Hello!

I was checking my bike before going out on a ride and I found a small rip in the tire(the orange thing is the tire liner I put in the tire). I wanted to know if it is safe to ride with this. If not is there anyway I can fix this?

The second picture shows some wear marks on the tire. I have about 2000 miles on them. Is this much wear common? When should I replace them?

BTW. The tires are Michelin Oriums.

The third picture is of my old tires. I retired them because the rear got a small hole in the side wall. When I pump the tube up inside, it stick out of the hole. This has already caused me a flat. Is there anyway I can fix this?

If I can't fix either of these tire can someone please recommend some cheap tires to me. I have been collecting money for some wheels for a long time, and I don't want to use the money on tires.


Photos:

#1: https://www.flickr.com/photos/5812047...in/photostream
#2: https://www.flickr.com/photos/5812047...in/photostream
#3:https://www.flickr.com/photos/5812047...in/photostream

Thanks!

replace it. better safe than sorry.

First picture: usually a hole that big means throw the tire away. You can put some sort of a "boot" in the tire (if you're out on a ride and get a cut like that a folded up dollar bill will work as an emergency fix), but I find trying to make a permanent fix causes more problems, like getting the boot in and keeping it in the right place, finding something that's thick enough to hold the air pressure, but not so thick as to eventually wear a hole in the tube (resulting in another flat), etc. Best bet - replace the tire.

Second picture: You got your money's worth. From the looks of it, you've worn the rubber down to the cords. The tire is worn out. I assume it was a rear tire. 2000 miles is about right or even pretty good mileeage for a rear tire. Replace it now! Any furthur riding you do on it will wear out the cords that hold the tire together and when they're worn far enough - BOOM!!! You won't have a usable tire or tube anymore and will be walking home.

Third picture. Same solution and comments as the first picture. If the hole in the sidewall is that big, replace the tire.

It doesn't matter what brand tire you have. The above comments will apply to any brand or size tire.

If you have a decent bike shop nearby, go in there and ask them for a decent quality, low cost tire recommendation. If you don't know what size you need, take one of the old tires or a wheel with you.

Good questions. Thanks for asking.

Thank you for the help! The fronts on both sets are still good, so I guess I will be using two different tires till I get a new set! It's going to look weird with one tire blue and one black, but it's better than no riding!

Put the new tire on the front, and move the front tire to the back.

I've seen plenty of people riding around with different color tires and the only thing I think when I see that is that tires aren't cheap and the colored ones wear just the same as the black ones.

Rear tires wear out much faster than the front. In many cases you'll never wear the tread off a front tire, you'll replace it because it either gets a cut (as your photos show) or it just gets old. Many people do as "haaseg" just suggested and put the new tire on the front and move the former front tire to the rear wheel.