SLICK TYRES

[lewis1641]

HELLO AGAIN

i have just bought a set of 5 slick tyres off ebay. the seller stated they were in good condition and certainly 3 of them look to be. 2 however have loads of melted rubber all over them. is this normal? i kind of assume it will be - tyres get hot and sticky, melt a bit and then cool. i was planning on just fitting them and seeing how they drove but dont want to look like a complete idiot at my next trackday!

thanks in advance

[Pike]

Yes very normal mate. You can clean off the melted bits with a scraper, hot air gun and wire brush. Take care not to damage the remaining "tread" when you do it.
If your not too sure about the hot air go for a good wire brushing instead. PM me with a pic if you get stuck.

[lewis1641]

thanks for that mate. while im on it, do slicks require different pressures to normal tyres?

[Pike]

A good start is to set your cold pressures to mid 20 psi then run 3 or 4 laps heat them up then check pressure.
Usually climb 3-5 psi tyre car dependant.

[lewis1641]

cheers. i only ask as they seem to have about 15 in them at the mo. thanks for that. nice car by the way!

[Pike]

No probs, thanks mate 

[Chris-White]

on the subjet of slick tyres, how do you tell if a lsik is ''good'', its not like you can see how much tread is left etc?

[Pike]

There are usually some wear indiactors (holes) on the "tread" so you can see how much life you've got left in them. Some tyres do work better with less tread some work better with more, and some people say different things about the samw tyre  . All down to personal trial and error!

[lewis1641]

ha i wondered what those holes were for!