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Oddball tire wear

Old 02-05-23, 12:07 AM
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suncruiser
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Oddball tire wear

Would anyone here be able to tell me why a set of tires is wearing oddly uneven? Set of Schwalbe Fat Frank's on an Electra Townie Go (my wife's machine)

Center rib has normal wear, but the 2 ribs of tread next to it are virtually untouched, when the next to ribs after them are heavily worn. Definitely more prominent on the rear, but the front shows evidence of the same. Tires are aired to 55 rear, 50 front. Oddball tread wear circled in picture.
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Old 02-05-23, 05:40 PM
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My guess is that it is due to cornering. Waiting for a more knowledgeable opinion.
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Old 02-05-23, 06:49 PM
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don't which side is the one that is wearing but my suspicion is that the side with the wear is probably the non drive train side...
I know we have roads here that tend to be higher towards the middle and lower toward the edge to facilitate water runoff...
I wonder if the air in the tires are recommended psi? maybe because the tire is low, it could cause uneven tire wear that way also.
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Old 02-05-23, 06:50 PM
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It might be the tire tread design where the second row is recessed, but it is very odd that the third row has so much wear at that tire pressure. It would take a lot of hard cornering to produce that sort of wear. unless the tire was under inflated for a long period of time. That's my best guess.
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Old 02-06-23, 01:55 AM
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It’s just the oval of the contact patch on the ground.

The section with the ribs worn down more is the part that’s pressed into the ground harder or longer or both.

That’s also why it’s more pronounced on the rear.

It’s nothing to be concerned about.
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Old 02-06-23, 09:48 AM
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The crown of the road could explain that wear pattern.
Especially if you ride a lot of chip and oil, rural roads that tend to have a greater pitch to the crown.

---Maybe you can find somebody in England (They ride on the left side of the road.) and trade tires (Tyres) with them every 500 miles.
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Old 02-06-23, 04:37 PM
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Haha it's both sides that do it, my potato of a phone didn't capture both sides. I was leaning toward tire pressure, but it still doesn't make sense. I ran these tires before on my cruiser (hence the name) and they always wore even. Also wondering if the length of the bike might play into it. The Townie Go is a limo of a bike.
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Old 02-07-23, 09:38 AM
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Could be gremlins. Does your bike have a bell? Or maybe your toe position on the pedals is off <--- that's all a joke
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