Front End Bounce after Tire Replacement.

[Eclite331]

Hi, All!

So I recently had Shinko 241's installed on my 2023 Trail 125. I took the stock wheels off and took them to a local motorcycle shop to have them installed. I reinstalled the wheels and new tires. I now have a what I can only describe as a bounce in the front end. At first I thought it was a wobble, but it actually feels like a bounce. It's not unrideable but it is very noticeable. To the point that it makes the ride a bit uncomfortable. Can anyone give me an idea as to where to start to figure it out? I admittedly do not know a ton about motorcycles. I didnt expect the feel of the Shinkos to be as smooth as stock, however, if this is the ride that i have to live with now, I may sacrifice the off road grip of the Shinkos for the smoothness of the stock tires. Please help!

 

[m in sc]

they didn't balance it or its not seated on the rim correctly, or both. have them check both, they fucked up.

 

[Eclite331]

they didn't balance it or its not seated on the rim correctly, or both. have them check both, they fucked up.

Thanks for the response. He told me when I picked them up that theres really no way to balance them.

 

[m in sc]

not true. spoke weights,minimally. find a different shop. that one obviously sucks or just doesn't care or are lazy. I went thu similar getting my trailer tires balanced. they didn't know why i would want them to be balanced... , they are rated for 80+ mph... why wouldn't you balance them for hwy use?

 

[CaliPrisoner]

Visually inspect to see if the bead is properly seated on both sides of the tire/rim. This is where the problem is at

 

[dmonkey]

They might have a tire balancing machine or wheel stand that they're used to and it just isn't equipped for the small axle of the CT125. Sounds lazy to me, too. Here's a post from @SneakyDingo showing how you can DIY a visual truing stand with zip ties to inspect the lip of the rim and where the tire seats: https://hondatrail125.com/index.php?threads/tire-issue.742/#post-7384

Tires can also be defective. It's not common, but it happens.

 

[m in sc]

he said they told him 'no way to balance them'. huge red flag there about the shop itself, no ifs and or buts.

 

[dmonkey]

Plenty of competent mechanics who wish they could fire their incompetent service writer, lol. Wouldn't rule that out as a miscommunication.

 

[m in sc]

plenty of incompetent mechanics, trust me on this one, ive cleaned up after many of them. its dumb either way and IMHO that shop should be avoided.

 

[Salty Sway]

I agree with others, make sure the bead is set. I mount & balance tires on all of our motorcycles, ran into a challenge with the Trail and how small the axle is and my balancer. Sometimes it's challenging to see if the bead is fully seated, if you have an air compressor put the bike on the center stand and let all of the air out of the tire, you'll be able to see if the bead is not fully seated. Also, you can add Counteract Balance Beads, one of our vehicles and the motorcycle trailer have them and work well.

 

[Salty Sway]

BTW - many people will take a firm stand against balance beads others find them to work well. They also sell tubes with the beads installed.

 

[Eclite331]

Thanks everyone! I took the tire off and let out all the air. I bounced it around a little and then overinflated it. It’s not near as bad as it was. I think the bead was off. I couldn’t tell from looking at it though. It looked fine.

 

[Salty Sway]

To help seat the bead you can deflate, use tire lube or dishwashing soap mixed with water, spray between the tire bead and rim then inflate. Sometimes the lubrication will help seat the bead.

Or there's this

<iframe width="1280" height="720" src="

" title="How to seat tire beads with Ether" frameborder="0" allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share" allowfullscreen></iframe>

 

[dmonkey]

Inflating the inner tube will seat the bead, no reason to use fire.

 

[m in sc]

i use windex TBH. i've never used fire but its fun to watch.

 

[oldskool]

And all this time a piece of rope and a lever of some kind has worked seating beads on those small tires. Just wrap a rope around the tread, put a stick or screwdriver in a bite, tighten it kinda like a Spanish windless until the bead is forced to seat. Give it a shot of air and then remove the rigging before bringing up to full pressure. Granted not as fun as the fire method but it does work with no drama.

 

[Eclite331]

Thanks everyone! I called the shop and the guy told me to bring it back in. Turns out he CAN balance it, he just has to do it the "old fashioned way", whatever that means. He said the tire is too small for his machine. Ill update when he completes it.

 

[bryanchurch06]

I've changed all my tires from the beginning with this bike, both tubed and tubeless conversion. Imho to set the bead properly either tubeless or tubes remove the valve stem and inflate over the recommend tire pressure. If the recommend pressure is 33psi I set the bead at least 40 to 45 psi and immediately remove the air, install the valve stem and inflate to max 33psi leave overnight if possible, check for leaks and install the tire on the bike. Using that method I've never had tire slipping on the rim or bead issues. Also use a quality tire paste if possible. To be perfectly clear only use over inflation with valve stem removed and only to set bead, immediately release pressure after bead is set or if you notice distortion of tire while inflating. I've routinely inflated stock tires to 45psi with no issues and no balance issues. It just my opinion but I believe most tire issues after installing come from not using enough psi to properly mate the tire to the rim.

 

[m in sc]

agreed. i usually set my street bike tires (tubed and non) to about 50-55 psi and let em sit. (if i have to reseat bead or god forbid actually mount one). no, its not dangerous... unless you ride it at that high a pressure. i set it exactly to 50 or 55psi and check the pressure in an hour if it holds, good to go. set to desired and have at it.

 

[eastema]

I do my own tires and have had to go several tries to get the bead seated evenly on the Trail. On the first go, I had the hop the first gent spoke of. It was a challenge to get it seated evenly.