Ducati Sporting Club UK - track day tyres road/slick

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Who took your pictures Martin? It certainly wasnt that claydon photography (with 100%) that i paid 40 euros to for nothing!

I wanted a momento like that and it was achievable, but alas...................

PS, that picture to your left is turn 2 at jerez................
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:D

[Edited on 24-12-2005 by andyb]

Quote:

Originally posted by Martin Ducati Glasgow
Hello folks,
I've done loads of miles on slicks, this season and last!

All the info i've read on this thread is pretty spot on. I'll include a few of my observations.

I have only used 17" as that's standard on my 749R.

You would use different compound dependant on the the track your at. Wear rate / grip will determine that.

This sometimes takes a bit of trial and error. Eg this year at Jerez I put on some Michelin softs front and rear. Stunning grip (and I mean stunning!) but they were completely wrecked to the point of sliding everywhere after 15 - 20 laps!
That's what you would expect though from a soft (think almost qualifying) tyre.

The difference in grip between a hard and soft can be felt but to a mere mortal like myself, I choose durabilty (less cost) over grip so go for med or hard dependant on venue.

The Michelin front is also very "pointy". ie. a tall tyre with a good sidewall grip. I found it changed the set-up on the bike and it felt a bit twitchy. A few clicks and ride height change sorted that.

Tony, the best slick combination I found on Jerez was a hard rear and medium front. You'll should get a good full day of sessions when the tyre is good. Your pace will dictate how long they last but the grip is far superior (simply more rubber in contact with the deck than treaded tyres) and the wear rate will be comparible to the guys on road tyres (if not better in my experience!).

You def can feel the extra grip, but the first time I tried them, I thought I hadn't tightened the front wheel up enough as the bike was turning so fast. It was just the higher profile on the tyre. A few laps later, it was incredible, you can push the front SOOO much harder without feeling you're risking as much.
It's true the pro's can do it on a road tyre but having a slick on gave me a mental edge where I felt I could push that little bit harder.:roll:

An excellent compromise is the Michelin Pilot Race (track and dry-ish road). Different compounds available and the grip is superb almost like a slick!!

You honestly don't need tyre warmers although they are recommended. You just have to take it REAL easy and let the tyre heat up slowly.
If you go too hard too fast you could
a) come off and feel like a right knob! (worst error this, nearly done it myself a few times DOH!!, all for the sake of waiting a few laps)
b) cause "cold tear" where the tyre and track conditions are at such different temps and the tyre just rips to bits in a few hot laps.

Pirelli Diablo / Corsa, Michelin Pilot Road / Race, Rennsports, are all fantastic tyres I have used in various different venues / temps. (EG. Imola, Jerez, Croft, among others)
If you spend a few laps getting them up to temp you'll be on it.

IMHO, slicks are the dogs, don't cost much (if any) more dosh, and give you a mental edge that will help with the lap times:bouncy::bouncy: More speed and less risk! (well it feels that way anyway:))

They take a bit of getting used to as I said above but def worth a try. I would say go for it!!!

This pic on the Michelins, I really miss this place!!!

Cheers for that. I know you've been my biggest fan!! Ha!

Still no mention of a laptime from you I see ... scared I'll beat it?

;)

:ninja:

Jon, lily and i were under 2' 10" with mobile shicanes etc etc.

Oh how we all laughed,Lily toasted you,jon and of course me the mobile Chicane(with a C).How do you get away with making up confessions with spelling like that????
I don't personally think anyone doing trackdays can use all the performance of Michelin power race/Metzeler racetecs etc so running slicks is a head thing...Tyre warmers allow you to stop wasting 3 laps and for the cost are well worth it....oh and watch out for the Jerez lap time fairy they really feck about with peoples timers.....:devil:

I ran slicks on the 996R last year for a while - I went with the Pirellis SC compounds, so I could do a direct comparison with the Supercorsa compounds.

I ran SC1 front and SC2 rear - wear rate was the same as the Supercorsas etc etc....

The biggest bonus for me (and knowing that I can't ride to anywhere the capabilities of the bike) - was the increase in confidence. Just having slicks fitted made me ride more aggresively and confidently - there must be more grip - right?

The therory said yes, but it gave me a lot of confidence - and what price confidence? Slicks are no more expensive than SCsThe only downside with slicks is the apparent lack of grip in the wet, but again a theory here is that unless there are puddles of rain on the track, a slick will actually have a larger surface area in contact with the tarck (no groves) and therefore offer more grip. (provided that it can push all the water away).

So - if you've a dedicated track bike - or spare wheels - go for it!!! They're greeeeeeaaaaaatttt !!!

Tim

Quote:

[i]
I don't personally think anyone doing trackdays can use all the performance of Michelin power race/Metzeler racetecs etc so running slicks is a head thing...

for me thats abit like saying you dont need a 996r coz racers / quicker peeps can lap quicker than u on a 916 !!! for me it will still malke me quicker round eh? well actually no coz im more frightened of crashing it, but if i wasnt it would!!!

i really dont agree that is ALL in the head, of course confidence plays a big part, but if a tyre is better gives more grip then once your at a certan level, better trye will eqaul, either all or a mixture of better lap times/ more confidence/ less tricky moments,

i dont necessarily go to track days with a focus on improving my lap times, although through focusing on the track learning it better and improving techinique improved times would subsequently follow. yes i want to fast, but i dont really want to end up in the tyre wall again!!

How do the wear rates of slicks compare with road tyres.

i was running on sc1 front and sc2 rears last year. and if using the 996r would get through a rear in a day. a day and a half on the 916

is the compound choices for slicks so complex that id have to consider the track temerature as an important aspect of deciding what compound to go for.

just wondering if a comparable maybe slightly softer compound would last longer in slick format compared to a cut road tyre, as the magority of the wear appers to me to be at the edge of the cuts in the tread?? !!

i guess if i knew i wouldnt be asking though??

Quote:

Originally posted by berto
Jon, lily and i were under 2' 10" with mobile shicanes etc etc.

Oh how we all laughed,Lily toasted you,jon and of course me the mobile ****..cant (with an S)How do you get away with making up confessions with spelling like that????
I don't personally think anyone doing trackdays can use all the performance of Michelin power race/Metzeler racetecs etc so running slicks is a head thing...Tyre warmers allow you to stop wasting 3 laps and for the cost are well worth it....oh and watch out for the Jerez lap time fairy they really feck about with peoples timers.....:devil:

I knew this would happen,,,,,so i got lily to time me!!:P

She had me at a 2' 06" and said if YOU haddnt of got in the way it would of been a 1' 50 something!;):lol::lol::lol:

Quote:

Originally posted by Bungi

Quote:

[i]
I don't personally think anyone doing trackdays can use all the performance of Michelin power race/Metzeler racetecs etc so running slicks is a head thing...

To the ordinary punter most slicks are offered in soft medium and hard. I believe its only factory or professional teams trhat can get a larger choice. One thing that should be considerd is suspension. A slick is constructed different to a supersport tyre in the fact that it allows for poorer suspension. The SS tyre will have more flex built into the tyre wall to cope with the Inferior suspension. Teams that run slick and have full BSS/WSB suspension can dial out problems giving the tyre an easier life. I've been running slicks this year due mainly to the fact I already had them. I can't give any comparisions because I have them on the CBR600. I still managed to slide the rear, so don't start thinking that there are great big gobs of grip available. Everyone shoud try slicks at some point, just for the experience and to qwell any thoughts that these things are the bees knees. I will be switching back to supersport tyres for 2006, I never did get them to slide only the front once and that was when I binned it on cold tyres.

I knew this would happen,,,,,so i got lily to time me!!

She had me at a 2' 06" and said if YOU haddnt of got in the way it would of been a 1' 50 something!

How could I get in the way?a fast guy like you would just toast me surely???
Oh stop please stop I can't breathe:lol::lol::lol::barfy::lol::lol:

[Edited on 26-12-2005 by berto]

Berto you just like to see us on the grass :lol: and that would have nothing to do with you... honest :rolleye:

[Edited on 26-12-2005 by JPM]