Tire Softening Compound

[Keith]

Does anyone use tire softening compounds on their tires? Do they really work well and is it worth using? Are there any cons to using them besides the mess?

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"Somebody call 911!!! Keith hurt himself again..."

[ChuckU2]

I started using the softening compounds this past summer. Yes, they are messy. Yes they soften the tires. Haven't noticed any downsides other than the mess. Seems to stretch those tires several more heat cycles.



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Chuck Lessick
1996 VanDiemen FC#59

[Bill Hayter]

I tried it last year,tires didn't seem softer nor did they last longer in 100 degree Texas heat.
Bill Hayter

[Tom Johnson]

In go-karts we used to squirt the stuff directly into the tire through the valve stem, then roll the tires for a day to evenly distribute it on the inside of the tire. Seemed to last longer than applications to the outside of the tire, and a lot harder for the tech man to pick up! (Spec tire class...)

[mark defer]

interesting tom. i don't know much about kart tires, but it wouldn't seem like the "stuff" would penetrate thru the innerliner in our tires. plus, we take such pains to keep the air in the tires dry to keep the pressure from fluctuating... md

[Tom Johnson]

Mark:

You bring up a couple of great points, and since you're a tire guy and I'm not, I defer (no pun intended ) to your better knowledge. Maybe you can explain the things we noted.

I wouldn't have thought the stuff would bleed through either, but it did definitely enhance lap times (keep in mind this was a spec tire class and they were practically bricks to start off). When we would dismount the tires there was no goo or residue (other than the smell) so the stuff had to go somewhere and I assumed it had migrated into the rubber.

I did notice that the tire pressure relationship measured cold and hot varied a lot. But I would set the pressures hot and it seemed after a lap to get them up to temp it stayed pretty consistent no matter how long the race.

BTW, in your opinion is there any real advantage to running nitrogen? Most guys I see don't pull a vacuum to get rid of the air in the tire anyway prior to charging with N^2, so the whole point of using it is kind of lost. Thoughts?

[mark defer]

tom, whenever i mount race tires in my store, we always fill with nitrogen. okay, we don't evacuate all the air out first but it's still better than pressuring the tire with compressor air. at the track, after retrieving tires from hoosier, st. clair motorsports always refills the tires with nitrogen, then purges and refills again {several times}. rob st clair contends that this method works as well as any other. md

[Mike B]

Mark (and anyone else who uses Nitrogen),
Do you actually see an improvement in the delta between cold & hot tire pressures? If you do, do you set the cold pressures higher to start out with the pressure that I finish a session with (using regular air)?

[Tab]

I've been using compounds for several years cause I'm to cheap to buy new but had a pretty good supply of used tires. Seemed as if tires were less than 1 year old the compound worked really well (formula V) but was important to apply as it says. 3-4 days of applying several coats a day and then letting set at least a day before using. The tires certainly not like new ones but were more than usable for regional level racing. The tires seemed to be fairly reliable during the whole weekend. If you're looking for economy its the only way to go in my opinion. Tab FC#92