i bought a hayrake in 1973 with two old bias goodyears on it. they are still on it and i still use it . off season it sits out in the field. certainly not used at highway speeds ;but sure do hit a lot of groundhog holes. From: C Bilter <cbilter@xxxxxxxxx> To: 'Ryan Hill' <ryan_hillc300@xxxxxxxxxxx> Cc: chrysler300@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx Sent: Friday, September 2, 2011 3:18 PM Subject: RE: [Chrysler300] Bias Tires and Longevity Hi Ryan- Not sure how many have responded to you off-server, but no one responded on-server yet. In my opinion, unless your bias ply tires have been "hermetically sealed in the executive washroom at Funk & Wagnalls" they are not safe, at least on the highway. Rubber breaks down from exposure to the air, and deterioration is accelerated by sun (UV rays) and temperature. They can and will deteriorate from the inside when mounted as well. When sitting for long periods, bias ply tires will "flat spot" and the rubber gets hard as a rock. Radials have the added problem of steel belts corroding, and if they blow the steel belts can also inflict further damage to an already potential catastrophic outcome. Some folks say tires used to be better made in the 60s/70s/80s. That is anecdotal. From a technological perspective, modern radial tires are far better engineered and safer especially at higher speeds. Just get a high quality, name brand tire. Better safe than sorry. 300ly, Carl Bilter _____ From: Chrysler300@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx [mailto:Chrysler300@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx] On Behalf Of Ryan Hill Sent: Thursday, September 01, 2011 5:35 PM To: Ryan Hill Subject: [Chrysler300] Bias Tires and Longevity There has been a lot of talk, on and off this listserve, about radial tires and expiration dates, safety, and performance in the past couple of years. Out of curiosity, does anyone know if bias ply tires are any more durable in terms of age than a radial? I ask because I have a beautiful looking set of Uniroyal H78-14 on my 1965 300 that I bought for my first 300 back in 1987 or so. They have low milage but have been mounted on my cars while in storage since about 1990. I had not planned to drive very far on them, given they're 24 years old, but wonder if they deteriorate in the same manner radials do? How unsafe are they? My father pulled a classic boat around on some bias ply truck tires from the early 60's for the better part of 30 years without failure. Ryan Hill [Non-text portions of this message have been removed] [Non-text portions of this message have been removed] [Non-text portions of this message have been removed] ------------------------------------ To send a message to this group, send an email to: Chrysler300@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx To unsubscribe from this group, send an email to bob@xxxxxxxxxxxxx or go to http://autos.groups.yahoo.com/group/Chrysler300/join and select the "Leave Group" button For list server instructions, go to http://www.chrysler300club.com/yahoolist/inst.htm For archives go to http://www.forwardlook.net/300-archive/search.htm#querylangYahoo! Groups Links <*> To visit your group on the web, go to: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/Chrysler300/ <*> Your email settings: Individual Email | Traditional <*> To change settings online go to: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/Chrysler300/join (Yahoo! ID required) <*> To change settings via email: Chrysler300-digest@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx Chrysler300-fullfeatured@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx <*> To unsubscribe from this group, send an email to: Chrysler300-unsubscribe@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx <*> Your use of Yahoo! Groups is subject to: http://docs.yahoo.com/info/terms/