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Oh No - Not Tires

Another possible tire for the rear is Dunlops' American Elite,also a radial tire, as radials are what comes on the Califirnia from the factory.I ran a couple of AE's on the back of my Tbird and got 12,000 miles out of em which was a lot better then 5 or 6000 miles.

Now ,in my research on this machine,I also noticed that Dunlop makes a bias tire in the same size as the factory radials used on both ends of the California,called the EIII [American Elite III].I ran a pair of those tires on my RSV and was getting a warping 25,000 miles out of both front and rear tires,my point being,why not try a pair of those on your California.I have used both radials and bias on my past bikes,yet never really noticed any difference in handling,as long as ya ran either the bias or radials on both ends of the machine cause it's not a good idea to mix em. Of course,I never drove any of my bikes like a mad man either. [Old age,ya see!! lol ] So like I said,this is just another option you might consider in an effort to improve your current tire mileage on your California. Dave!!!
 
Davetac1 said:
Another possible tire for the rear is Dunlops' American Elite,also a radial tire, as radials are what comes on the Califirnia from the factory.I ran a couple of AE's on the back of my Tbird and got 12,000 miles out of em which was a lot better then 5 or 6000 miles.

Now ,in my research on this machine,I also noticed that Dunlop makes a bias tire in the same size as the factory radials used on both ends of the California,called the EIII [American Elite III].I ran a pair of those tires on my RSV and was getting a warping 25,000 miles out of both front and rear tires,my point being,why not try a pair of those on your California.I have used both radials and bias on my past bikes,yet never really noticed any difference in handling,as long as ya ran either the bias or radials on both ends of the machine cause it's not a good idea to mix em. Of course,I never drove any of my bikes like a mad man either. [Old age,ya see!! lol ] So like I said,this is just another option you might consider in an effort to improve your current tire mileage on your California. Dave!!!
Click to expand...

I am very satisfied with the mileage I am seeing on the Avons. I do have a set of the Dunlop E3 tires on my Raider, though it doesn't get ridden anywhere near as much as the California does.
 
Not to further muddy the waters, but BMW on some, but not all years of the K1200LT, Victory on the Cross Roads Classic (only difference was spoked lace wheels rather cast on all others) and several Harley models use(d) a mix of "radial" and "non radial" tires. Load ratings, etc., come into play and I never experienced an issue as to handling nor wear, but it always seemed contrary to conventional wisdom of everything being "matched". Sorry for the hijack, it's winter and I'm bored from not riding enough.......

Cheers
 
Let me toss another tire related question out there.
What type of balancing are you guys using. Bubble, Spin, or Vertical Static? Pros? Cons?

I am not a high speed rider, but ride 2 up for moderate distances (300-400 miles/day) and don't really want to deal with vibration.


Thanks
 
I use a No-Mar balancer ("https://www.nomartirechanger.com/category_s/38.htm") & have acheived excellent results, better than shop balanced in fact. It's easy to use with one cavet. The weights. The video shows them using lead weights which are no longer available due to enviornmental regs I am told. So I ended up ordering various sizes 1/4 oz through 1 oz steel stick on weights off of eBay. Given the quanity they come in, I figure I am set for 100's of tire changes. So far I have balanced 6 tires which run very smooth and produce an even tread wear pattern.
 
I have a DRC Gyro Stand with both sets of their cones. I like it because it is foldable and easily stored when I'm not using it.



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I also have some OUTSTANDING balancing cones from Marc Parnes including specialty cones for Piaggio, Moto Guzzi, BMW and Harley.

He makes the best balancing cones in the world in my opinion. I can use them on my DRC stand or on virtually any elevated surface (i.e. bricks, jack stands, crates, virtually anything)

http://www.marcparnes.com

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Like LuffWolf, I can obtain far better results static balancing (using just gravity) at my home than I have ever received from any dealer regardless of how fancy-schmancy the setup they seem to have. Ditto his comments on the balancing weights too. I have the same thing, tons of them ordered from the internet for cheap.

For mounting, I purchased the Harbor Freight tire changer with the motorcycle adapter, mounted it to the floor of my garage, fitted it with Mojo Blocks, and use a Mojo Lever.

https://www.mojotiretools.com/mojoblocks.htm

I also use the No Mar Yellow thing, and No Mar Extra Hand Clamps (x3). It's a slick setup for poco pesos. Works fantastic.

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I rarely put my own tires on so whatever the dealer or shop uses it what I get. I had to have a BMW rear static balanced due to the way it mounts recently and I have never noticed any vibration from that or any of the methods. Even at 120 mph a 17" rim is only spinning at around 2300 rpm and, in my career, we have static balanced a lot of different types of machines that rotate much faster with good results. So to me, it doesn't hurt to do it precisely, but I've never noticed the difference on the road.
 
Thanks for the input. I am not in the maintenance business these days. I have to rely on a dealer for all maintenance and repairs due to work constraints. I can either pay someone to work on the bike, or I can ride it. Definitely can't do both.
I talked with a couple of dealers and was surprised that its split between bubble and spin. I haven't talked to one yet that uses the cone method.
 
scrublink said:
Let me toss another tire related question out there.
What type of balancing are you guys using. Bubble, Spin, or Vertical Static? Pros? Cons?

I am not a high speed rider, but ride 2 up for moderate distances (300-400 miles/day) and don't really want to deal with vibration.

Thanks
Click to expand...
I have a spin stand - bought from Harbor Freight. BTW, they still sell lead adhesive balancing weights, strips of (I tink) 8 ounces in 1/4-ounce increments and 1/2-ounce strips,too.
 
Just to add my two cents on tires--I just replaced my stock Dunlops at 7700 miles with Bridgestone Exedras, since they were less expensive than the D251s or ME880s. The original Dunlop front was worn much more on the left side than the right, and I noticed that increased road noise when slightly leaned slightly left or right after about 5K on the stock tires. The Exedras feel OK so far, but I only have a few hundred miles on them. They are the OEM tire on Yamaha's new Venture touring bike, so I'm hoping to get better wear out of them. I have Dunlop E3s on my Victory Cross Country Tour, and I just replaced the front at 15K miles, with some tread still remaining on the rear. Don't know why the Guzzi doesn't get better tire life, since it's a lighter bike.
 
Mark Fechtel said:
The original Dunlop front was worn much more on the left side than the right
Click to expand...

That's probably because you live in the southwest part of the U.S. We ride on the right-hand side of the roads which are crowned to be higher towards the center than the side to allow for better drainage. Living in the southwest where you have a lot of very long straight sections of road just compounds the this wear issue. :) I suspect your new tires will have a similar wear pattern.
 
roadventure said:
That's probably because you live in the southwest part of the U.S. We ride on the right-hand side of the roads which are crowned to be higher towards the center than the side to allow for better drainage. Living in the southwest where you have a lot of very long straight sections of road just compounds the this wear issue. :) I suspect your new tires will have a similar wear pattern.
Click to expand...

In Oz we ride on the left so the tyres wear on the right side, maybe we could set up an exchange service.
 
roadventure said:
That's probably because you live in the southwest part of the U.S. We ride on the right-hand side of the roads which are crowned to be higher towards the center than the side to allow for better drainage. Living in the southwest where you have a lot of very long straight sections of road just compounds the this wear issue. :) I suspect your new tires will have a similar wear pattern.
Click to expand...
I've never noticed that problem on any other bikes, though, I've put 20k miles on my FJR on two different fronts and never noticed it. Just changed my Victory CCT front at 15k miles and it showed even wear. My theory was that the longitudinal crank rotation had me constantly counter steering left a little to compensate for the torque. I ride the same mountain roads on all these bikes, and try to avoid the long straight stretches!
 
Mark Fechtel said:
I've never noticed that problem on any other bikes, though, I've put 20k miles on my FJR on two different fronts and never noticed it. Just changed my Victory CCT front at 15k miles and it showed even wear. My theory was that the longitudinal crank rotation had me constantly counter steering left a little to compensate for the torque. I ride the same mountain roads on all these bikes, and try to avoid the long straight stretches!
Click to expand...

I don't know, maybe that has an effect. I owned a Triumph Rocket III which produces significantly more torque than the California and didn't have any wear like you describe.
 
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