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Cupping on Bridgestone BT014

5K views 13 replies 9 participants last post by  SpikedLemon 
#1 ·
Winter is almost here and I will be purchasing new tires (front & rear) and I've got the OEM Bridgestone 010 and the front of the tire is cupping or scalloping as some call it. I've done some searching here and apparently alot of people experience cupping with Bridgestones and was wondering if anyone here has experienced it on the new BT014???? I'm very interested in these tires and would like to hear some input from owners.

Also when I did my search i ran into this very helpful site bout tire wear.
http://www.rattlebars.com/valkfaq/tirewear/#CUPPING

Also since I'm on the topic of tires is it ok to mix and match tires such as putting a sport touring tire like the BT020 on the rear and the BT014 in the front?? I've notice some riders do that to get the longer tire wear for the rear. I've always thought that you should never mix and match tires as it will upset the balance.

Thanks everyone!!!
 
#6 ·
JWHT said:
Now with the rear being gone at 2,500 miles is that with track riding or just normal street riding??

Thanks.
Agressive street riding with no track days. I reserve the Diablos for the track and will order a set for MTCtrackday Sept 26, 04. FWIW, I normally get around 2,000 miles out of a rear tire, so the 014s wear a bit better. :)
 
#8 ·
JWHT said:
Winter is almost here and I will be purchasing new tires (front & rear) and I've got the OEM Bridgestone 010 and the front of the tire is cupping or scalloping as some call it. I've done some searching here and apparently alot of people experience cupping with Bridgestones and was wondering if anyone here has experienced it on the new BT014???? I'm very interested in these tires and would like to hear some input from owners.

Also when I did my search i ran into this very helpful site bout tire wear.
http://www.rattlebars.com/valkfaq/tirewear/#CUPPING

Also since I'm on the topic of tires is it ok to mix and match tires such as putting a sport touring tire like the BT020 on the rear and the BT014 in the front?? I've notice some riders do that to get the longer tire wear for the rear. I've always thought that you should never mix and match tires as it will upset the balance.

Thanks everyone!!!

i had the same problem on bridgestone tyres before this on the BT-010
used 2 sets for the front, the damn thing starts to "cup" after a month on the road. after like 3k miles on it the tyres cup so damn bad, when i squeeze my front brakes hard my bike will zig-zag. it happens to every single friend of mine who uses BT-010 fronts too..!!! i was really so fu*king pissed off i called the bridgestone tyres dealer (in asia) n screwed them up :rant:
they did ask me to send my bike for a checkup, n gave me an offer of 50% off for my tyre change. i just told them :nono: ur tyres just suck so bad, i have no more confidence on bridgestones.

now i am using a metzeler MEz3 front and sportec M-1 rear. damn these tyres are great, esp when doing 160kphh in extremely heavy rain on the freeway (got stuck in the heavy rain once, these metz still stick to the ground like glue, not even a skid)
 
#9 ·
Yep, speaking to alot of people here in town who have used 010 and all have had cupping issues and no cupping issues with other brand of tires. As far as tire pressure i'm running about 34psi front and 39psi rear. Is the front too low of a pressure, don't remember off hand what stock pressure is for the Blade for the front but the rear is 42psi from what I remember.

I usually ride solo but occasionally have a passenger. I only street ride so how do my pressures look???? I'm about 175lbs with all my gear. I've done some searching on tire pressure and some guys running 32-35psi for front and rear.

Thanks.
 
#12 ·
JWHT said:
Yep, speaking to alot of people here in town who have used 010 and all have had cupping issues and no cupping issues with other brand of tires. As far as tire pressure i'm running about 34psi front and 39psi rear. Is the front too low of a pressure, don't remember off hand what stock pressure is for the Blade for the front but the rear is 42psi from what I remember.

I usually ride solo but occasionally have a passenger. I only street ride so how do my pressures look???? I'm about 175lbs with all my gear. I've done some searching on tire pressure and some guys running 32-35psi for front and rear.

Thanks.
i'm street only and the same weight as you. i run 33 front 35 rear on the street. my suspension is fully tuned though.
 
#13 ·
I've had cupping issues too before I kept 42 psi in both tires, and have seen lots more on other bikes.

However, I've never seen any on tires that were kept at max tire pressure (42 psi on most, me-thinks). On the track, you won't want this much obviously, but on the street (unless you ride a place like Polomar al the time) 33 or 34 is way low IMHO.

Personally, I don't think it has anything to do with the brand. I've run Bridgestones on 3 different bikes and I love em.
 
#14 ·
Newfie TLR said:
On the track, you won't want this much obviously, but on the street (unless you ride a place like Polomar al the time) 33 or 34 is way low IMHO.

Personally, I don't think it has anything to do with the brand. I've run Bridgestones on 3 different bikes and I love em.
Michelin Pilot Sports react VERY VERY well to low pressure and I actually get very good performance running them low. Normally I'm between 32-34 on them. Never had a cupping issue or a life-span issue. If I ran them at 42psi they'd never come close to getting up to temperature.
The Bridgestone rear tire worked well at low pressure... the front was just a horrible tire.
 
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