Tyre Tread Direction

[RodTi]

Hello all....

 

 

On upgrading my wheelset a good few months back, also made the (thank goodness) great decision to convert to tubeless...

 

Was suggested I simply convert Conti Speedkings - which was duly done by the LBS.

So, they put the new tyres on for me, given that I knew very little about converting....

 

Been riding happily ever since then.

 

Few weeks back, rear wheel no longer stayed inflated for as long.

Needed a service - asked them to top up the rear wheel's slime/sludge - duly done.

 

On getting home, in thought, had a close look at the tyres, since they were clean for the first time in a very long while, and noticed each had two direction arrows, explaining which way the tread should face, depending on whether the wheel is on the front or rear.... Which is quite common(?)

 

Checked the rear tyre, and noticed that it was facing the same direction as the front, when it was supposed to be reversed, i.e. tread facing the other way (hope that makes sense)...

 

Now - with about 4 months of riding under the belt - is it even worthwhile taking the bike back in to swop it around (assuming I don't want to 'learn' how to replace/reseat a tubeless kit myself)?

 

In other words - does the tread direction make that big a difference to the ride, and more importantly, wear and tear of the tyre?

 

Should I just leave it, and make sure the tread is facing the right way when I eventually replace the rear?

 

Thanks in advance!

 

 

[MintSauce]

What tyres....? Some tyres funnily enough actually work better the wrong way round. Maybe the shop did it intentionally.

[AndreZA]

I know with Larsen TTs if the back tyre is the wrong way around you get better grip on climbs but loose grip when braking.

[dirtrider]

Agree , in most cases it will give you better grip and will not have a huge impact on your speed etc . But it does wear the tyre much faster .

[RodTi]

Thanks guys... maybe that's the case with the Speedkings...

Will leave them as is, and then ask next time a replace the rear...

[Ox_Wagon]

So how do you like the speed kings?

[RodTi]

Hey Ox Wagon...

I like them...

Think they've brought out a newer 'model' that I have yet to try, but definitely will again....

 

I'm not really technically-proficient enough to give you info about 'grip in mud/rolling speed/grip in dry/cornering' etc, mainly because I've only really ever had Larsen TTs and the Conti's... Prior to that I had some Kenda Kevlar's - but they were pretty old then already.

 

What I do know, is that the Larsen's threw up plenty of mud/dirt - so much so that I bought a mud flap.

What that suggests about traction (or lack of?) is beyond me.

And - as a heavy rider I am particularly focused on this - I found the Larsen's to wear particularly quickly... Conti's just seem to be giving me more mileage...

 

Have also noticed less loss of traction on the rear wheel when I do stand and pump - but to be fair, I never had the Larsen's on a tubeless setup, so maybe the lower air pressure on my current wheels as allowed for greater grip...

[Ox_Wagon]

I got the new Conti Mountain King but still need to ride with them. Will give some feedback after the weekends Cradle to Cave. 

[RodTi]

I got the new Conti Mountain King but still need to ride with them. Will give some feedback after the weekends Cradle to Cave. 

 

Cool - that would be appreciated!

 

Good luck with the ride...

[Guest Big H]

On Road Bikes the tread has no consequince at all. On MTB tyre place them in the way of the arrow. That is why it is there.

[Tumbleweed]

I know with Larsen TTs if the back tyre is the wrong way around you get better grip on climbs but loose grip when braking.

 

often wondered about the tread on the tts. you'd think the "scoops" would point in the other direction to get rid of dirt

[dirtrider]

The arrows is only a recommendation !

[RodTi]

On Road Bikes the tread has no consequince at all. On MTB tyre place them in the way of the arrow. That is why it is there.

 

Hello Oom - welkom terug...

 

Ja, soos ek gese het, dink nie ek gaan nou die moeite maak om weer die fiets intevat om die goed omteruil nie - die tread is al klaar tamelik afgewerk in elk geval... Sal maar wag totdat ek 'n nuwe band laat opsit, en dan sal ek maar dophou, of teminste vra, as hulle dit weer so doen...

[hagar]

i was wondering why my times were so slow too until I also noticed the direction of my front tyre was correct and the back tyre was back so i changed it a whalla its improved by seconds  

 

no seriaas i wanted to know what the diffrence was with the roadbike tyres as it looked ok to me but i thought why would they put the direction on if there was not a reason .  i always try and put them the right way but forget sometimes

[dirtrider]

I think it is actaully more important for your road tyres to be fit the right way it they directions especially if you will be riding in the wet a bit .

[Johan Bornman]

OK, you've had 1001 opinions, but lets look at the science of this.

 

1) Bike tyre casings are omnidirectional. They don't care which way faces forward and which faces backward. The beads are the same on both sides since the rim is the same on both sides. The overlap angle is exactly the same on the left as on the right. That takes the casing out of the equation.

 

2) The latex cord binding comes next. This is just glue that keeps the cords in place. Glue doesn't care which side you grip it, pull it, orient it or ride it. That takes care of the bottom two components of the tyre.

 

3) Thread. This is moulded rubber of sorts, which stretches the same in every direction. Out of the equation.

 

4) This leaves us with tread pattern. a) on a road bike, the tread pattern is there for cosmetic purposes only since it cannot sype water and the tyre's boat shape disperses all the water that you can throw at it, at the speed you go. Bicycle, motorbike and aeroplane tyres don't sype, thanks to their shape and any patterns in there are purely cosmetic. Airoplane tyre customers don't care about cosmetics and go completely slick. Motoribike tyre customers have a somewhat misconception about syping and go semi-slick, but in effect, if you look at highperformance motorbike tyres, they're effectively sans tread. Bike tyre buyers also suffer a bit from the syping syndrome they get from watching too much TV and insist on a pattern - slick tyres just don't sell, so manufacturers put a costmetic criss-cross on there for their peace of mind. They're drinking sugar pills.

 

On MTB tyres, the thread pattern matters only insofar how you want to

a) handle mud shedding - an open pattern sheds mud more than tightly-spaced knobblies.

b) Rolling resistance. A XC tyre with reduced tread in the centre offers better RR than an aggressive tread.

c) Longevity - thicker lives longer

d) Puncture resistance - thicker is more resistant

e) Wear characteristics - the fronts of the lobe (viewed from the top) wear first. Some companies like to pre-taper the front of their lobes. It makes no difference whatsoever.

 

You'll notice that grip doesn't come in anywhere. All patterns have to roll over random terrain and therefore there is no optimum pattern. A pattern is a pattern in terms of grip and grip is largely (95% plus, in my estimate) determined by the type of rubber.

 

Unlike a large fat tractor tyre where the V-shaped pattern squeezes mud out the side, a MTB tyre doesn't do the same. The V pattern in some tyres is just there for reminding of our days on the farm, driving through much on grandpa's tractor.

 

Therefore: it does not matter which way round you install your tyre, but sideways is not good.