Re: traction


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Posted by D. Sherman on Saturday, May 17, 2008 at 11:36:36 :

In Reply to: traction posted by copey on Saturday, May 17, 2008 at 10:30:52 :

On any given hard material, to a first-order approximation, the pounds of traction you get depends only on the coefficient of friction of the two materials involved, and the load. The area of the contact patch doesn't enter into it. The traction force of a narrow tire and a wide tire on a dry road will be the same, depending only on how much weight is pushing the tire down.

Where the tire width and tread design matter is on mud, sand, and snow, and then the main issue is to keep the axles above the surface. Fat, knobby, low-pressure tires are generally best, so it becomes a compromise of what will do a tolerable job under the worst conditions while also being somewhat acceptable on rocks and highways. That's not a matter of wide versus narrow, though.



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