Our front tire on tar patches in the heat

[bobbyf6b]

The front tire on my 109 was a 160, it didn't do this at all.

Which 109 did you have?

[opas ride]

I'm not sure how I didn't notice this last year in the heat but our stock front tire is unsettling on the tar patches! I was in a round about with a good amount of patchwork and I thought several times I was going over. The front tire felt like it was going to wash out from under me first right then left. I intentionally hit a few of them in a forward straight up direction and the same thing happened, it literally felt like I was going to go down. Front tire pressure at 41psi checked before I left, girlfriend on the back, 10,000 miles on the tire. I'm not sure at this point what the outcome for me will be, I've never experienced this with any tire on any bike before. I think I will go out solo on the same road and ride it a few times back and forth and carefully watch what's happening. I'm sure it's more of a feeling of going down than the bike physically actually doing it but it's something I'm not used too and scared the doo doo out me. Anyone else experience this? It's 90+ here with high humidity so that tar is soft as butter.

I have been riding motorcycles for over 50 years on and off and never had this issue until this last month when it was very hot and humid outside here in Michigan..As said above it scared the "hell" out of me for a while on the road I was on, which was full of "tar snakes", until I turned off and it went away...Thought for sure I was going down and the front end had come apart or something very serious...Came right home, checked the tire pressure (40) and then gave the front end a good inspection....After reading this thread, and others like it, I realized it came from the type of tire on the F6B. Others have said it comes from the big rain groove down the center of the OEM tire on the front....Now that I know this info I will make a point to avoid roads with a large number of these patches on it....although it will be a challenge as Michigan roads "suck"....Ride safe....

[GiddyupF6B]

Yeah when all I had was the 9 I used to wonder what all the fuss was about. That Metz 160 up front was rock solid in the snakes.

The 160 was awesome in the twisties! It absorbed bumps much better, handled better in the rain, gave a much more comfortable and secure ride, and looked incredible while doing it. All pros no cons for me.

Which 109 did you have?

I had an 07 109. I put a 10 inch rim on the back and ran a 280, I had a 160 on a 4 inch rim up front. I had $3,000 in Coastal Moto rims on that bike, pricey but they looked great. Since you asked.....

[Texas TC]

Like others have mentioned, I have experienced issues with every motorcycle and various brands of tires I have owned. Texas is hot and humid in summer months and tar snakes definitely get your attention.

[bob109]

[QUOTE=GiddyupF6B;85327]The 160 was awesome in the twisties! It absorbed bumps much better, handled better in the rain, gave a much more comfortable and secure ride, and looked incredible while doing it. All pros no cons for me.

I had an 07 109. I put a 10 inch rim on the back and ran a 280, I had a 160 on a 4 inch rim up front. I had $3,000 in Coastal Moto rims on that bike, pricey but they looked great. Since you asked.....

How many clutch cables did you break Had a 06 with a 250 on the stock rim. A great bike but it was hell on clutch cables. Went through 3 while I had the bike Decided to trade it after several owners cracked the driveshaft tube

[bobbyf6b]

The 160 was awesome in the twisties! It absorbed bumps much better, handled better in the rain, gave a much more comfortable and secure ride, and looked incredible while doing it. All pros no cons for me.

I had an 07 109. I put a 10 inch rim on the back and ran a 280, I had a 160 on a 4 inch rim up front. I had $3,000 in Coastal Moto rims on that bike, pricey but they looked great. Since you asked.....

Very nice. That's why I asked.

[motoman]

Here in Portland, they use a rubber mat between the railroad tracks to give the cars and bicycles a softer surface and allow them to drive over the tracks. I went over this in a slight lean in the rain, and I got a pretty scary 'wiggle' and was sure I was gonna dump it, but I lucked out. That was a new one for me...

[edgeman55]

My front 709 did not start slippen on the tar snakes until it had about 10K on it and was close to the wear bars.Always ran 40lbs in it.Now I have the new Metz 888's on my bike and they so far with about 1000 miles on them are not doing it and they really feel planted on the road.These have a much different tread design on them then the Bridgestones.

[Cleaver1]

A friend of mine who is retired from the Michigan Department of Transportation was watching them put down the crack fill and couldn't believe the way they were doing it.
He said when they made the repair they squeegeed the access tar off after filling crack area. I have seen and run over some that the tar was about 1 inch higher than the road way.
It does give you the pucker factor. Now when riding alone I try to run over some of them, just to try to get used to the feeling.

[BIGLRY]