Anyone noticed?

[ospite]

...has anyone noticed how every single "Bike of the Month" has front tire mounted in the wrong direction??

Quite surprising id say if it wasn't for the fact that all but 1 (Trainman's 620) and Baby Tjs beautiful GT 750 that doesn't show in the pictures, are mounted the wrong way!...

The friggn Toaster Bike also!!

Well, beautiful bikes folks, but be careful in the rain! (for the ones that live where it actually rains)

 


ps: im loving the spellcheck!!

[He Man]

you sure about that? maybe you should look at the tire's direction...


alot of tires have the tread pattern reversed on the front tire when compared to the rear...

[Ducatl]

you sure about that? maybe you should look at the tire's direction...


alot of tires have the tread pattern reversed on the front tire when compared to the rear...

Yep, pretty sure they're right.

You gotta check the arrow on the sidewall, the tread pattern can be misleading.

[Triple J]

I know for a fact mine is correct (Monstrada).

[the_Journeyman]

I know the Angel STs have opposite facing tread from front to rear.  I about pitched a Donald Duck fit when I looked at in after I had gotten the tire mounted and the wheel back on the bike and thought it was backwards!

JM

[ungeheuer]

same with the new michelin power pures.... the front tread pattern is bass ackwards compared to the rear.  like others have said, its the rotational indicator on the sidewall which you gotta pay attention to not the appearance of the tread...

[ospite]

...well, as much as it doesn't make sense to me, apparently that is the case...

being a person of a somewhat scientific background and a passionate of physics, the "backward" tread sounds crazy to me...on cars (and so i thought for motorcycles) the tread is generally oriented in a diagonal way so to push water from under the tire towards the sides to avoid hydroplaning. So i thought for motorcycles... [moto]
turns out, due to the thickness of the front tire (very thin) hydroplaning is a marginal factor if not non existing at all! The pattern on the front wheel is purely to optimize traction and wear...and in many brands, the front pattern has been reversed...wow

this is an abstract from the Conti site:

"The orientation of the ContiRoad Attack front has recently been revised. Conti Germany responded to feed-back from the UK and other markets about maximising the already incredible durability of the original front tread pattern. After the launch of the ContiSport Attack test riders commented on the fact that the reversed tread direction gave much more uniform wear across the tyres section and so the ContiRoad Attack front pattern was switched in late October 2006 to take advantage of this better wear characteristic. Some confusion exists because some European plants outside of Germany have a tread mould with small arrows at the edge of the tread near the sidewall, these arrows should be ignored. These moulds are being replaced. ContiRoad attack customers may be offered the same tyre with apparently two different directions of rotation. The tread pattern on both tyres is fine. Riders should be aware that all relevant and legally required information regarding speed rating and direction of rotation is moulded into the side-wall of the tyre, not the tread, so be sure your tyre is fitted in accordance with the directional arrow on the sidewall regardless of which way the pattern runs. "

...kinda crazy huh?...

[ospite]

...on a funny side note, wile researching about this phenomenon, i stumble across a conversation had some time ago on a forum about the same issue...and I'm still laughing about it now as i write 

here is how it went:

-#1- ...so I'm still confused about this matter. Lots of contradicting info on this topic so far.

-#2- OK. but does anyone know what happens if you run your tires backwards?

-#3- the bike goes in reverse

-#4- yes, and you go back in time


  

[NoisyDante]

I think this explanation by the famous Shervin can best explain the rotational properties of a tire.   

http://www.flickr.com/photos/shervinrrr/3916072125/#

[WhiteStripe]

For years i have been running the front tire on my Mtn Bikes backward.  I actually had one that was 'reversable' about 20 years ago - claimed regualr for hard pack and 'backwards' for soft.  It actually made a HUGE difference in grip and bite on corners, I have tended to run front directional tires backwards ever since.

Now if i could jsut get the place that mounts my car tires to follow Shervin's advice - last year they mounted three one way and the fourth the other...

[the_Journeyman]

I understand it that the reversed pattern on the front is to make for greater traction when braking (remember 70% to 100% of braking is done up front) and to channel water better for more traction cornering in the wet.   Rear is the other way.  Its biggest job is to propel the bike forward so it's oriented to make channel water/debris for greatest traction when pushing forward.

WhiteStripe - I've got a rear on my Trek like you mention.  It's primary tread pattern acts similar to a paddle tire (scooping loose terrain for traction/propulsion), but doesn't brake well in hard terrain.  If you flip it the other way it bites better for hard terrain and gives much better bite for braking on hard terrain.

JM

[ungeheuer]

I understand it that the reversed pattern on the front is to make for greater traction when braking (remember 70% to 100% of braking is done up front) and to channel water better for more traction cornering in the wet.   Rear is the other way.  Its biggest job is to propel the bike forward so it's oriented to make channel water/debris for greatest traction when pushing forward.

OK I buy that.  Might not be true but it sounds like it could be