Sidewall recomended tire pressure?
 

Does every one here run the side wall recomended tire pressure?

Mine says 42 front and 42 rear. that seems really high.

5150

For hwy, I run 38-40 in front, 42 rear. For spirited riding such as track day or canyon carving I run 36 front 38 rear.

I ran 30 at the track. Usually run 35 for commuting. The sidewall pressure is usually the MAX for the tire (like 2-up with luggage). It's not the recommended pressure for normal riding.

I run close to what the swingarm says, I think 38F 36R.

my swingarm has 42psi rear 36psi front. i run a little less than that in the rear.

this is what I do also, never adjusted it for other types of riding

swingarm pressure may be OK for some riders and some tires but to lay a blanket pressure with todays tires is a bit silly imo. it's probably a good match with the OEM tires ( which are crap ).

tim

I'm not sure my tires still have air in them right now, but I like to run higher pressure in the rear for commuting in an effort to make the tire last a little longer...

I would never recommend this for street riding (although I did it once and it felt weird), but a lot of the racers are running 22 or less psi (I've heard as low as 20) with the modern tires. They stopped lowering the pressure when the tire started slipping on the wheel.

The instructors at the last track school I went to were running around 26 in their Q2's. At the inspection, I had 32 psi in my Power Pures, and they recommended I lower it to 28 psi. I met them half-way and settled on 30 psi.

Don't go by that. That is the MAXIMUM ALLOWABLE PRESSURE for that tire. Same is true for automobile/truck tires.

Use the pressures recommended in your vehicle's Owner's Manual.

Alternatively, some tire manufacturers have charts on their websites stating specific front and rear pressures for specific motorcycles for the various models of tires they carry. If I recall correctly, both Metzeler and Dunlop did that, and maybe some others. Check the web.

Also, remember that pressures listed are always "cold" pressures. (Once you ride/drive a mile or two the tires heat up and the pressures rise by 3 or 4 psi.)

Yep Metzler does...http://www.us.metzelermoto.com/web/p...s/default.page

I run Metzler M3s (Sport, Sport Touring group). Guess I'm running a tiny bit too soft according to them at 30-32 in front, 34-36 in rear for canyon carving.

every tire and every situation will call for a different pressure. lower pressure means more flex, heat and grip, but also increases wear. higher pressure makes the tire stiffer, less flex, heat and grip, but better mileage. decide on your own.

When i checked them they both had about 26 pounds in them, i increased them both to 36 ish and i really dislike the ride comapared to how they felt at 26 ish. the bumps in the road now just seem so stiff and jarring. maybe its just me but it seemed so so much more rough at just those 10 pounds put in.

Im going to start backing it off 2 pounds every night till i find what i need for the streets around here. thanks for the advice guys.

50

no it's not just you. You are definitely right. I always run lower pressures. I ran 28 for 3000 miles and then went up to 36 in the rear Q2 to try to stretch it a bit longer and could tell a definite difference-rougher ride. I'm removing them now at 4000 miles to put on Power Pures.

The sidewall pressure is weight related, like 42lbs @ 800 lbs for the rear. Some riders don't understand or don't give a shit that tires are on a continuum with the suspension and therefore affect handling and traction and that's why I like 28-32 rear cold, 28-30 front(dependent on the weather). If I haul a passenger, stiffen the shock and run higher pressures, but still not max.

Not sure if you read this in the other thread I put it in but this is how i was taught to set cold tire pressure:

I have always been taught that you want to look for a 10% increase in pressure from cold to hot. So if you start with 30 psi you want to end up with 33 psi hot, as an example. If you have more than a 10% increase in pressure, you are running too low of a cold pressure and are over heating the tires. If you get a less than 10% increase, the tires are over inflated and you loose traction and compliance as they never come all the way up to temp. But as always YMMV.

Honda's recommended air pressure is also printed on the same sticker as the VIN number on the frame right up close to the forks, if you get to the gas station and forget what it's supposed to be :)

Jim

Good info 8541Hawk. I saw your other post. I found this out through experimentation as I ride the same roads repetitively and checked pressures cold and hot. I also learned what those pressures feel like by frequently pushing down firmly on the center of the tires. My front does well with 28psi, probably because it's narrower and therefore more rigid and firm. Checking hot/cold, feeling/pushing down, and then riding the same roads helps me control some of the variables. Not perfect, but seems to work for me.

My tire preferences are for traction, handling, suspension/compliance aspects, lightness, comfort and finally wear. If you run max pressures in you car, van, truck, other and are not close to the weight limits for those tires, and then reduce those pressures proportionally, there will be stark differences in road feel comfort, traction, handling and stopping distance. An extreme example would be a jeep with big tires which will ride like a stone wagon with max tire pressures.

I don't know how many more miles the Q2 rear could achieve if pressures were kept 36 frnt/42 rear which as you reported translates to approx 40 frnt/46 rear, but unless I was hauling someone or loaded to weight limits, i'll probably never find out cause i don't like the way it feels when I increase pressures.

Something a little different. I removed the warn Q2 rear last night(4000miles and down to threads) and noticed how very light it felt. So I weighed it and was surprised at how much weight it lost. Started out at 14.8lbs. and weighed just 11lbs when removed. I couldn't believe that it shed 3.8lbs.

first ride on the power pures. Ambient temp 70 deg., 80 miles. 34psi cold rear warmed to 37; 30 front became 33psi warm. Hotter days like 90 deg, i'll start with 30-32 rear and 28front. These tires rock.