superslomo

I've got some gatorskins I took off my bike probably two summers ago. They're wire bead, and have been hanging in the garage since then. I've got GP 4 Seasons, one of which has gotten cut on a recent ride and need replacing. The gators are 700x28, have only moderate wear, and have been out of the sun (though in the garage with normal heat cycles for a standalone building in the northeast.

Any concerns with putting the gators back on the bike, as to durability?

I've searched and not found a really clear answer, thanks for any input.

Rather not spend money on another set of new tires if I can just use these up on the rear, the front GP 4Season is still cranking along.

jimc101

Look at them do determine their condition, really doubt they would have significantly deteriorated over such a short time, when I saw the title of the thread, was thinking you were going to say they were from the 1970's or older, 2 years isn't really old for any bike part.

Crankycrank

+1. 2 years is nothing to worry about in most cases. Check for cracks or visible deterioration and if it looks OK use them.

hokiefyd 

I'd say that most bike tires have been in (questionable) storage already for at least a year before being sold as new. 2-3 year old tires should be plenty safe to ride. Do inspect them, but I suspect you'll see nothing but "good tires".

dsbrantjr

Disregard any fine cracking or checking of the outer rubber, it is cosmetic; the strength of the tire is in the fabric plies and the air is held by the tube.

rumrunn6

2 cents ... save your inspection until after full inflation

Bike Gremlin

Just a note of caution, even though I generally agree:
If riding in rainy, even more so if riding in winter "salty" roads - small cracks do propagate rotting of the tyre casing. I've had a (Rubena made) tyre blow out after having had just some minor surface cracking I was sure is cosmetic. It was a relatively low pressure, wide MTB tyre used in autumn/winter. Never had similar issues with "summer" tyres, even the high pressure ones. Until more visible deterioration and/or a bulge appear, they never caused any problems.

Iride01 

Consider what your upcoming riding is for the next few weeks or more and how important it is to you not to have any troubles with tires.

If you absolutely, positively will be bothered by a tire failure, then get some new for now. But I'd just put them on and see. My experiences remounting tires that have hung up for years has been good. The few that failed did so slowly over the first week of riding. They didn't actually flat, instead they developed separations in the tread and another pair bad cracks in the gumwalls...... have I ever said how much I dislike gumwalls?

Anyway, those that showed issues just got replaced with others after I got back home. None left me stranded that I can remember.

CliffordK

How old were the tires before you took them off of the bike?

As others have mentioned, say even if they were 5 years old, that really isn't that old, but you have to go by the overall condition of the tires. I think a couple of things start to happen to the rubber. I think it starts becoming easier to damage. And, thus perhaps less flat resistant. You may also see thousands of micro cuts in the rubber, probably due more to age than wear.

The tires are still probably OK to ride, but you should at least be aware of shortcomings.

I've had issues with a Continental sidewall. I still ride the tires, but do worry about the sidewalls a bit. At least if the tires are well broken in, they won't be subject to a manufacturing defect.

Bigbus

Automobile tires age out at 7-8 yrs according to the manufacturers. Bike tires probably age the same as car tires. If stored out of direct sunlight they should be fine. I have an old Royce MTB with original tires. They're weather checking, but like someone else said, it's the tube that holds the air. Until the casing fails or looks like it's about to, I will ride on them.

Bike Gremlin

Tyres start ageing (rapidly) when they are mounted and used. While stored in proper conditions, they can be considered brand new up to 5 years of storage (at least the Germans consider it that way if memory serves me well). Once mounted, you can start counting. However, a good quality, grippy tyre will still grip and perform better after a few years than a (cheap) tyre that is (almost) new. Direct sunlight, heating/cooling cycles and freezing winter do deteriorate tyres, though most bicycle tyres usually get just the sun part of all the mentioned.

Check for wear and cracks. Tyres are not very likely to become so old that the rubber becomes non-grippy, plastic like from ageing. If it does - you can easily test it by applying brakes in controlled and safe conditions from time to time.