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Join Date: Jan 2003
Location: Manhattan, NY USA
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BMW Roundel Short Explanation

Greetings,

There is one short explanation.

Don't do this at home! :-))!

Web find:

Rotation and balance marks
One of the more critical marks on a motorcycle tire is the rotation arrow, or arrows. Today's specialized tires generally have a tread pattern that must go in only one direction. Some manufacturers even state that their tread patterns are designed to disperse water, and by mounting the tire backwards, they won't work.

The other big reason for noting wheel direction has to do with the manufacturing process. The tread rubber is initially a flat strip that's cut to length, at an angle, and then spliced together with the two ends overlapping, creating a hoop. Under acceleration, a tire mounted backwards will try to peel back this splice. The opposite is true for the front wheel, where directional forces are reversed under hard braking.

Another mark to look for when mounting a tire is a painted balance dot, or dots. Most tires are pre-balanced by the manufacturer. They will then put a mark on the tire indicating where the valve stem should line up.
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Cheers,

Robert Foster

FOSTER RAD
LASER Engineering Exhaust Systems
RapidBike USA
Oakland Gardens, NY
Robert@FosterRAD.com
718-468-4680

Do not go where the path may lead, go instead where there is no path and leave a trail.
Old 01-14-2007, 02:25 PM
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