How to Know When You Need New Tires on Your Road Bike

by Paul Dohrman

Overview

Wear on your tires can lead to loss of energy through road friction, as well as slickness when cornering. Even worse, tire wear can lead to a blowout in the middle of a ride. Carrying a spare shouldn't mean having to carry a clincher tire as well. To avoid having to carry a spare tire on your rides, make sure to rotate your tires and get new tires when the old ones wear out.

Step 1

Check the treads. If they are worn flat anywhere around the wheel, then you'll need to replace the tire.
Step 2

Check for a flat profile. If your tire has no tread, then you'll need to check if the profile is flat or squarish. Try to recall how high the profile used to be (how peaked it looked) when you first bought the tire. Find photos of the same tire's profile online to jog your memory. Watching a bald tire wear away slowly over time can make it difficult to remember what it's supposed to look like.
Step 3

Check for small cuts in the tire. Too many of these indicate a need for new tires, since they allow the odd sharp stone or piece of glass to work its way in and cause a puncture.
Step 4

Inspect the sidewalls for abrasion. Road tires are thinnest on the sidewall, so a cut there can lead to a rare blowout.
Step 5

Rotate your tires if the front tire is round and the rear tire has a flat profile. This will extend their life and avoid the need of immediately buying new tires.
Step 6

Buy a different kind of tire if you're getting a lot of flats. It may be the thinness of the rubber that's making your inner tube extra sensitive.
Step 7

Get new tires if the fabric is showing through the rubber.
Step 8

Get new tires every 3,000 to 4,000 miles if you ride on smooth roads. Rotate your tires at 1,500 to 2,000 miles. If you ride on rough roads, buy new tires at about 2,000 miles.