Track Tac

Dry slick

T

TLR_289

Member
With maxxis pinks and blues, on a dry slick track, is it better to run a softer tire or a harder one with more bite? thanks
 
for me dry slick is kinda vague in terms of the actual surface.
it seems I have been on 40 to 45 duro on all the lower bite dry tracks, and have recently been using more internal prep to soften and only a bite agent from the outside and it has been working great.
 
Dry Slick is a relative term. Its different in differing parts on the country. If Coty was on a 40-45 tire this last weekend in the 2 big races in SC he would have been lapped.
A dry slick track can take a tire from 40 all the way to 55, depends on hardness, weather, among lots of other factors.
 
dry slick I want to shoot for the harder side of tire duro...for the simple fact track is usually slick from sand....once the sand blows off it will blacken and bite up really good...most of the times....with a good bite prep wiped on outside to help get through the sand.....maybe an extra coat at beginig of the day for that added bite to a slightly harder tire....
 
SoCo Tire Treatments said:
Dry Slick is a relative term. Its different in differing parts on the country. If Coty was on a 40-45 tire this last weekend in the 2 big races in SC he would have been lapped.
A dry slick track can take a tire from 40 all the way to 55, depends on hardness, weather, among lots of other factors.
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This says it all in a nutshell. That's why tires are such an art, because there are so many different variables to consider. If it were easy anybody could do it...
 
bigcat6 said:
dry slick I want to shoot for the harder side of tire duro...for the simple fact track is usually slick from sand....once the sand blows off it will blacken and bite up really good...most of the times....with a good bite prep wiped on outside to help get through the sand.....maybe an extra coat at beginig of the day for that added bite to a slightly harder tire....
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Dry slick, and slick from sand is 2 different things.
 
Tell me what the difference is...if track is dry...what makes it slick...except loose dirt....if dry that would produce a good biteing race track....wet would be somewhat sponge feel to it...with bite from the spongeyness...which as it dries out it becomes tacky and produces more track bite yet.....most tracks have their fastest time when dry slick occurs....wet tracks tend to make karts feel heavy and many tend to lock down....jmo
 
earl is right, im in Arkansas, and dry here with our dirt is different then dry in sc with there dirt, we was also indoors, were they are probably still outdoors
 
Coty Morrow said:
a dry track can be made slick by dew sitting in at night and the track not soaking it is, a wet rubbered surface is slick
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This is more or less what dry slick is to me most of the time, and is about the only dry slick we see, either from dew or moisture sitting on the track surface, or from a little dust during the day races. Sand being on the surface is not really considered dry slick, that would be considered a dry sandy track IMO
 
With the dew sitting on the track and not going in the track, would that not make it greasy and not dry slick? Jmo
 
bigcat6 said:
Tell me what the difference is...if track is dry...what makes it slick...except loose dirt....if dry that would produce a good biteing race track....wet would be somewhat sponge feel to it...with bite from the spongeyness...which as it dries out it becomes tacky and produces more track bite yet.....most tracks have their fastest time when dry slick occurs....wet tracks tend to make karts feel heavy and many tend to lock down....jmo
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Dry slick is when the track is so dry, theres no moisture in the track to get bite and gets very hard and slick like glass, that is dry slick.
Sand, wet slick, dew, is all different. Dry slick means exactly as that....dry.

If you need a good example of dry slick, watch any WoO late models or sprints. When the track gets fully rubbered up and dry, they are spinning their tires off the corner and having to feather the throttle, searching for moisture by changing driving lines. The track is black but so slick from zero moisture, dry slick.
 
Dry slick is exactly that - dry & slick. I'll agree with Earl on this.

You guys are trying to make this so confusing....dew, sand, moisture, greasy, Arkansas, South Carolina.... NO! Dry slick is dry & slick. (period)

Now, I'll definitely DISAGREE with Earl on this statement:
If you need a good example of dry slick, watch any WoO late models or sprints. When the track gets fully rubbered up and dry, they are spinning their tires off the corner and having to feather the throttle, searching for moisture by changing driving lines. The track is black but so slick from zero moisture, dry slick.
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If there is rubber being laid down, I can guarantee you, they're not looking for moisture anywhere (unless it's a caution and they're trying to cool the tires quickly) - they're looking for the rubber and to get on it as quickly as possible. When a track gets "rubbered up", you can lay the hammer to the thing (850+ HP) and NOT spin the tires. That's why track times go up dramatically and you see the guys drive the cars like they are totally locked down to the track. That's also when guys bypass the traction control that no one runs (yea right.) Even the guys that don't run TC, will run a second ignition (crank trigger) and advance the timing when you've got more traction to get more HP when you can actually hook it up. IF you get stuck out of the rubber line on a restart, you switch to slower timing to keep from blowing the tires off the thing, then switch back as soon as you fall back in line and get back in the rubber. Now, you cant go blowing it into the corner and miss the rubber, you have to really steer the car smooth and keep it straight. But on throttle, hang on. You've never felt grip and forward bite like a rubbered up track.

This is what frustrates me so many times about karters saying that their local track "rubbers up", when it simply develops a black racing line. Rarely does a kart track rubber up -- you get a couple hundred karts and good red clay - sure it can...but in the midwest (rare to never.) When it actually does rubber up, you'll know it. It'll give you more grip than a syrup track and it's all but impossible to spin out - That's "rubbered up."


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Thanks and God bless,
Brian Carlson
Carlson Racing Engines
Vector Cuts
www.CarlsonMotorsports.com
Celebrating 25 years of service to the karting industry
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Brian, when its rubbered up, and no moisture, and slick as glass, its dry slick and they are either so low trying to get the LR in the moisture for bite, or theyre up at the cushion looking for moisture. When they are in the middle, its so dry slick they feather the throttle.
Seen it many times at Volusia and other places that are notorious for this and the drivers always say it gets dry slick just about every Speedweeks there. In between heats and features they would come out and disc up the track, add water, but by end of feature, it would get dry slick again.
 
If rubber never gets laid down with karts very often at all ....How can it be considered dry slick with out rubber on it....?????I don't think any of us Know.....LOL
 
A lot of times around here,if it's true dry slick,you are on a hard tire and nothing wiped on the outside...last year at one of the tri state races i think it was at 120 in nc,if you wiped anything...you slowed down
 
bigcat6 said:
If rubber never gets laid down with karts very often at all ....How can it be considered dry slick with out rubber on it....?????I don't think any of us Know.....LOL
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Its more or less that everyone has their own opinion of what dry slick actually is, as you can see in this thread. You have 2 well respected tire and prep guys who both also have their own opinion of what dry slick is, just the same as you and me do PC. Thats one thing i love about karting, you hardly see 2 people that see everything the same way, everyone has their own opinions and views about everything, while some may be the same as others at times. Like i said above, to me dry slick is when the track is dry and has good bite, but dew or moisture is on the surface, or dust on the surface, causing the tires to need more bite to get the traction we need.
 
some tracks look very dry and black from rubber and no moisture, but the black is considered prep slick in my terms, I see it a lot on big money race indoor preps were the track was just built and all the teams are going out on killer prepped tires, and the track looks black, I always look at the track entrance and exit, if that is black as well then I know that its from prep off the tires and not actual rubber on the track, meaning its going to be a slicker surface then a rubbered down surface will be
 
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