Thread: tire question
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Old March 9th, 2018, 08:09 PM   #9
jkv45
Rev Limiter
 
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Name: Jay
Location: WI
Join Date: Jul 2013

Motorcycle(s): '06 SV650n, '00 Derbi GPR, '64 CA77 Dream 305, '70 CL450 Scrambler, numerous dirt bikes

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MOTM - Jun '18, Oct '16
Quote:
Originally Posted by DannoXYZ View Post
If you're going to track, don't over do it. LEARN how tyres behave as you approach their limits. Old street tyres have a large margin-of-error at the limit. You'll feel them cause some lightness/vagueness in steering as they approach the limit. If you continue to push, they'll start sliding slightly. Push some more and they'll howl and really slide. You can get 50-100ft of sliding at full-throttle on old street tyres at say... 40-50mph on turn X.

Sticker DOT-R tyres have higher limit, but very little margin of error. They'll feel fine at 55mph on same turn-X, then at 56mph, you're flat on your ass with no warning.

Learn to feel for the limit of any tyre and you'll be fine. Personally, I think old street tyres are safer for beginners because they have lower limits and wider margin-of-error.
I totally disagree.

Old tires slide quicker, but are not necessarily more predictable than a newer/stickier tire. An old tire is going to lock quicker during hard braking than a newer/stickier tire - and that's not an advantage or safer.

Tires have different characteristics at the limit, but I don't think you can say absolutely that an old tire is more predictable.

You could easily lose the front, and go down, with an old tire where you would have been totally fine with a new tire with more traction.
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