Tires Cupping

[boney1]

sup guys tried a set of pirelli corsa III this year and with less than 2000 miles on them they are cupping like crazy on the left side front and rear they are tracking straight i align them on my stand using a string and dowel rod and im a little anal about making sure they are on the money. My local bike shops telling me its really common in Pa if you ride brake and corner hard for the tire to wear like this, cause the roads are cut high in the center to get the water off them fast. so in theory if the road is angled then up right riding would wear more on the higher side, but daym never had a set go this fast? im going to try the Bridgestone BT002RS if i find a sweet deal but im a little bugged about the cupping

 

[trekfuel]

This so called cupping you are getting on your corsa ... is it the same on the left and right of the tire..?

 

[Mr Bogus]

good pics? I have run 3 sets of the Corsa3 without any issues at all, great tire

 

[boney1]

they are at my local shop i can snap some pics monday, but no the cupping is only on the left side

 

[BA BUSA]

sup guys tried a set of pirelli corsa III this year and with less than 2000 miles on them they are cupping like crazy on the left side front and rear they are tracking straight i align them on my stand using a string and dowel rod and im a little anal about making sure they are on the money. My local bike shops telling me its really common in Pa if you ride brake and corner hard for the tire to wear like this, cause the roads are cut high in the center to get the water off them fast. so in theory if the road is angled then up right riding would wear more on the higher side, but daym never had a set go this fast? im going to try the Bridgestone BT002RS if i find a sweet deal but im a little bugged about the cupping

What year is your bike, how many miles on it, what is your weight ??? Sounds like you need some suspension work

 

[boney1]

02 million mods trac dynamics swing arm penske shock set for me 200lb forks done as well those both by traxxion theres 20k on the bike but this year it was all re done piece by piece from june thu november, Carpenter did the engine in august and dynoed it he had trouble as i had a bad chain but checke it out and said it was tracking correctly but the chain was makin it hop

 

[BA BUSA]

02 million mods trac dynamics swing arm penske shock set for me 200lb forks done as well those both by traxxion theres 20k on the bike but this year it was all re done piece by piece from june thu november, Carpenter did the engine in august and dynoed it he had trouble as i had a bad chain but checke it out and said it was tracking correctly but the chain was makin it hop

Well you had the suspension upgraded, but did anyone ever "tune" it ???

 

[boney1]

I tuned it based on the instructions traxxion gave me, and a good friend and very competent mechanic did the adjusting while i sat on it, the swing arm and shock work came last anyway, the tires were already on it and showing the wear before the suspension was done. just never used up a set of tires like this i was always a battle axe 020 guy they always lasted 5k or more but sucked gettin low in a corner.

 

[trekfuel]

I had this cupping problem on the front of my goldwing for a couple years. Tried different tires, did not make a difference... although the softer the tire the faster it happpened....Tracked it down to tire inflation.. Lower inflation rates caused heat build up in tire causing uneven wear.. had the problem pretty much solved when started running 40 plus psi ,,,, My theory was confirmed last trip to the Dragon.. I had 10,000 or more miles on the tire and was pleased with the wear pattern... Till the way home,,, noticed had returned in just the mornings ride..Oh no... Checked the pressure ... it was down.. dang.... 700 miles from home on a sunday morning with a soft tire.. check for punctures... and finally found the cracked valve stem...It would hold air while sitting still but at highway speeds it would loss 20 psi in less then a half an hour at worst. In less then 4 hours it distroyed that "good wearing tire". Inflation never dropped below 21 psi. Limped it to Harrisonburg Va, and found a good size honda dealer..Got a room and waited for Blue
Ridge Powersports to open monday morning...
Called first thing ,,, they had a new valve stem and a nice Dunlop elite 3 for it..
They guys at blueridge where great got me in and back on the road inless then an hour.
hope this helps.... I believe with tubeless tires we must keep a close watch on the inflations.... almost every tank full till you know your bike... and for sure every ride.

 

[BA BUSA]

I tuned it based on the instructions traxxion gave me, and a good friend and very competent mechanic did the adjusting while i sat on it, the swing arm and shock work came last anyway, the tires were already on it and showing the wear before the suspension was done. just never used up a set of tires like this i was always a battle axe 020 guy they always lasted 5k or more but sucked gettin low in a corner.

If the wear was on there before the suspension was upgraded...that tells me that the forks and rear shock were in desperate need of service

The stock components do not hold up well to a two hundred pound rider.

 

[BA BUSA]

Also the Corsa III is a softer compound than what you were running before...softer tire, worn out suspension, I'm surprised that you didn't notice the uneven wear sooner?

What tire pressure do you normally run front and rear ???

 

[trekfuel]

I dont have much experience with the busa... first year,, but would run at the upper limit of the tire manufacturers recommondation. I run 40 psi in the big old heavy goldwing.

 

[Lamb busa]

+1 on the suspension adjustment. It is a science. Keep at it. Perhaps your riding style just doesn't work well with that tire. Softer sidewall means more preload, etc.

 

[trekfuel]

I have a real hard time trying to understand the suspension theories on the type of uneven wear that i have seen and thing the type of wear you are talking about.
I have been at different tire sites and have found no mention of suspension... but my mind stays open....
here is dunlops tire care and tip page...
Tire Tips
hope the link works or cut and paste it..

 

[Wag]

Also, once the cupping starts, that's it. You can't undo it without replacing the tire.

#1 culprit is low tire pressure. Combine that with hard braking and you're going to make it a lot worse. If it's just hitting one side of the front tire, it's probably a suspension problem. Since it existed before the current tuning, it isn't going to even out but when you do replace the tire, it shouldn't recur if the suspension was done right.

As for the rear, if it's cupping on one side, it could be just about anything but I'd make sure your chain isn't too tight, first and foremost. Most people adjust it way too tight. You need to tension it with you sitting on the the bike. Make sure you decouple the brake caliper bar (or whatever it's called) at the lower bolt. After you torque the axle bolt, recheck the tension before calling it a day and remember to retighten the brake caliper bar.

Assuming, of course, it's a Gen 1!!!

--Wag--

 

[Lamb busa]

Are you kidding Wag? Disconnect the brake bar? This has never been done by Lamb. Thanks for the info. Never even thought of that. DAMN

 

[Wag]

I noticed that whenever I tighten the axle bolt, for some reason, the last couple of twists cause the chain to overtighten, just about like a rubber band. If I disconnect that lower bar, it eliminates that problem, almost entirely.

Eh. Works for me. LOL And nobody EVER told me to do that. Just occurred to me to do it one day and it worked.

LOL

--Wag--

 

[boney1]

HMMM interesting theroys one and all im betting tire pressure may be to blame i always ran my harley cruiser tires hard near max pressure but the softer tires on my busa i ran lower 35lb thinking it put a lil more rubber down and that plus a sagging suspension could very well be to blame, (I honestly cant say i check the pressure as much as i should thats a sad fact) but with my skill way way up the even softer racing compound tires add a new twist, Im 42 now been riding and wrenching since i was about 12 and im always willing to learn new stuff, thats the one true blessing of BUSA.ORG,the chain theroy is good as well but i tension my chains acording to hoyle never run a totally tight chain its way to hard on them as a chain needs to have a little play to function well, never thought to undo the brake arm but it would be simple enough to do. just sux that my rims will be done at the powder coater next week and new tires back on the week after then ill finally get to ride it.......in like two months from now if that stupid groundhawg doesnt see his shadow, why do we here in Pa put our weather in the hands of a dirty varmit anyway. I WANNA RIDE NOW

 

[Wag]

Just throwin' ideas out there. Hope your next set of tires fare much better.

--Wag--

 

[Mr Bogus]

I noticed that whenever I tighten the axle bolt, for some reason, the last couple of twists cause the chain to overtighten, just about like a rubber band. If I disconnect that lower bar, it eliminates that problem, almost entirely.

Eh. Works for me. LOL And nobody EVER told me to do that. Just occurred to me to do it one day and it worked.

LOL

--Wag--

I went to Gilles... no chain issues during adjustment..