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Front tire not seated properly.
- Thread starter Jim May
- Start date
Let the air out and blow it up again. You'll need more than the running pressure, probably up near 50 lbs. If it won't pop out you'll have to remove the wheel, let the air out, break the bead, lube it up real good, then air it up again. Again, you will probably need near 50 lbs.
The tire easily slipped off the bead with hand pressure EXCEPT at one point where it is too stiff to compress. The tire is also narrow at this point. I will try the lube and reseat in the AM with 50 psi+. But, I think I have a bad tire. It no miles on it, so it will go back and I'll be done with Dunlop. I will let you know how I make out. Thanks for the advice.
Yeah, all of that. Some manufacturers recommend a maximum pressure of 60 psi when seating a tire on the bead. Notice that molded line on the tire, right next to the rim, that molded line should be visible and equal distance from the rim all the way around the tire and on both sides of the tire. I use dish soap (Dawn) and water to lube the rim and the tire bead with a paint brush, not a lot, just enough to wet the surfaces, that soap and water dries to be like glue.
Scott
The bead line was under the edge of the rim. I didn't notice this when I balanced the tire, I should have because the tire took a lot or weight in just that spot. I've done a lot or tires and this one is something I've never seen before. Been reading a lot of reviews and Dunlop doesn't seem to be getting good marks from anyone. Thanks for the input.
The D404 is one tire with the Dunlop label but is made in Japan. I tried the D404's once and didn't like them. Have run the D401's on the '03 Harley since new and like them a lot. They are American made.
When you had the tire off, did you clean the wheel? Any crud on the wheel can keep the bead from seating. I give over my wheels with a wire brush in a drill to clean them. This gets the bits of stuck rubber and any rust/corrosion off.
Leo
When you had the tire off, did you clean the wheel? Any crud on the wheel can keep the bead from seating. I give over my wheels with a wire brush in a drill to clean them. This gets the bits of stuck rubber and any rust/corrosion off.
Leo
The bike is a 1980 XS650 with less than 2500 miles on it. It sat in a garage for all these years. The wheel needed a lot of polish and paint to being them back, but the interiors were like new. I am going to attempt to reseat the tire later today. At present, the excessive stiffness in the area that did not seat has me thinking that the tire is bad. I'll post what I find with the hope that it helps others who may find themselves in a similar situation. Thanks for the input.
Recently a Shinko 712 was doing the same. Several deflation/inflation cycles didn't fix it. Finale fix was using a tire iron to pull that spot out and up more then re-inflate.
Your suggestion appears to be working. The bead line that mrtwowheel mentions is now evenly, well almost, spaced around the rim of the wheel. I've got 60 psi in the tire and am going to let it stretch itself out for a day or two, then I'll drop the pressure to 20 psi, beat on the sidewall with my rubber mallet and re-inflate to 60 and see what it looks like. What a pita this is. Thought the ground up restoration was done! Oh, now I've got to get rid of the Reserve Lighting Unit. Fix seems to be easy. Thanks for the help.
My experience......That bead area has to be lubed on the tire and rim, inflated quickly before the water and soap lube dries. Yeah, bouncing the tire and beating with a rubber mallet will help. I set my compressor regulator to 60 psi and fill the tire as quickly as possible to keep that bead moving until it is in place. Once that bead quits moving it is hard to get it to start moving again. Maybe one out of five tires have to have the bead re-broken, re-lubed, to try again. Those damn wide rimmed Harley wheels do not let you see the molded line on the tire, never understood the reasoning in that design.
Scott
Scott
Good News is that the tire is taking proper shape. Should be OK in AM. Never had anything like this before and I grew up in a garage! As for why Harley does stuff, well to look good of course. Function has always been in second place at the Motor Company.
When I had trouble like this it was mid summer so I left the tire in the sun until it got hot. Had to splash the water/detergent on and pump up quickly before it dried - but it worked. Got a warm place to keep it for a few hours? Wrapped in an electric blanket maybe?
T
That's a great point, I've had problem tires that were cold, a while in the sun before dismounting or mounting a tire can make a world of difference.
Scott
That's a great point, I've had problem tires that were cold, a while in the sun before dismounting or mounting a tire can make a world of difference.
Scott
The tire was at about 99% true to round when I last checked it. 60 psi appears to be a good influence. The tire will have a few more days while I wait for more parts. The safety relay is bad, got to order one of those and the headlight doesn't want to function, even after eliminating the other needless headlight 'safety' relay. The bike sat for 20 years and time took its toll. Thanks to all who have helped with this issue and the carb problems. I'm sure I'll be back asking more questions about the over-complicated electrical processes this bike was 'graced' with.
