Going to put a new tire on the front. Please tell me why they should be reversed, or if it really needs to be for the trike.
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This I find very interesting :yes: I finished converting the Valk to a trike in August last year, and having covered quite some distance since then, have been amazed at the wear on the front tire. Trikes in Oz are thin on the ground, and there is always conjecture about front rubber and tire pressure. This is the first I've read of your solution to the problem... is it common practice in the States?
Trikes generally have a rear tire installed in the front, but reversed. Rear tires usually have a stiffer sidewall and are beefier overall than a front tire.<snip>
Well Puff, (he says in his best Mom voice) "... if others are doing it..." so if all the other kids jump off the cliff I suppose you think it is all right for you, too. (crossed arms and tapping foot)
The best scenario would be to find a car tire that would fit on the front rim. they are built to take the forces that trikes put upon them, as they don't lean like 2 wheelers. Rear tire on the front (preferably reversed) is the second best choice, and the only one due to clearance issues on most motorcycle front ends.
Going to put a new tire on the front. Please tell me why they should be reversed, or if it really needs to be for the trike.
When I look at the wear my m/c tire is incurring since it's been a trike, there is naturally a flat-spot down the centre, but it's also worn flat (on an angle of course) either side of the centre due to cornering. Question is, how does a car tire cope with cornering when the tire 'lays' over during cornering? Wouldn't it sit on the 'edge' of a flat profile? I ask these questions because I'm intrigued, not because I'm doubting their effectiveness.
Motorcycle tires are designed and formed to vary the location of te contact surface of the tire to the road during turning ... hence the roundness of the tires profile ... Automotive tires on the other hand have a more square profile as they are designed to handle lateral forces during turning while keeping the same location of contact between the road and the tire in the relative same place ... Also since automotive tires are designed for greater weight loads their sidewalls are stiffer so the tire does not move laterally in relation to the centerline of the rim ...
Basically the directions of the loads are diff between a vehicle that leans into a curve and rolls the tire onto its side and one that relies on a flat footing ...
And if you understand any of that please let me know ... Sometimes it is hard getting the pictures in my head into words ...
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