Why is front tire wear worse than rear?

[rdugan]

I have a 2008 R1200rt with a bit over 6k miles on it. Checking my tires recently I was surprised to see that the front tire (both Bridgestone OEMs) was already on the wear bars, while the rear seems to have at least another 1kmi or so left.

 

What's the deal? Typically the rear goes much faster than the front in my experience. Any ideas?

 

Also, what if I put on a different brand (PR2) for the front before replacing the rear Bridgestone? Is that a problem?

 

Thanks in advance,

 

Richard

[Paul In Australia]

I have a 2008 R1200rt with a bit over 6k miles on it. Checking my tires recently I was surprised to see that the front tire (both Bridgestone OEMs) was already on the wear bars, while the rear seems to have at least another 1kmi or so left.

 

What's the deal? Typically the rear goes much faster than the front in my experience. Any ideas?

 

Also, what if I put on a different brand (PR2) for the front before replacing the rear Bridgestone? Is that a problem?

 

Thanks in advance,

 

Richard

 

 

I think you may find the weight bias on the R1200Rt is in favour of the front wheel ( more weight on it). Therefore the front wearing out first may not be surprising.

regards

PCH

[chaparral]

I put a new Bridgestone 021 on my front to replace an 020 after 12k miles, it only lasted ~ 5K miles and was badly cupped. I put on a PR2 and now have 7.5 K miles with plenty of wear left. No problems with Michelin on the front and Bridgestone on the rear.

[BanjoBoy]

It's not uncommon to wear out the front first. It could also be air pressure. Do you check the psi regularly?

You can run different brand tires front to rear.

[Redbrick]

The rear tires have more original tread depth than the fronts...Front on PR2 has 5/32+" and rear has 8/32".......Tire mfgs. must have figured that combination would wear out at the same time under "normal" riding....But they usually don't..My 12RT with 7500 miles on PR2's are closer this time though (2/32+" front, 4/32" rear left).. Most of that mileage on lightly loaded bike and running 36-42 pressures..Guess we need to ask the Michelin Man.......

Depth guages available at Kragen or probably most auto supply stores.....A cheap, handy tool...

[mneblett]

The primary reason the front wears out first is simple -- it sees essentially all of the serious braking forces, as well as the lateral turn initiation forces. (The braking forces are the source of the cupping -- look at the shape of the cupped tread blocks, and think about the forces at the road contact point-- they correspond exactly.)

 

The only thing the rear sees that is more than the front is acceleration forces, and most folks just don't accelerate that hard on a regular basis to wear out the rear faster.

[Joe Frickin' Friday]

The primary reason the front wears out first is simple -- it sees essentially all of the serious braking forces, as well as the lateral turn initiation forces. (The braking forces are the source of the cupping -- look at the shape of the cupped tread blocks, and think about the forces at the road contact point-- they correspond exactly.)

 

The only thing the rear sees that is more than the front is acceleration forces, and most folks just don't accelerate that hard on a regular basis to wear out the rear faster.

 

On my 1100RT I almost always wore out the rear first. I didn't always brake like a racer on approaching turns (sometimes engine braking was enough), but I almost always shot out of the turns as hard as I could, which means more wear on the rear tire.

 

Moreover, the rear wheel is almost always transmitting power, fighting the aero drag of the whole rig as well as the rolling resistance of both tires. Put in a 750-mile slab day, and the front tire has just been along for the ride, while the rear tire has been pushing the bike forward the entire time.

 

I don't know what the weight bias is on the 1200 I just bought, but it sure does sit harder on the front wheel when it's up on the center stand than my old 1100 does.

[AdventurePoser]

 

Unfortunately, you have the Tom Jones Syndrome..."It's not unusual..."**

 

 

After owning an R11RT, an 1150RT and now a 1200, I notice the same thing. I am no longer getting twice the wear outta the front tire as the rear.

 

Also, I've tried several brands of tires on my R12, and the results have basically been the same across the board...

 

Cheers,

Steve in So Cal

 

**Thank you, I'll be here all week....try the veal

[mneblett]

The primary reason the front wears out first is simple -- it sees essentially all of the serious braking forces, as well as the lateral turn initiation forces. (The braking forces are the source of the cupping -- look at the shape of the cupped tread blocks, and think about the forces at the road contact point-- they correspond exactly.)

 

The only thing the rear sees that is more than the front is acceleration forces, and most folks just don't accelerate that hard on a regular basis to wear out the rear faster.

 

On my 1100RT I almost always wore out the rear first. I didn't always brake like a racer on approaching turns (sometimes engine braking was enough), but I almost always shot out of the turns as hard as I could, which means more wear on the rear tire.

Maybe I'm pushing more on my daily commute than I realize Seriously, the vast majority of the folks I know run through the fronts first -- be it sport bike or LT-class weight. Not saying I'm right, just my observation over 30+ years of riding, and in particular my experience from the K12LT world, where *everyone* kills the fronts before the rears.

 

Moreover, the rear wheel is almost always transmitting power, fighting the aero drag of the whole rig as well as the rolling resistance of both tires. Put in a 750-mile slab day, and the front tire has just been along for the ride, while the rear tire has been pushing the bike forward the entire time.

At steady state at speed, you're right, there is a force compomponent driving the bike forward. But I'd submit that it is not a huge force, and it's not being applied in a way that creates high shear forces at the tire/ground interface -- and in any event, is not nearly as high as the forces generted at the front wheel during moderte-to-hard braking.

 

I guess the difference comes down to riding style -- avoid moderate to heavy braking and rapid/high force turn initiation, and the rear may outlast the front, especially if the throttle hand is heavy.

[rdugan]

Thanks for all the inputs. Sounds like nothing unusual, and I'm glad to hear that I can mix the PR2 and Bridgestone.

 

Also, I don't keep a very watchful eye on the PSI all the time. That and some very hot weather touring last summer may help explain the wear.

 

Richard