[WeaponZero]

OEM specifications for my SV650 are 33 psi front, 36 psi rear. But I prefer the ‘nimble’ feeling you get from overfilling it just slightly (about 1-2 lbs over). Considering I’m in the neigborhood of 260 lbs, is this a problem? Is it bad for the tires at all? Does it have any down sides?

What pressures do you run and why?

[WeaponZero]

I do mostly city riding/urban commuting with a few highway jaunts to twisty roads on the weekends. In the city I really like how the increased tire pressure makes the bike feel “lighter” when doing things like lane changes and swerving.

[Gary856]

OEM spec is just a best “compromise”. I weigh 170 lbs so I’d think the best tire pressure for me would be different from you. If I weighed 260, I’d certainly bump up my tire pressure by a couple of psi, at least.

But what does “the best” tire pressure mean – best for what? Touring guys and commuters up the tire pressure to high 30s front/ low 40s rear for longer tire wear and better fuel economy. Canyon carvers lower the tire pressure to low 30s for better traction but more wear. For off road people go even lower, below 20 psi even. For people who care about the details and want to adjust for specific missions/conditions (or just anal), tire pressure is a tunable feature; others just go by the best compromise (factory specs) and forget about it.

[JackTrade]

In cars, 30 psi is often the standard. But that’s basically an ancient spec from before the days of modern radials, and modern tires may actually do better with slightly more pressure.

Drag racers lower their pressures in the rear (or front depending on the drive) for more pavement contact, and autocrossers up it all around to better handle turn g-forces. On my car, for normal use, I usually run about 32 in each, and find I get better gas mileage as well as more of firmer ride, which I like.

But when it comes to bikes, I’ve always wondered, so am interested in the outcome here. Don’t some motorcycles still run bias-ply tires? I’m pretty sure mine does.

[megaspaz]

Tire pressures aren’t so important on everyday street riding as it is for riding where you’re gonna push your bike to the limits. Just use whatever feels good to you. There are consquences for running too high or too low of pressure though. If you’re at the track there’s a lot of variables to choosing what pressure to run. What kind of bike you’re running, your pace, the temp of the pavement, your suspension, your tire size, the type of tire you’re running, etc. There are some starting point guidelines, but you should be checking your tires constantly to make adjustments if needed.

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