[SirCav]

I know special tyres are recommended for use on turbo-trainers, but do I need to change the regular tyres I use on the road if I want to use my bike on rollers? Is the wear and tear on tyres the same/similar with rollers as with a turbo-trainer? Thanks

Topic

[SirCav]

Thanks all for your comments.

Thanks all for your comments. V useful.

[surly_by_name]

Turbo uses friction in form

Turbo uses friction in form of roller wedged into rear tyre to generate resistance, accelerating tyre wear. Rollers don’t have any resistance (or those that do – like the Sportcrafters, which I use – don’t have anywhere near the same resistance as a turbo) than riding on the road. So the two are completely different in terms of rate of wear.

In my expereince the main reason to use something a bit more robust (say a conti gatorskin) is because if you use a nice pair of tyres (Vittoria corsas at 130psi for example), you struggle to generate much resistance at all so you don’t get as good a workout. So use your commuting wheels/tyres and you’ll get a better workout.

[roomservicetaco]

There was a good article in

There was a good article in Velonews recently about this subject:  http://velonews.competitor.com/2016/02/bikes-and-tech/technical-faq/technical-faq-tires-for-riding-rollers_394989

I agree with the Kreitler spokesman – used tires are best because new tires tend to leave rubber deposits on the drums.  

Also, I’d guess that if you use higher pressures, it will result in less wear since resistance comes primarily from tire flex.  The biggest problem I’ve seen is that higher pressures can make it very difficult to get enough resistance for a good workout.  I’ve done two things to help – added a wind resistance unit to my 3.25″ rollers and got a second set of 2.25″ rollers.

Last, if you have the opportunity, you may want to get a beater bike to use on the rollers – I sweat gallons when doing a roller workout and, the sweat, if not cleaned properly, can wreck your paint, frame, components, etc.    I have an old frame with all my old components that I use only for the rollers with old tires from my regular road bikes.

Good luck.

 

 

[kamoshika]

I’ve never felt the need for

I’ve never felt the need for special tyres. I tend to only use the rollers over the winter, so use my better set of wheels / tyres outside in the summer and on the rollers in the winter, to save having to get the winter wheels spotlessly clean before I bring the bike inside to use the rollers.

[Rapha Nadal]

I’ve never used anything but

I’ve never used anything but my normal tyres on rollers and haven’t noticed any accelerated wear rates and the like.  I’d say you’ll be fine.

[Author]

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