proper way to brake in new tires (both)

[dadsafrantic]

i just got a pair of irc's on.  what do i do?

[philward]

Drive carefully (especially in the wet) for the first 300km or so (ie a tank full of gas worth of riding) while the tyres scrub in.  When they are fitted they still have residue of the mould release wax they use during manufacturing and this combined with the perfectly smooth surface makes for a dangerous combo.  During break in you basically want to be wearing all the surface of the tyres so that they rough up - so make sure you include some controlled cornering in your 300km so you're not leaving out the sides from the process.

And that's really all there is to it.  It's not rocket science, you're just getting rid of the factory smoothness so you can bring them up to full grip.

[qwertydude]

You can also rub all the surfaces with sand paper, even heard of people using a random orbit finish sander with some 220 grit.

[ohgood]

wash the bike / tires. then ride normally.

[dadsafrantic]

hahahahaha... the guy put the front on backwards.  will redo tuesday.   

[Pigeonroost]

Riding the bike softly at first and then leaning more and more to finally scuff'm-up has its drawbacks.  What if you have need of a quick evasive manuever?  Then, as you get some time on them, every time you increase your lean, you are on slippery rubber again.  A better way seems to be to take a ride on a gravel road or even a dirt raod.  That gets the mold release off of them and gets them skuffed in quick.  I've head of guys washing th em with harsh detergent like Spic'n Span, but I dunno about that.

prs

[ineedanap]

here's a wierd one.  At the track people get tires mounted and then go zipping around the track after a 1 lap warm up.  How?  Are we putting too much effort into scrubbing tires in, or are tires like pilot powers special?

[ohgood]

here's a wierd one.  1) At the track people get tires mounted and then go zipping around the track after a 1 lap warm up. 2)  How?  3) Are we putting too much effort into scrubbing tires in, or 4) are tires like pilot powers special?

1 that first lap shows that the bead is on (it wouldn't make it out of the pit if it wasnt, warms it up
2 see 1
3 yes
4 yes - they're new. you have to recite incantations for 3 mooons before dragging knee to make the gods of new tires happy.

4 is a lie


wash the bike, and tires, then ride. proper inflation, wheel alignment, and dogs are more important than worrying about scuffing that last 1/64th of tire out at the edge. in evasive manuevers you're going to want to use the center of the tire, and STOP instead of worrying "OMGOZZ ARE MY CHEEECKIN STRIPS SAFE TOO UZZZ ?"

[bill14224]

I think at the track they prep their tires ahead of time so there's no mold release on the tires.

I keep losta space in front of me.  I don't let anyone hang around next to me or immediately in front.  I have always owned very maneuverable bikes, and don't ride very aggressively.  I think that's why I'm still in one piece after all these years!