In the aftermath of my trip into Devil's Fork and the subsequent crash, something has been amiss with my rear tire. Albeit, today was the first day I rode it on the asphalt since the day of my crash so I haven't much opportunity to get used to it again.

Here is the condition of the rear tire. It is an 8 year old Metzler ME880 140/80-15 (date code 5007). It has a reasonable amount of tread left on it. It is a relatively flat tire, both from wear and profile design. Compared to a new Metzler I felt at a shop, the rubber is much softer than mine.

It is also worthy to note that the left hand peg is broken off with a ring that slides back and forth on a stub. I am sure that does not help handling very much  .

I am not sure whether it is an underlying mechanical problem, old rubber, broken peg-- Or, simply that it is all in my head , but this rear tire feels like it has a mind of its own. I believe the tire pressure was slightly under or around 30 lb in both front and rear. The ride was softer, but the handling slow and mushy. I then brought them to about 36 rear, 32 front, and then it seemed better, quicker, more confidence inspiring. However, there was still something nagging me. That rear tire just doesn't feel secure. Can't trust it. Feels like it has a mind of its own; unstable. Maybe I'm just scared of it, and its all in my head. It does remind me of how that 83 Shadow felt when the PO took me for a ride on the back, and that tire was bald and low on air, I believe. Kinda felt like the rear was sliding out, but it wasn't. The feeling is not exactly the same but very similar.
For example, after turning onto my driveway, (on wet gravel/leaves, whatever), the rear slid out. I could say, "Well, I just hit a slick spot," but I'm not so sure. I get the feeling that the rear is wanting to go sideways. When I lean, the handling gets funny. I suspect that due to possible chicken strips forming.

Could the wheel be loose or something? Frame? Suspension? Anything but the rubber? I noticed that the crash caused some new belt squeaking. Misalignment? Not saying that the belt was centered beforehand, but it may be rubbing the pulley side now, causing the squeak. The swing arm marks are approximately the same on both sides.

Do tires just suddenly decide they hate you, or is this something that I just didn't notice? I've put 1000 miles on that old tire since I bought it.

Or Maybe that tire's haunted by the Devil

BWAHAHAHAHA!

JOG, did you find that the slick, hard rears felt weird and unstable?

justin_o_guy2 wrote on 12/06/15 at 16:01:46:


Can you find me some of these statistics?
Everyone has been encouraging me to do some dirt riding. I might just give it a try. What kind of dirt riding do you recommend? Flat, fast, and slick, or rough, steep, and slow? I may have more opportunities with the latter.

cheapnewb24 wrote on 12/06/15 at 16:04:23:



Just grabbed mine. Doesn't feel weird or unstable. Wait, were you talking about tires?

A touring tire is Gonna be harder than the average tire. I had two , off brand, name escapes me, first one was like an octopus, sucking down to the road, got about 3,500 out of it, cheap tire, and I went to get another,, same price, Way different performance. It felt squirrelly, and lasted about 5,000 ,  okay, I went to Dunlop, and stayed with it,
Consistent, dependable performance. I had to wire the peg rubber on a peg, because I had worn it through, the bike Will lay down in a corner. I've been in literal pain from the peg crushing my foot between the peg and bike. Get a Real tire. And have fun.

justin_o_guy2 wrote on 12/06/15 at 16:01:46:



Awwww! Now you make me want to keep that tire

By the way, can lacking a good footpeg cause instability?

You need to check the bike from top to bottom.
the front forks maybe bent or simply out of alignment.
maybe your rear axle isn't tight and against the stops.

but most likely, you've damaged the tire with the low pressure.

Check out the spokes, look at the rim. Look at the tire / rim and see if the tire is beaded the same all around, both sides.