2 tyre questions

topcattim

Can anyone tell me how long a typical tyre should last? I've just replaced a GP4000 (on the rear wheel) after about 2000 miles - it was beginning to square off, but also had a load of sizeable nicks in it. At the same time, I replaced a Vittoria Rubino Intrepid which had done about 3000 miles, but which looked in slightly better condition (presumably because it had been on the front wheel?)

Also, do tyres take any time to "wear in"? If so, how long? I'm wondering if it was just my imagination that I was a bit more sure-footed (sure-wheeled?) yesterday when cornering on the new tyres?

Uzbek

I think it depends what you mean by worn out.

I had a pair of Michelin Pro-Race which had done about 4.5k. They looked a bit tatty, lots of little nicks, and the sidewall was slightly crazed and cracked. The truth is that I suspect I could have used them for a while yet since the casing was certainly not showing, they rode perfectly well and I'd had no punctures but it just seemed time to change them. Unlike treaded tyres where you can really see the wear with slicks it seems pretty subjective to me.

Brand new tyres are definitely sl greasy straight from the mould but it is gone fairly quickly, especially from softer compounds.

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If North Yorks Council spent as much on the roads each year as I do on my bike then I could spend less on my bike...

term1te

Hi,

I ride brand new tires in the dry for a couple of hours before going out in the wet. Probably psychological, but they seem a little less "sure wheeled" on the very first ride. Something to do with mould releasing agents perhaps? Look how water beads up on a brand new tyre, but not to the same extent on an older one.

I recently changed a badly squared-off tyre that had been use on the turbo trainer. There was a huge difference in the feel of cornering from the old square tyre to a nice new round one.

I'd be disappointed to have to replace light weight tyres after less than 2000 miles, and would be fairly pleased if I got much more than 3000 out of them. Winter roads are much harder on the tyres than summer ones, which will impact how long they last.

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topcattim

<blockquote id="quote"><font size="1" face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica" id="quote">quote:<hr height="1" noshade id="quote"><i>Originally posted by Termite</i>

Hi,

I ride brand new tires in the dry for a couple of hours before going out in the wet. Probably psychological, but they seem a little less "sure wheeled" on the very first ride. Something to do with mould releasing agents perhaps? Look how water beads up on a brand new tyre, but not to the same extent on an older one.

I recently changed a badly squared-off tyre that had been use on the turbo trainer. There was a huge difference in the feel of cornering from the old square tyre to a nice new round one.

I'd be disappointed to have to replace light weight tyres after less than 2000 miles, and would be fairly pleased if I got much more than 3000 out of them. Winter roads are much harder on the tyres than summer ones, which will impact how long they last.

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<hr height="1" noshade id="quote"></blockquote id="quote"></font id="quote">

Thanks Mark (and Uzbek as well!)

monty_dogcp

New tyres are usually coated with a silicone release agent from the moulding process, so this needs to be scrubbed or worn off before use in the wet. Length of use depends on a number of thing including weight of rider, type or riding and roads used - rears always wear faster than fronts because of the weight and traction of the rear wheels - sometimes worth swapping front and rears mid-season to even out the wear. I'd be disappointed not to get at least a full year's use out of a tyre, which would be a few thousand miles - for a race tyre this would be 6 months or 12 months for a heavier training tyre. However, a major puncture or split can finish a tyre first time out.