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[Dan_Lockwood]

In the car world, at least many years ago, tires would cup and it was usually because of poor shocks.

So in today's world of Harley with all of the new shocks available that are said to ride sooo much better than stock HD shocks, has anyone with the new upgraded shocks seen any less tire cupping compared to their original shocks and tires?

Just was thinking about cupping tires and thought I would ask the question.

[Ironhorse]

I just replaced my rear tire, Michelin CommanderII, for another CommanderII. The edges on both sides of the old one were cupped, but that's probably because I should have replaced it long ago. In fact it was so worn it struggled in corners going from the flat surface up onto to the scalloped edges. It also rode very rough. The new one is,...well,...like a NEW one. Rides better and handles better. But I'm sure that if I run this one way past it's replacement time, the edges on this will will cup too.

I think tire design has a lot to do with it too. In my limited opinion, these newer tires with side slash patterns and no center groove have by design a propensity to cup the longer you let them wear. By contrast I never had any cupping issues with the OEM Dunlop D402, and I ran those way down too. 

But I may be wrong.

[GregKhougaz]

There are many articles on the subject. Here is a relatively simple one.

Reasons Why Motorcycle Tires Cup

[Boatman]

I had Works Performance shocks on the back of the 10 and now on the 14 and the original Oem tires cupped on both and put AE's on the 10 and they cupped.   Didn't have enough miles on the Commander 2's on the 10 before the accident to know about them.  Putting Commander 2's on the 14 this winter..

So IMO, it's the Dunlop tires.

[SteveVO]

2015 CVO SG here with 6500 Miles and my back tire is badly cupped so bad it whine's/howls when I lean the bike over. Dealer said that it was do to under inflation.

I just cranked up the preload on my shocks, as I was thinking that I was running too much Sag and was bouncing off the bump stops.  Will have to wait till spring when I put new tires on and see if adjusting the shocks make any difference.

Like some one else posted in a shock upgrade thread, the Harley manual seems to set the preload a bit on the soft side. I was running the recommended settings on the shocks now that I have cranked up the preload the bike seems to be turning and riding much better, like the geometer was off having the rear sag too much.

[RonandJanet]

With both my old Ultra and CVO when the rear tire got to about 15K the sides started to cup. They would make a lot of noise and of course not handle as well when leaning. Once the tire was replaced all the noise went away. I know I keep my tires inflated right and I ride pretty easy compared to some others.  I think that as the tires wear down the sides start to cup (maybe the design).   I don't think it is shocks (or ball joints/struts) like on a car that is causing this especially since the last two bikes were both new and did this. 

[Ironhorse]

There are many articles on the subject. Here is a relatively simple one.

Reasons Why Motorcycle Tires Cup

Very good reading. I do all that motorcop slow speed rear brake cone work, so that probably explains why my rear cupped. I make it a habit to change pads every time I change a tire. These pads had about 10% left so it was time.  Lovin' the new rear tire though.

[grc]

Braking isn't what's causing the cupping issues on the Harley tires (the cupping is on the sides, not the center of the tread).  As Dan noted in the original post of this thread, cupping on cars was usually the result of things like improper balance or suspension problems that caused the tires to "skip" on the road surface, or alignment issues that caused the tire to grab and release instead of rolling freely.  Those kinds of things can also cause a motorcycle tire to cup, but the cupping wouldn't be just confined to the side of the tire.

The issue became common and widespread when Harley switched to the D407 and D408 tires.  Initially it was a problem on both front and rear, thanks to the tread pattern Harley insisted on for the front tire.  Eventually that was fixed by changing the direction of the tread on the front tire.  However, it's still a problem for many/most on the rear tires to this day.  My theory has always been that it's a combination of the tread pattern and the dual compound.  The cupping seems to be most evident in that transition area from the hard center compound to the softer side or cornering compound.  In other words, a tire design issue.

JMHO - Jerry

[Ironhorse]

You're probably right Jerry.

I was thinking more along the lines of me wearing my rear tires out sooner than most. I never thought that my rear brake slow speed stuff may have been contributing to quicker tire wear which may have led to cupping. I may have been wrong.

Took the bike out today and did some slow work. It handles so much better with the new tire. It makes a big difference not having to ride up onto an edge. Nice smooth circles at full lock.

Mark

[Cat Eye]

I have a SG and my Wife has a RK.  We ride 90% of the time together.

My rear tire seems to start cupping around 6-7k miles
Her rear tire only cups a little after 12-14k miles

The main differences I see:
-My bike weighs more
-I weigh a lot more
-I ride a lot more aggressive

So perhaps if I ride less aggressive and lose 150 lbs (that ain't gonna happen) my tires will cup less.

One thing this for sure.....I prefer large cups on women.....not on tires!

[Yellow09SERG]

I have a SG and my Wife has a RK.  We ride 90% of the time together.

My rear tire seems to start cupping around 6-7k miles
Her rear tire only cups a little after 12-14k miles

The main differences I see:
-My bike weighs more
-I weigh a lot more
-I ride a lot more aggressive

So perhaps if I ride less aggressive and lose 150 lbs (that ain't gonna happen) my tires will cup less.

One thing this for sure.....I prefer large cups on women.....not on tires!

Got to love those kind of cups

[Ironhorse]

Got to love those kind of cups

And thanks to technology, now days they are crafted with silicon which helps with shape, durability, longevity all while giving you a nice firm feel.





Tires, guys, talking about tires, right?

[Jswerve]

Dealer said that it was do to under inflation.

Dealer is F.O.S.

Mine has been meticulously maintained at 40psi and it still cups, same with my uncles. 

[TN]

I have a SG and my Wife has a RK.  We ride 90% of the time together.

My rear tire seems to start cupping around 6-7k miles
Her rear tire only cups a little after 12-14k miles

The main differences I see:
-My bike weighs more
-I weigh a lot more
-I ride a lot more aggressive

So perhaps if I ride less aggressive and lose 150 lbs (that ain't gonna happen) my tires will cup less.

One thing this for sure.....I prefer large cups on women.....not on tires!

 May we discuss this in more detail. I like real world experiences myself don't google and hotllnk please. 


Ride On

TN

[RonandJanet]

Perhaps pictures of all the different types of cups, large and small, will help us figure out which cups are best with or without technology upgrades. HA