front tires

[bad penny]

Was wondering any advantages between smooth and ribbed front tires.

[dreracecar]

Ribbed fronts need more castor because the profile is round and with a smooth racing tire you can run less castor and that makes it easier to steer around in the pits.
Ribbed tires are compounded with ozone protectant to keep the from cracking whearas the racing rubber is not so you can buy more tires.
Avon ribbed tires have been out of production for a long time now so any avon 225-17 tire you find is about 30 years old. Unfortunatly is was the only tire really suited for what we do.

[bad penny]

Thanks for the info

[JrFuel Hayden]

Either the front slick, called front runners, and rib tires will work fine. However if the static weight on the front axle is over 400 lbs, I recommend using 2.50x17 rib tire or a front runner, GoodYear, Hoosier, M/T, Phoenix.  The front slicks will have more rolling resistance, and be a little heavier than the rib tires. Of course the front runners are more money; GoodYear retail is $185 ea, some of the other brands are as low as $145 ea. We, Hayden wheels, imports and sell Kenda front rib tires that look the most like Avon SpeedMaster. The 2.25x17 sell for $60 ea and 2.50x17 sell for $70 ea.
Another thing to be aware of is the front slicks are difficult to mount on wire spoke wheels, as a matter-a-fact most slick manufactures will not mount them on wire wheels, because they are tricky to mount and bead-up all the way. The best bet is to have a motorcycle shop install them because they have the right tire mounting machines. Keep in mind rim width makes it tricky too. When you just measure the bead width of the tires and the rim you'll see that on a 1.2 [ inside to inside] rim the front slicks are too close to 1.2". They are even hard to mount all the way on a 1.4" wide rim. Some of my customers prefer running 1.6" or wider so they don't have a mounting issue.
Bruce is right about ozone protection is better on the rib tires, all race tire manufactures don't use ozone protection because they figure the slicks will be replaced before they start cracking.
17" front rib tires started being used by the race car builders when they discovered the light weight, and inexpensive Avon tires, and to this day 17" wheels/ tires is the standard for dragsters.
For a bit of history, when an Avon rep came to SoCal  to visit/ thank a chassis builder for buying all those 17" Avons, he was shocked to see his moped tires were being run over 200 mph, he flew back to England and had the molds destroyed. Too bad they didn't know that on dragsters the front tires don't build heat, which destroys tires, because we run 35-50# of air pressure so the sidewalls don't flex and build heat, and of course don't run very long [ hopefully].

Feel free to call me with any questions, 805-444-4489
Jon, Hayden Wheels

[JrFuel Hayden]

Here is a couple of tips on front tires; Always use valve stem caps, I prefer metal, because at speed the valve can push in because of centrifical force and let the air out. I've seen that on  NE-1 and NF/D dragsters. Also of interest is the big show dragsters run up to 80# of air pressure because the front wings put over 10,000 lbs of down pressure. I installed a new pair of GY front runners on a NTF car at the March Meet this year because one of them was coming apart, and he was only at 40 # of pressure, and his wing was putting enough pressure on the tires to build heat.

Be Safe,
Jon

[adrianphicks]

Not sure re. Avon tyres being out of production.  Here's a link to the Avon Speedmaster Mk II:

http://www.avon-tyres.co.uk/motorcycle/speedmaster-mkii

[dreracecar]

Its the 2.25 - 17 that they dont/will not make anymore because of them being used on dragsters

[KeithDyer]

Jon and Bruce are two of the sharpest guys around.

When they tell you something, you can take to the bank . . . . .

[Dolmetsch]

ON one of our dragsters and it isn't a top fuel or anything but it does have 17 inch wires we get take offs from the local bike race track which is the same facility we often drag at. They are brand new that day but the sidewall sticky is worn away from cornering so they replace them everyday. They are speed rated. I think 200MPH. One racer  gave us one at the end of each day for free as they only have to dispose of them anyway. On a dragster running straight up instead of cornering on the sidewall they are good for a long long time. As to wear we build ackerman in so scrub wear from pit work and turning on and off the track becomes essentially non existent even though some would say ackerman going 200+ is non productive we figured out the front tire wear comes from loading and loading and roaming around pits , staging lanes and return roads and so we went back to using it in everything since it hurts nothing anyway going straight ahead. 
don

[JrFuel Hayden]

Don, what size M/C racing tires is your friend getting, using ? Most 17" M/C front tires are 120/70, or 120/60x17, which are 4.6" wide, and should be mounted on 3.50 or 3.75" wide wheels. Big show [NHRA] TF tires are 3.4" wide, so 4.6" is BIG.  I think a 4.6" wide tire on a dragster will slow the dragster down, too much rolling resistance. But I guess Free is Free
Is your friend mounting the used M/C race tires on the most common 1.4" wide wire spoke rims ?  What does he do to get those 4 1/2" wide tires on 1.4" rims ? I have a real hard time getting any 17" front runners to fully bead-up on 1.4" wide rims, so it sounds like 4 1/2" tire would be impossible to bead up.
Plus the highest speed rated motorcycle tire I've seen is 174mph, that's sustained speed, not 1/4 mile. They speed rate test tires because at sustained speed tires get hot from flexing and if the tires are not designed to handle that much heat, they come apart.
I've seen some M/C manufacturing tire testing labs where I've seen parts of tires stuck in the ceiling. 

Good Hunting,
Jon

[Dolmetsch]

Jon,
I believe he has 3.5 wheels. You are probably right on the speed rating. I was trying to remember but was only involved in introducing him to the bike racer and suggesting the possibility. His is a 1960s style and turns only around 140 to 145 so he is well in the rating. We can hardly get him to put his foot down so he will never get to exceed that however we do use a hired shoe occasionally and he runs it full tilt. Still I would much prefer he use these than something else as they are safe for sure for his rail. We would have gladly paid for them but when the bike racer saw what we were going to use them on he insisted free. The wheels are off something but I don't know what. I just wish I had found them first as they are bolt ons, not spindle mounts and would have looked nice on mine too. We run vintage stuff and style. His is a 120 WBase and a reworked Scotty Fenn style rail. Mine is a 96 inch wheelbase and putting wires on its 62 Chev handy van spindles seems unlikely as much as I would like to.
don

[Tim Jones]

Lots of good info on here, Noticed some weather checking on mine ,so all this info helps tho mine are 3.00x21 I think I'll go with Avon's,,  Tim Jones

[JrFuel Hayden]

Yes, I recommend 3.00x21 Avon SpeedMaster rib tires.
I have built a couple sets of 21" dragster wire spoke wheels, and the Avons look right, and are the lightest of the 21's.
The racers that run my 21" are very happy with the way they and feel, steer at speed, like 190+ mph ranges.
One of my customers had the NHRA Tech dept question the 21" application, but after I brought a 21" wheel to the NHRA office for them to inspect, they said no problem to run in Comp Elim.  BTW, the 21" wheels with the Avons are 27" tall, give the racers more roll-out than the more common 17" wheels/tires, there by giving them a head start on the lights.

Jon, Hayden Wheels

[Tim Jones]

Thanks  for the info Jon,,    Tim Jones