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Tires: How old is too old?

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Tires: How old is too old?

Old 02-12-19, 01:40 PM
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they would probably start giving you some clues before going. like some separation somewhere on the exterior carcass but why wait for that. getting new tires is fun!
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Old 02-12-19, 02:35 PM
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Originally Posted by Igor P
One thing I always think of (besides damage to myself) is possible rim damage when the tire lets go. I'd rather replace the tires and tubes than risk damaging a nice rim.
You should change to tubulars. You get rim protection even after the tire is flat.
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Old 02-12-19, 05:08 PM
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There are obvious environmental variables that can play havoc on rubber, but I have a spare touring tire that's 8 or 9 years old and it's still good to go for a long time yet, at least another 5 years.
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Old 02-12-19, 07:33 PM
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Regardless of what they look like, I replace bike tires when they hit 20 years old.
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Old 02-13-19, 10:32 AM
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I installed these NOS gumwall Pasela tires on my Jamaica Bianchi a couple of years ago. Though they looked great, much to my dismay, they failed miserably and had to be replaced immediately. Old tires..? I doubt that I will ever trust them again...
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Old 02-13-19, 11:06 AM
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When I bought my 91 Miyata 1400A, it had the original Miyata branded 700x20 tan walls on it. They looked pretty darn fresh and I rode them for a few months, fast and hard with no problems. But I thought I might be pushing my luck so I went ahead and changed them - twice! - with good quality 700x23s, and the bike just felt dead! Neither of the new set of tires performed nearly as well as those old Miyata tires did. Its almost as if the bike was built around those original tires.

I still have those tires hanging up in the garage, and I have been tempted more than once to put them back on!
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Old 02-15-19, 11:55 AM
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When I bought my 91 Miyata 1400A, it had the original Miyata branded 700x20 tan walls on it. They looked pretty darn fresh and I rode them for a few months, fast and hard with no problems. But I thought I might be pushing my luck so I went ahead and changed them - twice! - with good quality 700x23s, and the bike just felt dead! Neither of the new set of tires performed nearly as well as those old Miyata tires did. Its almost as if the bike was built around those original tires.

I still have those tires hanging up in the garage, and I have been tempted more than once to put them back on!
If the original were radials, found on some Miyata bicycles, like the 1000 I had. I did ride the 1000 with the original tires but chose to install new ones. They did feel like a lesser set of hoop protectors. Sadly, I do not have any pictures of those tires.
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Old 02-15-19, 12:02 PM
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think about the tubes too, becoming brittle. A flat is one thing. A blowout on the front "bang !" will take you down. It will hurt. If you are going downhill at speed, it will likely hurt more.

Mark Petry
Bainbridge Island, WA USA
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Old 02-16-19, 09:43 AM
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If anyone has tires more than 70 years old please PM. Better rubber back then. Often rideable. Though that is not the reason for seeking out the old ones.
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Old 02-16-19, 10:11 AM
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I disagree with older rubber being better stuff, I've been riding mountain roads for over 30 years, as the tires got better year after year handling got better than older tires, newer tires last a lot longer in mileage wear, plus the newer tires are more resistant to flats and cuts, especially this last 5 years or so crop of tires are almost immune to cuts yet handle very well. I'm older guy, I've seen the cycling world change over the years, and some of those changes were not good, yet some of them were like tires. The only thing the older tires have over the newer ones is ride comfort, but that's because the older tires didn't have flat belts, and when they did come out with them they weren't as thick or just one ply of flat belt instead of several plies, that thicker belt or more plies lends to a bit harsher ride I think...unless it's just my age doesn't like the harsher ride like it use to! LOL!!! either way newer tires are definitely way better then they use to be years ago. I think silca being put into tires these days has a lot to do with the gripping performance. If you want to experience the feeling of tires of era gone by simply pick up a pair of Specialized Turbo Cotton belted tires, the rubber tread is much better than it was but the cotton belt is the same, if you really want the best feel of an era gone by find a pair of silk belted tires with no other belts of some other material in the tire; of course these cotton and silk tires are very expensive and they don't last long, but tires in the older days didn't last as long as they do today anyways.
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Old 02-16-19, 01:48 PM
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Originally Posted by rhm
For what it's worth, in the last few years I can only remember two tires that failed catastrophically. Both were front tires, and both tore at the sidewall-bead interface. Luckily neither one caused a crash, but it's still scary. One was a fairly cheap Michelin, the other a Panaracer Col-de-la-vie 650b. And both were basically new tires, less than a month old, and neither showed any wear or signs of other damage.
That sort of damage, if it is where the plies wrap around the bead, is often caused by the pinching action of tire levers on the casing fabric.

The bead under tension is much like a hard edge having a small radius, thus able to concentrate force at a tangent contact area of the bead, thus potentially severing the fibers of the casing, with resulting separation of the casing from the bead under inflation pressure tension.

Even when using a sliding motion with a tire iron along the rim and tire bead, I've seen the cloth chafer strip shear right off, and have seen the rubber peel away on tires that have no cloth chafer strip along the bead edge. An aged tire will be particularly vulnerable to such damage.
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Old 02-16-19, 02:11 PM
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Originally Posted by greatscott
I disagree with older rubber being better stuff, I've been riding mountain roads for over 30 years, as the tires got better year after year handling got better than older tires, newer tires last a lot longer in mileage wear, plus the newer tires are more resistant to flats and cuts, especially this last 5 years or so crop of tires are almost immune to cuts yet handle very well. I'm older guy, I've seen the cycling world change over the years, and some of those changes were not good, yet some of them were like tires. The only thing the older tires have over the newer ones is ride comfort, but that's because the older tires didn't have flat belts, and when they did come out with them they weren't as thick or just one ply of flat belt instead of several plies, that thicker belt or more plies lends to a bit harsher ride I think...unless it's just my age doesn't like the harsher ride like it use to! LOL!!! either way newer tires are definitely way better then they use to be years ago. I think silca being put into tires these days has a lot to do with the gripping performance. If you want to experience the feeling of tires of era gone by simply pick up a pair of Specialized Turbo Cotton belted tires, the rubber tread is much better than it was but the cotton belt is the same, if you really want the best feel of an era gone by find a pair of silk belted tires with no other belts of some other material in the tire; of course these cotton and silk tires are very expensive and they don't last long, but tires in the older days didn't last as long as they do today anyways.
I am going to guess you were responding to me. No quarrel here that tires have improved a great deal in past 30 or 40 years. The 1970s and 1980s in general, and certainly wrt tires, represented an absolute nadir of quality. My 1959 Schwinn Spitfire (I am original owner) in front of the fireplace still has its original front Goodyear tire in spite of generations of children doing their best to destroy it. Rear tire is a 1960s Carlisle. Both tires ride well and are perfectly safe. They don't need belts to not flat. There are 100 year old tires still fit to ride. Most tires from 80s were barely fit to ride when new.
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Old 02-16-19, 02:18 PM
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Originally Posted by mpetry912
think about the tubes too, becoming brittle. A flat is one thing. A blowout on the front "bang !" will take you down. It will hurt. If you are going downhill at speed, it will likely hurt more.

Mark Petry
Bainbridge Island, WA USA
Tubes can last a surprisingly long time. They are protected from UV rays and ozone by the tires, with only the valves exposed. The tubes in my 1960s Armstrong are older than I am and feel just fine.
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Old 02-16-19, 03:00 PM
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Originally Posted by dddd
That sort of damage, if it is where the plies wrap around the bead, is often caused by the pinching action of tire levers on the casing fabric.

The bead under tension is much like a hard edge having a small radius, thus able to concentrate force at a tangent contact area of the bead, thus potentially severing the fibers of the casing, with resulting separation of the casing from the bead under inflation pressure tension.

Even when using a sliding motion with a tire iron along the rim and tire bead, I've seen the cloth chafer strip shear right off, and have seen the rubber peel away on tires that have no cloth chafer strip along the bead edge. An aged tire will be particularly vulnerable to such damage.
yes, that is all true. I've definitely seen tires so dried out that the rubber would crumble if you used a tire iron. They're pretty old by that time.

The tires that failed on me, though, were new. In fact I don't think I had ever used a tire iron on either one.
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Old 02-18-19, 07:16 PM
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new tires are cheaper than dental work. I feel the same about some hardly used road tires for my cross bike. Probably not worth the hassle unless used for a trainer
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Old 02-18-19, 08:22 PM
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Originally Posted by schiavonec
new tires are cheaper than dental work. I feel the same about some hardly used road tires for my cross bike. Probably not worth the hassle unless used for a trainer
A huge percentage of tires that go flat don't blow suddenly, they gradually leak air out; plus if you don't know how to check out the condition of a used tire then you probably haven't been riding very long which goes back to your fear of busting out teeth in a blowout which would be due to your lack of experience to control a bike.
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Old 02-18-19, 08:57 PM
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A few years ago, I was cleaning out my parents garage. I found a bike tire hanging on the wall. I put it there about 1968. All the oil in the rubber came out and made spots all over it. It was similar in feel to engine oil. I grabbed the tire and the rubber almost fell off the casing like dust. I say that's too old.
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