Let's review the general information about tires. While we tend to focus on other aspects of a motorcycle's performance, tires are critically important, as all other components (including the rider and passenger) maintain contact with the road thanks to just a few square centimeters of rubber surface.
Tire functions
Today's motorcycle tires are a high-tech product, as they have to fulfill different functions, some of them contradictory:
-They must be flexible, as they are the primary component of the damping system. At the same time, the casing must be rigid enough to withstand the tremendous forces of acceleration, braking, and lateral force.
-They must be able to transmit traction and at the same time steer the vehicle in the right direction.
-They must provide stability in a straight line and at the same time facilitate leaning in curves.
-The tread must be as soft as possible to improve grip and, on the other hand, it must be as durable as possible to extend the tire's lifespan as much as possible.
-They must allow water to drain away in the event of rain, while maintaining the largest possible rubber surface in contact with the ground.
All this is achieved by applying the most modern manufacturing techniques and always adopting some kind of compromise. This is why there are tires that are more suitable or specific for sporty riding, for wet conditions, for rough terrain, for heavier or lighter motorcycles...
Composition of a tire
Without going into too many technicalities, I will briefly explain the parts of the tire:
1. Tread: This is the part that maintains contact with the asphalt. Motorcycle tires typically use harder rubber in the center to improve traction and softer rubber on the sides to facilitate leaning and grip.
2. The casing is a flexible structure formed by steel wires embedded in rubber, its function is to support the load and contribute to the stability of the vehicle.
3. Bead ring: It is made up of an inextensible steel cable, it fixes the tire to the rim, providing sealing and transmitting the engine torque and braking from the rim to the tire.
4. Inner rubber lining: airtight synthetic rubber layer (depending on the tire and rim, it can be used with or without an inner tube)
5. Canvas and inner rubber layers: they make up the type of tire (radial or longitudinal) and provide its main operating characteristics.
Word search... and numbers
Tire manufacturers provide a wealth of information on the sidewalls of their tires. You've probably wondered more than once what all those numbers mean...
1. Manufacturer's brand
2. Type of drawing and/or model
3. “Width” or nominal section, metric or inches
4. Proportion between the width and height of the tire
5. Type of construction of the inner layers
6. Rim diameter in inches
7. Indicates that it is a tire for use on motorcycles
8. Speed code
9. Indicates whether it should be used with (TT) or without (TL) inner tube
10. Maximum load it can support
11. Country of manufacture
12. USA homologation code
13. Direction of rotation (you can also indicate whether it is front (Front) or rear (Rear)
14. Number of layers and their material
15. Wear indicator, when its surface aligns with that of the tread, it must be replaced.
16. European Approval Code
Final conclusions
After learning a little more about our tires, I simply want to remind you that your tire selection should be based on the type of motorcycle you have and the use you intend to make of it, rather than on purely economic considerations. Therefore, there are no better or worse tires, but rather ones that are more or less suited to your specific needs.
They are also the main safety component of our vehicle, so we must always monitor their wear and check the cold tire pressure once a week, which should always be as specified by the manufacturer. This way, our tires will last longer and provide maximum performance.
Frank Burguera
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