I goofed and told tire rack to shave to 6/32 and I should have told them 4/32 now there is still a ton of tread left. I run it7 so competition is scarce and really they are either way faster because of a better engine or way behind. I want to be competitive but 1/2 of a second on a lap isn't going to matter. I can get a local shop to shave them the rest of the way but is it worth spending another $60?

Also could I race on them one weekend, see how I like them, then shave them down to 4/32? Or is this frowned upon because the tire has heat cycled a bunch?

 

the Ra1's are pretty forgiving about heat cycles, i'd just run em, and enjoy the extra weekend you get on those tires

 

Just keep an eye on them and make sure they don't start chunking...

 

When I started racing SM (meaning I wasn't fast), I started with 6/32nd shaves. The tires last forever. I heat cycled them out before I wore them out. They have no grip but they still have tread.

 

So what is the etiquette on shaving them after they have been worn a bit? I would think it would even the tread out of any wierd wear patterns....

 

Most tire shavers won't shave a tire that has been raced on. Race tires collect rocks and debris from the track that are hard on the shaver knives.

I have never raced on RA1s but the reputation they have is that they get faster as the tread wears away. I seem to recall that the fast Spec Miata guys figured out that the optimum tread depth for a new of RA1s is 2/32. Of course they don't last long at that depth but I can attest to how fast the cars were - a lot of the passed me!

Seems to me you are stuck with what you have. After a few races you will wear them to a more optimal depth.