Re: story about tyres on TV tonight

"Mr.T" <MrT@[EMAIL PROTECTED]
> wrote in message 
news:482d2d51$0$13948$afc38c87@[EMAIL PROTECTED]
> That's true, but doesn't mean it has no long term negative affect on the
> rubber.

It doesn't mean it has *any* effect. It's called "grease paper" because it

has a non stick surface. Not because it's actually covered in grease.

> Expected storage was not 50 years after all!

No, but that doesn't mean it wasn't capable of being stored for that long 
(and then some).

> I'd be worried about 50 years in a tin shed too.

Wouldn't worry me in the slightest.

As long as they weren't getting wet, exposed to direct sunlight or
continued 
heat I wouldn't expect the change in them from the day they were first 
popped out of the mould to be so insignificantly small you'd have trouble 
measuring it.

> Yes, your point being?

The point being that they're the kind of tyre that perform absolutely 
****house on dry asphalt on their best day.

> It's OK to place no value on your own life, but IF you drive it on the 
> road,
> you have a responsibilty to other road users as well.

I don't own it anymore, but I did drive it on occasion.

My obligation to other road users is limited to the vehicle being *legal*,

and it certainly was in terms of it's mechanical condition. However, in 
having said that the vehicle itself was an appaling thing to drive on a
road 
compared to almost anything you'd care to name as it was built purely as
an 
off-road vehicle expected to see service in demanding conditions. As such,

when driven on a paved road it had woeful brakes and steering, handled
like 
a pogo stick, and had the worst ride quality of the 100 odd vehicles I've 
ever owned.

As a counter (be it purposely built-in or by accident) as it made about as

much power as a ride on mower, and combined with it's three speed manual 
trans, it never went anywhere quick enough to be a problem, or had enough 
power to tax it's chassis/brakes/suspension to beyond their limits.

It's only non-standard feature was indicators which were stuck on as a
last 
minute choice when the thing was nearing the completion of it's
restoration 
as it had no doors, seatbelts or passenger restraint of any kind, and as a

friend who had one had his cleaned up by a tram on the very day he first
got 
it road registered I thought it was prudent to let other people know what
I 
intended to do.

They weren't legally required.

> In your opinion, especially if no effort to measure it is made!

And how would you do that exactly? Run braking efficiency tests on a model
T 
Ford? Do you *really* think a modern replica tyre would make the slightest

difference? :)

Bear in mind that the kind of tyres I'm talking about here are usually 
fitted to vehicles who's road manners would not be improved in the
slightest 
if they were fitted with the best racing slicks you could buy.

> All we can really hope for is that such vehicles end up wrapped around a
> tree before anybody else gets hurt.

When you say "we", are you speaking for everyone or have you suddenly
taken 
to addressing yourself in the royal capacity?

You'd probably find that the people who go to such extremes as finding 
original NOS tyres for older vehicles probably never drive their vehicles 
for fear of getting them dirty. Most tend to be trailer queens on the show

circuits with things like NOS tyres being ultimate points grabbers for the

judges, and those like me who did the odd driving event or two did so on 
occasions where they were likely to be in the company of other similar 
vehicles and not used in normal traffic.For those who like to *drive*
their 
cars they'd more than likely opt for a modern tyre simply because of the 
improvements in tyre designs since the days when the car was first built.

I couldn't think of anyone who would restore something like a HR Holden
and 
fit original cross-ply tyres these days if they intended to drive the
thing 
on the road.

I would have absolutely no hesitation whatsoever in using old tyres that 
were new ( in the sense that they'd never been fitted to a vehicle)
provided 
they were of a type that was suitable for the kind of use I had in mind,
and 
they'd been stored under cover (and by that I'm talking about nothing more

elaborate than how your local tyre retailer stores his stock in his 
warehouse).

I have a pair of unused 15 inch Yokohama 352's that have got to be ten
years 
old if they're a day sitting in the parts storage area of one of my
garages 
and they're a fantastic tyre. I won't think twice about fitting them to my

current project vehicle when it's completed and I don't expect them to 
perform the slightest bit differently to any that were made last week (if
I 
could still get them).

--
Regards,
Noddy.