F6B Dark Side Riders

[1951vbs]

Be prepared to be shocked! the C/T patch is 2 or 3 times bigger! Not to mention when the bike is straight up, the patch is 10 times bigger. You have the whole width of the C/T on the ground and with the bike tire, you have a 50 cent sized patch on the road. Ask yourself, which one will stop the quickest? Not to mention, there is a taller sidewall on the car tire which equates to a little more sidewall flex that produces a softer ride, I can go on and on but that is several reasons why I like them. Better dry and wet grip, longer tire life, smoother ride, shorter stopping distance, and cheaper.

Even though I interact with Tire Engineers every day (Don't ask them what they think) I am interested in running a car tire but have not been able to get this question answered. Could this increased contact patch contribute to hydroplaning? I ask because on the final night of the IBA Rally one rider using a CT went down with this report:

"The rider is going to be fine with only a broken right collar bone to show for a low-side crash and tumble on I-95 south of Fredericksburg, VA early this morning. His recollection is that the storm passed through ahead of him and the pavement was excessively wet. He remembers cruising at highway speed with the intention of returning to rally HQ with all of his booty collected for the leg. He had plenty of time and had stopped for an hour rest at a rest area before the accident, and had time for more stops when needed (I talked to him on the phone when he woke up in the rest area and he sounded good and ready to finish his ride). He said, “the back end of the bike started to come around from a loss of traction”. He does not know what caused the loss of traction, but he and the bike came to rest on the highway."

I have tried to get additional information but have not been successful. It could have been caused by many factors.
I found this contact patch comparison on another forum. It looks to me that the CT contact patch is asymmetric and would not have as smooth of a transition but you probably just have to get used to it. Big Dawg I really appreciate your input and can't wait for the report from the car tire virgin, Miles.

[Scotrod]

I've got a copy of that same chart and a buncha other stuff that came with it. Believe it was from a Japanese tire MFG,,,

I don't necessarily agree with the way they portray the CT sidewall making contact, at least not in conditions the GL would experience.

Miles = Virgin with certain motorcycle things,,, CT's on MC's have been around quite a while now.

Heh heh heh! If he's never tried one before,,, ever,,,,,,,,,,,Hell, even I have FAR MORE miles of CT EXPERIENCE than Miles has!!!



Dang rookie!!

LOL!!!

[Hambly434]

Just finished this emblem for a member of the Dark Side.
Fits in the 2-1/2 square pocket in front of the riders right knee.
I can put this engraving any of the badges or lic. plate frames.
It could also be reduced a little to add in a Dark Side Rider Member #.
$35 shipped

If interested send me a pm.

[bstroh59]

Yesterday, I added my name to the Darksider's roster. I am officially Darkside #1506.

So Murgie has handed out over 1,000 numbers since I got mine - 487. Welcome to the Darkside.

There's a lot out there that are riding that have never gotten a number. I've run 2 Kumho's and am now on the Michelin Alpin. I consider my first Kumho for saving my butt and my wife. We took on a 1/4 x 3" lag bolt. Riding 2 up the tire didn't even feel like it was flat. I pulled the bolt, plugged it and ran another 7K miles before I replaced it. My second one had 18K on it.

The Michelin that I am on now, got transferred from my old Wing with 4500 miles on it. I now have 13,500 on my new Wing, so that's 18K on that tire and it looks like it has better than half tread. This one is wearing well and I will probably run another one when the time comes.

I will probably put a Michelin on my wife's F6 when the time comes to replace her's next spring.

[bobbyf6b]

Once again, I think the hydroplaning issue isn't an issue. Trikes have two car tires on the back and Can-Am's have three car tires. Any bike, car or truck can hydroplane if there's enough standing water on the road. Speed must be adjusted for the conditions.

[bob109]

Be it a car or motorcycle tire, the number and design of the "sipes" has a major role in how a tire performs in "wet conditions". A wider tire, in itself, doesn't assure wet traction. Sipes (grooves) which channel the water from between the road surface and tire tread are paramount to reasonable/good traction. Folks tend to forget that upon initial rain contact with the road surface, oil residue is lifting from the pores of the road surface. This provides for many accidents, cycle or car.

Attached are some photos of cycle rain tires. The amount of thread sipes are evident and surpass anything on a normal cycle touring tire.

http://search.yahoo.com/r/_ylt=A0oG7...2btires%2brace

Had some personal experiences with a 250 Avon Venom R on my Suzuki M-109 that scared the sh-t out of me. No matter how good of a rider you think you are, that quickly changes when the a$$ end of your bike starts passing you

[Hornblower]

So Murgie has handed out over 1,000 numbers since I got mine - 487. Welcome to the Darkside.
There's a lot out there that are riding that have never gotten a number. I've run 2 Kumho's and am now on the Michelin Alpin.

Thanks, bstroh59! You're right, I wouldn't be at all surprised if the total number of DS riders is easily double the number on the roster.

The Michelin Alpin is the other tire I seriously considered before I ordered the Kumho. Since you've run both, how would you compare the two? I assume, since you mentioned you would buy the Alpin again, that you prefer that tire. How about a quick comparison? Also, what air pressure are you running? Thanks!

[Phantom]

Even though I interact with Tire Engineers every day (Don't ask them what they think) I am interested in running a car tire but have not been able to get this question answered. Could this increased contact patch contribute to hydroplaning?

In some cases YES !

I discovered a few years ago that a wider tire on the rear was NOT better than the stock tire on a 3 wheel vehicle.

The vehicle came stock with a GoodYear 315/35/17 rear tire (12" wide), I replaced it with a Michelin 335/35/17 rear tire (13.25" wide) for the steamroller look. The Michelin rubber compound was softer and tackier yet broke loose much quicker than the smaller Goodyear tire, I did not like the fact that I would loose the rear end way more often than when I had the Goodyear tire. After TWO instances of spinning out of control in the rain with the Michelin I replaced that new Michelin with a New 315 Goodyear and all was fine with the occasional (on purpose) burn out.

The following year the vehicle manufacturer started replacing the rear tire with a SMALLER tire, a GoodYear 285/40/17 (10" wide) because it supposedly gave better traction. The way it was explained to me was this way.....

Imagine 500 pounds pushing down on your 2" contact patch, the small contact patch is the focus point of the weight, so for figures sake that relates to 250 pounds per inch pushing down on the rubber, the larger contact patch has more surface area to distribute this weight. So for figures sake lets take a 4" contact patch from a Car Tire and divide the 500 pounds by 4" that relates to 125 pounds per inch pushing down on the rubber, the larger the contact patch has more surface area to distribute the weight. Yes you have more rubber for contact but not as much down pressure per square inch because the pressure is being distributed on a wider patch. You will probably notice it more on a wet surface than any other surface. A smaller contact patch supposedly makes the tire grab better. That's how it was explained to me and I am not an engineer to say otherwise. However I would still place a CT on my Wing if I rode the amount of miles that some of you do but with caution in the rain.

Food for thought

[bstroh59]

Thanks, bstroh59! You're right, I wouldn't be at all surprised if the total number of DS riders is easily double the number on the roster.

The Michelin Alpin is the other tire I seriously considered before I ordered the Kumho. Since you've run both, how would you compare the two? I assume, since you mentioned you would buy the Alpin again, that you prefer that tire. How about a quick comparison? Also, what air pressure are you running? Thanks!

I actually like the Alpin best. This tire does have more of a "rounded edge" then the Kumho, and seems to corner closer to a MC tire. In fact, when I transferred it from my old Wing at the dealership, the mechanic took it the long way around the shop with some corners. He even commented how much better this one felt, compared to some others he had experienced. If you really wonder how it corners, I'll show you how ground my highway pegs are. I don't have any problems taking corners however hard I like too.

I run this one at 36 lbs. cold. I'd like to run it lower, but at least when it gets warmed up, the TPMS will quit flashing. Wear is still looking pretty even, but I haven't gotten a depth gauge to be specific. Overall, this one is wearing better then the Kumho since I have about the same mileage as my best on the Kumho and I still have plenty of tread. I do run the dyna beads. I like the idea of having the tire always balanced.

You won't be disappointed. Just run the Kumho and try something different.

[MichaelG]

I run this one at 36 lbs. cold. I'd like to run it lower, but at least when it gets warmed up, the TPMS will quit flashing.

I have two questions for you:

# 1...can't you simply set the TPMS to the specific pressure you want the tire to be set for, and have it read from that? If you want the tire to be set at 35psi, can't you set the TPMS to 35psi for the rear tire ?

# 2...are you running the BT45 on the front wheel, in a forward mounted direction, or a reverse mounted direction? What kind of mileage are you getting out of the 'stone BT45 mounted on the front wheel? Yes, I do know the BT45 is a rear tire, but I also know that alot of Darksiders like to run the BT45 on the front wheel. Forward or backward mounted ?