also have a much lighter bike (Suzuki Bandit 1200) with about the same results. I run pilots on that one.

 

[dbvolfan]

'05

Original Tires: Frt lasted 6k, Rear 8k

Replacement Avon Azaro's at 14k miles now. The rear has ~1k left on it before it hits the wear bars but the front is cupping pretty bad. Will likely replace with pair of Storms sitting in the garage between now and 15k mile mark.

BTW, SW Moto rocks...ordered on Saturday night and on Tuesday PM I had a set setting on my porch.

 

[sprint_st]

So why am I getting less than 5k MPT (miles per tire?)

Well, you know that I average <4k on a Strada rear, <6k on a PR rear, and 8-9k on almost all fronts. Since I have been measuring tire wear so carefully and often, I can definitely see a huge diff between riding on the tar&gravel surfaces around here and the smoother, true asphalt surfaces in western NC. So I say the #1 influence on tire wear is typical road surface.

#2 (for me) is the top box. Consistent use of the top box subtracts as much as 20% of my rear tire life. My theory is that the tall windscreen, my CB+4 with flip, also contributes as much as 5% if run high most of the time.

So if I lived back home in western NC, ran a PR, stock windscreen, no top box, and could shut off the testosterone flow to the right hand, I think I could get 6k on a rear Strada, 9k on a PR.

The expense is a serious consideration. At my current rate of 10 rears and 6 fronts per year, not counting flats, I am spending a lot of money and especially time changing tires. That's why I'm still searching for something with more life, given my conditions and habits.

I promise to share with you, my dirt Brother.

Jeff,

I remember in the old days flying out of Swamp Lagoon shooting though Richlands. If you have tire eater roads there and think you'll get better tire wear in Western NC, I believe you are sadly mistaken. Maybe NC194 is a bit chewed up, but what else is new. The asphalt of N.Ga, W.NC, TN, and W.SC varies by county. There are plenty of good roads on those regions but lots of not so good too. Also, with absolutely no statistical evidence to back it up, just years of observation on threads like this, commuters seem to get better mileage and hard twistie drivers replace tires of ALL brands much quicker. I have regular long distance run from my house near Spartanburg SC to Tellico Plains TN. I think there is 20 miles of US74 which is almost twisty four lane if that can be imagined. When I run it a lot, I eat gas 3-4 mpg less and change tires faster - I never get more than 4.8K on a rear.