I bought an '11 FLSTC about a year ago that had the original tires on the bike. The bike only had about 1,100 miles on it when I got it, so it wasn't even broken in. Only has about 2,500 on it now, so still not really checked out.
But this weekend when I was checking the tire pressure, I found a small self-tapping or sheet metal screw in the front tire. The screw was just right of center in-bedded in one of the "lugs" or thick part of the tread. It measured under 1/2" probably somewhere around 5/16" long.
When I pulled the screw out, it put a soap bubble over the hole to see if and how badly the air was leaking out. This was inconclusive. If there is a leak, it is VERY slow. While watching it, the bubble did not inflate, but eventually did "pop". I wasn't sure if this was just normal release of the soap bubble surface tension, or because there is a slow leak. Repeated this a few times but could not tell why the bubble was popping. Seemed to take several minutes.
But I am nervous about running a front tire with a suspected problem that could lead to a catastrophic failure. If is had been the rear tire, I might have chanced it. But with the front, no.
So I ordered some new Pirelli Night Dragons from the Motorcycle Superstore in the sizes for front and rear. When they get here, I will take the wheels up to Cycle Gear for mounting and balance. I had these on my Ultra, and was evaluating their ride and durability. Will report back on how they do on the Heritage Classic.
Cheers,
TQ
But this weekend when I was checking the tire pressure, I found a small self-tapping or sheet metal screw in the front tire. The screw was just right of center in-bedded in one of the "lugs" or thick part of the tread. It measured under 1/2" probably somewhere around 5/16" long.
When I pulled the screw out, it put a soap bubble over the hole to see if and how badly the air was leaking out. This was inconclusive. If there is a leak, it is VERY slow. While watching it, the bubble did not inflate, but eventually did "pop". I wasn't sure if this was just normal release of the soap bubble surface tension, or because there is a slow leak. Repeated this a few times but could not tell why the bubble was popping. Seemed to take several minutes.
But I am nervous about running a front tire with a suspected problem that could lead to a catastrophic failure. If is had been the rear tire, I might have chanced it. But with the front, no.
So I ordered some new Pirelli Night Dragons from the Motorcycle Superstore in the sizes for front and rear. When they get here, I will take the wheels up to Cycle Gear for mounting and balance. I had these on my Ultra, and was evaluating their ride and durability. Will report back on how they do on the Heritage Classic.
Cheers,
TQ