JConcepts Tire Talk – Ellipse rears and front tire options

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Mike Garrison

0 Sept. 28, 2018, 12:05 p.m.

By Mike Garrison
LiveRC.com

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www.blog.jconcepts.net

After a lengthy period of testing, the long-awaited JConcepts Ellipse tires have finally landed and are unlike any other tire in the JConcepts lineup. With the huge success of the original Dirt Web tire, this game-changing tread design was hard to beat. Famous for its sheer speed and driveability, the Dirt Webs has etched its name on the list as one of the ‘Greatest tire of all time’.

The New

Trust us, designing a follow-up tire that could rival the Dirt Webs in speed, consistency, drivability, and tire wear wasn’t easy so we’re really excited about the new Ellipse tires as it takes all the things you loved about the Dirt Webs and made into a faster package.

Building a great tire starts at the base. The Ellipse tire utilized a smaller carcass that really allows drivers to attack corners with more speed and comfort. Tall tires can be quite difficult to navigate when the traction is high and with most tracks going to higher grip standards, the Ellipse tires are ready to deliver performance in all conditions.

Named after one of the repeating center shapes, the replicated pattern creates a universally connected bar that actually stiffens the entire carcass and also to the other bars that it’s connected to. This ultimately provides the tire with more high-speed support and consistency when it matters and all of this translates into a lot of corner speed and forward grip. Most of the feedback from our drivers is that there’s a huge increase in the amount of forward grip these tires have and how much differently it releases in the corner, on and off the throttle, allowing the car to rotate nicely around sharp corners.

Pairing the new Ellipse tires: Dirt Web Fronts

In the end, you can have the best rear tire in the world, but all of it wouldn’t matter until you paired it with a set of fronts that can handle, enhance, and unlock all that speed by achieving a perfect tire balance between front and rear. As of now, here are your two JConcepts options for 2wd fronts.

When the Dirt Web tires were officially released in 2013, it changed the game and quickly became the indoor tire king. The unique web style bars created a tire that performs well early on and improves as the tire breaks in and the tread height goes down. The small dots and dashes add to tire surface contact for more grip and also provides longer wear characteristics.

This is the ‘Go to’ tire for the team as they feel it gives the most amount of steering while still being easy and comfortable to drive. The key to running the Dirt Webs fronts is the tread height. Dialing in the tread height can dramatically improve the amount of steering you have, but remember that balancing front end steering with rear end grip is now the dark arts of tire tuning.

Pairing the new Ellipse tires: Space Bar Fronts

While some do like the aggressive steering feel of a low treaded Dirt Web front tire, there are certain conditions that require a less aggressive option to go faster. With a rounder profile and a smaller sidewall, the 2wd front Space Bars‘ natural rounder shape gives a sense of comfort for aggressive drivers providing smooth yet quick transitions. The spacious bar pattern promotes quick break-in requiring less time to get up to peak performance. With longer dashes strategically placed horizontally and vertically, improves overall tire wear but really helps improve forward traction and side-bite.