Show me your siped MT/R...

I am trying to sipe my MT/Rs for winter month use. I like to see how you did it and what pattern you used. I know siping can be done by a machine if you have them done by a machine, I like to see it as well. TIA

Mine were done by Discount Tire when I bought my 33x12.50s a year ago in September. They were siped on a machine (spiral knife blade,) very thin slits running across the middle third of the tread. Almost no rubber was removed.

I was pretty happy with them in the snow last winter, compared to non-siped 31x10.50s the previous 3 winters.

how much does something like that cost?

ChiXJeff said:

Mine were done by Discount Tire when I bought my 33x12.50s a year ago in September. They were siped on a machine (spiral knife blade,) very thin slits running across the middle third of the tread. Almost no rubber was removed.

I was pretty happy with them in the snow last winter, compared to non-siped 31x10.50s the previous 3 winters.

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How do you like them on wet pavement?

Does siping make any great diffrence on the milage life of a tire?

I just got all 5 of my BFG MTs siped yesterday morning.
I had only the middle lugs siped, and the difference on wet and ice is worth risking easier chunking on rocks.
My friend did it using a SafTee Sipe machine, set to about 1/3" depth.
Funny thing, the tires seem quiter now.
YMMV.

NorStar said:

I am trying to sipe my MT/Rs for winter month use. I like to see how you did it and what pattern you used. I know siping can be done by a machine if you have them done by a machine, I like to see it as well. TIA

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Are you thinking this can be done by hand?

I am on my second set of Swamper radials that I have grooved/siped. The first set was machine siped when new and then when they wore past the siping I grooved them. The second set I got used, and grooved and siped them.
My observations:
The first set was no louder than the Wrangler GSA's that came stock on the TJ until they wore past the siping. The grooving after that did'nt make a difference in noise level, maybe changed the tune, but still loud. The second set were cupped badly when I got them, so they were very noisy and never really got any quieter after grooving/siping. As to wear, the first set lasted @ 30K, with lots of on and off road use. I don't think chunking is an issue. There are lots of times where they will chunk out a piece of rubber, but you can see where it only removed a piece up till it hit the first cut in the tread and then it slipped over the rest of the tread, so maybe it actually reduced the amount that would have been torn away had they not been siped. Traction is greatly improved. I have no problem in snow/ice conditions in MN, and don't really use 4wd on the road.
If someone can clue me in as to posting pictures, I could show you a couple different patterns I have done.

Brian

my MT/Rs are factory hand-grooved for sand drags.. they have a unique tread and when they are dry they are awesome.. get em wet anf they suck.. they have a pretty unique "hum" on the highway too, but not too bad.. they are pretty scary on the road in the rain.. there isnt alot of lateral traction...



definatly a Moab tire and not a wet-swampy new england tire..

Like bgcntry72 said, there is a pretty noticeable difference between non-siped and siped. Wet traction in particular is better with the siped tires.

Would I do it again? You bet, especially for a rig that sees double duty on the street as well.

BTW, I think that Discount Tire also uses the Saftee Sipe machine. Only does the center third, but don't remember what the depth of cut is. You could do this by hand, but you'll spend quite a bit of time per tire. DT charged me $10/tire, IIRC.

RCP Phx said:

Are you thinking this can be done by hand?

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It can be done - http://www.4x4wire.com/toyota/tech/sipe/. With all the different tread block designs on tires, there is a benefit to cut the sipes by hand.

Groving and Siping are two totally different things. Groving involves cutting tread blocks into smaller tread blocks. Siping puts many slits into eash tread block to promote flexibility. Siping does not appear the way a tire looks. The slits made are not cut all the way through the tread. In Theory siping will actually extend the life of a tire because it will release heat more rapidly.

Here is a good link on siping: http://www.can4x4.com/articles/siping.html