Wider rear wheel

[Wrinkly]

Well I was never quite sure as to the advantage of the new GS WC having a wider rear wheel, and therefore wider rear tyre.
I'm now thinking it might actually be a disadvantage!

The reason I'm thinking this that for the first time since I've owned it I've been out for a goodish run on my 99 1100gs standard tourance tyres with around 4k mls on them.

It was handling very nicely and very precise,dare I say it handled more precisely than my 1200wc.

So,when I get back home I go straight out on the 1200,shod with Tourance next also around 4k mls and low and behold it is running slightly wide.

When I get home and have a look there is a very distinct difference in the wear pattern of the tyres.

The standard rear tourance on the 1100 with around 4k on it still looks very round with only minimal squareing off.

The rear Tourance next on the 1200, also with around 4k,is however markedly squared off and certainly enough to affect the handling.

So,if a wider tyre is going to square off quicker maybe it's not such a good thing

Steve

 

[madmartin]

Think you will find more powerful machines square/rip off the rubber far quicker. Also has something to do with the power pulses from the engine thus wearing the tyre quicker. Back in the old days of world super bike forgaty and co had a great advantage with tyre wear when racing. The v-twins powerpulses allowed the tyre to recover more than with the multi cylinder machines. There be 100 other reasons also.

 

[Giles]

But it's not squaring off 'because it's wider', it's squaring off (unlike the Tourance original) because it's a softer compound.

 

[yankeedoodledandy]

Problem with the new tire/wheel sizes is not the handling, its how much the damn things cost. The tire companies are really raking us over the coals with these.
Would be nice if they went with 160 width rear with slightly narrower rim, too, would have been a bit closer to the old tire sizes and give you more choices without messing with the profiles.

 

[Wrinkly]

But it's not squaring off 'because it's wider', it's squaring off (unlike the Tourance original) because it's a softer compound.

I was under the impression that the centre of the tyre was a harder compound than the walls,which should promote more even wear across the tyre.
I may be wrong but I would have thought that the wider the tyre the greater the arc of the tyre and once it starts to square off the flat area would be wider ? bearing in mind physics was never my strong point.

What I do know is that the Tourance Next and the standard Tourance both have around the same amount of tread left in the centre of the tyre but the Tourance next has a much greater flat area, which is very prominant but hardly visible at all on the standard Tourance.

Steve