Oh NO! Another tire thread?

[missouriboy]

Well, here I am about 80 miles shy of 17K on the Kenda. You can see the wear bar at lower left, but the center is pretty well shot. Still, lotsa miles for a Kenda, right?


So I'm looking over my new General Altamax (thanx Mike & Deanna!) for the wear bars, and the little triangles pointing to them, and... What? There are none! Perhaps many people are aware of this new wear indication technique, but for those who are not (like me) I'm posting what I found instead:

In three places around the tire, on the center tread rib, see the rain-sipe markings that spell REPLACEMENT TIRE MONITOR? I stuck a toothpick in and found them to be quite deep, so run the tire as long as you can read the words, then replace. HAH! That's a new one on me!


(My first attempt at pictures... I hope this works.)

[Bob Denman]

Your pictures look GREAT!
There's no doubt that the manufacturers can do what they want, with their wear indicators; This is the first that I've seen how General handles the chore...


...and I LIKE it!

[Grandpot]

Wow! I thought I was old enough to have seen everything. I guess I still need to live longer. Very interesting, thanks.

[IdahoMtnSpyder]

Apparently they've been doing it for awhile now. Here's a 2011 video showing it. When the tire wears down the words "Replace tire" will show up.



http://www.conti-online.com/generato...ax_hp/rtm.html

[BLUEKNIGHT911]

I knew I recommended this tire for other reasons besides it's the probably the BEST all-around rear Spyder tire currently available ..............enjoy.......Mike

[Chupaca]

I've been posting the triangle markings for a couple of years now hopping to help get more miles for many folks... But hey...

I have one of those...
marking on the Kenda
Marking on the arachnid Vee Rubber....

[missouriboy]

So I got the Altimax mounted yesterday (Gaack! The stealership charged me 2 hours labor instead of just one, like last time!) and it sure makes a difference in ride & handling. I knew it would smooth out the little bumps better, like any new tire does. But the surprise is the difference in tracking: it stays straighter without constant correction, plus steering response is quicker than before, i.e., the vehicle starts turning sooner after moving the handlebars, than before. I never thought a rear tire could have this effect, but it did! It's only a split-second difference, but it's still quite noticeable, and requires adjustment in driving habits.

The slightly larger diameter does make the speedometer more accurate, too. It's only 0-1 mph faster than the GPS, whereas before it was 1-2, mostly 2, mph faster.

I think I can start worrying a little less about wheel-slip on take-off, too. This tire really grabs the pavement.

$? The cost per mile should be only 20-25 percent as much as the Kenda: twice the distance (hopefully at least 34K miles?) for less than half the cost of the OEM tire. $91.11 (delivered) vs $205.62 Kenda price.

And yes, I tried to order from Discount Tire but they refused to sell, so I switched to Tire Rack. No Problem.

Thanx for the comments, everyone.

[Bob Denman]

How much air are you running in it?
(Just curious! )

[missouriboy]

The service tech had her up to 31 lbs. so I let 'er down to 27.5. I just rode (ryded?) another 70 myles and it seemed fine. I recall our resident experts said 26 lbs. But we ryde 2-up a lot, so...

I'm still grinnin'...

[Deanna777]

I am running 26 psi on the rear tire( General Altimax RT 43). This is my 2nd motorcycle riding season with the General, and the tire still has a lot of thread left.
Deanna

[irvin48]

and what size is this? too lazy to look it up.need to get one and put it away.
have a set of frt kendas on the black rims i can take off when needed. that
ought to make it till im too old to ride.

[ARtraveler]

You did real good. I just replaced tire #2 on my 2014. Got a little less than 14K on mine before it was "toast." Got 9K (different compound) the first time around.

No option to use aftermarket tires. My dealer refuses so I am stuck with Kenda.

[Deanna777]

and what size is this? too lazy to look it up.need to get one and put it away.
have a set of frt kendas on the black rims i can take off when needed. that
ought to make it till im too old to ride.

The size that I am running on the rear is: 215/60 R15 in The General Altimax RT 43.
Deanna

[irvin48]

-says diameter of 25.2" and fits 6.5-7.5 wide wheel . how wide is the rear wheel?
i have bought from a place called tirebuyer.com. good prices. beats the heck out of
my mechanic friend , even at cost. whats the dia. of the kenda?-- irv

[Semper Fi]

I have been trying to read every tire thread I can find, that is not as easy as it may sound. I have found the new Kenda tire is Vee Rubber. From what I have read on here, it seems to be a good tire. I have found one for around $130. I also found another tire for around $80. It is a Kumho Ecsta AST. Does anyone have a comment about these tires? I tried to get the Spyder inspected last month and, they wouldn't do it because the tire was worn to the indicators. The Spyder has about 9000 miles on it. I was going to replace the tire next year but, I guess I have to do it now.

[007james]

I just mounted my 2nd Kuhmo. The 1st one got just short of 15,000 miles, as compared to my 2 Kendas that got 8300 each. You have to buy the Kuhmo from eBay. Discount Tire Direct Will interigate you to death and shake you down, makng you feel like a criminal, if you try to buy direct.

I have been trying to read every tire thread I can find, that is not as easy as it may sound. I have found the new Kenda tire is Vee Rubber. From what I have read on here, it seems to be a good tire. I have found one for around $130. I also found another tire for around $80. It is a Kumho Ecsta AST. Does anyone have a comment about these tires? I tried to get the Spyder inspected last month and, they wouldn't do it because the tire was worn to the indicators. The Spyder has about 9000 miles on it. I was going to replace the tire next year but, I guess I have to do it now.

[Bfromla]

Still amazing how tires last FOREVER in landfill but cant get a quality one mor than 2 yr on just about ANY THING¿! [emoji12]


I wasn't there but I still care! POW /MIA VETS

[Bob Denman]

You have to buy the Kuhmo from eBay. Discount Tire Direct Will interigate you to death and shake you down, makng you feel like a criminal, if you try to buy direct.

Well that cinches it: I'm calling them for my next Kumho! I just LOVE a challenge!!!
I figure that I just need one tire, for the custom unicycle that I'm building!

[Peter Aawen]

.......need to get one and put it away......

This might not be such a great idea!! Tires have a shelf life of a maximum of about 5 years, even if you never put it on a vehicle! And the shelf life is shortened if the tire is not stored properly in a 'stable' environment with the ambient temp that remains within a certain range, has no exposure to direct light, little 'moving air' or breezes, & even has the right sort of shelving so the tire can sit on it the right way!!

All tires are made of several layers (or belts/bands) of various rubber compounds that each 'breathe' over time, & once some of those layers have lost a certain amount of the air-dispensable compounds that start getting lost to the atmosphere from the moment the tire first leaves the mould, the belts of rubber compound that are left behind are a whole different deal to what the tire was designed to run on or what it even needs to work safely on the road; they go hard, lose the ability to provide traction, crack when the tire flexes, won't hold air, & become far more prone to sudden & catastrophic blow-outs & punctures!!

How many miles do you do on your Spyder each year?? And how many miles do you expect to get out of your 'current' tire??? Cos if you expect say 15,000 out of the current tire, & you aren't doing more than about 5,000 miles a year, then any tire you buy now to put away for when you need it is likely to be dangerously close to it's 'use before' date when you get around to using it, what with the 'less than optimal' storage conditions in your shed!! Sure, if you are going to put a new tire on next riding season, then you might be OK buying it now & storing it for a short while; but if you're not going to mount & use that tire within about 12 months, storing it at home isn't going to be such a smart idea & you may well be setting yourself up to make your riding far more dangerous than you'd ever believe or even dream!!

Just sayin'

[Semper Fi]

I just mounted my 2nd Kuhmo. The 1st one got just short of 15,000 miles, as compared to my 2 Kendas that got 8300 each. You have to buy the Kuhmo from eBay. Discount Tire Direct Will interigate you to death and shake you down, makng you feel like a criminal, if you try to buy direct.

are you saying that, you have the Kuhmo Ecsta AST? If so, I will be buying one today.

[missouriboy]

I have been trying to read every tire thread I can find, that is not as easy as it may sound. I have found the new Kenda tire is Vee Rubber. From what I have read on here, it seems to be a good tire. I have found one for around $130. I also found another tire for around $80. It is a Kumho Ecsta AST. Does anyone have a comment about these tires? I tried to get the Spyder inspected last month and, they wouldn't do it because the tire was worn to the indicators. The Spyder has about 9000 miles on it. I was going to replace the tire next year but, I guess I have to do it now.

Note the signature on my posts for a Kumho clue. Mine had 18,400 miles at trade-in, and while I didn't measure the tread, I'd estimate it was no more than half worn out. If you can still get one, that's great. I've had both and so far I like the General Altimax even better.

Note about the increased diameter: the General is fine on the RT because there is no tight fender clearance like the RS. So RS owners, be vigilant about this. I do not know about this question.

[Semper Fi]

Note the signature on my posts for a Kumho clue. Mine had 18,400 miles at trade-in, and while I didn't measure the tread, I'd estimate it was no more than half worn out. If you can still get one, that's great. I've had both and so far I like the General Altimax even better.

Note about the increased diameter: the General is fine on the RT because there is no tight fender clearance like the RS. So RS owners, be vigilant about this. I do not know about this question.

I am sorry about that. I didn't notice what your signature said. Thanks. I am going to buy one today and give it a shot!

[missouriboy]

On 4/26/17 the new Altimax tire reached 17,000 miles, catching up with the retirement age of the Kenda. Let's see how it looks...

I had a tire professional measure the tread and he came up with 65% tread still remaining... That's only 1/3 worn out! When the Kenda was shot.

[OkieDoc]

I just mounted my 2nd Kuhmo. The 1st one got just short of 15,000 miles, as compared to my 2 Kendas that got 8300 each. You have to buy the Kuhmo from eBay. Discount Tire Direct Will interigate you to death and shake you down, makng you feel like a criminal, if you try to buy direct.

Tire Rack started asking questions one time when I ordered just one tire, I told them it was for a '59 Rambler that needed a road hazard damaged tire replaced. A plausible story and It was too old for them to look up anything about it.

[missouriboy]

I bet most people haven't seen the reason I retrieved this old thread... It's my new Post #25, which is the last post on Page 1, with pictures of the new Altimax tire at 17K miles, showing only 1/3 treadwear. Amazing difference from a Kenda!