'18 Heritage 114. I ride in Flatistan(Florida), mostly on 2 lane state roads, under 70mph. I keep 40psi or so and check regularly. way before the tire gets to wear marks my rear squares up and becomes flat instead of rounded as when new. It gets a bit squirmy at low speed turning at lights and such. any ideas as how to avoid this, oh wise ones?

 

Use whatever tire pressure your manual directs.
A tire will wear most in the place that it makes the most contact with the road.
If the bike rarely leans then the tire will wear the most at the center.
Either way the tire is considered worn when the wear bars are reached.

 

Find and use some roads with some turns in em.

 

Stop riding like my grandma going to church.

but seriously play with the rear tire pressure A LITTLE, maybe run in the high 30’s. And seriously take some more corners or you’ll just have to start accepting the fact that you’ll be replacing tires when one is squared off.

 

Try some Metzeler Cruisetec tires. They are more rounded than Dunlops and have dual rubber compound to help keep the center from wearing too fast. They work great on my Heritage.

 

Under 70 means the only part of your tire that's getting any bit warm is the middle. That part is going to wear faster because it's the only area that's getting warm.
Find some throttle and get the tire warm, and find some twisty roads and wear it evenly.

 

Completely normal. As your tire wears, its going to lose its rounded profile. Chances are you will eventually have no tread in the center and the sides will look fairly new. Has nothing to do with Florida. Most people aren't going to rub their tire indicators off the side of their tires like they would on a 600cc supersport.

 

^^^^ that right there. been here for 32 yrs and my bike gets a square rear every 5-8k miles on an Avon.Next tire I will buy will be Dunlop American Elite 2 Not as sticky as the Avon but will last a bit longer on the shell rock roads in my area of FL and as far as curves are concerned, not many other than on/off ramps on highways in the southern part of the state where I live. Intersecting straight lines mostly in the south part of state. Some curves but still pretty lame as compared to any hilly or mountainous region in the nation.

 

thats what happens when you only ride in the flat cities. get out of your comfort zone and find some curvy roads. use the whole tire

 

I hear ya IBE but the whole state is kinda flat ( you live here but not sure about your area, maybe you have a lot more twisties) and doesnt offer up a whole lot of curvy terrain. Sometimes I only have a few hours to get some wind therapy and due to health reasons Im not able to venture out to other states. But non the less, its all good, I still enjoy the ride and getting my knees in the breeze as we say and replace the tires when they need to be. It doesnt bother me when the rear gets a ground down