A big difference?

menthel · March 2013

I have been fettling around with my Charge (http://www.bikeradar.com/forums/viewtopic.php?f=40052&t=12910825&p=18216799#p18216799) and did my first commute in this morning with the new tyres etc. I noticed that compared to the bog standard tyres it came with (conti contacts with a lot of tread) that the duranos seemed to stick me to the road more. I had similar speeds but in lower gears and the cornering seemed much better. Is that really because of the change in tyres? If so the change in feeling of the bike was pretty dramatic! (And yes, I am a noob at all of this!)

cyclingprop · March 2013

Quite possible. Will mainly be the compound of the tyre rather than tread though.

menthel · March 2013

cyclingprop wrote:

Quite possible. Will mainly be the compound of the tyre rather than tread though.

Thanks. The Duranos felt different too when I was installing them. Mind you the two tyres are completely different I guess!

coopster_the_1st · March 2013

menthel wrote:

I have been fettling around with my Charge (http://www.bikeradar.com/forums/viewtopic.php?f=40052&t=12910825&p=18216799#p18216799) and did my first commute in this morning with the new tyres etc. I noticed that compared to the bog standard tyres it came with (conti contacts with a lot of tread) that the duranos seemed to stick me to the road more. I had similar speeds but in lower gears and the cornering seemed much better. Is that really because of the change in tyres? If so the change in feeling of the bike was pretty dramatic! (And yes, I am a noob at all of this!)

Not knowing the exact tyres you have gone from, yes the tyres can make this much difference.

I suspect the Durano's are narrower and lighter than the previous tyre and the change is noticable.

Also, the tread you had on the previous tyres moves slightly when under load (when cornering) thus giving a feeling of not being as stuck to the road. With no tread on the Durano's you will feel this stability

menthel · March 2013

Coopster the 1st wrote:

menthel wrote:

I have been fettling around with my Charge (http://www.bikeradar.com/forums/viewtopic.php?f=40052&t=12910825&p=18216799#p18216799) and did my first commute in this morning with the new tyres etc. I noticed that compared to the bog standard tyres it came with (conti contacts with a lot of tread) that the duranos seemed to stick me to the road more. I had similar speeds but in lower gears and the cornering seemed much better. Is that really because of the change in tyres? If so the change in feeling of the bike was pretty dramatic! (And yes, I am a noob at all of this!)

Not knowing the exact tyres you have gone from, yes the tyres can make this much difference.

I suspect the Durano's are narrower and lighter than the previous tyre and the change is noticable.

Also, the tread you had on the previous tyres moves slightly when under load (when cornering) thus giving a feeling of not being as stuck to the road. With no tread on the Durano's you will feel this stability

Thanks, they were bog standard conti contacts. I suspect they were lighter than the Durano pluses but not as well made. I am amazed the difference in gearing needed to maintain speed, although that may have been difficult to judge with the wind this morning.

Sketchley · March 2013

You don't need tread on bike tyre (at least for road riding). Tread on a tyre is used to expel water "trapped" under between the tyre and the road to prevent aquaplaning. This is essential on car tyre (in the wet) as the tyre is much wider than a bike tyre and has lower pressure, so water is likely to get trapped and you start aquaplaning, unless you have groves to help the water escape. On a bike the area is much smaller and pressure is much huigher, this mean less water gets trapped so a lower risk of aquaplaning. You can aquaplane a bike tyre but when this will happen is factor of pressure (speed (in knots) = 9 X the square root of the tire pressure (in psi.)) So for a 120psi tyre you need to be going 120mph to aquaplane... Sheldon as always is your friend http://sheldonbrown.com/tires.html#hydroplaning

Chances are you are getting more grip from the "slick" tyre as more of the tyre is in contact with the road. Even in the wet.

I suspect the what you experiences this morning is a factor, of tyre weight, better rubber, no tread, and most likely correct inflation. The last one really being key to most things tyre related.....

menthel · March 2013

Sketchley wrote:

You don't need tread on bike tyre (at least for road riding). Tread on a tyre is used to expel water "trapped" under between the tyre and the road to prevent aquaplaning. This is essential on car tyre (in the wet) as the tyre is much wider than a bike tyre and has lower pressure, so water is likely to get trapped and you start aquaplaning, unless you have groves to help the water escape. On a bike the area is much smaller and pressure is much huigher, this mean less water gets trapped so a lower risk of aquaplaning. You can aquaplane a bike tyre but when this will happen is factor of pressure (speed (in knots) = 9 X the square root of the tire pressure (in psi.)) So for a 120psi tyre you need to be going 120mph to aquaplane... Sheldon as always is your friend http://sheldonbrown.com/tires.html#hydroplaning

Chances are you are getting more grip from the "slick" tyre as more of the tyre is in contact with the road. Even in the wet.

I suspect the what you experiences this morning is a factor, of tyre weight, better rubber, no tread, and most likely correct inflation. The last one really being key to most things tyre related.....

Thanks. The tyres were well inflated, up to 7 bar (mid way between the 6-8 recommended).

The Rookie · March 2013

The only purpose of the tread pattern on a bike tyre is to tell you when the rubber's nearly all worn away!

menthel · March 2013

The Beginner wrote:

The only purpose of the tread pattern on a bike tyre is to tell you when the rubber's nearly all worn away!

I think the one on my old ones was to channel tiny flints up into the soft spots!

kelsen · March 2013

The Beginner wrote:

The only purpose of the tread pattern on a bike tyre is to tell you when the rubber's nearly all worn away!

...or to pi ss you off when you pop the rear wheel back on the bike only to realise you've fitted the unidirectional tread the wrong way round!

menthel · March 2013

Seems to work, knocked 2 minutes off my fastest commute home. Liking the new setup but just imagine how fast I could be on a carbon road bike...

meanredspider · March 2013

The Beginner wrote:

The only purpose of the tread pattern on a bike tyre is to tell you when the rubber's nearly all worn away!

On a clear Tarmac surface ;-)

Obviously as soon as the surface is less than stable (snow, gravel, mud) tread performs a task - though tread in these cases is better described as knobbles ;-) Mud on a slick tyre is a frustrating nightmare

menthel · March 2013

meanredspider wrote:

The Beginner wrote:

The only purpose of the tread pattern on a bike tyre is to tell you when the rubber's nearly all worn away!

On a clear Tarmac surface ;-)

Obviously as soon as the surface is less than stable (snow, gravel, mud) tread performs a task - though tread in these cases is better described as knobbles ;-) Mud on a slick tyre is a frustrating nightmare

Hopefully the roads I cycle on won't turn to mud any point soon!

t4tomo · March 2013

Sketchley wrote:

You can aquaplane a bike tyre but when this will happen is factor of pressure (speed (in knots) = 9 X the square root of the tire pressure (in psi.)) So for a 120psi tyre you need to be going 120mph to aquaplane... Sheldon as always is your friend http://sheldonbrown.com/tires.html#hydroplaning.

I aquaplaned a mountain bike at considerably less speed, although I was entering a ford at the time and over estimated how much momentum I needed to carry into it to get through to the other side. Manage to just stay upright, much to the relief of the chap who'd lent me his bike.

A big difference?

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