Running in TKC80's

[bladerunner]

Interested in your thoughts......

My good friend Roger who runs mototours near Durban says you can extend the life of your knobblies by around 2000 miles by:


On brand new tyres:

Run tyres until hot
stops for 20 minutes to cool down

repeat x3

 

[VAL. H.]

Interested in your thoughts......

My good friend Roger who runs mototours near Durban says you can extend the life of your knobblies by around 2000 miles by:


On brand new tyres:

Run tyres until hot
stops for 20 minutes to cool down

repeat x3

Hmm, interesting train of thought.

Over the years I have neither heard of or tried running in tyres in this manor. I have simply ridden the bike reasonably gently until the surface has been scrubbed in.


I'm about to change to my third set of TKC's. They're giving me in excess of 10.000 miles from the rear. Infact I'm changing the current rear at 10650 with a probable 2000+ (Up-coming Holiday forces the early change) remaining.
The fronts are lasting me about 14'000 miles and more.

I've always managed to get good mileage from tyres back to the late eighties when working as a courier. I would think that the technique your friend uses in in fact unnecessary (IMHO of course) but each to their own, we all have our little idiocies don't we.


Val.

 

[strimstrum]

I'm about to change to my third set of TKC's. They're giving me in excess of 10.000 miles from the rear. Infact I'm changing the current rear at 10650 ......The fronts are lasting me about 14'000 miles and more.

Wow ! The most I've ever got is around 4000 miles - Do you use them off-road ? If so where do you find these marshmallow surfaces that don't eat rubber ?

 

[VAL. H.]

Wow ! The most I've ever got is around 4000 miles - Do you use them off-road ? If so where do you find these marshmallow surfaces that don't eat rubber ?

To be honest, only a few gravel roads, grass fields and the odd Ford. I like the look thay give on the bike plus the speed rating keeps my licence where I want it 'in my pocket'


Val.

 

[vilguy]

the process described suggests some form of "heat treatment" which in rubber... is complete ball cocks

 

[Timolgra]

If everyone getting too polite on here to say "what a load of bollox"

 

[Fanum]

Sounds like someone's read the ladybird book of Vulanising rubber and decided to add a layer of techno babble on top

 

[Greg Masters]

On brand new tyres:

Run tyres until hot
stops for 20 minutes to cool down

repeat x3

As a principle, this is not at all bollox.

With racing tyres, the performance of the rubber usually varies quick a lot when it has been through a few heat cycles. You occassionally hear Martin Brundle refer to this on his GP commentaries. From my own experience when I was last racing, I found that the tyres I was using worked best with just one heat cycle - so we used to put them in the garage's paint curing oven.

Have a look at this reference.

That said, TKCs are a long way from racing rubber and I don't suppose that heat-cycling will make much difference.

Greg

 

[bladerunner]

Dunno - just interested in your comments!

All I can say is Roger runs the BMW off road school in Durban, is ex SA special forces, has seen action in Angola and ridden far and wide and is the least "talking bollox" guy I've ever met