[FazerDude]

I had a new tire put on the rear wheel of the EX500 today. My fiance is still in the first 1000 miles of riding, so I did not want to throw a new tire at her this soon, but it was down to the wear bars.

I decided to try to wash the mold release off, so I put it in the sink and made a bowl of steaming hot and very soapy water, about 2 cups of water with an ounce of Dawn in it. I put on dishwashing gloved and dipped a scotchbrite pad in the water, and proceeded to scrub the tire down.

I then rinsed it off with very hot water. I toweled it off and let it sit in the sun to dry off. After it was dry, it had no mold release left, only soft rubber. I took it for a ride and had none of that usual squirmy feel. I took the corners easily at first, then gradually got it down past my usual "normal" cornering. "Normal" as opposed to "spirited."

I was not able to make myself corner as low as I have before(about an 1/8" of chicken stripes were left on the old tire), but from what I understand, the tire still needs to be heat cycled a few times to give maximum traction, and I figured that it was doing well enough to handle better than normal riding conditions on a zero mile tire.

When I got back, there was no sign that the tire had scuffed in during the ride. It looked the same as after washing, so I guess it really did get the mold release off.

 

[derf]

i use goo-b-gone, just wipe it on, rub it in and wipe it off.

 

[fog]

Both of you wasted your time, The tire manufactures do not use any form of mold release whatever. It would simply cost too much and slow the process. That's one of the hardest dying myths around. You just need to warm the tire to it's normal operating temp and wear off any bumps and it will be fine. Do you think the racers do anything else but heat the tire to it's opp. temp and then go out full bore.

FOG

 

[FazerDude]

Well, I washed off whatever that slick stuff is on tires, that, when you lean the tire over for the first few miles, it makes the bike feel all squirelly. When I was done, the slick stuff was gone and there was just the rubber that I see after I've scrubbed a new tire in.

I also got none of the squirellyness that I've gotten on EVERY new tire for the past 20 years, as you lean it a bit further over with each turn.

I just took it out again and built up to an agressive lean, with only a few miles on the tires with none of that squirrellyness. That is something I've never experienced before.

Not a waste of time to me.

 

[dragknee]

there is a coating on most tires that is to prevent dry rot as the tire sits on the shelf at the shop. that stuff is as slick as snot.

take it easy for the first 100 miles or so... after that its pretty much worn off...

or you could go do some figure 8's in a parking lot for about 20 minutes.

 

[jlmay]

or a good burnout


j/k

 

[dad]

It's true that there is no mold release used in the manufacture of tires. The oils in the compounds and heat in processing don't need it. What may happen is the installer using a rubber lube to mount the tire uses an excess that is left on the tire and is slippery. That can be washed off. Some commercially available tire mount lubes are like that. All that's needed is a soapy mixture on the bead only and it won't stay slippery to cause trouble. It's true that with a new tire, not mounted with thick and slow to dry rubber lube, we do nothing special at the track. Street compounds like Pilot Powers or Diablo Corsa are given maybe one or two warm up laps, depending on outside temperature, and GO. Race tires pre-heated with warmers are GO immediately.

One thing that I think may happen at times is a new tire's profile suddenly turns in MUCH easier than the worn and flatted old tire and the rider inadvertantly over does the lean at one of the first turns leaving the shop and gets a surprise from that, blames it on a slippery tire, and may even truly feel like that's what happened... but it isn't. But there is no mold release.

 

[FazerDude]

A get a brand new tire. It's never been installed before. It has a coating on it of some sort. I can feel that it is slicker than the rubber on the worn tire.

I wash the tire using scotchbrite and soapy water. I don't rub it enough to "sand" the tire, just enough to give it a good scrubbing. When I'm done, the tire now feels stickier than the old tire. I get it installed. I ride it a few miles. There is none of the squirellyness I've felt with every new tire I've ever bought. Even the ones I installed myself using no soap or other bead lube, because I didn't know any better.


A guy on the Concours site says he worked at Continental tire for 30 years and they called the stuff Mold Spray and that it is pure silicone. Maybe he's full of it. I don't know. But I do know that washing the tire completely eliminated whatever it was that made the tire slick in look and feel, as well as in the riding experience. For whatever reason that it worked, I'll continue to waste 10 minutes each time I buy a new tire.

 

[ommyt69]

A get a brand new tire. It's never been installed before. It has a coating on it of some sort. I can feel that it is slicker than the rubber on the worn tire.

I wash the tire using scotchbrite and soapy water. I don't rub it enough to "sand" the tire, just enough to give it a good scrubbing. When I'm done, the tire now feels stickier than the old tire. I get it installed. I ride it a few miles. There is none of the squirellyness I've felt with every new tire I've ever bought. Even the ones I installed myself using no soap or other bead lube, because I didn't know any better.


A guy on the Concours site says he worked at Continental tire for 30 years and they called the stuff Mold Spray and that it is pure silicone. Maybe he's full of it. I don't know. But I do know that washing the tire completely eliminated whatever it was that made the tire slick in look and feel, as well as in the riding experience. For whatever reason that it worked, I'll continue to waste 10 minutes each time I buy a new tire.

As far a molding tires, I worked in a tire plant also and have no idea of any tire sprays used the tires come out of a steam mold and are slick just from the oils that are used in the compounds of the "rubber" , my thoughts is if you like to wash them before riding then don't worry about what everyone Else's oppions are ,as they say they are like a$$holes everyone has one ,and some act like one. for all I care someone could take nail clippers and cut all the "nubbies" off before riding if it makes them happy !

 

[derf]

your not supposed to cut all the little nubs off before riding?!? :

 

[dad]

I was just on the Dunlop site checking out some tire sizes for another bike and looky what I found. ;D

This copied and pasted directly from their site. Note the last sentence.

Note: When new tires are fitted, they should not be subjected to sudden acceleration, hard cornering, maximum power or braking for at least 100 miles. Failure to do so may result in loss of control and serious injury. The 100 mile run-in is required to adjust to the feel of new tires versus the worn tires.

That follows directly with the meat of my previous post. Other than sloppy application of tire mounting lube, there shouldn't be much else that really effects the new tire thing, evidenced by the way we hit the track with new rubber. I used to hear the same things but after having the "mold release" idea de-bunked at the track several years ago, this was the only other thing I could come up with that made sense. Funny to see it spelled out just that way at a manufacturer's site.

 

[FazerDude]

Guess we'll have to agree to disagree on this one.

All I know is what I've been experiencing for 20 years, and what I did not experience this time.

 

[MrSciTrek]

When I got my new Bridgestones, and when we got new Goodyear Tripletreds for my wife's car... the tires all felt a little greasy/waxy. I asked the Goodyear guy about it (who knows how well trained/informed that any one guy is) and what would wash it off he said Coke: the acid washes off the slick stuff. I didn't try it... I just let the road clean them off... but they did feel slick on the road whatever the cause.

 

[MrSciTrek]

Dupont product seems to indicate that some mold release products are used and are slippery.
http://www2.dupont.com/Lubricants/en_US/news_events/article20060215.html

A Tire Rack webpage: http://www.tirerack.com/techpage-1/117.shtml
$th paragraph down says, "Before tires are cured, a release lubricant is often applied to prevent the tires from sticking in the mold. Unfortunately, some of the lubricant stays on the surface of the tires, and traction is reduced until it is worn away."

Advice is repeated here: http://www.tirerack.com/tires-techpage-1/5.shtml