z6 tires

[taters]

help! i have a 2004 r1150 rt which is my first bike. i put a set of z6 tires on 7800 miles ago. the front tire tread is 3/32 to 4/32 and the rear is 4/32 to 5/32. i measured close to the center of the tire. a friend of mine looked at my front tire and said you have some cupping but it is not bad. i said i am going to replace both tires . he said i was nuts and that i had at least 3-4000 more miles left on the tires. he said you have plenty of tread. he also rides a harley with a t-shirt and a beanie so i don't trust his judgement. but i am new to all of this, any thoughts would be appreciated. i made an appointment for next week to get another set of z6s thanks taters

[ShovelStrokeEd]

Might want to rethink your opinion of your buddy. Despite his choice in safety gear it sounds like he knows a hell of a lot more about tires than you. Keep riding, when tread depth gets down to around 1/16" or so you might want to think about at least ordering a set of tires. Watch the rear with that Z6, since they have no tread in the center, you might get down to cord before the treaded section even starts to show much wear. 8 to 10K on a rear is about average around here I think. At least on an 1150 with its wider rim and tire as compared to 1100's.

[ChuckS]

If you have a doubt, replace them. Lots easer than saying 'I should have...

[taters]

there is no doubt that i know little about tires . this is my first bike. thats the reason for the post . for advice.how bad a threat is cupping? thanks all

[Pictou]

there is no doubt that i know little about tires . this is my first bike. thats the reason for the post . for advice.how bad a threat is cupping? thanks all

 

Cupping is common on motorcycle tires and isn't usually a "threat". It can affect handling somewhat and also can create some noise but it usually insn't dangerous. Having said that my preference is always to change tires before they are totally worn. In fact in my book all the good in motorcycle tires is done at about 75-80% of tread wear. I know others will argue differently but once they get worn to that point the handling is crap and traction is starting to suffer. Your tires may not be done yet but I am guessing you will notice an improvement with the new tires.

[taters]

thanks very much

[tom collins]

i wanted to add a little to the comment about handling. i have had many bikes and many tires. even though there may be a little tread left, when the tires start to wear down the middle like yours probably have at 7800 mi, then the steering gets heavy and you have to muscle the bike into turns. the last time i put a new set of z6 on mine, it felt like a new bike. i had been growing dissatisfied with the "heavy" feel of the bike, then with the new tire, everything was fine again. if you are new to riding, this could be a good reason to replace those tires as i consider that heavyness to be a safety factor personally in regard to rider confidence in turns and in reaction ability to threats. and, 7800 is good, i would love to get that much, 6000 is about it for me.

good question. good luck with your decision.

 

 

tom collins

04r1150rt

[DouglasR]

6000 is about it for me.

Same here, I get about 6000 from the rear and 9000+ from the front. My 1100RT handles VASTLY different with new tires compared to the same tire when they're almost gone. In addition to what Tom said, the rear gets kinda square and you feel that when you roll off that flat spot and across the little shoulder to the naturally round edge of the tire, gets real pronounced at higher mileage. I've had real good luck with the Z6's, no complaints and many compliments to them. I run 39 psi in the front and about 41 rear, maybe a pound or two more back there if I'm two-up. The z6's at 39 psi on the front cup less than any other tire I've tried, and even then it doesn't show up until 8000 miles or so. We have pretty rough roads out here and I NEVER ride on the superslab.

 

I like the Z6's so much that I put Metzler's new LazerTec tires on my older K75, and they are FANTASTIC! The K75 is much easier on tires anyway, but the Lazertec's were a vast improvement over the Michelin Macadams for grip and smoothness of the ride.

 

Doug

[Ken H.]

I think if you got 7800 miles out of a set of Z6s you did very well. I would thank them for their fine service to you and introduce them to their replacements.

[tallman]

they have no tread in the center,

 

Thanks for bursting my bubble Ed.

I thought I wore it out riding fast.

[sideways]

I need to learn much more about tires and wear, too.

Could someone briefly explain what exactly "cupping" is?

 

As an aside, My R12 RT came with Dunlops that never seemed to grip as well as the Z4s on my girlfriend's SV 650. With about 5000 miles on the Dunlops, I started to hear some howling at highway speeds on various types of surfaces. I'm really hoping that howling sound turns out to have been the worn tires. So now my bikes in the shop getting, among other things, a new set of Z6s. Can't wait to try them out.

[DouglasR]

I went through two sets of Dunlop D220's before I figured out I didn't like them very much. Cupping is prominent on the right side of the front tire because the bike's geometry and all sorts of other forces make it Pull To The Right, putting more wear forces on that side of the tire. Do a search for PTTR and you'll get a HUGE pile of feedback. Like I said earlier, my Z6's at 39/41 cup far less than any other tire I've ever used, and it only shows up at the very end of their useable life.

[GTman]

I have an 04 K1200GT. I got about 6k out of the front and 7 out of the rear with Z4's. It looks like my Z6's are going to get me an extra 1k over the Z4's.

 

If you're down to 3/32 there's no way you'll get another 3k out of them. If you try, don't ride in the rain.