Tires General Altimax Opservation

[Beaudog]

The rear tire on my ST limited had bare spots at 7000 miles. The local shop Sierra Cycles Sieraa Vista Az keeps the General Altimax in stock and will mount them so I went that way.

The first ride with the Altimax the bike felt squirrely and was reacting to small road variations. cracks, tar strips and crown. I checked the pressure and the shop had aired it to 28 psi. I dropped it down to 24 for the next ride and all was back to normal. So the tire definitely needs to be run at lower pressure than BRM recommends for the Kenda. I will probably try 22 for the next ride.

Once the pressure was down I realy could not tell any difference in ride than the Kenda but hopefully it will go more than 7000 miles.

The Altimax did take 1 mph error out o the speedometer. The Kenda always had the speed 2 mph fast compared to my gps. The General moved that to 1 mph difference.

[BLUEKNIGHT911]

The rear tire on my ST limited had bare spots at 7000 miles. The local shop Sierra Cycles Sieraa Vista Az keeps the General Altimax in stock and will mount them so I went that way.

The first ride with the Altimax the bike felt squirrely and was reacting to small road variations. cracks, tar strips and crown. I checked the pressure and the shop had aired it to 28 psi. I dropped it down to 24 for the next ride and all was back to normal. So the tire definitely needs to be run at lower pressure than BRM recommends for the Kenda. I will probably try 22 for the next ride.

Once the pressure was down I realy could not tell any difference in ride than the Kenda but hopefully it will go more than 7000 miles.

The Altimax did take 1 mph error out o the speedometer. The Kenda always had the speed 2 mph fast compared to my gps. The General moved that to 1 mph difference.

This is a subject I've actually had schooling / training in ..... forget 24 or 22 psi ..... 17 to 18 psi is all that or any car tire needs to perform at it's best ........ I've said this a few DOZEN times on this Forum ...somehow you missed it ... Mike

[Beaudog]

OOOOKeeee I am leary but I will try 20 for next ride and see. If all goes well I will go lower. It seems like I am going to get side wall flexing/roll over at those pressures.

[RapidSpyder]

OOOOKeeee I am leary but I will try 20 for next ride and see. If all goes well I will go lower. It seems like I am going to get side wall flexing/roll over at those pressures.

keep us posted. I will probably go this route too when it comes time to replace the tire

[Beaudog]

OK I dropped it 20 today probably will not ride again untill Tuesday. One of the problems about arguing about tire pressure at these pressures is gauge accuracy. Is my gauge reading the same as yours? if not how off are we? I got at least 4 gauges and don't think any of then read the same.

I am currently using a TireTek that is supposed to be +/- 2% but who knows. Like this.Capture.jpg

[2dogs]

To find out that there's a CAN AM dealer out there who caries something other than OEM tires, let alone, even mount them for you is shocking. Unbelievable, this dealer should get a 5 star rating. I wonder just what BRP thinks about that?

[cyclekid58]

I have the general Altimax RT-43 on the rear of my RTs, at 201bs pressure it still didn't feel right. I dropped it to 18psi cold and it did make a big difference. Just had the same tire put on my wifes 2014 RT-s, dealer set pressure at 29psi, was squirrly all the way home, I dopped it to 20psi and had her try it, still didn't like it so dropped to 18psi, made a big difference. We set the factory front kendas to 18psi as well. Next year they will get changed out to Federal Formoza AZ01, I run the federal evo 595 at 17psi and rides like on railes, corners extremely well.

[AeroPilot]

Usually you get a warning about new tires especially on a motorcycle to take it easy until the "release agents from the tread molds" get wore off and you can get rubber to the road.

Lower tire pressures would allow the tire to warm up and probably hasten this scrub in time.

Glad to hear about another dealer that is offering choices of tires. Currently the wifes F3T has almost 22,000 on her last General running 23 psi and ready for another one.

My 15 RT only has about 10,000 on its General RT43 running 28 psi and both tires seem to have even wear, although I haven't measured them to TeninoSpyders detail

[BoilerAnimal]

We have a Yokohama Avid Touring S rear tire and run it at 18-19 PSI. It's fantastic. Listen to Mike and try 18 PSI. I think you'll like it too!

[Docster]

OOOOKeeee I am leary but I will try 20 for next ride and see. If all goes well I will go lower. It seems like I am going to get side wall flexing/roll over at those pressures.

OK, then invest a little time to peruse some of the dozens of car tire threads already on the forum. You'll get avoid idea of`

--the rationale for using car tires
--how many folks maintain them
--many opinions of correct pressures and some actual data and science expressed by those who may know what they're talking about

[missouriboy]

Unless you're loaded extremely heavy you should do fine with 17-18 PSI in your Altimax. You want the sidewall to bulge just a little.

And for a mileage comparison with the Kenda, check out my signature below.

[gerald37]

I have always run 28 PSI in mind. I now have 9,500 miles on mind with no problems. My weight is 155 lbs.

[BLUEKNIGHT911]

I have always run 28 PSI in mind. I now have 9,500 miles on mind with no problems. My weight is 155 lbs.

This psi will work & you could also run it at 44psi .............. But the real answer is - the Optimum psi for a Car tire on the rear of a Spyder is approx. 18 psi ...... this is tire Science no BUTT theory .....Analogy: you can cut meat with a dull knife but a Sharp one is better...................Mike

[als]

This psi will work & you could also run it at 44psi .............. But the real answer is - the Optimum psi for a Car tire on the rear of a Spyder is approx. 18 psi ...... this is tire Science no BUTT theory .....Analogy: you can cut meat with a dull knife but a Sharp one is better...................Mike

Mike,
This is not a challenge or trying to start an argument.
I am curious as to the "tire science" proof.
I am open to reliable information concerning the proper PSI for my F3 rear car tire.
Thank you for your time and information,
als

[gerald37]

This psi will work & you could also run it at 44psi .............. But the real answer is - the Optimum psi for a Car tire on the rear of a Spyder is approx. 18 psi ...... this is tire Science no BUTT theory .....Analogy: you can cut meat with a dull knife but a Sharp one is better...................Mike

I did not claim to be right. I just had no idea what should be right. I will try 18 psi and see if I see a difference. Thanks for the information.

[Easy Rider]

.. 17 to 18 psi is all that or any car tire needs to perform at it's best ........ I've said this a few DOZEN times on this Forum ...somehow you missed it ... Mike

And some of us continue to "correct" your blanket statement by saying that all "car tires" are not identical and that they ALL may not actually conform to your assessment of what is the ideal.

And we also say: Every vehicle and tire maker in the world cautions against running pressures that are too low. So.....if you want to do that, you should weigh the load on the tire and contact the tire maker for recommendations for that particular model.

If and when you provide information indicating that you have actually done that, maybe your information will be a bit more useful.
Without that, your posts are just another self-appointed Internet expert giving out one man's opinion.

[BLUEKNIGHT911]

And some of us continue to "correct" your blanket statement by saying that all "car tires" are not identical and that they ALL may not actually conform to your assessment of what is the ideal.

And we also say: Every vehicle and tire maker in the world cautions against running pressures that are too low. So.....if you want to do that, you should weigh the load on the tire and contact the tire maker for recommendations for that particular model.

If and when you provide information indicating that you have actually done that, maybe your information will be a bit more useful.
Without that, your posts are just another self-appointed Internet expert giving out one man's opinion.

When I stroll through the forest ....I never argue with TREE's ....... So I won't bother doing it here and now ...I have better things to do .........Mike

[BLUEKNIGHT911]

I did not claim to be right. I just had no idea what should be right. I will try 18 psi and see if I see a difference. Thanks for the information.

Re-read my post - I DIDN'T CLAIM YOU WERE WRONG ..... just mis-guided ..... So I tried to HELP you ....believe whatever you want........Mike

[BLUEKNIGHT911]

Mike,
This is not a challenge or trying to start an argument.
I am curious as to the "tire science" proof.
I am open to reliable information concerning the proper PSI for my F3 rear car tire.
Thank you for your time and information,
als

" Tire science proof " - Peter Aawen and I have posted thousands of words on this subject. I'm sorry but I don't have a couple of days to RE-TYPE all that info.....It's all been said at least a couple of times ...... The info is still here, try search or go to Peter's Threads / posts and read the ones that apply ...... I can only use TWO fingers and I still make lots of typo's, so it takes me a long time to post a lot of verbiage ........ Mike

[Beaudog]

Ok I did not mean to start a tire war here. My statement was that 28 psi in an Altimax was too high. 24 was better 20 or 18 may be even better I have not tried them yet.
Now arguing 2 psi tire changes without everyone using a calibrated gauge is an exercise in futility. The gauge I use is certified to ANSI B40.1 Grade B that standard ± 2% from 25% to 75% of scale. +/- 1.2 psi.

That is the highest standard normally used. The next grade is Grade A. Grade A gauges are too expensive for normal users. They generally run $200 plus. NASCAR gauges run in the $400 range.

Now if you are using one of those $1.98 pencil gauges or even a digital one you got of the bargain bin at the auto store. If it ain’t calibrated you have no idea what your pressure really is. If I say the correct pressure is 20 psi and 5 of us air our tires me using my certified gauge and 4 using unknowns. The chances of any of them being exactly 20 psi are almost nil. Mine could be 19 or 21. The unknowns might be anywhere from 30 to 10, who knows. The key thing here is if your spyder feels squirrely and is tracking road irregularities you should probably try reducing pressure.

[Navydad]

I have the Altimax on rear and Federal Formosa's on front. 95% of my riding is two up and our combined weight is near 350. When we travel you can add about 60 pounds to that 350. I run the Altimax at 19 PSI and the Federals at 16 PSI. I currently have 15,000 miles on this combination and will get a lot more before a change is needed. As far as handling is concerned, our bike handles just fine thank you and I tend to push hard in the southeastern Ohio and West Virginia hills. Nanny and I meet quite often on every ride. Not trying to tell you or anyone else what pressures or tires to run because frankly I couldn't care less. Life's too short. I'm just giving you my insight with the Altimax and what works for me. I hope these numbers will help you decide what is best for you. Like many things, play with it a bit and you will find a spot that you like

[BLUEKNIGHT911]

I have the Altimax on rear and Federal Formosa's on front. 95% of my riding is two up and our combined weight is near 350. When we travel you can add about 60 pounds to that 350. I run the Altimax at 19 PSI and the Federals at 16 PSI. I currently have 15,000 miles on this combination and will get a lot more before a change is needed. As far as handling is concerned, our bike handles just fine thank you and I tend to push hard in the southeastern Ohio and West Virginia hills. Nanny and I meet quite often on every ride. Not trying to tell you or anyone else what pressures or tires to run because frankly I couldn't care less. Life's too short. I'm just giving you my insight with the Altimax and what works for me. I hope these numbers will help you decide what is best for you. Like many things, play with it a bit and you will find a spot that you like

Thank you for the feedback, I personally feel the same way ..... You are proving that SCIENCE - beats " Butt Theory " All the time ....Mike

[Fatcycledaddy]

I have the General Ultimax on mine, I run 16 PSI when just me and the wife is on it, and when fully loaded for a trip and towing the camper, I up it to 18 - 20 PSI.
I watch the 4 pound rule and adjust the pressure to the lowest I can get and still stay in those tolerances.
Love the ride, handling, and traction on both wet and dry surfaces.

[robhowen]

I too work with Sierra Cycles and now run a General Altimax on the rear as well. You are correct as your ride is much better at 24 psi. I found I began to loose gas mileage below 20 psi so I am keeping mine in the 22-24 range and very happy. I'm also running Continentals on the front and really happy with them in the 13-14 psi range.

Rob

The rear tire on my ST limited had bare spots at 7000 miles. The local shop Sierra Cycles Sieraa Vista Az keeps the General Altimax in stock and will mount them so I went that way.

The first ride with the Altimax the bike felt squirrely and was reacting to small road variations. cracks, tar strips and crown. I checked the pressure and the shop had aired it to 28 psi. I dropped it down to 24 for the next ride and all was back to normal. So the tire definitely needs to be run at lower pressure than BRM recommends for the Kenda. I will probably try 22 for the next ride.

Once the pressure was down I realy could not tell any difference in ride than the Kenda but hopefully it will go more than 7000 miles.

The Altimax did take 1 mph error out o the speedometer. The Kenda always had the speed 2 mph fast compared to my gps. The General moved that to 1 mph difference.

[BLUEKNIGHT911]

I run the General Altimax RT 43 on the rear of the spyder( 2014RTS-SE6) and I run @ 28psi. No problems.

I also run the Continentals Contiprocontact's on the front @ 19PSI.

Deanna

.... You have previously stated ( many ,many times ) that you put 26psi in the rear ..... why have you added TWO more lbs. ??????? ........ Has there been a change in the Science ......Mike