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Tech Rotating Tires

thaimbucks

Cruising
Dec 18, 2011
30
2
Over the weekend I had to pull an emergency skid to avoid a cab that had cut me off. When I got home I noticed that my rear tire has a good 3cm section with no tread. I have heard from others that rotating tires is a good idea. Can I get away with rotating the front tire to the back wheel or shall I just put the new tire on the rear?
 
You could put your current front tyre on the back and a new tyre on the front. But the back tyre will wear more quickly anyway. You should not put the damaged tyre on the front. Front tyre blowouts almost always result in a crash.


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What AlanW said, but one bald spot? keep riding that sucker until you can ride it no more, then put your best rubber on the front, in truth skidding to a halt is slower than strong front braking. Practice some emergency stops, it takes a lot to do an endo. In Sheldon I trust www.sheldonbrown.com/brakturn.html
 
@thaimbucks, how worn is the tyre on its bald spot? Tread is optional as bicycle wheels don't aquaplane. As long as there's still rubber left, you should be OK.

Do you perhaps ride a fixed gear and are in the habit of using your pedals in place of real brake levers? Assuming you have proper brakes (and they're legally required), I see no reason why one would not use the front wheel for braking - it's by far the most effective. As you brake the front wheel, more load shifts onto it, allowing you to apply yet more brake force, up to the point where the rear wheel starts to lift off. When you skid on a locked wheel, all you have is sliding friction, which is weaker than static friction of controlled braking.
 
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Here's a photo if the tire. You can see the cotton casing beneath the rubber


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I should have said in my first post, not just tread - no rubber. @Mike, different question today, can I put my front tire on my back wheel and put a new tire on the front.
 
Why would you do that? They aren't car tires. Just put a new one on the rear and when the time comes put a new one on the front.

I do not see any advantage to what you are suggesting.
 
Here's a photo if the tire. You can see the cotton casing beneath the rubber
Junk that already. New tire time.


I put my front tire on my back wheel and put a new tire on the front.
Yes
I do not see any advantage to what you are suggesting.
Better tread on the front makes a lot of sense. which one wiping out on a damp corner is more likely to lead to serious injury and complete lack of control?
I always put my newest tires on the front where the tread does the most effective work if only for peace of mind. It's up to you.
 
Tire engineering is alot more than simple tread design. Its impossible to say that slicks are 'better' somehow than 'patterned' and vice versa. Quite simply, <some> pattern is beneficial because it raises contact points that can penetrate the film surface and thus lead to increased compliance which in turn leads to more patch deformation, which in turn leads to higher contact friction. All of which you do want in a wet or slick surface. Conversely , similar happens upon release of the tire across a rougher surface - you want the tire to 'lift up' from the surface binding quickly to reduce the inherent friction. Probably more than anything, tire pressure has the greatest effect overall. Generally increasing pressure will reduce contact friction and somewhat increase impact friction. (Imagine throwing small stones in front of a hard resin skateboard wheel). Whereas lowering pressure will increase contact friction and to some degree reduce impact friction. (the same small stones thrown in front of a PU skateboard wheel).

Anyway - I know those wheels and tires - and you don't want to swap front for rear:

1) They are balanced set. We'll need to re-balance both wheels instead of just one,
2) The belts and tires will take a 'set' and when you swap them, you'll end up with a lumpy ride pattern.
3) The front tires will generally last 2X-4X longer than the rears. So, you will typically change 2-4 rear tires for every single front.

If these were clinchers, sure, maybe, but why? The rear will still wear out much faster than the front. As long as the front is clean and serviceable, leave it alone.
 
These are tubs?
Just stick a new tyre on the rear and ride. Not even worth bothering about swapping front for rear.

What tyres do you run btw?
 
Thanks for the replies, I'll take your collective advice and turf the tire, and have a new tire installed on the rear. @leicaman - these were my first foray into tubulars so I wanted something familiar. They're GP4000S tubulars. I have nothing but good things to say since they lasted me an haute route, and probably an additional 1000km or so without a puncture. My new replacement tire is a Continental Competition which I picked up on a wicked sale while I was in Canada.
 
That was an expensive skid then, but look on the bright side, it could have been a lot lot more expensive.

I looked at getting either conti 4000 or comps but they were much more expensive than the conti sprinters I'm riding on now. If my sprinter goes pop, I'll be annoyed but if a comp or 4000 went pop, I'd be heartbroken.
 
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