How Mountain Bike Tires Are Made | How It's Made

Wider than regular road tires, mountain bike tires have raised knobs or lugs that add stability on uneven terrain. Built to withstand the trail, these tires can handle it all.
Stream Full Episodes of How It's Made:
www.sciencecha...
Subscribe to Science Channel:
bit.ly/Subscrib...
Like us on Facebook:
/ sciencechannel
Follow us on Twitter:
/ sciencechannel
Follow us on Instagram:
/ sciencechannel

[@friscokid66]

I was actually surprised at how complicated it is to make a bicycle tire.

[@bradleyholton-coates8345]

Oi it's mountain bike tire, calling it a bicycle tire is offensive to us mountain bikers 😂 jk not hard feelings

[@Praxcycles]

And it costs $60 ea for some reason. 😭✌

[@Fuckstupidlibtards]

@@Praxcycles you can find 14" and 15" car tires for less than a Maxxis DHF. 100x the material for the same price, made in the same country. Figure a MTB tire costs $5-15 to make, max.

[@DrewskiTheLegend]

dillie3000 and due to how comparatively small the market for bike tires is, and the performance characteristics of high end bike tires being much more specific and lighter than your average $60-$80 car tire, the price still makes sense.

[@MrGallade475]

@@Fuckstupidlibtards A DHF Maxxgrip is a literal racing tire for like 60 bucks. Any sticky car racing tire in any size is gonna be way more expensive than that.

[@redneckadventures8272]

That’s a lot of work just for me too go and ride over a nail

[@glassytiger6204]

That's what self sealant is for and how do you puncture your tire on a nail when mountain biking?

[@alsokooniiee4797]

@@glassytiger6204 litering

[@animamundii]

why not buy puncture resistant tires? smh. Schwalbe tires are literally indestructible.

[@eikuz]

@@animamundii and heavy

[@alonzomartii]

It's is a mountain bike Tyre not a construction site Tyre

[@rays5163]

I like how they just leave all the packaging on the ingredients for the rubber compound when they dump them in the mixer

[@za7v9ier]

Made In China

[@lekobiashvili945]

Not all the packaging. They leave only the plastic packaging and not the paper. Most likely the packaging of the said ingredients is purposely made to mix in the compound to speed up the process and save cost and waste. Think about it as an ice cream in a waffle cone.

[@tomalophicon]

@@za7v9ier those dudes are clearly Taiwanese.

[@Joshuadalewillis]

Le Kobiashvili He’s not perplexed about the situation you idiot he’s just fascinated by it

[@persephoneblack888]

Natural rubber is wicked sticky. Without the plastic on it, it would stick to the conveyor belt and machines. If you kneed it, it looses some of that stickiness. So, I think that's why they leave the plastic on it when putting it in to the mixture.

[@calvacoca]

Now when I'll buy a tire, I'll think about thses man who are making tires all days long. Hope your boss gives you enough money to live happy.

[@sdqsdq6274]

what u expect ,low wage for them

[@46B3x2you]

I really appreciate this. If you know how something is made, you learn how to make it last.

[@nikkolewolf1253]

Agree

[@tinhinnh]

never get tired of watching these

[@samyscookies152]

Gripping content. Worth the watch.!

[@morecowbellmountainbiking3032]

I can smell the tires while watching this!

[@snarkymcsnarkles3493]

they skip the step where it turns from the natural color to black?

[@cirocarvalho2015]

It's magic! It's a miracle! It's an illusion!

[@fr3shSwag]

I was waiting for that part too. It's probably a trade secret.

[@AlexanderPHolcomb]

They specifically say it gets pushed through dyes.

[@tomalophicon]

@@AlexanderPHolcomb they meant dies.

[@mlee6050]

@Commando678 subtitles “using heat and pressure, the extruder forces the rubber through dies”

[@Crazystuffyousee]

So tires are made from whatever random stuff that finds its way into the grinder???

[@jordandurham8951]

Crazystuffyousee like packaging & fingers!

[@marcmathes41]

i liked kenda tired untill i watched that.. just throw any shit in with the rubber....

[@hinz1]

At least the narrator is honest @ 2:10: "rubber sheets with varying characteristics" depending on how much trash is in it ;-)

[@marsbase3729]

@@marcmathes41 obviously it doesn't have a detrimental effect on the end product I've used plenty of Kendra tires with no problem.

[@samstarr7766]

That's a Kenda for you.

[@johndoyle4723]

The machinery looks old,slow and dangerous. Thanks for the video, always interesting to see how things are made.

[@MrTeff999]

It also shows why some bicycle tires cost as much as some car tires. Very inefficient.

[@marsbase3729]

@@MrTeff999 Too bad they don't have you to show them how it's done.

[@MrTeff999]

@@marsbase3729 So true. So true.

[@saxphile]

The small volume of each tire model and size probably doesn't justify further automation. Automating only the most dangerous and difficult tasks allow for very small production batches.

[@simonm1447]

@@saxphile You can see this even more with fat bike tires - a cheaper MTB tire cost around 15 € in EU, a competition capable one around 40. Fat bike tires cost between 30 for a cheap one and 80 for a Schwalbe. A car tire for a medium sized car (like the 205/55 R 16) is around 50 to 60 € for the latest brand models.

[@mitch832]

Me: KZbin: How Mountain Bike Tires Are Made Me: KZbin: How Mountain Bike Tires Are Made Me: KZbin: How Mountain Bike Tires Are Made Me: OK OK FINE! THERE! I CLICKED IT!

[@nxovva]

Not my best flap

[@zanetaylor7]

Same.. this was so much less interesting that the Vittoria factory visit that another channel did

[@wisho-ro4305]

me too 😁

[@A.J.1656]

​@Redblade You don't understand the correct original spelling of the word? Have you changed the word attire to attyre since that's where the word tire comes from?

[@A.J.1656]

@Redblade That's right, it was changed from tire to tyre in the Modern British dialect. Modern English borrows from many sources. Anglo-Saxon, Old English, Middle English, Celtic, French, Latin and many more languages have contributed to the Modern English vocabulary. All of those languages can trace their roots to an ancient Indo-European language. Surprisingly, this language is also the parent of languages spanning from the British Isles to the Indian sub-continent. There are several English dialects around the world thanks to the once vast British Empire. Claiming that the differences between the many forms of Modern English are erroneous is an incorrect assertion.

[@manbearpig2164]

Thank you tire makers, life is better because of you

[@kareemdyb7195]

دائما تحتاج صناعه الاطارات الى يد عامله ماهره .... عمل رائع

[@AlexandarHullRichter]

That's really cool. The only flaw is that actual mountain bike tires are not made as wire beads anymore because wire bead tires cannot be set up tubeless, and almost all mountain bike tires are tubeless now. Mountain bike tires usually have a folding Kevlar bead instead.

[@shanescott8241]

The slant six they show is still available with a wire bead

[@AlexandarHullRichter]

@@shanescott8241 not popular that way, as it's not available as a tubeless wirebead. Specialized does that with their Pathfinder. It's available as a wirebead Sport, and as a folding tubeless Pro. Nobody buys a Pathfinder Sport.

[@gulfsurfco]

I wish they would have showed the knobby design in the mold. They could have used some detail for that is an interesting part.

[@Sours56]

1:08 forbidden pasta dough

[@revolutionaudio1599]

That'll be $79 for that tire, Please!

[@WolfPawArmoury]

More like $49

[@WolfPawArmoury]

Probably more like $39, considering this one uses a wire bead.

[@BenKickert]

They are wire bead Kendas... these are Wal-mart specials. More like $5 to an OEM or $15-20 for an end consumer.

[@rileybush6459]

The honey badger, small block 8, and slant 6 that came out of thr mold are pretty decent tires. The one from the into is wal mart crap.

[@madgigahz]

I’ve bought $100 tires for my mountain bike. My car? $40 used lol

[@charlieboy5515]

Coming up next week "How good MTB tires are made"

[@zachbrown7272]

they are kenda tires, pretty good mid range tires

[@yeetom5549]

Maxxis would have been better

[@theundead1600]

Maxxis probably wanted 5 × as much as kenda

[@EnglertRacing96]

lol yeah this is "how wallmart bike tires are made"

[@EnglertRacing96]

@@zachbrown7272 mid range at wallmart. kenda is not to be used in the same sentence as maxxis, contenintal, or schwalbe. The budget model tires from those brands are what we call mid range tires.

[@thomasbarlow4223]

Love how they only blurr the KENDA logo sometimes

[@ezrakainz]

I noticed it too, didn't bother even using the stamp tool in Photoshop, just used the mixer brush...

[@41A2E]

The narrator sounds a lot older than I remember him; I suppose it has been at least a decade. . .

[@BlueRhino600]

RadicalOne1912 he also kinda sounds like he has a cold or something. Kinda nasally.

[@xpndblhero5170]

Now I want to see how they make tubeless and BMX tires.... Those are dramatically different from cheap Walmart brand tires.

[@fourthpanda]

What? They are very similar.

[@rubiconnn]

They have an episode showing how tubeless car tires are made.

[@romka_ind]

Same process. Just different materials, like Kevlar threads instead of steel wire and special layers to hold air without inner tubes

[@stfuplsok]

Kenda amazing to watch how tyres are made

[@MrCTruck]

Video:6.5/10 Pun: 10/10

[@SteveF1967]

3:00 I wouldn’t be wearing a ring on that machine.

[@spole1699]

0:47 did he just let plastic wrap on or is that the way it is supposed to be done

[@vishnusaivvs]

Om Sarpole It's not a big problem. Most of the companies do that. Since, more than 30% of tyre is made up of filler materials (mostly Carbon Black), the plastic wraps will contribute to that filler material percentage..

[@zachtrapper2398]

I’ve seen this done on the rubber eraser and rubber band episode too

[@affalaffaa]

Yeah, whatever, who cares. Just do anything and everything as sloppily as possible. Saves more than 25 secs each and every day. Laziness and slovenliness will rule asap! Or that packaging better help me through the mud.

[@jltrack]

Well tires are compounds made from nylon, rubber steel, kevlar etc. A little bit of polyethylene packaging will not change the overall composition of the tire. It probably makes up only .5%.

[@Rose_Butterfly98]

YAY!! MTB TIRES!

[@leonardsanchezf.361]

I love kenda tire, so light

[@connor2463]

But what I’ve been wondering all along is how the heck they make the waffle molds in the right design, it seems difficult, maybe easier now but I can’t imagine how they did it before

[@markfisher7962]

That's a VERY GOOD QUESTION. My bet is EDM. We saw the computer models of the tread patterns. en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Electrical_discharge_machining

[@moeman1933]

You what I have always wanted to know HOW MOUNTAIN BIKE TIRES WERE MADE!!

[@glassytiger6204]

Mountain bike gang where u at

[@bradleyholton-coates8345]

Sherddd

[@jadenr.11]

GlassyTiger620 right here

[@Conservative_East]

I like KENDA. Thanks for choosing them.

[@No-ti2sn]

I know, it’s almost scary how many people are diehard fans of just one brand

[@dirkvanderraadt1609]

So now I know how plumbuses are made..

[@peterjv8748]

The schleem is repurposed for later batches.

[@samstarr7766]

Pete Jeffris To make bicycle tires.

[@IgorDz]

I wasn't hoping for this comment, but I'm glad I found it!

[@noobynatter5675]

That machine at 2:00 looks like a steampunk weapon

[@evangelius]

You did not show how you make Black ruber, how yo put net armature inside ruber, and how you make other tire components. Ok video but some important production steps are missing

[@Renville80]

SRG Consider the phrase “trade secret”.

[@kevinrice4909]

They do that for every tire ... amazing... don't seem like they could make them fast enough for a profit.... but I'm no bees nas man

[@agz163]

They are made where labor costs are low

[@chevylife777]

Gotta go to the store for some new rubber retaining bladders

[@RealJawnes]

They are just tubes... lol

[@elzeus13]

TIL: Tires are rubber waffles.

[@jazzjohn2]

This is unclear. How did the rubber go from a light color in the beginning to black at 2:17?

[@XJeepWerks]

john I’m wondering the same.

[@here2there880]

They usually just add carbon black.

[@jazzjohn2]

@@here2there880 Good point. The vid could have mentioned that.

[@Cordova.S.William]

Love this notification! Thanks happy day To all here, bless up.

[@adventurelover8521]

I just fixed my broken tire. That's a lot of hard work.

[@aldrinalejo1810]

My trusted brand of bike tires kenda

[@dangercat3000]

Just popping over from Instagram to see how bike tires are made

[@daynerogers8133]

If anyone is wondering the bike they show at the very beginning is a 2017 Giant Full-E +1. The tires shown are not stock, they come with Schwalbe. Kenda makes a couple good tires, but is pretty well known for being your dad's favorite for his 26 despite the poor performance compared to modern ones. Not surprised to see them just throwing packing material and labels right in.

[@alexblough5739]

So that's how my Kenda tires were made

[@after_midnight9592]

In an Asian sweatshop

[@simonm1447]

@@after_midnight9592 This slant six however are surprisingly good, they came with my Scott bike. Kenda also produces garbage, but also good stuff.

[@mrcrosky93]

Keep up amazing work as always

[@CowneloAlvaroid]

Dope! I run a Maxxis dhf minion 2.3 in the front and a Maxxis 2.25 Ardent in the rear ✊✊

[@tinhinnh]

TexasTaco512 why the diff in width

[@EOHRyan]

@@tinhinnh People like grip on the front and lower rolling resist on the back, in Enduro circles a 2.5 front and 2.4 rear is quite popular and not that many people like a super grippy rear tyre as it can make the bike less agile around tight corners, DHF + Ardent is a great setup too.

[@tinhinnh]

EOHRyan thanks for the explanation!

[@weridebikes1000]

Ardent is garbage

[@EOHRyan]

@@weridebikes1000 What makes you think that? Fast rolling, good predictable grip, ideal rear for trail riding. You use the right tyre for the job, a DHF would be garbage for XC.

[@linus6078]

Listen Alexis this actually was really interesting!

[@Radar_of_the_Stars]

Thanks I needed this

[@JeroenvanMontfort]

1:02 So, did the bag or didn't the bag go in the rubber mix?

[@Neobysun]

thumps up if you're here after that reddit post

[@lowryder3209]

WOOOOOOOOO A NAME BRAND

[@KanikYt]

Very nice working with you and very awesome notifications 😃😃😃😃😃😃😃

[@eliannam.5700]

@Science channel, some of us got recently blocked from some of your vids. Says they're not available in our region. I've seen multiple people saying this. Could you make them available or at least explain whats going on? Thanks!

[@Empie]

elianna m. Article 13

[@eliannam.5700]

@@Empie art. 13 was my first guess, but then again, it's just the "what on earth" vids.

[@rhysmuir]

My favourite parts are the puns

[@stopglobalswarming]

Do these tires have no casing threads?

[@lakshman_12335]

Thx

[@zachtrapper2398]

Thank you

[@caperider1160]

Interesting! Thanks for the video

[@BadlyDubbed]

What I'm wondering is: will anyone ever actually do a skid on these tyres, bro?

[@willfoster7187]

BadlyDubbed Yes bro we shred them as soon as we get them.

[@PeterUjah.]

Nice video, tanx

[@deepakgurung3853]

My mtb also have kenda tyre. My tyres is already 1year still looks new my friends with maxis tyre are already need to change

[@anasqai]

I have idea of the Colours not Changed like a Memory Thing other than "Look Old or New", maybe the Changes a Nostalgia thing to Have Something we Know will become "Other Colour", like Our Achievement of Buying Something or Using It.

[@anasqai]

But I got another Idea of A Stronger One which is Layer of Silicone Glue so maybe it will Still be On Silicone Glue Layer Anyway. Silicone Glue is Stronger(For Aquarium Joints).

[@anasqai]

This is just a theory though.

[@stelios777]

~ Wow! It's Made!

[@hamew9149]

Saw a meme, so im here watching how bike tyres are made

[@Incendiary301]

Same

[@Duraltia]

Thank the makers they blurred out the in the thumbnail clearly visible brand logo of the tire manufacturer while leaving all sorts of other brand logos perfectly visible - What would ppl have thought!?

[@incognitoreuploads4991]

5:04. Finally, dinner is made. The guy is an excellent chef and these tires are very tasty

[@MegaDirtyberty]

So what rubber do you use on your knob.

[@tuckera1879]

4:26 hey those are kenda small block eights... That's sad that I can recognize that just by the tread

[@igormarinkovic1531]

@Aditya Wardhana Schwalbe and Continental are better

[@SirWallaceCobblePot]

Did anybody else come here from a meme I saw about a girl worrying why her man is quiet and she thinks he is mad because he is quiet and she ask why he is mad and he says “ I’m just thinking how bike tires are made”... anyone else or just me!?

[@MunroMcLaren]

Interesting.

[@florascent9ts]

it would've been nice to see how the tread mold was machined

[@dandrechesterfield5411]

I'll show you how that tread mold is made ;)

[@laharl2k]

Yeah but they didnt show when they add the kevlar or steel mesh reinforcents to avoid small things or pieces of glass from piercing the rubber and the inner tube.

[@saxphile]

I think these basic tires probably don't have it.

[@SirUncleCid]

anyone have a link to the plumbus episode?

[@latenight8255]

Kenda tires the best!!

[@stopglobalswarming]

I like small knob 26” tires

[@stopglobalswarming]

Oh i see. 2:55 shows the casing threads

[@thiagocruzy]

this is dope

[@vagatronics]

Who's here from Reddit?

[@Bluntz_]

Indeed

[@johnniemcrae2524]

How did the color go from tan to black, what did i miss?

[@Aznk1d]

didnt know Kenda made bike tires. I have them on my drift car

[@killuminatikilla3235]

Somone needs to mass produce 26" 1 1/4 tyres

[@gm2256]

rubber dough...a forbidden snack

[@bradleymellor7125]

*Staring up to the stars Her: "What'ya thinking about?" Me:

[@Bluntz_]

Stolen from Twitter/Reddit

[@youtubeaccount9058]

Good narrator voice

[@reillys7981]

Wow, thats a lotta work... I'll still gonna ride over glass

[@Lucky_2109]

Recently bought kenda tyres, how coincidence algorithm

[@shimonigmagames]

Now I know

[@demonweber666]

All that technology, to still get flats from a thorn or pinch.

[@nevids2086]

Am I the only one this was randomly recommended this? Anyway, thanks KZbin algorithm.

[@error404_]

intresting

[@Homelessman80085]

I’m sitting in math class rn and I was wondering how bike tiers are made and now I get it

[@andrewhtf]

Wow, cool post! Thanks for... Oh wait...

[@Nat-jf2ge]

You'd think they'd come up a better fabric insert to stop punctures from occuring in this decades old process.

[@romka_ind]

There are plenty models of tires that are puncture resistant...

[@mrcrosky93]

Nice video

[@ViktorJ0van0vski]

Dudeeee i ride kenda dh pro 27.5 x 2.40 😲😲😲🥰

[@igormarinkovic1531]

Only one company i know is producing ONLY MTB tyres. And its Schwalbe. All others produce car or suv tyres also. Thats why i use Schwalbe.

[@Lady8D]

Feels like it skips a step bc the rubber goes from tan to suddenly black. Otherwise, interesting, thanks!

[@caseyb1346]

3:27 so the tread isn't even glued to the casing, just pressed on. Doesn't seem very secure to me.

[@danc2014]

The heat press will bond all the materials this is the same for car tires too.

[@AlexandarHullRichter]

It's similar to welding. It's way more secure than any glue.

[@caseyb1346]

@@AlexandarHullRichter I see, didnt realize it was a heat press thanks.

[@RoyceJusticeJasmyn]

The bike is solid and my Ebike conversion went great. kzbin.infoUgkxHL1v1R3NE5x4KiYfyt8dnQmyNYz7qi5L Very smooth ride at 30mph with no problems (135 miles ridden so far). The picture is a bit deceiving - there is WAY less space in the center of the frame than it shows. The suspension connection takes up the entire thing. So I needed to attach my battery on the bottom of the frame and my controller on the top. Instructions for assembly were lacking but honestly it wasn't too hard to figure out even though I have very little bike knowledge. Watched some youtube videos on adjusting the disk brakes but that was it. Still, I am loving it and very happy with the purchase.

[@Aspen72]

i randomly wondered "Hmmm, i wonder how bike tires are made" and decided to find out

[@Hotwheels_taste_pretty_good]

I spend a lot of money for a new, nice, pair of maxxis and as soon as I put them on and ride my local trails I get a pinch flat and f up the tyres beyond repair.