RE: Contact patch....

[Alex Jenner <alexj@domain.elided>]

Mark Battley wrote:
> >modifications) might allow you a larger contact patch and therefore less
> >heat build up and the possibility of running a softer compound than your
> >competitor...
> 
> I make no claims to being a tyre expert, but....
> 
> Physics 101: Contact patch area is primarily a function of pressure and the
> load on the tyre - force = pressure x area.

Thanks for the reminder Mark.... all things being equal (which they
sometimes are!) with respect to pressure and load, you are quite right.
The point I was trying to make (not very well it seems) was that the
larger diameter tyre should suffer less heat build up (per unit area),
and allow you to run a softer tyre compound and it's the softer compound
that would be an advantage in racing, not the larger tyre itself.

Best Regards
Lex Jenner
Auckland/New Zealand
--
to be removed from alfa, see /bin/digest-subs.cgi
or email "unsubscribe alfa" to majordomo@domain.elided