Should I take any notice of the direction of rotation arrow on a Michelin rear tyre or just reverse it to get more wear from it?

Take no notice of it at all, turn it and you will get a few more rides and grip in the next few weeks.

Edited October 21, 200619 yr by Betarev3

Betarev3 is spot on just spin it around and enjoy double tyre life. Been doing it for years

Edited October 21, 200619 yr by fantic156

i wouldnt say double tyre life, the arrow is there for a reason, probably 5 trials the proper way and then a couple more with it turned.

New tyres are all in the mind for most of us, I have pretty much never noticed much of a difference between a shagged tyre and new one except in deep mucky stuff. Rode thursday with the practice tyre in the mud and got loads of grip, wondered why I had just bought a new one for Sunday.

Saying that though, my mind will tell me I should have more grip tomorrow because its a new tyre, if the old one was on I may worry about grip so although it wont actually make a P**s bit of difference I will think it has.

Only time I have ever noticed a tyre not gripping was about 2 months ago in Wales where the grip suddenly disappeared on grass climbs, tyre had been on there for more than any tyre I have had. Grip is more down to throttle control than rubber, almost better off riding with old ones as it should improve the throttle control for grip.

I think the direction mark is only there for road use as it has to be, should nt make any difference for trials though

Mr S Miller's advice in one of his books is:

Rear tyre: ride 6 trials, turn tyre ride 6 trials, replace tyre.

Good advice if you can afford it, you always get good traction and good rear braking.

Another good tip is when you get a new tyre, cut all the sipes deeper with a Stanley knife - improves grip for longer. (the sipes are the lines you see indented into each block, they shift the water off the surface of the block).