There is a guy around here selling used track tires for $50, they look ok and some even have the mold lines down the middle but the sides have some melted rubber spots from the turns. he says they ride them really hard but non have more than a 100 miles or so on them. They are Dunlop Sportmax tires.

Is there any reason I shouldnt use these tires? I go through a set a season anyway, it would be nice to save a couple hundred dollar. Any safety issues?

Thanks for the input guys!

 

race tires go by heat cycles not mileage. Personally I don trust race tires on the street.

 

just try race tires .. and you will not buy others

only remember they must warm up and than you'll have other bike

 

You'll never get a race tire warm on the street. They're great cheap tires - but they're cheap tires. They're absolutely terrible in the rain, and they won't last that long on the street.

I have a few sets of rims for my bike - I put good road rubber ( anything not race ) on one set and put good race rubber on one set. At the end of the day I leave that rubber on and wear it off on the street... then I put a fresh set of rubber on the other rims for the track.

Owning a tire changer is awesome

I'm currently in the process of converting my street/track bike into street only, and picking up a new race bike. That's why I have so many rims .

So - race rubber: hard to get warm at street pace. On a cold night be VERY careful.
Do not push them in the rain. They do not have good siping.

For $50 you get good value - if you remember that these are not touring tires. You will get ~1000 to 1500 miles out of a set.

I get a single day out of a SC2 rear tire, and I don't bother putting the front (SC1 front) on again. At the end of the day I find them greasy too. That would be 100 miles total out of a set of tires. Like you say - lots of rubber on the middle, and enough on the edges.

If you want a tire to ride to work on - track tires are fine. If you want to do long days - they are not good tires. If you want to look cool at the coffee shops and point at the gumballs your twisty road created - they're good

Did I mention I run a business breaking in new tires for people?

 

Here is a sample of one of my tires... I kept this photo for a friend of mine who rides 150s in Taiwan -- he can't get over how big a 180 looks.

Click for full sized original: http://pic.atpic.com/1550019

Notice that these tires are no longer round in profile - easiest to see at the bottom of the tire. Lots of thread depth but the best of the tire has been worn off.