Darkside and trailer towing?

[ISLANDER1089]

Have many miles towing my Bushtec w/my car tire F6b and no problems at 80 mph down the super slab. Have never weighed it, never checked tongue weight/percentage , will do that for Sturgis, with no issues.

I just installed a Bridgestone Driveguard run flat tire (195/55 R16) aired to 42psi. It was a bit snug mounting the wheel and tire. I had to loosen the clamps and remove the one hanger bolt on the left muffler to get the clearance I needed. I have a motorcycle jack so I could raise the bike a foot or so off the ground. I first took the bike for a spin w/o the trailer and it was quiet and smooth. The tire dealer did not balance the tire because the wheel didn't fit his machine but it obviously didn't require any balancing. Next I hooked up my Aspen camper trailer and it rode as straight as an arrow down the freeway. I never bothered with tongue weights or adjusting the load. I would say that the tongue weight relative to the total trailer weight was well over the 10% suggested by another forum member. I am truly a happy camper now.

[Steve 0080]

Glad that worked out for you !!! Try running the tire around 32 psi.

[ISLANDER1089]

Glad that worked out for you !!! Try running the tire around 32 psi.

Steve, is there a benefit to the lower psi? Just a softer ride?

[Steve 0080]

Steve, is there a benefit to the lower psi? Just a softer ride?

I would not say the ride is softer at all...my reason is to get equal wear on the tire. The normal tire pressure of most mid sized cars is around 32 psi. Some now are higher due to smaller side walls. The wife's Edge Sport has a psi of 50. The tires on my truck 90. The psi generally increases as the weight of the vehicle increases or the side wall decreases. A CT on a MCY is generally carrying 1/2 or less of its ability. So when we raise the pressure, the tire now has a crown on it and the center of the tire wears out long before the outsides. On a RF the sides are much stiffer, therefore requiring less psi to hold up such a small weight. I am sure you have read where folks posted they are running 40 psi on a reg CT, generally this is caused by a sidewall of less strength. A lot of debate on the subject, I am posting from experience not a book or some phobia. YMMV. Just an opinion !

[ISLANDER1089]

I would not say the ride is softer at all...my reason is to get equal wear on the tire. The normal tire pressure of most mid sized cars is around 32 psi. Some now are higher due to smaller side walls. The wife's Edge Sport has a psi of 50. The tires on my truck 90. The psi generally increases as the weight of the vehicle increases or the side wall decreases. A CT on a MCY is generally carrying 1/2 or less of its ability. So when we raise the pressure, the tire now has a crown on it and the center of the tire wears out long before the outsides. On a RF the sides are much stiffer, therefore requiring less psi to hold up such a small weight. I am sure you have read where folks posted they are running 40 psi on a reg CT, generally this is caused by a sidewall of less strength. A lot of debate on the subject, I am posting from experience not a book or some phobia. YMMV. Just an opinion !

Steve, that's an explanation that makes perfect sense. One of the benefits of running a CT is longer tread life so dropping the pressure to get rid of the crown is a logical strategy. I will drop the pressure to 32 psi and just keep an eye on the tread wear. I leave on July 11th on a solo trip that takes me out through the Dakotas down through Colorado, Utah and on to LA. After hanging with some good buds I used to work with at American Honda I head north up the coast to Portland, Oregon. My son and his wife live there and after a visit I point the bike east and back to Toronto. That should give me a good test of the new CT.
Hey, if you're interested, I do this every year and you can check out my trip blog at: http://monetbridge.blogspot.ca