MOTORCYCLE TYRES - CHANGING, REPAIRING & GENERAL MOTORCYCLE TYRE QUESTIONS

[The Stig]

It is very important to check your trye pressures at least once a month.  All pneumatic tyres slowly leak and lose air pressure over time regardless of the bike being parked or in use.  Riding on under inflated or over inflated tyres has a negative impact on tyre performance, tyre life and your safety.

The tyre pressure information stamped on the sidewall every tyre is the maximum tyre pressure.  Use this maximum pressure only when asking the tyre to carry it's maximum rated weight load.   The maximum rated tyre pressure for most motorcycle tyres is 42psi.  Use the indicated maximum pressure only if you ride a very heavy touring motorcycle or carry a very heavy passenger.  Do not exceed this maximum pressure.

Generally speaking
lightweight off road bikes typically use tyre pressures in the 15psi range
Lightweight supermoto bikes typically use tyre pressures in the 25psi range
Middle weight standard bikes typically use tyre pressures in the 30psi range
Middle weight standard/sport bikes typically use tyre pressures in the 35psi range
Large heavy weight touring bikes typically use tyre pressures in the 40psi range.

 
TYRE AGE

Rubber products do not improve with age.  Sunlight, ozone, heat cycles, road salts, cleaning solvents all take their toll on healthy tyre over time.
The rubber slowly become more brittle and loses the good road gripping sticky qualities we depend on.
In some cases you maybe begin to see small cracks developing in the tyre tread or the tyre sidewalls.

Every approved motorcycle tyre has the tyre birth date stamped sidewall
The format of this date appears in a WWYY format, as in week/year
For example the manufacture date code of 4407 translates to the 44th week of 2007
Tyres produced prior to the year 2000 use a three digit code
For example the manufacture date code of 378 translates to the 37th week of 1998
New tyres should be less than 3 years old
We recommend discarding used motorcycle tyres after 8 years of age.



BREAKING IN NEW MOTORCYCLE TYRES

Beware, new tyres are slippery!  Always ride slower than normal and use abundant caution when first riding on brand new motorcycle tyres or you risk slip sliding the tyre potentially crashing, damaging the motorcycle and potential bodily injury to you.  New tyres need to 'heat-cycle' a couple of times before they can begin to offer 100% of available grip
This break-in procedure is typically accomplished after the first 50-100 miles of use.  Using sandpaper on a new tyre in an attempt to accomplish break-in does not work.

TYRE SIZES - IS BIGGER BETTER?

A wider than stock tyre is NOT automatically the improvement you might think.  The 'best' tyre size is most often the stock tyre size.  When you try to install a wider tyre the same size wheel the tyre shape/profile typically becomes distorted resulting in abnormal steering character and abnormal tyre wear.  If you really want a wider tyre the right way to get there is to match the wider tyre with a corresponding wider wheel. 



TYRE REPAIRS - PLUG/PATCH

There are two types of puncture repairs for motorcycle tyres Outside-In plugs (temporary) and permanent Inside-Out plugs (permanent). 

The most common on the road tyre fix is the outside-in repair.  These repair kits typically include a specialized piece of sticky rope or a mini-mushroom type plug.  This outside-in type of repair does not require removing the tire from the wheel and is applied from the outside of the tyre. This type of repair is considered temporary, allowing the rider to limp the bike back home or to a motorcycle shop where a proper inside-out repair can be done or by having a new tyre installed.

The other method is the inside-out repair.  This method is not easy to do on the side of the road.  This preferred repair method requires removing the tyre from the wheel, drilling out the hole to a more uniform size and installing the plug/patch from the inside of the tyre.
This is the only 'approved' method for proper and permanent repairs of tyre punctures. 

Motorcycle tyre Slime products are an alternate method for temporary tyre repairs
This approach is also a temporary fix
Used long term these tyre slime products can cause corrosion to alloy wheels
Please warn the motorcycle shop if you have slime inside your tyre before they begin work
Tyre slime makes a mess when you remove the tyre

All motorcycle tyre repairs affect the maximum speed rating of the motorcycle tyre
Repaired motorcycle tyres are not approved for speeds over 70mph
If you are running an inner tube type tyre these plug repairs do not work
A new or patched/repaired inner tube is required.

THIS IS TO BE USED AS A GUIDE TO MOTORCYCLE TYRES SOME PEOPLE WILL NOT AGREEE WITH ALL OF THE ABOVE & PEOPLE WILL DO THINGS DIFFERENT BUT ALL IN ALL IT'S YOUR SAFETY THAT IS PARAMOUNT SO PLEASE USE YOUR COMMON SENSE WHEN REPAIRING, CHANGING & BUYING A NEW MOTORCYCLE TYRES

[pj8332]

very informative mr stig 

[ridgeback]

It is very important to check your trye pressures at least once a month.  All pneumatic tyres slowly leak and lose air pressure over time regardless of the bike being parked or in use.  Riding on under inflated or over inflated tyres has a negative impact on tyre performance, tyre life and your safety.

The tyre pressure information stamped on the sidewall every tyre is the maximum tyre pressure.  Use this maximum pressure only when asking the tyre to carry it's maximum rated weight load.   The maximum rated tyre pressure for most motorcycle tyres is 42psi.  Use the indicated maximum pressure only if you ride a very heavy touring motorcycle or carry a very heavy passenger.  Do not exceed this maximum pressure.

Generally speaking
lightweight off road bikes typically use tyre pressures in the 15psi range
Lightweight supermoto bikes typically use tyre pressures in the 25psi range
Middle weight standard bikes typically use tyre pressures in the 30psi range
Middle weight standard/sport bikes typically use tyre pressures in the 35psi range
Large heavy weight touring bikes typically use tyre pressures in the 40psi range.

 
TYRE AGE

Rubber products do not improve with age.  Sunlight, ozone, heat cycles, road salts, cleaning solvents all take their toll on healthy tyre over time.
The rubber slowly become more brittle and loses the good road gripping sticky qualities we depend on.
In some cases you maybe begin to see small cracks developing in the tyre tread or the tyre sidewalls.

Every approved motorcycle tyre has the tyre birth date stamped sidewall
The format of this date appears in a WWYY format, as in week/year
For example the manufacture date code of 4407 translates to the 44th week of 2007
Tyres produced prior to the year 2000 use a three digit code
For example the manufacture date code of 378 translates to the 37th week of 1998
New tyres should be less than 3 years old
We recommend discarding used motorcycle tyres after 8 years of age.



BREAKING IN NEW MOTORCYCLE TYRES

Beware, new tyres are slippery!  Always ride slower than normal and use abundant caution when first riding on brand new motorcycle tyres or you risk slip sliding the tyre potentially crashing, damaging the motorcycle and potential bodily injury to you.  New tyres need to 'heat-cycle' a couple of times before they can begin to offer 100% of available grip
This break-in procedure is typically accomplished after the first 50-100 miles of use.  Using sandpaper on a new tyre in an attempt to accomplish break-in does not work.

TYRE SIZES - IS BIGGER BETTER?

A wider than stock tyre is NOT automatically the improvement you might think.  The 'best' tyre size is most often the stock tyre size.  When you try to install a wider tyre the same size wheel the tyre shape/profile typically becomes distorted resulting in abnormal steering character and abnormal tyre wear.  If you really want a wider tyre the right way to get there is to match the wider tyre with a corresponding wider wheel. 



TYRE REPAIRS - PLUG/PATCH

There are two types of puncture repairs for motorcycle tyres Outside-In plugs (temporary) and permanent Inside-Out plugs (permanent). 

The most common on the road tyre fix is the outside-in repair.  These repair kits typically include a specialized piece of sticky rope or a mini-mushroom type plug.  This outside-in type of repair does not require removing the tire from the wheel and is applied from the outside of the tyre. This type of repair is considered temporary, allowing the rider to limp the bike back home or to a motorcycle shop where a proper inside-out repair can be done or by having a new tyre installed.

The other method is the inside-out repair.  This method is not easy to do on the side of the road.  This preferred repair method requires removing the tyre from the wheel, drilling out the hole to a more uniform size and installing the plug/patch from the inside of the tyre.
This is the only 'approved' method for proper and permanent repairs of tyre punctures. 

Motorcycle tyre Slime products are an alternate method for temporary tyre repairs
This approach is also a temporary fix
Used long term these tyre slime products can cause corrosion to alloy wheels
Please warn the motorcycle shop if you have slime inside your tyre before they begin work
Tyre slime makes a mess when you remove the tyre

All motorcycle tyre repairs affect the maximum speed rating of the motorcycle tyre
Repaired motorcycle tyres are not approved for speeds over 70mph
If you are running an inner tube type tyre these plug repairs do not work
A new or patched/repaired inner tube is required.

THIS IS TO BE USED AS A GUIDE TO MOTORCYCLE TYRES SOME PEOPLE WILL NOT AGREEE WITH ALL OF THE ABOVE & PEOPLE WILL DO THINGS DIFFERENT BUT ALL IN ALL IT'S YOUR SAFETY THAT IS PARAMOUNT SO PLEASE USE YOUR COMMON SENSE WHEN REPAIRING, CHANGING & BUYING A NEW MOTORCYCLE TYRES

It is very important to check your trye pressures at least once a month.  All pneumatic tyres slowly leak and lose air pressure over time regardless of the bike being parked or in use.  Riding on under inflated or over inflated tyres has a negative impact on tyre performance, tyre life and your safety.

The tyre pressure information stamped on the sidewall every tyre is the maximum tyre pressure.  Use this maximum pressure only when asking the tyre to carry it's maximum rated weight load.   The maximum rated tyre pressure for most motorcycle tyres is 42psi.  Use the indicated maximum pressure only if you ride a very heavy touring motorcycle or carry a very heavy passenger.  Do not exceed this maximum pressure.

Generally speaking
lightweight off road bikes typically use tyre pressures in the 15psi range
Lightweight supermoto bikes typically use tyre pressures in the 25psi range
Middle weight standard bikes typically use tyre pressures in the 30psi range
Middle weight standard/sport bikes typically use tyre pressures in the 35psi range
Large heavy weight touring bikes typically use tyre pressures in the 40psi range.

 
TYRE AGE

Rubber products do not improve with age.  Sunlight, ozone, heat cycles, road salts, cleaning solvents all take their toll on healthy tyre over time.
The rubber slowly become more brittle and loses the good road gripping sticky qualities we depend on.
In some cases you maybe begin to see small cracks developing in the tyre tread or the tyre sidewalls.

Every approved motorcycle tyre has the tyre birth date stamped sidewall
The format of this date appears in a WWYY format, as in week/year
For example the manufacture date code of 4407 translates to the 44th week of 2007
Tyres produced prior to the year 2000 use a three digit code
For example the manufacture date code of 378 translates to the 37th week of 1998
New tyres should be less than 3 years old
We recommend discarding used motorcycle tyres after 8 years of age.



BREAKING IN NEW MOTORCYCLE TYRES

Beware, new tyres are slippery!  Always ride slower than normal and use abundant caution when first riding on brand new motorcycle tyres or you risk slip sliding the tyre potentially crashing, damaging the motorcycle and potential bodily injury to you.  New tyres need to 'heat-cycle' a couple of times before they can begin to offer 100% of available grip
This break-in procedure is typically accomplished after the first 50-100 miles of use.  Using sandpaper on a new tyre in an attempt to accomplish break-in does not work.

TYRE SIZES - IS BIGGER BETTER?

A wider than stock tyre is NOT automatically the improvement you might think.  The 'best' tyre size is most often the stock tyre size.  When you try to install a wider tyre the same size wheel the tyre shape/profile typically becomes distorted resulting in abnormal steering character and abnormal tyre wear.  If you really want a wider tyre the right way to get there is to match the wider tyre with a corresponding wider wheel. 



TYRE REPAIRS - PLUG/PATCH

There are two types of puncture repairs for motorcycle tyres Outside-In plugs (temporary) and permanent Inside-Out plugs (permanent). 

The most common on the road tyre fix is the outside-in repair.  These repair kits typically include a specialized piece of sticky rope or a mini-mushroom type plug.  This outside-in type of repair does not require removing the tire from the wheel and is applied from the outside of the tyre. This type of repair is considered temporary, allowing the rider to limp the bike back home or to a motorcycle shop where a proper inside-out repair can be done or by having a new tyre installed.

The other method is the inside-out repair.  This method is not easy to do on the side of the road.  This preferred repair method requires removing the tyre from the wheel, drilling out the hole to a more uniform size and installing the plug/patch from the inside of the tyre.
This is the only 'approved' method for proper and permanent repairs of tyre punctures. 

Motorcycle tyre Slime products are an alternate method for temporary tyre repairs
This approach is also a temporary fix
Used long term these tyre slime products can cause corrosion to alloy wheels
Please warn the motorcycle shop if you have slime inside your tyre before they begin work
Tyre slime makes a mess when you remove the tyre

All motorcycle tyre repairs affect the maximum speed rating of the motorcycle tyre
Repaired motorcycle tyres are not approved for speeds over 70mph
If you are running an inner tube type tyre these plug repairs do not work
A new or patched/repaired inner tube is required.

THIS IS TO BE USED AS A GUIDE TO MOTORCYCLE TYRES SOME PEOPLE WILL NOT AGREEE WITH ALL OF THE ABOVE & PEOPLE WILL DO THINGS DIFFERENT BUT ALL IN ALL IT'S YOUR SAFETY THAT IS PARAMOUNT SO PLEASE USE YOUR COMMON SENSE WHEN REPAIRING, CHANGING & BUYING A NEW MOTORCYCLE TYRES

I had puncture repair slime fitted  in a BMW wheel, I could not understand
why the tyre would go down after a short time after putting the right pressure in.
I found out later the the slime was attacking the alloy rims and causing small pinholes on the seal edge. After a through clean out of the slime and some wet and dry applied to the edges the problem did not happen again.

[blueracer]

very informative mr stig