Tires Treating Tires For Weathering

[Keuka]

I bought my kubota used and the tires had been foam filled. The rear tires look fine but the front sidewalls are just begining to show small weather cracks. Is there anything that can be sprayed or brushed on the rubber to stop or slow down the weather cracking?

I have another question regarding the foamed tires. I assume foamed tires will last regardless of weather cracks or untill the rubber falls off the rims. Is this the case or will the foam break down with the rubber.

If foam filled tires do wear out, can the rims be reused? Can the tire be cut off the wheels and the foam cut off?

 

[SPYDERLK]

Im not sure anything is effective. Black tire paint maybe. The foam is protected by the tire. Once the tread and other rubber falls off the carcass and the carcass then starts to lose integrity the foam will fail. That will be well past the point where the tire is doing a really good job for getting power to the ground. You can surely reuse the rims.
larry

 

[woodchuckie]

The sun does the damage to the tires. All I have is a heavy cover but it blocks the sun from the tires.

 

[Big Wave D]

I was helping a fellow a couple weeks ago. He had a Bobcat 883 with foamed tires.

It costs a lot to have that done so he'd only had the back two redone so far. Well, as for the front two, I think the foam was the only thing holding the one front tire together.

It had lost a considerable chunk out of the outer carcass. You could see the inner ply and cords, but no foam.

That didn't slow his work down or affect the performance of his Bobcat in any way.

I asked him about the process. He said that they cut the old tire off, remove old foam, and then reuse the rims.

Hope this answers part of your question

 

[Keuka]

Thanks for the information. Sounds like I'm good to go for some time.

 

[rd_macgregor]

The front tires on my brand new Kioti DK45SC started showing cracks between the treads the first winter I owned it. The dealer said it was superficial rubber shrinkage...yeah, right.
BOB

 

[pat32rf]

I replaced a 25 yr old set of Goodyears on a trailer with a new set of rubber. Three years later the new tires looked worse for cracks than the old Goodyears...

 

[rswyan]

The best thing you can do to prevent tires from cracking is ..... have them be turning:

Rubber Cracking

 

[ToadHill]

My brother is a tire design engineer. He said the cracking is caused by builders no longer using a chemical that used to be common that slowed down the cracking. Just one more way to save a few cents on each tire.

 

[Big Wave D]

ToadHill,

By chance, has he said or maybe you could ask him if any tire manufacturer(s) still do ADD said compound.

I'd spend a few more dollars per tire.

Maybe some smaller regional makers still do. The kind one would classify as a Mom and Pop sized company.

They don't make equipment tires but something like Hoosier tire, just as an example.

Thanks for the heads up, something that is good to know.

 

[RalphVa]

ArmorAll will keep rubber/plastic from weathering. I even brought some door weatherstripping back to life by starting to use it. However, doubt it will remove the weathering cracks. Just might help to keep them from getting worse.

Ralph

 

[Danno1]

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303 is supposed to be better than Armor All.


.

 

[TGF]

The front tires on my brand new Kioti DK45SC started showing cracks between the treads the first winter I owned it. The dealer said it was superficial rubber shrinkage...yeah, right.
BOB

Those tires are probably fine, do you park it outside? I park mine in a sealed outbuilding. Aside from dirt and a bit of rust on the cutting edge of the FEL, its in like new contition.

 

[RobertN]

Keep it in a shed when not in use. Sun is terrible on tires..., rubber boots ect...

 

[DiezNutz]

The "cheap" protectants like ArmorAll, Son of a Gun, and dozens of "quickie tire shine" products typically do more harm than good. The low-grade silicone alcohols in them actually strip out the waxes/protectants that are manufactured into the tires to help prevent UV/ozone damage in the first place.

They work to some extent, but they start a vicious cycle where once you start applying them, you have to keep them applied, or you end up worse than where you started. If you stop, the rubber dries out and cracks. I've had this happen to me personally.

The better products (e.g., 3M, Lexol, etc.) you'll find plenty of information on car detailing sites, etc, way beyond what I could go into here.

However one of the biggest problems with any of these products, is they're a magnet for dirt/dust/pollen/grass. I especially wouldn't use them on a tractor, unless the tractor was exclusively a showpiece, or you want your tires to look like rolling Zagnut bars.

As others have said, limiting UV exposure is the only practical thing that works.

 

[rd_macgregor]

Those tires are probably fine, do you park it outside? I park mine in a sealed outbuilding. Aside from dirt and a bit of rust on the cutting edge of the FEL, its in like new contition.

Got it in one! I have hopes of getting a shop/storage building up in the next year or two, but for now the tractor and all the implements are out in the weather.

BOB

 

[ronjhall]

.


303 is supposed to be better than Armor All.


.

303 Protectant is highly recommended on the RV forums that I belong to. Works great on tires, decals, and fiberglass.

 

[ultrarunner]

I bought my kubota used and the tires had been foam filled. The rear tires look fine but the front sidewalls are just begining to show small weather cracks. Is there anything that can be sprayed or brushed on the rubber to stop or slow down the weather cracking?

I have another question regarding the foamed tires. I assume foamed tires will last regardless of weather cracks or untill the rubber falls off the rims. Is this the case or will the foam break down with the rubber.

If foam filled tires do wear out, can the rims be reused? Can the tire be cut off the wheels and the foam cut off?

The shop where I had my Kubota tires foamed filled also recaps ag tires for 50% the cost of a new tire... it can be quite a savings because the tires are already foam filled.

 

[allenr]

The best thing you can do to prevent tires from cracking is ..... have them be turning:

Rubber Cracking

That website has a wealth of good information on all topics tyre related - thanks.