Getting new PR3 tires on tuesday...how many miles to break them in?

[ryan_a1982]

Sorry for the Newbie question.....

 

I am getting new tires tuesday and I need to ride a few hundred miles north on Thursday for my great grandma's funeral.

 

Since she ran away on a harley in the early 1940's to elope in Reno, I figured I would take the round about way to the party and have a great ride in Oma's name.

 

I will have new tires and the roads will be twisty, I will head by Lassen park and areas with snowy shoulders and probably grit on the road.

 

With the new tires, will I be fine if I just take it easy or should I just avoid this and head up I-5?

 

For those of you that know the area, I'm in Sacramento and I am thinking of heading north on 49 all the way to Vinton where it meets hwy 70. Then heading to 395 and going to Susanville. Then To Burney and HWY 299 west to Redding. It would be 349 miles VS the 190 mile to go straight to Redding in I-5.

 

I would hate to break in my new tires going straight! I don't want a flat spot on the rear after the first ride!

 

What say y'all?

 

Here's the planned route: LINKY

 

BTW, if anyone is up for a thursday morning run, let me know!

 

-Ryan

[Deadboy]

I would be more worried about the roads...it snowed in Grass Valley today. As for the tires, slow and steady for the 1st hundred is my rule of thumb. I have the same issue at my place as it is all twisties right out of the house, so far so.good.

[Danny caddyshack Noonan]

Ryan

I wouldn't worry about flat spotting them. My PR2's have only just started to look flat after, I think, 4k miles.

You can ride normal after about 100 miles per previous post. Less if you wipe down the tire with Acetone to get the mold release off. I've been told Windex will work also but, haven't used it.

Acetone can be had at the Autozone on Blue Ravine across from Target.

I do the wipe down and do tight, slow, u-turns and circles out in my court to just get a light scrub on the tires and then they're good.

Sorry to hear about your Oma. Going to my last paternal uncles funeral in North Dakota this weekend...not riding.

[ryan_a1982]

Peter,

 

Thanks for the condolences. 2 weeks ago Monday we thought she was going to pass and I rode up there. All the family was there and we went to her home and she was happy as can be and eating cake (the first time she ate in 5 days) and then we sat around singing songs. It was a wonderful day and seeing her happy one last time has made all the difference. She was almost 97 and taught me how to shoot a rifle and drive a truck! She was a hardcore deer hunter and shot her last buck 10 years ago and did her last 2 wk hnting trip in a tent in Mococ 6 years ago. She used to tell me stories of riding her Harley in the 40's and that she went down once on hwy 99 north of redding on her way to Oregon, back when it was dirt. She was amazing!

 

Sorry to hear about the loss of your uncle. Have a safe trip!

 

-Ryan

[Jim Moore]

No such thing as mold release. Get them warmed up and let 'er rip.

[hANNAbONE]

No such thing as mold release. Get them warmed up and let 'er rip.

bINGO...warm em up and run em...no worries.

[Danny caddyshack Noonan]

No such thing as mold release

 

Perhaps not if you apply teflon tape or some other material to the mold and then peel it off. But, I can't afford a tire that is mfg like that.

Rubber, and plastics in general, are an adhesive. The parts I have molded all have to have a mold release applied to the mold to release them from the tool after transfer molding. Silicone or teflon in suspension is very common.

 

I don't work in the tire industry but, I don't buy that you can affordably transfer mold rubber without releasing the tooling.

[4wheeldog]

Be that as it may......Once a new tire is up to temperature, it is almost as sticky as it gets. An unknown number of cycles continue to improve it (Slightly) but if you get it hot enough, long enough it degrades. Whatever is on the surface cooks off by the time it gets up to temp.

[Joe Frickin' Friday]

No such thing as mold release. Get them warmed up and let 'er rip.

 

Whatever is or is not on the surface of brand new tires, countless riders can confirm that they are slippery as hell at first, much more slippery than cold tires with a few hundred miles on them.

 

I don't wipe new tires down, but I do go out and do a few tight spirals in a parking lot with lots of counterbalancing to make the bike lean into the turn as far as possible while minimizing traction demand. It's not really possible to scrub in the entire width of the tire this way, but you can scrub enough of it so that the chicken strips can be gradually/safely scrubbed later during normal riding. After maybe 20-30 seconds of spiraling left and another 20-30 to the right, I'm comfortable with sedate city riding, and by the time I get to more sporting roads things are fine.

[EddyQ]

No such thing as mold release. Get them warmed up and let 'er rip.

 

There may be no such thing as mold release, but I know of several instances where very seasoned riders went down with new tires. Lots of theories out there . . .

 

With that said, I thoroughly clean them with a stiff brush loaded with Westsley's Bleach White. Rinse and ride normal on some dry roads to rough up the surface. After that, I let her rip. . . .

[dirtrider]

Talking to the tire reps I deal with (all brands but mostly automotive based) they will neither confirm or deny a mold release remaining on the tires (some say it is used in manufacturing but won’t confirm it remains as sold) . Most tire companies do caution to be careful on new tires but under their breath the tire reps say that is more for the driver/rider to become acquainted with the possible different handling characteristics of the new tire.

 

Personally I don’t take it easy on new tires as I mount/balance my own so am careful to not leave tire mounting lube all over the tire. I usually wipe off newly mounted tires with Westly’s Bleach White then go ride the dickens out of the bike. BUT, I do live on a gravel road so the tires have some sand/gravel rubbed on their traction area before hitting the asphalt.

 

My personal opinion is that a lot of motorcycle new tire accidents are caused by the much quicker lean over/ lean in on new round tires and/or the tire mounting process leaving mounting lube all over the tread area. The mounting guy gets that lube all over his gloves or hands then handles the tires by the tread when picking them up or balancing.

 

[Jim Moore]

There was an interview with the Pirelli head honcho in Sport Rider a year or so ago. He was specifically asked about the theoretical mold release compound. He said they don't do it and neither does anyone else. So, warm them up and let 'er rip.

[Quinn]

Does anyone see any downside to taking it easy for the first hundred miles? True, you may just be keeping the elephants away, but it seems to me that it doesn't hurt anything to error on the side of safety.

 

Old tires, new tires, I ride conservatively and have never had a problem with elephants on the road.

 

----

[Danny caddyshack Noonan]

Ryan,

I"m sorry your thread degenerated into another BMWST argument.

 

What oil are you using?

 

Have a safe ride. The roads should be good, might be a bit cold up high and definitely on the north slopes.

 

 

[malcolmblalock]

I can tell you my experience with a new rear tire. November two years ago I had a new rear tire installed. Put it on the bike and it sat for a couple of days with no riding. Then on Saturday morning, it was about 36 degrees and I was meeting a buddy about 80 miles away for breakfast and a ride.

 

I live in a townhome community with an asphalt parking lot that has been "sealed" (coated with a light coat of tar). When it's wet, if I want to play a bit with my tennis shoes, I car run a few steps and slide maybe 5 feet. It's pretty slick when wet.

 

It was not wet that morning, but it was cold. Jumped on the bike, pulled out of the driveway onto the asphalt, made a gentle cut to head up the lot, and the next thing I knew, I was on my butt and the bike was sliding across the parking lot!

 

Moral of the story.... Cold temps and new tires on sealed, slick asphalt is not a good mixture.

 

Didn't get hurt. Touratech engine guards took the brunt of the hit and slide (removing about 1/16" of metal off the bar as it slid 12 feet on the asphalt. Bags were off the bike, so all that hit were the engine guard and a GIVI V46 topcase (which sustained some scratches).

 

I'll not do that again!

 

What I've found otherwise is to take it easy for a mile or two, weaving progressively harder and harder. Then ride as normal. I don't believe extensive riding makes any difference.

[RPG]

50-100 miles of non-aggressive riding should be fine. I would take the twisties but just take it easy in the turns.

 

Then again, at a recent Track Day with brand new tires installed, 2 separate instructor's said to give them 2 laps and then ride it like ya stole it.

 

RPG

[OlGeezer]

I gently work them back and forth until I've scuffed the entire riding surface. After that, I stop thinking about it. That exercise typically gets me over the "hill" on Ortega Highway, say 50 miles of preoccupation.

[beemerboy]

What geezer said. The shops here will tell you to try to get 100 miles on a new set of tires before you get giggy with it. Let your own riding style dictate how long it takes to scrub 'em in but DO ride at least 50.

[ka5ysy]

I have 300 miles on the new PR3's now. I usually run easily for at least 100 miles on new tires, with emphasis on doing a lot of S turns to scrub them in initially, then go up in cornering speed slowly to not have any asphaltic or agricultural experiences.

 

Never had a problem with doing it like this.

 

The one time that I got a bit aggressive on new tires, I got lowsided and 4 cracked ribs for my trouble and a good concussion to boot, plus a whole lot of grief from the SO for awhile.

[russell_bynum]

Does anyone see any downside to taking it easy for the first hundred miles? True, you may just be keeping the elephants away, but it seems to me that it doesn't hurt anything to error on the side of safety.

 

Old tires, new tires, I ride conservatively and have never had a problem with elephants on the road.

 

----

 

Why not 1,000 miles? Or 5,000?

 

If we're doing something based on silly superstitions, we might as well do it right?

[russell_bynum]

50-100 miles of non-aggressive riding should be fine. I would take the twisties but just take it easy in the turns.

 

Then again, at a recent Track Day with brand new tires installed, 2 separate instructor's said to give them 2 laps and then ride it like ya stole it.

 

RPG

 

Your instructors are right. They will also tell you the same thing with cold tires, btw.

[Dadicool]

I think the gentle aproach to the first few miles is good advise.

As long as they are well warm and you dont try to remove the chicken strips on the first few corners you will be sweet.

I had a new set of PR3's put on my R1100S last Thursday but havent had a chance to play with them yet.

Just the ride home from the dealer made her feel new again.

I love new tyres!!

[Sweendog]

I like to talk to mine in a low, gentle voice for at least an hour. Then I share a good bottle of wine with the wife, in the presence of the tires. After a nice night's rest, I sacrifice a spring chicken, turn thrice clockwise, ending facing north. Then I go for a ride. ;-)

 

Alternatively, I take it easy on new tires for a few days to get used to their feel, then I ride as usual. =)