Terry Coombs wrote:
Gunner Asch wrote:
On Tue, 16 Aug 2016 17:30:26 -0700, Larry Jaques
wrote:

On Tue, 16 Aug 2016 08:08:22 -0500, "Terry Coombs"
wrote:

May be detrimantal to ongoing political discussions ...
Damned tootin, it is. grumble,grumble


Today , since it's raining it's ass off and I can't work on the
house construction , I think I'll build a wheel balancing shaft and
cones for the motorcycles . I have a nice straight piece of half
inch SS round stock and a pair of ball bearings , both bought for
this purpose some time ago . The plan is to machine a pair of
conical aluminum pieces that are a tight slip fit on the rod , with
set screws to retain them in tight contact with the wheel bearings
. Cones will be machined round behind the taper so they'll slip
into the seals , which will also help keep the wheel from rotating
on the rod . For support stands , I will be using a pair of jack
stands set up on a level surface .
Cool! Use sewing machine oil or silicone/dry lube (instead of
grease) on the bearings for less stiction.


A lot of people see no need to balance motorcycle wheels , but I
have found that my bike just seems to ride smoother if I do.
Absolutely, and especially so at highway+ speeds.


Last tire change I
tried using the balance beads , and they seem to work , but are
difficult to "install" and costly . While I'm not sure they're to
blame , I got less than 3500 miles on that rear tire . Tire is a
Conti Milestone , touted as a "high mileage tire for heavy touring
motorcycles" . I have contacted Continental tire and they want to
see the tire ... new rubber is a Dunlop Elite III , which I've had
good mileage from in the past .
I hope Conti doesn't void the warranty because of them.
They look like they'd always imbalance the wheel after the tire hits
any rut whatsoever. shrug Stickons and spoke wraps both work
pretty permanently. Well, until the tire decides to go OOR or find a
flat spot after a skid. My recent experience is with friends with
bikes. I haven't owned one since 1969.

What's with the idiots on YouTube who burn all the tread off their
superbike's rear tire while straddling it, holding the front brake
on? Damn, that'd get expensive in a hurry.
Yall may find this of interest...

http://www.canyonchasers.net/reviews/tire-miles.php

None of the tires listed are designed for a heavy touring bike like mine .
I was accustomed to getting 10,000 miles or more from a rear tire and about
double that from a front . The only thing that has changed on my end is
where I live ... I could deal with getting 8k from a rear tire , but less
than 3500 is just totally unacceptable . The only thing I can think is that
the rubber compounds have been changed . Reviewing my logs , it looks like
each tire (based on several sets of Elite III's) has gotten fewer miles ...
the first set of EIII's I bought when they were first introduced got 15k+
rear and nearly 32k front . It's all been downhill from there .


I switched to the "dark side" (car tire instead of bike tire)long ago.
Fully loaded 1800 'wing with my fat ass on it and I get closer to 50K on
the rear tire, for less than half the price of the bike tire it calls
for. No flats, no abnormal wear and MUCH improved ride and braking. A
lot of the big bikes can be fitted the same way.



--
Steve W.