Answers to questions regarding KUMHO MX tires

[ninjabones]

Aaron:

I played around with different temps at Shennandoah and again this weekend at Pocono, taking pyrometer readings several times.  My sweet spot appears to be 40 lbs (hot) with cold temps on saturday morning starting at 32 fr / 33 rr (it was pretty cold)  Although my readings were not consistent across the tire (outside temps much hotter due to less than aggressive camber settings), the average temps on each tire were pretty close to the middle tire readings.  Unless I've been misinformed, this is the best way to determine appropriate tire pressures.  Sometimes, I think the manufacturers recommended pressures are determined entirely for maximum safety and not performance (CYA).  You lawyers should know about that pretty well.

I'm running 235/40/18 , 275/35/18 so my sidewall is going to be a bit shorter than your 17s. That may explain some of the difference in feel.

Anyway, maybe the 10 lb difference in tire pressures explains why I passed you on that last run on Saturday afternoon (it certainly couldn't have anything to do with driving skills).

 

G