cafetbird - 25 March 2009 04:19 PM

Most folks I know favor one side or another when cornering. Admit it, don't you feel more comfortable going into a turn in one direction than the other? Mine is usually on the left, as here in the States, I generally have a longer line of site in that direction.

Possibly bicycle learnage? I favor left turns and attribute it to right-footed braking (coaster-brake) during childhood hooliganism (brake w/right foot, left foot down, locking the rear wheel to 'slide it out'). I recall being very apprehensive making right turns @ speed on my first MC 40-some years ago...

MC=big bicycle

I use string and other low tech methods to check alignment on various bikes over the years. if you have a single sided arm "theoretically" it is always in alignment but worn swing-arm bearings or worn wheel bearings can cause tire wear problems but you would also have handling problems as well.
Maybe it is just age and wear.
If you really want to know for sure and spend some money, look for a motorcycle frame shop they have a jig, lasers,micrometers and calipers to do it right.
IMHO get some new tires if you do your own work take a look at the bearing surface where the axle goes through and see if you have grooves, or wear marks, and look at the wheel bearings as well if you have the newer sealed bearing that you don't have to lube, just run your finger carefully and feel to see if it worn,also look at the outside of the bearing housing on both the wheels your looking to see if they are oblong or out of round, you can measure this with a ruler do one measurement from the top to bottom and then from side to side and compared the measurements,they should be within a few mm's of each other
another area to check is where the swing arm connects to bike, I'm not sure if on your Honda
if your swing arm is attached to the frame or to bosses machined on the back of the engine cases, in any case look at the bolt mounting holes for wear.a small bright led flashlight is valuable here. but these checks are simple to do if you got a lot of KM/miles on your bike changing your wheel bearings might not be a bad idea. my guess really is just that they are old, motorcycle tires do not last as long as car tires, my toyota has tires that are three years old and look fine for their age my bike has 6 month old tires and I'm getting small cracks in them and I run correct air pressure and do not use any solvents or products on them. So who knows
my advice put new tires and check the things I mention above and ride a few km and go from there, if it is just wear then it is cool.
I'm sorry if this is too long but I'm a retired USAF mechanic and I've seen my share of bearings good and bad. and I've been riding and working on old beat up bikes for thirty two years, so I've seen worn tires mostly I've seen squared tires,riders who just go to work and back and the occasional ride on Sunday, my tires don't wear on the side and are closer to squared, I too am a cruiser rider but I do love to go to the mountains and ride the curves (I always let the sport bikes guys and ladies go by )I'm there for the enjoyment of just being there.

i work at a bike shop and see that most tire wear is due to the crow of the road. The bike is putting more pressure and contact with one side and not the other.

I agree Pinman, but his right side is worn more, and generally its the left here in the US because the crown goes from the center to the roadside. I have also heard that we generally turn more aggressively on left hand turns due to being able to see further and having more room to take the turns. Of course all of this is reversed in the UK or other places where they drive on the left side of the road. If the OP is there it explains his issues, but if he is in the US he most likely has some suspension issues.