Front tire question

[cavie]

Noobie here. My new to me VTX1300 has a rear tire on the front running backward. What is the purpose of the backward rotation?? Doesn't that mess with the water deflection?? I under stand the rear tire on the front. Thicker, harder rubber, wider tread on the road.

[John Luciano]

After 7 years of discussing this to death.
We still have the JURY out on this one. There are 200 threads
Discussing this. Better braking. Seams in the tire. Hydroplane prevention or cause it. Reduced cupping. Not really backwards when on the front. On and on and on. Glad u brought it up again.

[trikerAL]

Front tyre direction in constructed for braking pressures.Rear tyre direction is constructed for excelleration pressures.
Reason for reversing rear on front is for carcus braking forces,hope this make sense.
Also as you,ve said rear tyre has more mileage tread.

[SMSgt]

Check out this thread http://www.triketalk.com/forum/threa...r-on-the-front post #3 it might help.
Happy triking

[FRR]

There are enough threads on this subject to keep you reading until Spring.

[JaysGone]

Please don't stay awake nights thinking this over.

[cavie]

I understand all the threads. Not one of them that I read addressed the water flow issue. I was referring to the water flow thru the tread design by the manufacture. Out and away from the tire. Seems to me that we are directing the water flow in reverse no? Allways looking for education.

[JaysGone]

In general yes most will mount the rear on the front in a reverse direction.
Allows for the belt direction to be the same as if it were pushing rather then being the opposite when braking.
Also most want the water to flow back and away from the bike.

My feelings have always been it really doesn't matter.
In my opinion.
Having a rear as a front tire.
Its under no where near the same stresses under braking as it ever would be as a drive wheel accelerating.
Its general construction is stronger then any regular bike front tire would ever be.

So with that in mind.
Run it however you see fit.
The water is out of the way no matter which direction you run it.
Its just more natural to have the water pushed back rather then to the front.
Its still going to be out towards the sides.

[Reaper]

In general yes most will mount the rear on the front in a reverse direction.
Allows for the belt direction to be the same as if it were pushing rather then being the opposite when braking.
Also most want the water to flow back and away from the bike.

My feelings have always been it really doesn't matter.
In my opinion.
Having a rear as a front tire.
Its under no where near the same stresses under braking as it ever would be as a drive wheel accelerating.
Its general construction is stronger then any regular bike front tire would ever be.

So with that in mind.
Run it however you see fit.
The water is out of the way no matter which direction you run it.
Its just more natural to have the water pushed back rather then to the front.
Its still going to be out towards the sides.

Hi There,

Not trying to confuse the issue, and not geting into the ply constuction and tyre cupping area, but the tread direction does matter when it comes to tyre performance. A directional Tread pattern is designed to remove the water away from the contact area of the tyre when forces are applied. When the tyre is mounted on the back, its primary purpose is to drive, so the tread is designed to push the water and debris to the outside. Hence, when a rear tyre is fitted to the front, its primary purpose becomes braking and this is the reason you should rotate the tyre so that the water and debris is pushed to the outside when the braking load comes on. Hope this helps.

Reaper

[Veritas44]

Well put Reaper
I would only add that the "Primary Purpose" is two-fold. Braking yes but equal to that (actually little more than) is to Steer / Initiate change in Vector of Motion. The front Tire IS the "Rudder" of the Trike. It bares the brunt and lion's share of the Forces during any maneuvering.
As such it is paramount that the Tire maintains and holds maximum contact and grip in any and all operating conditions. As you say, the tread pattern is specifically designed to ford and push the water (and any other substance/object(s)) it encounters Outward & Rearward. For this reason, it logically follows that its rotation remain in the same direction as when in its originally designed position.
More reason for the same conclusion.
The only plausible reason to reverse the rotational mounting is the Ply lapping and possibility that the integrity may become compromised due to heat of Friction during braking. That is valid but also far less of a concern than the Steering and Braking are.
In the end, it's Pros vs. Cons as is a lot of these type decisions regarding Trikes. A "lesser of evils" so to speak. Considering all the points, the choice is quite simple and clear.

[JaysGone]

I don't disagree with what your saying at all.
Its all 100% reasonable.
95% of my riding is in a straight line.
No high speed anything for me but highway.
This discussion has gone on for years over at another Darksiding forum I belong to with no definitive anything.
Ill stick with my over 200K miles of Darksiding on 2 wheels and it not making one bit of difference in my experience in reality.
Braking when on the front is a lot less stressful then constantly pushing is on the rear.
That being said.
I rotate the front every 10K or so anyway out of habit.
So its one way or the other 50% of the time.
Id say Ive averaged 18-22K per rear tire on the front.
The Wing trike currently has a MPA as it was bought reversed,
Most of my bikes have had $80 Kenda Cruz or Challengers.
Which were as good as a 140$ BattleAx I tried once.
In any event Im not concerned about direction 1 bit.
I sleep well at night too.

[Old Fard]

[Not trying to confuse the issue, and not geting into the ply constuction and tyre cupping area, but the tread direction does matter when it comes to tyre performance. A directional Tread pattern is designed to remove the water away from the contact area of the tyre when forces are applied. When the tyre is mounted on the back, its primary purpose is to drive, so the tread is designed to push the water and debris to the outside. Hence, when a rear tyre is fitted to the front, its primary purpose becomes braking and this is the reason you should rotate the tyre so that the water and debris is pushed to the outside when the braking load comes on. Hope this helps.

Reaper]

The direction on the tire is important to prevent "hydro-planing", in addition it is my belief that no manufacturer would build a tire where the bond joint might be vulnerable if the tire was reversed. Think of the load on the bond joint of a Top Fuel Dragster running 3.5 to 5 lbs pressure in the old days. They of course had directional arrows but just think of the load and distortion they went through. The rubber companies have done a da...n good job developing the bond joint.
For those who understand this, I say join the club and sleep well.

[pcombe]

I took the rear tire (which is the same size) and put it on my trike backward rotation.

I notice it rides a bit harder due to rubber compound but it handles beautifully under all weather conditions and i cant see any wear from when i first put it on about 5,000 miles?
Including fully loaded and pulling trailor.

I have had it on the flats and in the mountains in hard twisties, corners great and water has been no issue.

Make sure the rear tire you buy is the exact same size as the current front one OK?

[Pegasus1300]

Somebody wanna start an oil thread?

[tbear]

Somebody wanna start an oil thread?

ok! I buy Dunlop tires and leave them in the direction that they are suppose to run! and I use Redline oil products!! Neh!!pepper

[John Luciano]

Please some one close this can of WORMS for good.

[Lucky]

WOW