I've been running R6's for a little over a year. Honestly, I'm just starting to find the limits. I would say I'm a B- driver in an A+ car.

I'm starting to wonder if I could learn more by going back to a street compound on the track. Is there any knowledge to gain by going backwards sometimes?

Second and less important is cost/fun factor. I want to have fun and find my limits and have the best bang for the buck.

Anybody ever take a step back?

 

i have a lot to learn before i move up to R6 tires.

Until i master the car on DOT tires, i have no business cheating on R6

 

^ I agree with you and I felt that it was time to move on to R compound when I did it. I'm wondering if anyone has went backwards and captured time by learning a little more on trail braking, throttle steer, smoothness, etc.

 

Drive 'em (the R6s) until they cord. And then keep driving them!

For the first time in my life, I finally drove a set of R6s for 16 (or more) HCs. Don't succumb to the idea that you'll slow down. Try your best to keep the same time you had when they were at 4 HCs. That will teach you a lot about car control!

 

+1 . A lot of people buy into tires done after 5 or 8 or 10 HC's, no grip, blah blah blah when the truth is that if you keep driving on them they are self training. As the grip decreases, the challenge to maintain similar times increases, you stick on a new set and grip is there again and you will immediately pick up time. Going back to slower tires is only going to dull your reflexes and when you get back to the stickier ones your reactions will be slow.

Hoosiers will also not recover as well from over driving, and that also helps you improve by smoothing out your driving vs driving "harder".

If they are not corded, or cracking or dry rotting, they are good for training. You just have to make sure as they age, you get a good session at the beginning of the day/weekend to soften them up again if they have been out of commission for a while. Do not try hammering them out of the gate with lots of HC. And do not store in the cold.

 

I run every R6 I have until it cords. I run them in pairs, front pair and rear pair. When one cords I replace the pair and save the one that is not corded. Then I pair the leftover with another leftover and run them until corded. I have lots of sets of BBS so there is always a bunch of spares/leftovers to use up at any given event. I save the new tires for when some big-money-always-run-new-tires-GT3/RS-guys show up and I want to run fast with them. Otherwise you will find me on old tires.

Sure, new ones are nice but you learn to drive on the olds.

 

IMO there is a lot to gain by using less grippy tires that don't hide mistakes.

 

Not sure if I follow...... Less grippy tires hide mistakes?

 

Give new R6's a good first heat cycle and then let them sit for a day or more while you run an old set. I and other drivers have been able to get 20+ heat cycles out of them before they cord. You'll slide around more as you get to the double digit heat cycles, but they can still turn a relatively quick lap time and are fun. As others have said, they'll reward smooth patient inputs as they wear.

I have Michelin Pilot Super Sports that I put on when there is heavy rain, but as the track drys, the Super Sports are quickly swapped for R6's (even if they are old).

 

Sorry, typo: I forgot a word. That DON'T hide mistakes.

 

In my opinion you should not be on anything more aggressive than street tires unless you really know what you're doing and car control is second nature to you. As stated above, street tires have less grip so they don't hide mistakes like R-comps and Slicks. You have to be smooth to go fast on street tires. They are also much more progressive than slicks so you don't get punished as bad when you do go beyond their limits. Just my $.02

 

If you run 18" RA1's / Nitto or 19" Michelin Supersports for the best bang for the buck and maybe only 2-4 seconds a lap slower, but they both are VERY consistent from new to cord. At 9/10th they will last LOOONG.

The best tire for learning to drive better IMHO.

Hoosier not consistent at all.

 

This is very vague. We are all still learning. How does one then define precisely when to transition away from street tires? Nothing wrong with grabbing a set of R6 and having some fun and learning something in the process. It's not that big of a deal.

 

If you cant drive the car to 90% or more of the cars ability then why is there a need for more grip? The biggest argument I have against newer or less experienced drivers using slicks is that they will learn bad habits using these tires (almost all having to do with not being smooth). It is much harder to break bad habits than it is to just learn good habits from the start. Also, slicks are referred to as "velcro tires" for a reason... once they let go they are very hard to catch which is terrible for less experienced drivers. Conversely, street tires (RE-11, AD08, Pilot Super Sport...ect.) do not have this peaky and large drop off when the slip angles get past a certain point and are much easier to catch when you start sliding.
Just because you can afford it doesn't mean you should buy it.

 

There's a reason you see tons of 996 GT3's on NT01's

Seeing a 997 on NT01/RA1's is like spotting bigfoot around here.....

Sad, they don't know what they are missing.