Tyre Rotation.....?

crosstownk

Not the usual tyre question but I'd be interested in your opinion.

I work in the motor trade where tyre rotation is common. The idea being that if you have a front wheel drive car you swap your front tyres/wheel from front to back to maximise tyre life. In a front wheel drive car the front tyres wear quicker as drive is through those tyres and they also suffer more wear during braking as the weight is shifted forward.

Translate this to our two wheeled steed. The drive is through the rear, most of the weight sits on the rear and as a result, the rear tyre wears quicker.

I've read various articles that suggest that it's best to leave the front tyre on the front as it's not as worn and will have better grip. After all, if you can control the front of the bike the rest will usually follow. From a safety perspective, this seems to make sense.

I'm in need of replacement tyres primarily because my rear tyre has flattened on the top to a much greater extent than the front. If I'd rotated them regularly then *maybe* I could have evened out the wear.

tl;dr: do you rotate your tyres?

Discuss.

Raam

Never. I replace whatever one is worn.

cython

I've rotated them accidentally when replacing a wheel set and bringing the tyres with me, but don't actively do it, to be honest. Personally, given the increased severity of the consequences of a blowout on the front wheel, I prefer to have the less worn tyre there. Now this may be making for more risk of a blowout/puncture on the rear, but at least it should just flatten then, rather than potentially propelling the front end off course suddenly!

RebelButtMunch

I always put the front on the rear and the new on the front.

07Lapierre

RebelButtMunch wrote: »

I always put the front on the rear and the new on the front.

I do the opposite... If I need one new tyre, I put the new tyre on the rear and the part worn one on the front.

Darkglasses

I'd put my best tire on the rear, but decent bike tires aren't prohibitively expensive so I'd replace both if I needed to.

el tel

My tyres get rotated every time I cycle.

crosstownk

el tel wrote: »

My tyres get rotated every time I cycle.

Just the one rotation.....?

Beasty

2nd time today I get to mention Sheldon
Put the good one in front

The reason for this is that the front tire is much more critical for safety than the rear, so you should have the more reliable tire on the front

crosstownk

Beasty wrote: »

2nd time today I get to mention Sheldon
Put the good one in front

That's one of the sites I used. Although it's interesting to see the variety of opinions so far, despite the small sample.

Keep the opinions coming, it's one of those where there is no defined right or wrong answer.

Darkglasses

Well I find a rear puncture is more of a PITA to fix on the roadside, that's my reasoning.

07Lapierre

Beasty wrote: »

2nd time today I get to mention Sheldon
Put the good one in front

He's WRONG! :putting a worn tyre on the rear increases the chances of a puncture. Also a new tyre has less grip than a worn tyre,, so better to break it in on the rear wheel.

crosstownk

Darkglasses wrote: »

Well I find a rear puncture is more of a PITA to fix on the roadside, that's my reasoning.

I totally agree. Rear punctures are so much more hassle - the chain needs to be tackled, your hands get filthy and if you don't bring rubber gloves, your lovely white bar tape will be be destroyed.

As a wise man from Ballinrobe once told me - a tyre has two lives: It's own life and your life.

I'm leaning toward leaving the best tyre on the front.

allez

07Lapierre wrote: »

He's WRONG! :putting a worn tyre on the rear increases the chances of a puncture. Also a new tyre has less grip than a worn tyre,, so better to break it in on the rear wheel.

He's right, Id prefer to have to fix a rear puncture than a broken face from a front wheel blow out coming down a hill. Front wheel is crucial to your safety, i the tyre under the most stress as most of the time we brake with our front brake. You don't want it to fail.

triggermortis

I never rotate tyres, just replace worn ones. I never rotated my car tyres either. They wore out at different times but this helped spread the cost. I did change the car ones in pairs as it was RWD and quite powerful.
I keep an eye on my bike tyres, and replace as and when needed

Lumen

Darkglasses wrote: »

Well I find a rear puncture is more of a PITA to fix on the roadside, that's my reasoning.

Also, if the puncture happens on a fast descent you'll be patching the tube from the comfort of your hospital bed.

Hermy

triggermortis wrote: »

...I never rotated my car tyres either. They wore out at different times but this helped spread the cost...

This.

turbodiesel

07Lapierre wrote: »

He's WRONG! :putting a worn tyre on the rear increases the chances of a puncture. Also a new tyre has less grip than a worn tyre,, so better to break it in on the rear wheel.

But on a wet road I'd rather be trying to save a rear end slide than a front end slide.

JBokeh

On the MTBs I tend to wear the rear tyre off it first,buy a new one and put it on the front,and put the front one on the rear. Might be more important for MTB tyres,but I wouldn't put a worn one from the rear of a bike onto the front,which is important for cornering.

On my Hybrid the rear tyre wore flat across the centre,like motorbike tyres do,probably because it doesn't get ridden aggressively,just used for general cycling around. I got rid of it only a few weeks ago,i'm not sure what it would be like on the front,might have made cornering a bit funky as there would be a step in the tread

Don't have any experience with road bikes,but I presume theres not really enough rubber or tread on it for it to wear out,so it is more about the ability to resist punctures

07Lapierre

allez wrote: »

He's right, Id prefer to have to fix a rear puncture than a broken face from a front wheel blow out coming down a hill. Front wheel is crucial to your safety, i the tyre under the most stress as most of the time we brake with our front brake. You don't want it to fail.

Well maybe the answer is to always replace both tyres at the same time? The way I look at it is this...when I'm descending at high speed, if i get a puncture in either wheel, the chances are I'm going to hit the deck. The most likely cause of a puncture when descending is hitting a pothole or debris on the road, so I try to avoid that. If its raining or even if the road is wet, I slow down (I'm a lousy descender in the wet!). As for braking..I use both brakes and usually have to replace rear pads first.

CramCycle

turbodiesel wrote: »

But on a wet road I'd rather be trying to save a rear end slide than a front end slide.

It's rare you would get a front wheel slide though, you get what is colloquially known as a Face plant or you get to "eat tarmac". If a rear wheel goes, do you not at least have a slightly better chance of recovery, particularly if clipped in.

jimm

allez wrote: »

He's right, Id prefer to have to fix a rear puncture than a broken face from a front wheel blow out coming down a hill. Front wheel is crucial to your safety, i the tyre under the most stress as most of the time we brake with our front brake. You don't want it to fail.

Fully agree. Best/Newest tyre on the front.

Peterx

I only do this on my touring bike. The rear tyre has so much more weight it gets worn out much quicker than the front. Once I start getting punctures in the rear wheel I change them about as it's much easier to change a tube in the front one compared to the palaver with the rear.

You can see flatness appearing in the rear tyre over the course of a trip (only have rear panniers)