Taking Care Of Motorcycle Tires
Tight turns and high speeds are some of what makes a motorcycle worth buying, but they take a toll on your tires. Proper maintenance can keep your bike running smoothly and keep you out of the shop and on the road. Here, we’ll cover the top ways to make sure your motorcycle tires are in top shape. If you still have questions, make sure to stop by Main Street Cycle in Tishomingo, Mississippi, where our staff is ready to help you any time.
Preventative Maintenance
Keeping your tires in good condition can help keep them in good shape for longer. Preventative maintenance could reduce or even prevent serious damage. This will keep you from replacing your tires too often, which means saving a lot of money.
Keep It Clean
Dirt, gravel, and other debris can get stuck on or in your tires over time. This can lead to damage or a loss of traction if it goes on for too long. Grab a powerful hose and wash them down every so often to avoid problems.
Load It Up And Watch The Road
Always be aware of how much weight you’re putting on your motorcycle. Your tires are hardy, but going over certain limits can put excess pressure on them and they’ll wear out faster. They may also struggle with going over unusual debris or obstacles on the road, wearing out the shocks and potentially puncturing a wheel. If you hit any unexpected speed bumps, take the time to pull over and check your tires. It takes less time than having a blow out and taking your motorcycle in to a mechanic.
Pack It In
When possible, make sure you store your motorcycle in a covered location or garage. Sunshine can feel nice, but it can also harden a tire’s sidewalls and cause them to crack. Rapidly changing temperatures and humidity can also cause problems, so try to store your motorcycle in a cool, dry place. Just keep it far away from any corrosive materials stored there in case of spills.
If you’re putting the bike up for an extended time, consider putting it on a stand to avoid putting too much pressure on your tires for too long. Otherwise, your tires might deflate. If you don’t have a stand, you’ll need to have regular tire rotations to relieve that pressure.
Inspection
It’s important to check up on your tires regularly. Frequent inspections can show you a problem before it becomes dangerous or expensive.
Look Them Over
Always do a visual inspection first. If you see any bumps, bubbles, or cracks in your motorcycle’s tires, they might be losing structural integrity. Make sure you take them in for maintenance before you spend too much time on the road to avoid running into problems on the road.
Fill Them Up
Proper inflation is vital to optimize your tires for conditions on the open road. If your tires are flat or over-filled, it can affect your acceleration, braking, and load-bearing. It can also lower your mileage, decrease wear and tear, make the ride more comfortable, and keep your tires working longer.
Check your owner’s manual to find the ideal pressure for your tires, then use a pressure gauge to check the psi. Measuring the psi in the morning when your tires are cold can help you get an accurate reading, which will help you make any adjustments necessary to match the pressure in the manual’s recommendations.
Tread Lightly
Your tires’ treads help your motorcycle grip the road, which is important for acceleration, deceleration, and turns. The tread will be worn down naturally over time, and will eventually become a safety issue. Grab your owner’s manual again to tell you how to check your tread, and how low it can get before the tire needs replacing. If one tire is wearing down faster than the other, one may be inflated wrong or you may need to realign your wheels. A service department can help you with either problem.
Once you take all of those steps, your tires should be in good shape for any ride, no matter how long. If you have other questions, though, don’t hesitate to call or stop by Main Street Cycle in Tishomingo, Mississippi. We proudly serve Corinth, Mississippi, and Florence, Alabama, and our staff is ready to help you for your every motorcycle need.