The Tire Profile - What you need to Know

The profile of a motorcycle tire is another typical prominent feature for a motorcycle tire. With the round profile, once you counter steer the motorcycle into a corner, it will stay leaned over in the corner till either you lean more or pull it out of the lean.

Once the motorcycle is leaned over in the corner, it is the rear tire that actually steers the motorcycle. The smaller the radius of the profile, the faster the tire will respond in corners. The wider the profile the more stable it is in straight up riding and slower it is to respond in corners. It will be good to remember that usually motorcycle tires need a 200 to 250 kilometer break in period as they expand by some 6 to 8 percent both due to the heating cycles and usage under inflation.

The way the different plies are oriented and the manner in which the different tire compounds are laid onto the tire carcass also affects the way it behaves on road. Most good motorcycle tires have 3 segments – the center, the intermediate and the feather edge. The center segment has relatively harder rubber compound for higher durability as most of the time a motorcycle rides upright during usual usage.

The segment s adjacent to the center are made of softer compound for better traction during turns right up to the feather edge. These segments overlap each other and are laid in layers that cross over the center of the tire at an angle. This is the reason for that directional arrow on the sidewall specifying the tire to be mounted to rotate in a certain direction.

The tire manufacturer does not want the leading edge of the overlapped carcass going first. It will quite literally try to rip itself apart while cornering. The arrow is also in consideration to the tread pattern but the directionality of the segment plies remains the primary reason.