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Break in period for Q2's?

4K views 38 replies 14 participants last post by  luke geis 
#1 ·
So I did a little searching, and from what I can tell people don't seem to think there's too much of a break-in period for a pair of new Q2's. However, I just got mine on yesterday (first tire change since buying the bike used), and first ride out I'm taking a fairly easy corner, not leaning in too hard or accelerating out of it at all, and I just lowside (first time too). Nothing serious, but it's still concerning to me. Should I just try to thermal cycle the tires by freeway riding for a bit, and then not worry about it? How long would you say it takes to get them up to temp?
 
#39 ·
In theory there is no " break in " period. But the tire must be up to operating temp in order to provide maximum potential. This is a hard task to accomplish on the street because there is not a lot energy rolling the carcass around in order to make it heat up.

Heat in the tire is generated by having the carcass flex and also friction from the pavement. You have heard the term scrubbing speed in the corners. This is a very true representation of what is occurring. The tire is literally scrubbing the ground and speed is being lost from that friction; engine braking and trail braking aside.

The higher the tire pressure the less amount of carcass flex that is going to occur. The lower the tire pressure the more carcass flex that will occur. A popular thing to do on the street is to lower the tire pressure in order to increase tire temp therefore increasing available traction. The downside is shortened tire life. The opposite occurs when you increase tire pressure. The higher pressures reduce potential heat and grip in the tire, but increases the tires life and wear.

Street tires don't do too well with very low pressures. They are designed to be ran at most of the factory spec's of about 36 PSI. Most canyon runners will do the classic 30/30 trick to increase tire performance. It is a good practice to run the street tires with the same pressures front and rear for two reasons.

1. It's easier to keep an eye on and track the tire pressures.

2. The tires were designed to run at the same pressures in relation to each other. Hence the factory 36/36 as a standard.

Most street tires do not do well at pressures below 30 PSI. Some will most won't. They start to get squirmy and wear too fast when you go below 30/30. The 30/30 pressure is also the cold tire pressure........NOT HOT TIRE PSI......... Remember to set your tire pressures cold for the street.

That being said, you are looking for about a 5-7 PSI increase from operating temp in a street tire. So if you start at 30/30 and they each increase to 35 PSI. Then that is a good thing. If they go up to 38/38 respectively you will want to add some tire pressure to help cool the tire down. The tires usually don't increase in tire pressure equally. The rear is usually the hotter tire with the higher pressure. If the pressure is less than 5 PSI you can lower the tire pressure so long as you don't go too much below 30 PSI as a rule. This is the regiment for the aggressive canyon rider. The every day street rider should stick to factory recommended pressures for both safety and longevity. Low tire pressures when cold make for a squirmy and sluggish machine.

I found that 28 PSI is the lowest safe pressure that can be run with a street tire while canyon running. The tire won't last long and it is rather squirmy and the bike wallows until heat is generated and pressures come up. I don't recommend going below 30 PSI basically. Also the quickest and most effective way to generate heat in a tire is to do aggressive braking and accelerating. That wallowing side to side thing does absolutely nothing to generate heat in the tire. wallowing side to side can actually strip heat away! Aggressive braking and accelerating has been found to increase heat the most and is the closest thing you can get to a heated run. It takes about 10-15 min for a tire to come up to temp in the canyons even with a heated pace, so please keep that in mind. It takes time for the tire to get to it's highest potential. Respect that and you will keep yourself out of a lot of trouble.
 
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