Uneven tire wear

[Jeff P]

Ok not sure if this is a complete newbie question or not, but it's bugging me so I'll ask it anyway.  Is it normal for a front tire to have more wear on one side than the other?  In my bike's case the left side of the front tire (if you're sitting on it) is noticeably more worn than the left.  Could my bike be somehow misaligned?  Or is it just a result of the crown in the road causing the bike to ride on that part of the tire more?  Any ideas?  btw I bought the bike last spring, put a new rear on it right away, and had a trouble-free summer and fall.

jeff

[Briggs]

That sounds really strange. It might mean you make 10 times more left turns or when the tire was made somehow the left side of the tire go softer mixture of rubber, but I highly dought that. Usually the only problem people have with tire wear, is getting a flat spot in the middle from riding strait alot.

[JamesG]

its because of the camber of the road.

[Cal Price]

JamesG, I don't doubt you for a moment, it makes sense but your roads must camber more than ours, I've just been out of the office into the parking area looking for the reverse (driving on the other side of the road) and I can't see any signs of it.

[Rema1000]

Is it possible that you only lean into turns when turning left?

When riding in residential streets, I can't take the right-hand turns too fast and still hold a tight line, but I can lean into the left turns at a nice clip.  I suppose if that's all I did for about 500 miles (!), then I'd have a worn left edge.  But I can't imagine it happening from just normal riding distances.

[Diderich]

Jeez..i can't remember if i saw that in a tv show or in a magazine...but the cruiser guys complain about that alot...kind of a mystery, but usually attributed to the crown of the road.  I suppose theoretically it could be misalignment, the bike hasn't been wrecked has it?  Maybe it's from all the torque steer  

[alerbaugh]

is it just on the front tire?  If it's not on the back tire I would say somethings wrong with the tire or it's misalligned.

[Jeff P]

Definitely lean into both right and left hand turns so that's not it.  My rear tire only has 2,300 miles on it so it isn't showing much wear for comparison.  Bike hasn't been wrecked either.  I guess I'll just ask the shop to check the fork and steering head when I take it in for the new tire.  

A tire question:  What should I expect to pay to have the shop put on a tire that I bring them?

jeff

[JamesG]

They are gonna gouge you, expect about $50.  Shops HATE it when you buy a tire somewhere else cheaper than they could sell it to you and then you bring it in and ask t
hem to install it for you.

Cal- Its called "cupping" and is mostly attributed to riding on the left side of cambered roads. Its not so much that the road is "higher" on one side, but that you and the bike have to keep a constant small left input to stay on the road and this wears that side of the tire.  It can be also caused by poor alignment, but I was giving you the benifit of the doubt.

[JohNLA]

I only paid $16 for my local shop to balance and mount. When the rim is already off the bike.