peterh Posted March 8, 2006 Share Posted March 8, 2006 I just purchased a set of Metzler Z6 tires. I'm aware of the need to scrub the tires and about being careful for the first 100 miles or so, but I don't really know what to expect. Will the tires truly be slippery or should I just be careful not to push them hard at high speed in tight corners? All advice will be appreciated. Thanks! Link to comment
hootowl Posted March 8, 2006 Share Posted March 8, 2006 I head to the nearest vacant parking lot and start doing figure 8's. I start with a large pattern and make the pattern smaller and smaller as the tires scrub in. Stop every once and awhile and have a look at the tires. It usually doesn't take much time to scrub in. Richard Link to comment
GordonB Posted March 8, 2006 Share Posted March 8, 2006 I got mine and ended up riding home in a downpour! No problems, justr leave the aggression at home till you scrub em in. Link to comment
Motorrad4fun Posted March 8, 2006 Share Posted March 8, 2006 Picked up my bike headed home (27miles) after Z6 install. Looked at the tires and the glaze was "scrubbed" of to about 1 inch from each side. Never looked back.... As always ride within your limits Good Luck Link to comment
flyingreg Posted March 8, 2006 Share Posted March 8, 2006 The March issue of Motorcycle Consumer News has an article on scrubbing tires, covers tire scrubbing in your garage. Good read for the unitiated. Got a copy? If not, MCN is worth subscribing to www.mcnews.com A suggestion is to chuck an emory wheel into your drill and srub off the shiny film, going side to side with the emory wheel. Shouldn't take but 15-25 minutes for both wheels. The article covers many options. Link to comment
russell_bynum Posted March 8, 2006 Share Posted March 8, 2006 The March issue of Motorcycle Consumer News has an article on scrubbing tires, covers tire scrubbing in your garage. Good read for the unitiated. Got a copy? If not, MCN is worth subscribing to www.mcnews.com A suggestion is to chuck an emory wheel into your drill and srub off the shiny film, going side to side with the emory wheel. Shouldn't take but 15-25 minutes for both wheels. The article covers many options. There's no reason to do that. I've put brand new tires on my CBR and within 2 laps, I'm running my normal pace. On the RT, the last time I put new tires on it, I went straight from the garage to the freeway, to Ortega Highway. On the second turn on Ortega Highway, I messed up my timing and had to enter it a bit faster than I planned. I firmly put the right peg feeler on the ground, then did what I normally do in that turn...smoothly applied the throttle to full. I had no problems with traction. The MCN "article" was done because one of their editors recently crashed on "new tires". My money is that he crashed on "cold tires", and the fact that they were new had little, if anything to do with it. Link to comment
Joe Frickin' Friday Posted March 8, 2006 Share Posted March 8, 2006 The March issue of Motorcycle Consumer News has an article on scrubbing tires, covers tire scrubbing in your garage. Good read for the unitiated. There was some previous discussion of that article. In prolly a couple dozen tire changes, I've never gone to as much trouble as that article recommends. Never crashed, either. For the last few changes I've done the figure-eight thing, but prior to that I just took it easy for maybe 20 miles. Straight-line acceleration is fine, but large lean angles and/or turns with heavy power application should be avoided until you can gradually warm/degunk the chicken strips; you don't want to put your bike onto a cold greasy section of tread and then ask for big traction forces. Link to comment
Firefight911 Posted March 8, 2006 Share Posted March 8, 2006 I agree with the above posts, there is no need to go through some great ordeal to get your tires scrubbed so you can ride. The tires are safe right out of the crate. Joe_Frickin_Friday probably said it best with his advice to just be smooth with no great big handfuls of throttle or agressive steering inputs. Take it smooth for a few miles and when you get back home, let the tires get COLD and recheck the pressures. After that, get rid of the chicken strips, post haste!!!! Link to comment
wolcott Posted March 9, 2006 Share Posted March 9, 2006 What are chicken strips? I have a new pair of ME 880's coming and want to know what to look for. Thanks. Link to comment
BucksTherapy Posted March 9, 2006 Share Posted March 9, 2006 I agree with all of the above with one caveat. After any service it is always a good idea to give your tires a washing with any detergent and water that will remove grease or oil like dish detergent. Stay away from car wash soaps or floor soaps as the may leave a film of wax. A little oil or wax can give you more of a thrill then the new rubber sheen in my experience. Don't ask. Link to comment
Joe Frickin' Friday Posted March 9, 2006 Share Posted March 9, 2006 What are chicken strips? I have a new pair of ME 880's coming and want to know what to look for. Thanks. Chicken strips are the unused portion of tread at the right and left edges of the tire. Wide chicken strips are associated with either A) a tire with only a few miles on it, or B) a bike that doesn't get ridden very aggressively. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chicken_strips In the U.K., they're called wanker strips. Link to comment
russell_bynum Posted March 9, 2006 Share Posted March 9, 2006 What are chicken strips? I have a new pair of ME 880's coming and want to know what to look for. Thanks. Chicken strips are the unused portion of tread at the right and left edges of the tire. Wide chicken strips are associated with either A) a tire with only a few miles on it, or B) a bike that doesn't get ridden very aggressively. Unfortunately, there needs to be another description: C) A rider who uses good lines and body position to minimize lean angle. Link to comment
3rdbike Posted March 9, 2006 Share Posted March 9, 2006 What are chicken strips? I have a new pair of ME 880's coming and want to know what to look for. Thanks. Chicken strips are the unused portion of tread at the right and left edges of the tire. Wide chicken strips are associated with either A) a tire with only a few miles on it, or B) a bike that doesn't get ridden very aggressively. Unfortunately, there needs to be another description: C) A rider who uses good lines and body position to minimize lean angle. Or, to avoid those ugly chicken strips, and to get through a corner in the least amount of time, use good lines, good body position and weighting, and maximum lean angle. My opinion is that not being able to use a motorcycle's tires from edge to edge is like not being able to use a car's steering from lock to lock. Link to comment
russell_bynum Posted March 9, 2006 Share Posted March 9, 2006 My opinion is that not being able to use a motorcycle's tires from edge to edge is like not being able to use a car's steering from lock to lock. I very much agree...but there's a big difference between being able to use all of the tire, and doing it routinely on public roads. I'll take my RT down to the valve cover in a heartbeat if I need to, but I generally have about a 1/2 to 3/4" chicken strip. The track is a different story, of course. The Pilot Powers on my CBR are blistered all the way to the edge. Link to comment
Ken H. Posted March 9, 2006 Share Posted March 9, 2006 Unfortunately, there needs to be another description: C) A rider who uses good lines and body position to minimize lean angle. Exactly! Ride Better = Lean Less! Link to comment
EricJRW Posted March 9, 2006 Share Posted March 9, 2006 "Greasy" and "chicken strips" in the same post made me laugh... Good thread! Thanks... Link to comment
upflying Posted March 9, 2006 Share Posted March 9, 2006 When I had new tires (paid for by taxpayers) installed on my LEO HD FLHP, I remember the Harley mechanics did a mini-burnout with my bike to scrub the tires in. Link to comment
russell_bynum Posted March 9, 2006 Share Posted March 9, 2006 When I had new tires (paid for by taxpayers) installed on my LEO HD FLHP, I remember the Harley mechanics did a mini-burnout with my bike to scrub the tires in. LOL!!!! Link to comment
TMH Posted March 9, 2006 Share Posted March 9, 2006 After any service it is always a good idea to give your tires a washing with any detergent and water that will remove grease or oil like dish detergent. Stay away from car wash soaps or floor soaps as the may leave a film of wax. A little oil or wax can give you more of a thrill then the new rubber sheen in my experience. Don't ask. Agreed. Also, I hope that none of you use any tire "sidewall shiner/conditioner" on anything but your Harley tires. I test-rode a bike once where the owner had done this to pretty-up the bike for potential buyers. Fortunately he told me he had done so, and that he had possibly gotten some of the stuff on the tread. He sure did, and I almost dumped the bike on a low speed turn. Don't use anything other than oil/grease removing detergent anywhere near your tires! Tom Link to comment
Joe Frickin' Friday Posted March 9, 2006 Share Posted March 9, 2006 Agreed. Also, I hope that none of you use any tire "sidewall shiner/conditioner" on anything but your Harley tires. I don't think it's a problem if it's applied conservatively and the excess is vigorously wiped off. I don't spray the stuff on; I saturate a cloth, wipe it on to completely wet the sidewall, then rub off all the excess. Haven't had a problem with any getting on the tread doing this - though my RT's getting old enough that it's really not worth the trouble to detail the sidewalls anymore... Link to comment
JimJeffers Posted March 10, 2006 Share Posted March 10, 2006 I recently put new Metzlers on my 1150RT. The service technician told me "scrubbing" in the tire was not the only requirement. You actually needed to have the tire go through 3 or 4 heat cycles on the tires as there is some impregnated oils from the manufacturing. So a lloonnggg single ride still won't really prepare them. I did multiple shorter rides to heat/cool and slowly leaned a little more each run. Made me feel good about it anyway. Link to comment
peterh Posted March 11, 2006 Author Share Posted March 11, 2006 Finally work and the weather co-operated, and I took my RT out with the new Metzler Z6s. First for a dozen, or so, figure 8s in the church parking lot at the end of my road, then for a nice long ride. Thanks for all the advice and useful discussions. Now for those pesky chicken strips.... peterh Link to comment
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