xfmatt:
You seem to be very passionate in the subject of tyres as I’ve read some of your other posts on the subject. So what drive tyres would you recommend to me for bulk work. Very very rarely go in quarries so my only off road work is farm tracks which can be challenging, especially in winter. Your advice would be appreciated as you seem to be knowledgeable on rolling resistance also.
I do have a bit of a rubber fetish it’s true Far too many people do not understand the relation a tyre can have on running costs, with current fuel prices it is all about rolling resistance, tyre life itself is almost irrelevant, of course you can’t be replacing them every month, but even if a low rolling resistance tyre has half the life, it will still be the cheaper option overall. Your tyre costs may go up, as always, you can’t have your cake and eat it. You will need tyres more often and the low rolling resistance models are from the premium manufacturers, so they ain’t cheap, but your fuel costs go down and you don’t put tyres on every day, but you do put fuel in the tank every day
In your operation you have a bit of a dilemma, you rarely venture off road, but when you do, you do it properly, so for that part alone you really need a drive tyre with an open shoulder, but that will hurt your mpg for the other 99% of your miles. You have three options, either go for the lowest rolling resistance tyre you can, get the best mpg all year round and hope for the best in the winter, or you can get a tyre to suit the off road conditions and lose mpg on every mile that you do on the highways, or option three, put a new set of low rolling resistance tyres on at the end of winter, by the time you get around to next winter you will have saved enough in fuel to pay for a set of chunky winter tyres and still have a few quid in your pocket.
I would go with the first option personally, it’s a gamble and I’ve never done much on farm tracks, so I have no experience on which to base a definite answer, but we’re not talking about a huge difference in the tread patterns, it’s only really a closed shoulder and a different compound and sidewall structure that makes the difference between them. For a specific tyre, either a Michelin XDA Energy or Bridgestone M720
xfmatt:
You seem to be very passionate in the subject of tyres as I’ve read some of your other posts on the subject. So what drive tyres would you recommend to me for bulk work. Very very rarely go in quarries so my only off road work is farm tracks which can be challenging, especially in winter. Your advice would be appreciated as you seem to be knowledgeable on rolling resistance also.
I do have a bit of a rubber fetish it’s true Far too many people do not understand the relation a tyre can have on running costs, with current fuel prices it is all about rolling resistance, tyre life itself is almost irrelevant, of course you can’t be replacing them every month, but even if a low rolling resistance tyre has half the life, it will still be the cheaper option overall. Your tyre costs may go up, as always, you can’t have your cake and eat it. You will need tyres more often and the low rolling resistance models are from the premium manufacturers, so they ain’t cheap, but your fuel costs go down and you don’t put tyres on every day, but you do put fuel in the tank every day
In your operation you have a bit of a dilemma, you rarely venture off road, but when you do, you do it properly, so for that part alone you really need a drive tyre with an open shoulder, but that will hurt your mpg for the other 99% of your miles. You have three options, either go for the lowest rolling resistance tyre you can, get the best mpg all year round and hope for the best in the winter, or you can get a tyre to suit the off road conditions and lose mpg on every mile that you do on the highways, or option three, put a new set of low rolling resistance tyres on at the end of winter, by the time you get around to next winter you will have saved enough in fuel to pay for a set of chunky winter tyres and still have a few quid in your pocket.
I would go with the first option personally, it’s a gamble and I’ve never done much on farm tracks, so I have no experience on which to base a definite answer, but we’re not talking about a huge difference in the tread patterns, it’s only really a closed shoulder and a different compound and sidewall structure that makes the difference between them. For a specific tyre, either a Michelin XDA Energy or Bridgestone M720
I’ve tried the low resistance tyres, and what you save in fuel is easily swallowed up in lost time and money being pulled in and out of farms where with a multi purpose tyre would drive straight in or out.
newmercman:
For on highway work cutting tyres (not fronts) is the sensible thing to do, best to get them done by a professional though, in some cases they cut a completely different tread pattern into the tyre, rather than following the existing lines.
The last few mm’s on your tyres are also when they have the lowest rolling resistance, so your fuel use will drop too, until you put the new ones on and lose up to 7% of your mpg, so keep those old ones on as long as you can
thought when recutting a tyre you had too follow the original pattern that is on the tyre ?
you do!
Not necessarily. For a recut to be legal, it has to be recut in the manufacturers recommended pattern, which sometimes, particularly with drives, is not the same as the original pattern.
In fact the Michelin xze2 steer tyre can have a drive pattern cut in it. I have used this when stuck for a tyre before an mot. I got a worn steer tyre and cut it into a drive pattern ad fitted it. The tyre was left on for approx 6 months.
i must admit i forgot about remixes and remoulds as i dont run them, i do cut drive tyres myself at times but if delivering/collecting from sites/farms wheelspin soon rips cut tyres to the cords and you dont always spot it straight away and that means vosa may spot it for you!
i also never go for test with cut tyres fitted as cut tyres ripping on the brake test has been heard of in the past, in my line of work even if i do cut the tyres i hardly ever wear the things out before they become damaged or cut to the cords
if you spend most of your time on the tarmac then you will get extra life by cutting, but to get 6 months extra i would have to leave the truck parked in the yard for 4 months! lol
Armagedon:
Moose,interesting you mention tread being ripped off during brake testing I have a claim in at the mo,the pic is actually on the Biglorryblog.
I know a couple of hauliers that have had cut tyres rip to the wire cords on the rollers and then get a test fail as a result!
that is why i never go for test with cut tyres fitted, although i have not seen a tyre with good tread like the one in the pic rip as shown before
moose
Decided to replace drive tyres. Gonna cut the Semperits I have on and put them on some old rims I have to go back on when I get rid of the wagon. Tyre firm are coming Saturday to fit Bridgestone M729’s.
xfmatt:
Decided to replace drive tyres. Gonna cut the Semperits I have on and put them on some old rims I have to go back on when I get rid of the wagon. Tyre firm are coming Saturday to fit Bridgestone M729’s.
be sure to fit 2 of them on reasonable rims, paint can blind some from the tyres occassionally
i always try to keep a full set for a unit and trailer, i object to giving anything away.
newmercman:
I’ve tried the low resistance tyres, and what you save in fuel is easily swallowed up in lost time and money being pulled in and out of farms where with a multi purpose tyre would drive straight in or out.
That’s where experience comes into play, as I said, I’ve never done anything like that, so I couldn’t say for sure what would work. On highway, I would definitely go for rolling resistance, or the lack thereof, but for anything else I would ask someone like yourself what was best, no point getting an extra half mpg if you’re stuck on a track somewhere every time it rains
As always there’s a balance, long distance tyres are probably not the answer, but a regional tyre will probably do a good job and not bring the fuel penalties of a true off road tyre
newmercman:
I’ve tried the low resistance tyres, and what you save in fuel is easily swallowed up in lost time and money being pulled in and out of farms where with a multi purpose tyre would drive straight in or out.
That’s where experience comes into play, as I said, I’ve never done anything like that, so I couldn’t say for sure what would work. On highway, I would definitely go for rolling resistance, or the lack thereof, but for anything else I would ask someone like yourself what was best, no point getting an extra half mpg if you’re stuck on a track somewhere every time it rains
As always there’s a balance, long distance tyres are probably not the answer, but a regional tyre will probably do a good job and not bring the fuel penalties of a true off road tyre
Regional strikes the best balance, usually fit bridgestone/firestone but trying some hankooks ( the latest ones) as a comparison after shoulder problems with bridestone steers and zero response from bridgestone. Hankook seem interested
newmercman:
I’ve tried the low resistance tyres, and what you save in fuel is easily swallowed up in lost time and money being pulled in and out of farms where with a multi purpose tyre would drive straight in or out.
That’s where experience comes into play, as I said, I’ve never done anything like that, so I couldn’t say for sure what would work. On highway, I would definitely go for rolling resistance, or the lack thereof, but for anything else I would ask someone like yourself what was best, no point getting an extra half mpg if you’re stuck on a track somewhere every time it rains
As always there’s a balance, long distance tyres are probably not the answer, but a regional tyre will probably do a good job and not bring the fuel penalties of a true off road tyre
Regional strikes the best balance, usually fit bridgestone/firestone but trying some hankooks ( the latest ones) as a comparison after shoulder problems with bridestone steers and zero response from bridgestone. Hankook seem interested
yes i getting some hankook steers on the front axle next week after shoulder problems with bridgestones on the front of the truck i drive, heard some mixed responses about hankooks so boss gonna try some too find out
I don’t know how it affects things, but if you ever get the chance, run a set of steer tyres on the drive axle for a few thousand miles, then switch them up to the front, after that they’ll wear as if they’re made out of iron. There’s no reasonable explanation for it, but even people at the Tyre manufacturers will tell you it works miracles, but they don’t know why either One engineer did say that the heat, without any scrub to the shoulders hardens up the tread compound significantly, but nothing has been proven
Far too many people do not understand the relation a tyre can have on running costs, with current fuel prices it is all about rolling resistance, tyre life itself is almost irrelevant, of course you can’t be replacing them every month, but even if a low rolling resistance tyre has half the life, it will still be the cheaper option overall. Your tyre costs may go up, as always, you can’t have your cake and eat it. You will need tyres more often and the low rolling resistance models are from the premium manufacturers, so they ain’t cheap, but your fuel costs go down and you don’t put tyres on every day, but you do put fuel in the tank every day 
