[Turwilliger]

Just put on the sr244 golden boy last night on the front last night

I could not get the tire to be perfectly even distance wise from the innermost rubber molding mark or whatever it is.

It was mostly even but in some places maybe 1/8th of an inch closer to the rim edge.



Also, i did not balance the tire as i was not sure how to, but i did align the dot mark and the "b" stamp next to the valve stem... Which is what ive heard you should do to begin from the most balanced standpoint.



The bike felt a little iffy at 50, like the front end was a touch squirrely

Im not sure if its the new tire nubs, the size and style of the 5.10 sr244, the handguards i just put on or an out of balance wheel.



The wheel is not out of round to any great degree nor is it out of true.



So, is balancing all that important? Factory had none... So?

Or do i just need to run it at lower than 18 psi for a bit and let the tire to rim alignment figure itself out?

Or is it just the golden boy ride?



I did notice that the tire does want to drop into turns a little prematurely, but that will probably even out over time.

 

[lizrdbrth]

The tire's not fully seated. How much pressure did you use?

 

[Turwilliger]

The tire's not fully seated. How much pressure did you use?

55 psi- is that enough? I mounted it with soapy water- should I have used talc?

I also dropped it to like 8 or 6 and bounced it twice at each hour position (as if looking at a clock face)

 

[lizrdbrth]

Sounds like you've done everything by the book, but you may need to partially dismount, lube and reseat.



Lots of folks don't know about the balance dots. Next to the "G" in "Goldenboy" you'll find a dot imprinted with an "X". Most tires have it in one form or another. It belongs aligned with your valve stem. Since you aready know that, let me explain it for others who may not.



Tire manufacturers do a "static balance point" measurement when they build a new tire. They find the point where an unmounted tire weighs the least, and mark it with a dot. Sometimes it's cast into the sidewall, sometimes it's imprinted in yellow or red ink.



On motorcycles with spoked rims the heaviest part of the tube/rim assembly is at the valve stem, due to the weight of the stem, the stem nuts and the additional rubber in the tube near the valve stem area. Using the dots puts the heaviest part of the tire opposite the heaviest part of the tube/rim to help cancel out one another. If you align the dot with the valve stem you'll cut down on the weight needed to balance the assembly.



I wouldn't give it any more than 40 pounds, personally. You may want to try partially dismounting it, lubing it up and re-inflating. The Goldenboy has a nice "tell circle" to go by.

 

[Turwilliger]

So uh, what kinda lube?

Lithium, KY or ...? Lol

 

[lizrdbrth]

Dish detergent, liquid car wax (I've had really good luck with ICE brand) KY, Astroglide, anything not petroleum-based.



It really shouldn't take much.

 

[Turwilliger]

It never does... Thanks iizrdbrth

 

[gfletcb]

Sounds like you've done everything by the book, but you may need to partially dismount, lube and reseat.



Lots of folks don't know about the balance dots. Next to the "G" in "Goldenboy" you'll find a dot imprinted with an "X". Most tires have it in one form or another. It belongs aligned with your valve stem. Since you aready know that, let me explain it for others who may not.



Tire manufacturers do a "static balance point" measurement when they build a new tire. They find the point where an unmounted tire weighs the least, and mark it with a dot. Sometimes it's cast into the sidewall, sometimes it's imprinted in yellow or red ink.



On motorcycles with spoked rims the heaviest part of the tube/rim assembly is at the valve stem, due to the weight of the stem, the stem nuts and the additional rubber in the tube near the valve stem area. Using the dots puts the heaviest part of the tire opposite the heaviest part of the tube/rim to help cancel out one another. If you align the dot with the valve stem you'll cut down on the weight needed to balance the assembly.



I wouldn't give it any more than 40 pounds, personally. You may want to try partially dismounting it, lubing it up and re-inflating. The Goldenboy has a nice "tell circle" to go by.

OK, my golden boy has a dot imprinted with an x on both sides of the word "golden boy", on both sides. And the 2 sides are marked in different places.. split the differences??



edit: after aimlessly adding weights and spinning the rim (which i found is easiest with rim upright squeezing the tire with your knees) I gave it some thought and took all weights off and checked after a quarter turn of the tire to see which location balanced best. after finding that, tinkered adding a few weights at a time (clamp on) on the light side. Looks like I reduced weight by approx 40% from what I started with, ending up in the 1-1 1/2 oz range. Im happy with that. I cant find any particular marking to designate light or heavy side on the tire with respect to where its at now.



Now onto changing out some speakers in my work ride!

 

[GlassAnkles]

i always use windex during tire installs, which is recommended by the pro MX guys, dries quickly so you can go out and ride without worrying about the tire slipping and cutting the valve stem off

 

[gfletcb]

i always use windex during tire installs, which is recommended by the pro MX guys, dries quickly so you can go out and ride without worrying about the tire slipping and cutting the valve stem off

I don't know about your Tdub, but mines not likely going to be slipping any tires due to throttle