I don't know the history of these. I got them from a bike club friend who only ran them a couple of weeks, 2 of them. The other was new, folding bead in factory package. He tried 25s, didn't like the ride and went back to 23s. I've been on 25s for years, and love the ride. I might cut the other one and see what's what. I tried cutting a tire once to make a holder so the Co2s wouldn't rattle. They are hard to cut, yet all it takes is a piece of glass or a thorn sometimes to cut right thru it. The front tire on my Allez has been noisy since day 1, but never noticed the blisters/bubbles until I changed the rear on the other bike, which had the new tire in package when I got it.