I purchased the first set of GY BB tires about 10 years ago. I'm now on the 2nd set of them.
Early on I was disappointed in these tires while street driving. I had the steering wheel nearly yanked from my hands more than once because of tire darting. I almost gave up on the tires, but I experimented with tire pressure and achieved
amazing (I almost hate that word. Its over-used all the time) results.
This morning I visited the Roger Krauss Racing Tire site and found a general SCCA and Vintage Racing tire pressure chart
for TRACK use. It is very generic. For a Cobra it lists 20# cold, 27# hot. But..............we're talking about using this tire on the
street.
There isn't a minimum or maximum tire pressure cast in the sidewall of these tires. For my initial street driving 10 years ago I probably set the pressure at 24 front, 22 rear. The handling was as I described above. At times it was unpleasant whether at 35 mph or 55 mph. It was very often 2-handed steering with a very firm grip.
I was so annoyed by the street manners of the tires that I considered dis-mounting them.
But..........I experimented with the pressure by increasing it by 2 pounds all around, and went driving. There wasn't much improvement. I raised the pressure more, and continued incrementally raising the pressure until I was satisfied with the results. For years now I have been driving at
32# front, 30# rear.
The overall improvement at my stated pressures is NIGHT and DAY difference. I now drive with my left elbow on the door and hold the wheel with a light grip. My right hand is free to shift, or rest, or scratch the privates.
There are more chapters on these tires. They will eventually exhibit sidewall cracking. Somewhere on this site I read this is the result of ozone presence, and the lack of preservative included in the tire manufacture process. I replaced my first set with the tires now on the car (my 2nd set) because of this condition.
The last chapter; be prepared for the leading face of the rear fender to be peppered with road shrapnel. These tires are sticky and will toss extra grit at the fenders which will destroy your paint unless you opt for some type protection. I recently used a lot of touch-up paint, then wet sanded with 1200, 2000 and 3000 grit paper; then used 3 levels of Griot's polish; and finally applied 3M Paint Defender. I haven't accrued enough miles since applying the Defender to determine its advantage, or not.
Truth be told, I like the tires a lot. However, when this 2nd set has to be replaced, I'll buy Avons. I'm assuming the Avons will have the ozone protection included in the manufacturing process.
David
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