Nailed at 8k

Hi everyone,
I read lots of "to fix or to change" advice in several forums but.
I’m still unsure what should I do, my tires have 8,000 miles but look that they can take many more.
I don’t ride hard at all, most of my commute is one up and within city limits, besides the weekend ride were 80 mph may be reached at some point or another.
Should I fix it and if so, what do you recommend to fix it good.
Should I replace and if so, should I replace both or only the damaged one.
Judging on my riding habits; what tire do you recommend?
Thank you.

Darn nails! Although your tyres look like they could last a little longer, that nail looks pretty nasty. You could plug and patch but on well worn tyres is it worth the risk?

8k miles isn't bad for a set, so if you can afford it I'd say go for a new set front and back. Michelin Pilot Road 2 and Bridgestone BT023 would suit your style of riding.

And yes tyres - I'm English!

Tough call dude. You're going to get answers all over the board. I can tell you what I'd do. Look at the back tire - does it need to be replaced soon? If so, I'd spring for a set because I like to buy sets only. If the rear had some tread, I'd take this in to get it properly fixed. Then I'd have no problem putting it back on the bike and riding it around like that until my tires needed replacing.

Good luck!

So how would you feel if you patched that front tire and it failed at 80 mph?

If it was me, I'd be installing a brand new set of tires. I don't think at 8000 miles those tires owe you anything. I had to replace a tire with only 1200 miles on it last season.

How old are the tires? That's another thing I'd consider if I had to make such a decision. In case you're not sure how to check, find a 4-digit number on the sidewall. It will be something like 3408, which would mean: made in 34th week of year 2008.
If yours are close to 3 years old, I wouldn't even think about it and just replace the set.

Not a hard decision to replace both tires if you think about how important tires are on a performance bike. For what tires provide as far as the only thing touching the road new tires are inexpensive.

Erci said:

How old are the tires? That's another thing I'd consider if I had to make such a decision. In case you're not sure how to check, find a 4-digit number on the sidewall. It will be something like 3408, which would mean: made in 34th week of year 2008.
If yours are close to 3 years old, I wouldn't even think about it and just replace the set.

Click to expand...

Good point, they are the original ones (2008) I guess I will be better with a new set.

I know this is a dumb question but, How is possible that car tires can go for so much longer then bike ones?
I guess we lean on the bike and they are softer then cage ones but, I mean the difference is really big

You did good for 8K miles- replace both, be happy!

Hoshiko said:

Good point, they are the original ones (2008) I guess I will be better with a new set.

I know this is a dumb question but, How is possible that car tires can go for so much longer then bike ones?
I guess we lean on the bike and they are softer then cage ones but, I mean the difference is really big

Click to expand...

Are you talking about age or mileage? Mileage has got to be related to different compounds and probably smaller contact patch.

Age.. I think it's just a matter of playing it safe when it comes to motorcycles. I'm sure if tread is in good shape, tires could go longer than 3 years, but better to be safe than sorry.

Your tyres look tired, and squared off, i would say, they are well past their best anyway...replace both i say.

:thumbup:

They do look square. No twisties near you?

New tyre time


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Where are you in Brooklyn??
I got a new front on the Brooklyn side of the Pulaski bridge. PP2 for $170 mounted and balanced inside of 30 minutes. I cant remember the name of the place but your cant miss it.... Just before Queens...

DaveOTZ said:

Where are you in Brooklyn??
I got a new front on the Brooklyn side of the Pulaski bridge. PP2 for $170 mounted and balanced inside of 30 minutes. I cant remember the name of the place but your cant miss it.... Just before Queens...

Click to expand...

That's not exactly a *deal*. It costs $120 online with free shipping and most places charge $50 to mount/balance.
It's a fair price which can be had anywhere else.

Davey said:

Darn nails! Although your tyres look like they could last a little longer, that nail looks pretty nasty. You could plug and patch but on well worn tyres is it worth the risk?

8k miles isn't bad for a set, so if you can afford it I'd say go for a new set front and back. Michelin Pilot Road 2 and Bridgestone BT023 would suit your style of riding.

And yes tyres - I'm English!

Click to expand...

I'm with Davey . . . :thumbup:


8000 miles is good. I'd would err on the cautious side and change both

DaveOTZ said:

Where are you in Brooklyn??
I got a new front on the Brooklyn side of the Pulaski bridge. PP2 for $170 mounted and balanced inside of 30 minutes. I cant remember the name of the place but your cant miss it.... Just before Queens...

Click to expand...

I'm in Greenwood Heights 21st between 4th and 5th.
I know the place you are talking about, I have a friend in Astoria and take the BQE to McGuinnes, pass Pulaski and then Northern Blvd.

Thanks for the advice but I don't think that is a great deal. Prospect Cycles will do both mounted and balanced for $350.00.

Kazza said:

They do look square. No twisties near you?

Click to expand...

I guess is how they look when missing some air.

Hoshiko said:

Good point, they are the original ones (2008) I guess I will be better with a new set.

I know this is a dumb question but, How is possible that car tires can go for so much longer then bike ones?
I guess we lean on the bike and they are softer then cage ones but, I mean the difference is really big

Click to expand...

I asked this same question of a Dunlop engineer some years ago. Since I've worked in the automotive tire industry for almost 30 years, I found it an interesting question on several levels.

His answer was to point out several things...

1....a car uses 4 contact patches, not just 2
2....the contact points of a car tire are MUCH LARGER than they are for a
motorcycle tire....about 4x larger or more in some cases
3....the carcass of a M/C tire has a much rounder profile than a car tire,
which is usually very flat, this puts pressure on a much smaller area on
the M/C tire, but helps it to turn.
4.....M/C tires will have a MUCH SOFTER compound than a car tire. It's
made that way because of the way MOST bikes are used....more
perfromance based on the bikes, and set up to be used when the temps
are ususally warmer.
5....the tire companies are very aware that MANY bikes are ridden very low
miles during a year and tires will begin to dry out and weather crack b/4
they wear out when used this way. Mileage hasen't been a major concern
for LOTS of riders (look at yourself..3years and 8000 miles)
They haven't had the demand to build high quality, long mileage tires,
that perform like racing tires. They could build very long wearing tires
by just using harder compounds, but they wouldn't stick very well.
They could build tires that lasted long and stuck, but they would be to
costly for most people, and they wouldn't sell them because MOST
riders just don't care about that.

I'm in the replace both camp. If you can afford it replace both. In addition to all the factors that have been mentioned OEM tires are generally not even as good as an exact replacement. There was a case with the Bridgestone BT-016's that were OEM facrory tires that were not the same multi-compound tire they would be replaced with. Instead of three compounds on the back tire, there were 2 compounds.

I bought a brand new 07 leftover Suzuki and I could see the tires were wearing differently than any tire I'd ever been on. They performed well enough for what they were but would they surprise me when I put them to a test I hadn't before? I replaced them on just the age factor and the funny way they were wearing off rubber.
Good luck!

Hoshiko said:

I'm in Greenwood Heights 21st between 4th and 5th.
I know the place you are talking about, I have a friend in Astoria and take the BQE to McGuinnes, pass Pulaski and then Northern Blvd.

Thanks for the advice but I don't think that is a great deal. Prospect Cycles will do both mounted and balanced for $350.00.

Click to expand...

Yeah Price is fair, just really convenient and its fun to see all his future projects hanging from the ceiling...

fz6pat said:

the tire companies are very aware that MANY bikes are ridden very low
miles during a year and tires will begin to dry out and weather crack b/4
they wear out when used this way. Mileage hasen't been a major concern
for LOTS of riders (look at yourself..3years and 8000 miles)
.

Click to expand...

:ban:?? :spank:??

Haha, I used to have a car until Aug, I'm sure I'll be riding more now.

Is there anyone else in the forum with less miles? Am I the champion of not riding?