What is advance warning of cupping?

[prof98801]

I was told that my front OEM tire is starting to cup. I do not recognize any difference in the handling or anything on the NT differently than 2000 miles ago. Those of you that have had cupping problems on your NT, what led you to believe it was cupping? Was it just looking and feeling the tire or did something different begin to happen on the bike? Any advice would be appreciated. Thanks.

 

[Chuck 500]

Being a gentle rider, the only thing I have noticed with cupping is noise. The front tire on bike #1, Suzuki GS500F cupped also. NT front is doing a bit.

 

[prof98801]

Is there any safety issue when a tire begins to cup or is it just an annoyance?

 

[Raycad]

Cupping depends on the tire brand and on the tread desing. In the past, all my front tires were cupping to some degree and I've replaced many not for wear, but for extreme cupping. My last front is an Avon AV55 Storm ST that has a new revised tread. After 13 106 miles, there's almost no perceptible cupping and not much wear. While I ran the previous tires at 42 psi to minimize cupping as much as possible, I've run the Avon at 36 psi because of the different tread that seemed less prone to cupping and it really was. And the wear rate is very good alsoo. The rear is also an Avon with no cupping.

Ray

 

[Phil Tarman]

John, now I'm going to disagree with you...almost all the cupping I've noticed on my tires has been on the outside of the tread, nearer the edges; kind of a scalloped effect.

The OEM tires cupped pretty badly; the 2nd and 3rd front tires I've had, both Bridgestone BT-023s, have not cupped appreciably; they just wore out in the center.

The biggest effect I've noticed from cupping has been a fairly loud noise when leaned for turning.

 

[elizilla]

I think the biggest safety hazard is that between the noise and the shaking, it can spook the rider into backing off from lean angles they might actually need for something.

I have a friend who rides far more aggressively than I do. We used to have the same model bike, and he would take tires I had retired due to cupping, put them on his bike, and wear the sides a bit more, and it actually smoothed them out. I think cupping may be more of a problem for those of us who aren't so aggressive, and it can make us downright timid.

 

[Lorien]

I too noticed that the OEM BS cupped and fairly early(6k out of 12k eventually). Now my local dealer has a mantra of: "all the pressure it can take on the front." Take that for what you will but of late running pressures from the owner's manual got me cupped fronts ST and NT. Got better when I upped the pressures. ST11s were well known for the effect-probably the forks were undersized though the word was replacing the head bearings with aftermarket rollar bearings fixed it. ST13 did it too but not as severe. Funny how the cup always seemed to be in the arrowhead formed by the tread pattern. Now my RoadSmart tires don't have this and I am at 39-40psi so we will see. And the cupped tires do get noisy when leaned over.

 

[Lorien]

Again FYI the RoadSmarts now have 2.5k on them and the front has not a sign of cupping. The rear has just a hint of flattening in the center. My pet theory has always been that tires like the OEM BS with that arrowhead tread create a relative weak area on the tire-after all the area of the tread section is unsupported on three side. Just my idea however. The book is that tire cupping is a result of the front forks(being too small) allowing an oscillation of the tire. Though not felt is tire is wiggling back and forth at a frequency that causes certain areas of the tire to have more contact than others. Seen and heard this several times. Of course underinflation can cause it too. But whose idea of underinflation is the question.

 

[RedLdr1]

Does anyone have the proper front and rear tire pressures for the OEM tires handy?

Front 36 PSI / Rear 42 PSI cold....per the Service Manual.

 

[1TRAK]

I have a pair of the Pilot road 2s a friend and I put on this spring. They have about 7000 miles on them with very little cupping.

BTW these tires rock: dry grip is great, wet grip is exceptional and at 7000 the rear is just starting to square a bit. Turn in is a bit slow but the ride is smooth and overall a much better tire than the stock Bridgestones. I'm expecting about 12 or 13 thousand from this pair and am getting another pair soon.

Best sport touring tires I've ever used, they seem to stick as well as Pilot Powers and last twice as long!

 

[charlie b]

Interesting stuff.

Most of my experience is many years in the past. Rarely got more than 10k out of a set of tires before they flat spotted badly. In the days before radials and multi-compound tires.

I like these new ones. My stock tires are at 8k and are just starting to show some cupping and a slight flat spot on the rear. I do regularly ride it hard through the twisties near the house. Cupping does not seem to do any damage, even when cornering in a spirited manner. I don't see any tendency to heat up more now that the cupping has started (every now and then I check tire temps when on a ride).

When I need to change it will be difficult choice. Avon Storm's, PR3's, or BT-023's.