Tyre Wear

[faffi]

I'm going to leave suspension out of this and save that for a rainey day, but want to discuss other factors that have influence on tyre wear. The reason I put these ip is because manufacturers have listed opposite information, making it hard for laymen to know what to believe.

 

Statements:

Tyres wear faster in the wet due to more slippage

Tyres wear less in the wet due to better cooling

 

Tyres wear faster when carrying a heavier load (passenger/luggage/big heavy bike) because the flex more and get hotter

Tyres wear less when carrying a heavier load because it reduces slip

 

Tyres wear faster when overinflated because they cannot absorb small bumps, causing skipping and slipping, and they get a wrong shape

Tyres wear less when overinflated due to reduced flex, making them run cooler

 

So, could the expert enlighten me?

[DUNLOP-RTS]

I'm going to leave suspension out of this and save that for a rainey day, but want to discuss other factors that have influence on tyre wear. The reason I put these ip is because manufacturers have listed opposite information, making it hard for laymen to know what to believe.

 

Statements:

Tyres wear faster in the wet due to more slippage

Tyres wear less in the wet due to better cooling

 

Tyres wear faster when carrying a heavier load (passenger/luggage/big heavy bike) because the flex more and get hotter

Tyres wear less when carrying a heavier load because it reduces slip

 

Tyres wear faster when overinflated because they cannot absorb small bumps, causing skipping and slipping, and they get a wrong shape

Tyres wear less when overinflated due to reduced flex, making them run cooler

 

So, could the expert enlighten me?

 

 

Again this is one of those issues that you can't nicely put in the YES or NO column.

 

There are to many variables in play to give a concrete answer.

 

A good example of this is the question of wear with high tire pressures . One would think that the wear would be less with higher pressure and theory would support this. but consider that when the pressure goes up, the contact patch gets smaller, and thus more dynamic forces are placed on a smaller contact patch creating more wear on that smaller spot. So which is it?

 

You must take into account:

The bike

Tire construction

Tire compound

Tread pattern

Pavement surface

Rider/passenger weight

Speed

Speed variation (stopping/starting or constant speed)

Temperature of pavement

Ambient Temperature

 

There is no formula that will give the exact answer. The only way to determine the answer it to run back to back comparisons. and then all you will have is the outcome for that specific test. The moment you change a variable the outcome may be different.

 

The statements you mention above may very well be true, for their specific situation. But variables change and so do the results. That is why they seem in conflict, when in fact the variables are what is changing, resulting in different outcomes.

 

The magnitude of this is so small in comparison to other issues, nothing is to be gained researching further. IMO

 

Sometimes its best to take your calculator and slide rule and put them in the bottom drawer of your tool box, and just go and ride.