tyre pressures...

serious3

was thinking the handling was a bit wierd since i bought the trophy, kinda felt tlike the front tyre was squared off, like the front was dropping off a cliff turning in. i put it down to a part worn front and the fact it was a bt10 with a new bt20 rear...... anyhoo i went out yesterday and checked the tyre pressures rear was 39 and the front erm well erm:o 26psi.... pumped it up to the recommended and its transformed the bike:) trouble is i ordered a new bt20 front thats on its way from oponeo.... ah well!

cantdecide

Yup. Bike tyre pressures aren't the same as other vehicles. They're either right or wrong.

Wonda-Boy

Aldi are selling digital tyre pressure gauges for €7 was looking at them today...it has a built in flash light aswell. They are for a cages TBH but will fit any storage under seat.

Please Kill Me

Wonda-Boy wrote: »

Aldi are selling digital tyre pressure gauges for €7 was looking at them today...it has a built in flash light aswell. They are for a cages TBH but will fit any storage under seat.

Could be handy alright. Nice one.

arybvtcw0eolkf

New bike or new tyres, I always check the pressures first ~ I never trust anyone tbh.

Wonda-Boy

Well one thing I learned the hard way....no matter what kind of gauge in the garages (digital or old style) you cant trust them. Most are wrecked and tell you one figure and you check it again its arseways. Especially true of the one in Kilcock.....

serious3

worst thing is i have a compressor and a digital guage in the workshop....

kaimera

39 in the rear seems a bit high?

I know it depends on bike and all, but unless you have luggage/boxes...

I run ~32 in in the fzs rear, 34/36 with box full.

serious3

book says 41 rear and 36 front, its a triumph trophy 900 so not the lightest of bikes!

Hotblack Desiato

Yeah pretty sure I ran 36/42 on my Trophy3. That's what I run on the Sprint ST too.
Was the same on the old CBR6 too, even though that was a good bit lighter bike.

The first time I bought a bike from a dealer (secondhand) I thought it didn't corner that well but thought it was just me and I'd get used to it. Checked the pressures the next day and it was 20psi front and rear, FFS...

Be careful when buying a pressure gauge, some are pigs to get onto a bike valve, others will fit but will leak air unless you put it on at exactly the right angle, which is even more annoying.

Hotblack Desiato

kaimera wrote: »

I run ~32 in in the fzs rear, 34/36 with box full.

Sounds very low. I see a lot of bikes out riding with underinflated rear tyres. What's the recommended pressure?

uberalles

Some Garrages have computerised air pressure now. Costs a euro though but you set the pressure and it beeps when it's reached the desired setting.

goodlad

I havent a clue what pressure should be in mine and i have never ever put air into my tyres. Maybe i should look into it......

Hotblack Desiato

You need to get on top of that, your life depends on two contact patches smaller than a credit card.

KwackerJack

I run 38 rear on the zx7 and 36/34 front depending on tyre...seems to be the best as far as I'm concerned

Only thing is the air gauges at petrol stations are never right :mad: So always carry a digital one

Please Kill Me

I run 42 in the rear and 36 in the front on the ZX9, always did. She handles like a bag of spanners if it drops below that. I drop them down to 30 each when I do a trackday, but other than that - it's checked every week and kept at 42/36.

kaimera

ninja900 wrote: »

Sounds very low. I see a lot of bikes out riding with underinflated rear tyres. What's the recommended pressure?

a quick google

http://yamahaclub.com/forums/topic/7186-fzr600-tyre-pressures/

32/36 up to 90kg would be me

Hotblack Desiato

You were running 32 at the rear. Going to 36 might not sound like much, but a few psi can make a huge difference on a bike.
Also check out the specific recommendation for the tyre make/model you're using. It might be different than the bike manufacturer's recommendation, but the pressure given by the bike manufacturer is only valid for the exact make/model of tyres the bike was tested with at the time of manufacture. Usually the handbook has 3 different tyre brands mentioned, and the specific tyres mentioned will be either crap or no longer available!
Also check pressures when tyres are cold - not ridden on for a few hours.

Zico

Having your own pressure gauge is very useful, especially once you figure out what works best for you. PSI can be a personal preference like many things.

Hotblack Desiato

Having your own 12V air pump is even more useful, you don't need to ride on your tyres to check and pump them, so you know that the pressure you measure really is the cold pressure.

goodlad

ninja900 wrote: »

You need to get on top of that, your life depends on two contact patches smaller than a credit card.

I absolutely agree. I need to get my head out of my ass with stuff like this about bikes.

I just checked with a digital gague and the front is 26 and the back is 25!
Could this be why sometimes i feel the bike has the handling of a truck?

Do i go by the bike manual pressures or is there a pressures for specific tyres?

Doing a bit of googling and its looking like a lot of people run the sv at 36/36

BlackWizard

That's going to feel like a different bike after you pump them ^^

Please Kill Me

goodlad wrote: »

I just checked with a digital gague and the front is 26 and the back is 25!
Could this be why sometimes i feel the bike has the handling of a truck?

Yes, exactly. Would feel more like a feckin' boat though. :pac:

kaimera

Wanted more info on this topic myself.

http://www.sportrider.com/tech/tires/146_0206_motorcycle_tire_pressure/viewall.html

Was chatting to the friends with fzs', bumped up the back to 40psi, front is 32. Had a mild scare that night en route home - full on 2 wheel slide coming off a roundabout before she gripped and drove on. Interesting so it was. Not sure if related to the new pressure or I was just driving harder than usual.

Anyway, a quick google for RP3 and fzs600 pressures gives me 36/42 on owner fora. Again, it does come down to preference too. Some are saying 36 at the front makes the bike skittish on turn in.

I'll give it some time and see how she goes.

also - http://www.motorcycle-tourer.com/touring/products/Tyre-Pressures.html

Wossack

yea I drop the psi down 1 or 2 on the front, bike is very skittery on the recommended (different tyres then stock though, as per ninja900s post - the stocks were ****e!)

goodlad

Im hopefully gonna get out for a spin this weekend and will sort my pressures out then. Still have no idea what to set them at though. I will take a look at the tyres later and see what they are and google the make to find out the pressures.

Cienciano

goodlad wrote: »

Im hopefully gonna get out for a spin this weekend and will sort my pressures out then. Still have no idea what to set them at though. I will take a look at the tyres later and see what they are and google the make to find out the pressures.

You won't believe the difference. What bike do you have? Just google it. I'd go what's recommended by your bike rather than what's on the tyre.


Air pressure and fuel consumption are the 2 things for some reason I never go metric. PSI and MPG ftw, tell me a tyre pressure in Bar, or tell me your car does 12km per litre and I have no idea what you're talking about

goodlad

Sv1000s.
When this thread started i decided to check my pressures and they were 26/25.. Obviously crazy low.

Cienciano

You'll really notice it then.
Just a check here:
http://www.sv-portal.com/forums/archive/index.php/t-1298.html
People are running it at say 36 front and back, or even higher. Big difference to yours!

My bike is 32 front and 36 rear. Checked it just before christmas and it was down to 25f and 30r. When I pumped them up the handling changed so much for the better, bike just dropped nicely into bends.
Reason I they went down so low was cos last few times I checked them there was no change, so I let it go for ages before checking again. Not doing that again!

BlackWizard

On my Fzs600 I have 40 rear and 32 front.

Roadsmart 2 rear and a very old BT56 front.

Wonda-Boy

Must actually check mine next time I am out and about.