06-07-2021, 02:52 AM
(06-07-2021, 01:46 AM)j3gq_imp Wrote: @GO can you elaborate ?
If you can please help me understand my measurements. My tires have about 3000 miles on them since new. Today I measure
front tire center line : 3mm (left)
front tire on the side where no wear can have taken place : 3.5 mm
rear tire center line : 4.5mm
rear tire on the side : 5mm
This looks very different from the values mentioned above. It seems to say that the Dunlops never had more than 3.5 / 5 mm of tread depth, and if I did run them down to the min. values (1.5 / 2mm), I might get another 9,000 miles out of the front tire, and another 12,000 miles out of the rear ? (both calculated in a simplistic way as 0.5mm tread used per each 3000 miles). I am a little surprised by these numbers. In particular I had expected the rear might be going faster.
What I meant was each tire manufacturer have their own "recipe" for a tire design. The [secret] recipe may focus on traction, while another on fuel economy, while another on road noise, and etc. etc.
The Goldilocks Design would be to be very good at everything, and tire designs for consumers may have recipes in rubber compound that might give them a marketing edge over their competition.
With respect to tread depth, if a certain rubber recipe is able to offer riding performance and longevity while using less rubber (Example: 0.5 or 1 mm less tread depth), then they will try to certify that design. Conversely, if a competitor has a less research budget to produce a superior rubber compound, in order to certify their tires for some minimum requirement it may mean they require a deeper tread pattern to meet that requirement.
These are generalizations and not profound. However, the rubber recipe (rubber components, ratios and processes) are very proprietary to the manufacturer, and help maintain (if any) a market advantage.