Hi, I have a 2016 Goldwing Roadsmith Trike, currently has 4700 miles. I purchased it in the beginning of February this year with 2950 miles on the odo. My question/concern is I think the front tire is scrubbing, because I’m constantly applying more pressure with my right hand to keep the trike to track straight. Yes, I understand the crown of the road and the crown within the lane especially on older blacktop roads.
What I noticed is just taking pressure off of the handlebars, theres a little slight snap to the right and of course the trike will go right. If I had to guess it’s small about 1/4 inch snap and I’ll have to immediately secure the handle bar to keep it straight. I have the front tire pressure at 40 and the rears at 26. I even tried the rears with 4 psi more in the right tire, but it doesn’t help. I’ve tested in the left lane with a crown and the bike will track straight pretty good and will slowly start to wander to the right, but it will take a bit to do so.
So, the reason I’m thinking that the tire is scrubbing is, right after a ride of about 50 miles or so, with the temperature only around 80-82 degrees as of late, primarily just cruising on rural roads with top speed of 50 mph. I get back from the ride, I touched the tread of the front tire, and it felt pretty hot, so I went and hit with a laser thermometer and it read 129 degrees. I hit the rear tires, and it was around 95 degrees.
The front calipers are never hot, so there’s no drag. Does anyone have any thoughts? my trike has the independent rear suspension and with less that 5000 miles, there are no irregular wear marks on the rear tires. If this is normal, then I can put my mind at ease and not be so concerned. Looking forward to some responses. Robert