Should I replace tire? (Pic attached)
 

Hi,

Just need some thoughts or reassurance. Would you replace this tire? Hopefully the pic is attached or just below the paragraph. I don't see any cord coming through anywhere, but having no tread and all the small cracks make me wonder if it's time to replace.

Jon

I personally would not. That tire looks like it still has plenty of miles ahead of it. Small cracks and cuts are normal on a tire, and especially the cracks are common in the more budget oriented tires, although they can also easily occur in more expensive tires as well.

But if you're not buying an expensive tire and feel uncomfortable riding the current one then sure, go on ahead and swap it. A good method of getting most out of your tires is to swap the front tire in the back and getting a new front tire. This way you'll always only need to replace one tire at a time (if not for failures or something like that) and you'll always have a pristine front tire, where tire condition is most important.

I personally would, but I worked in bike shop and got funny about part-worn tyres.
If you're planning on touring soon though, DEFINITELY change it. Fresh rubber for peace of mind.
But for training/commute, its weather you feel comfortable with it

the other problem is, if theres cracks, high psi/bar pressure will tear them apart quicker, and you'll end up with the inner tube coming through.

Not as long as the carcass is intact. The rubber can be in pretty iffy condition and the tire can still function perfectly well, but if the carcass is compromized even a little the tire needs to be replaced.

Drip some super glue into it and ride on.

There is little to no inherent tensile strength in rubber. Its only job is to provide traction. In assessing a tire, I also like to see the beads, the sidewalls, the interior structure of the threads, and rotate it to look for anything out of shape. It's hard to tell from a photo.

I agree your next ride dictates the answer to the question. How reliable does it have to be?

If I was about to go on a tour, I would replace it.

For just riding around your home vicinity, I would not.

For me I would, as there is now less distance between the tube and whatever pointy things you might run over. Also just how many more miles are you going to get out of it verses the cost of a new tire? What are you saving in the long run, not the cost of a new tire, just some small percentage of it assuming you do eventually replace the tire. If it saves repairing one flat on the side of the road it would be worth it to me. YMMV

I used to start all longish tours with fresh tires. The theory was that I'd used the tires later around home. That never happened, so I started using them until fully worn out or until they started picking up frequent enough punctures that I got tired of it.

So, if it was me I'd start a tour, even a long one, with that tire and figure on replacing it along the way when/if necessary.

Was there tread there to begin with, or is it one of the many tires with a smooth rolling patch and a bit of bite on the shoulders?

Agree with the other comments along the lines of no for around home, yes if you are leaving on a trip.

have you been getting flats? a new tire is certainly a cheap precaution

Thank you for all of the responses. I will keep riding these around town as suggested, but I have some Schwalbe Marathon Plus' on order for the next tour.

No frequent flats on them yet, and the tread originally covered the whole tire surface evenly. It only has about 3,000 miles on it, a little more than half of which was on tour. Again, thanks for the responses and information.