More than likely I am the only one who has no idea what scallop, cup or feathered tyre wear means or the cause of it. Need your advice and help. Multistrada 1200s skyhook 2013. Tyres Michelin PR4. As you can see from the photos I have, I presume, scallop wear on right side of the tyre only. Questions:- Is this normal and expected from going round roundabouts ( a lot of them in Milton Keynes ) Something mechanically wrong ie suspension Suspension settings Wrong tyres. Air pressure Riding style Please note the wear is uniformed all over the tyre. many thanks chris
My rear tires usually square off horribly because I live in a part of the world with no curves. My front tires will sometimes wear funny, with raised and lowered tread blocks, and get out of round. The best way I've found to remedy this is to run higher air pressures. I generally run 40-42 in the from and 42 in the rear now.
I just had to change my front Pirelli Scorpion 2 due to bad Cupping The tyre was 3mm on one side of the cup and 0.5 the other side of the cup. I asked the dealer when it was in for Service if it was normal - yes was the reply. ALL my front tyres have always cupped - but not to the extent of this last Scorpion 2 (3rd one) I have been riding harder than normal - so maybe its that? People say its suspension, tyre pressures, tyre itself ... but my guess is some tyres are more prone than others due to tread design and suspension or pressure are little to do with it - as my 3 scorpions have all run at 36PSI in front on a Multi DVT - all S models... But know it cost me £126 to change when there was still a lot of tread left on 80% tyre... My back also has mild cupping - but main issue on rear is normally the go flat and wear out I am at 2000 miles on rear with 3mm tread left and mild cupping on both outer edges.
No reason why some of the information in this link, https://lifeatlean.com/motorcycle-tyre-wear-guide/ can’t be read across to road riding. Your pre load looks a likely culprit. Andy
Happening to me too. Much lighter bike, completely different brand of tyre. I brake hard and punish the front in the corners. I think it must the compounds. Tyres have got better and better at gripping, this is just the byproduct.
Got exactly the same on mine front PR4 - more wear on the right side and cupping (as your photo shows). I also have to go around several roundabouts every time I go out and as I know them well I generally get the bike right over and power out; that and with the general off-set road camber, I reckon is the culprit
My Pr4's cupped badly on the front Standard with that tyre, can only assume its mainly on the right with all the roundabouts in MK..
CUPPING: Cupping, which is more accurately described as scalloping (see pictures, but we will use the more common term "cupping" here), is a natural wear pattern on motorcycle tires and it will always follow the tread pattern. It is not a sign that you have bad suspension parts. It merely shows that your tire is indeed gripping the road when you make turns (thank you for that Mr. Tire!). This cupping develops within the side wear bands of a leaned motorcycle. The extreme forces that come in to play when the bike is leaned in a turn are what produce the effect and when the wear becomes sufficient, one will experience vibration and noise when one banks into a turn. Upon examination of the pictures at left of our sample rear Avon, our dusted front VTX Dunlop D256, and the picture of our chalked Dunlop D206 one can see how the cupping follows the tread pattern. The leading edge of the tread does not flex much as it grips the road and the rubber is scuffed off the tire in that area causing a depression. As the tire rotates, the pressure moves to the trailing edge of the tread pattern where the tread flexes more causing less scuffing so less material is ground off the tire. The more complex the tread pattern, the more complex the cupping pattern will be. The softer the compound of the tire, the sooner this cupping will develop. Radial tires are more prone to cupping than are bias ply because the compound of radials is softer. As one can see, the simple tread pattern of the Avon pictured produces a simpler scallop pattern while the more complex VTX D256 Dunlop is somewhat involved, though still easily seen in our photo. Cupping on the Valkyrie Dunlop D206 is very hard to photograph because of the complex tread pattern. Low tire pressure will exacerbate this wear pattern and you will lose many serviceable miles by running low. Improper balance has nothing to do with cupping on a motorcycle tire. Improper balance will merely cause your bike to vibrate within certain specific speed ranges. The following textual illustration comes from Martin who contributed to this article by E-mail on June 26, 2006: I was just reading your bit on "cupping" and thought I'd share with you how I describe what's going on. I usually tell people that what's happening is that the individual "blocks" or "islands" of tread are squirming and deforming due to the forces applied to them during cornering and braking. When this deforming takes place, the wear is naturally not evenly distributed across the surface of the tread. (I define a tread block as an area of the tire surface surrounded by a groove.) I next tell people they can demonstrate to themselves what's happening by taking a new pencil with an unused eraser on the end and while holding the pencil perfectly vertical, push down and drag the eraser on a rough surface in one direction. Then I tell them to look at the eraser and note that all the wear is on the leading edge and not evenly distributed across the end surface of the eraser. It seems to make the concept easier for many to understand. Cheers!
From your comments it seems that cupping is expected and the PR4s are more prone to that. I do push it round the roundabouts, coming in fast, brake hard and out hard same as @Jonmark. But as my cupping seems to be quite severe ( my opinion and I could be wrong) I am now concerned with @Android853sp comment of preload being the culprit. Andy, do you think that could be too much preload or too little - front is 6.5 and rear is 15 and my weight about 93kg.
That is 100% a PR4 issue. Experienced it on a non Skyhook 1200 with uprated and set up forks, seen it on a mates Fz1s. Either different make tyre required or the new Pr5 looks like the redesign may stop this, as the sipes are less, and dont go to the edge. Recently fitted Conti Road attack 3 to my GS, would have gone for the new Pr5, but not available yet my size.
Had exactly the same problem with a PR4 front tyre and it does seem common as that particular tyre wears out. I'd been using PR3's for years without problem so it rather put me off. Fitted Angel GT's and they have been excellent. Just back from Spain and with the tyres at about 6,000 miles the rear is ready to be changed (for same) as it has squared off but still pretty good. Front still looks and feels fine for a few more miles. Excellent mileage in my opinion and seem to suit the bike well.
As I said in my post, it’s not just a PR4 issue. It’s any tyre that has small sections in the tread pattern. That allows movement, which means the leading edge wears and the trailing edge doesn’t. Angel GT tyres have massive sections of rubber between treads. I’ve got cupping just as bad on my front and it’s not a PR4. It’s not a suspension issue. The below is a very crude mock-up showing two sections of rubber on a tile. The gap between is tread. The arrow shows the direction of friction. The red areas are the leading edge and will wear quicker. The green areas will not wear as fast. Therefore, red sections will be lower than green.
That type of wear on the front tyre is completely normal and not exclusive to any one particular tyre, but some might be more pronounced on some models than others. It's not an indication of a badly set up bike or poor suspension - in fact you could say that it's quite the opposite as it demonstrates that the tyre, up to this point, has been working well. The change in profile is an artefact of the loads that are placed on a tyre when cornering or breaking and the resultant pattern of wear due to the tyre deforming (as per it's design) when under normal operation. Higher pressures might reduce this but only at the cost of a reduced contact patch - which unless your tyres are getting too hot isn't desirable. I good rule of thumb when check your tyre temps after a ride - place the palm of your hand across the crown of your tyre after a good hard blat. If you have to pull your hand away because it's too hot add more air, otherwise you're fine. My advise, ride it, wear it out, replace it - rinse and repeat all the time you're able to stay shiny side up.
Agree, but there looks to be a lot of tread left in that tyre so a shame to have to change because of this "feature".
Then I wouldn't. TBH unless its at the wear limit, I'd keep using it and just change the rear (unless handling was affected)
No doubt now that is normal especially on PR4s. As the rear is due for replacement and the front not far behind I am thinking of trying out the new Michelin Pr5. Thanks to all. I learned a lot!
When my front tyre cupped and I was on wet Spanish mountainous roads, it felt awful and spoilt my last day's ride. Changing it was priority #1 when I got back.
