Deformed Vintage Tyres

[Hibernaculum]

G'day,

You know when a car has been sitting in one spot on your shelf for a while, and the tyres become a bit flattened on one side?

Does anyone know of a way to restore their shape?

This is a problem that I'm sure tons of people have had in the past. The best way to avoid it is simply to prop the car up so it's weight isn't resting on the tyres all the time.

Sadly, many of those old high-walled, retro tyres were prone to this problem. The very same tyres that are extremely hard to find today.

(I'm not referring to any specific tyre or brand here - this problem applies to all of the vintage buggy marques.)

Any ideas?

cheers,

H.

[monster_beetle]

My monster beetle had it. And have dformed it back a little with my hands. And then putted it on a high stand, now it's all right again

[Singapore_959]

My monster beetle had it. And have dformed it back a little with my hands. And then putted it on a high stand, now it's all right again

I would imagine some kind of softening silicone or something moisture penetrating would supple it up, and then - - some actual driving or spinning while held up in the air for a significant period several times over a week would have the centrifugal force making them round and into shape again.

So, supple em up and drive the wheels more!

So endeth the Singapore_959 fantasy theoretical lesson of this Sunday

[007al]

Ive put them in hot water before,then put foam inserts in for a while or left them in...remember,most tyres expand when running anyway,so if theyre soft,sometimes it doesnt matter

[terry.sc]

To get them back to shape soak them in hot water, they will return to their original shape.

I would imagine some kind of softening silicone or something moisture penetrating would supple it up,

...

So endeth the Singapore_959 fantasy theoretical lesson of this Sunday

The one thing to avoid on r/c car tyres is WD40, silicone sprays and full size tyre treatements. The chemicals in them actually dry the rubber out.

You need to use pure silicone oil or glycerine.

See here for more information, including why to avoid Armour All.

http://www.tamiyaclub.com/forum/index.php?showtopic=5914

http://www.tamiyaclub.com/forum/index.php?showtopic=11922

http://www.tamiyaclub.com/forum/index.php?showtopic=27045

[homerboi]

I placed mine in scalding hot water for about 5 minutes, and then took them out. Placed them back onto the wheel with oversized foam inserts to "re-inflate" the flat spots to the original and then used my handy dandy heatgun to the areas around the flat spot and carefully massaged them back into the original shape. Once this was complete, I applied 100% aerosol silicon to the tire surface. Did the same with the inside of the tire the next day.

[Singapore_959]

To get them back to shape soak them in hot water, they will return to their original shape.

The one thing to avoid on r/c car tyres is WD40, silicone sprays and full size tyre treatements. The chemicals in them actually dry the rubber out.

You need to use pure silicone oil or glycerine.

Absolutely! Silicone oil is what I was thinking of. There is no WD40 at my place.

I am surprised that the hot water works well. Good to know!

[Bluefoot]

I boiled up some Ford Ranger tyres (before the re-re Brat came out) for about 10 minutes. That got them pretty much back in shape. I don't know what the long-term prognosis is though - I didn't apply any sprays or oils to them. I understand that glycerine is the best stuff to use for making them soft and supple.

Best to do this while the missus is out

[akemag]

What i noticed with a pair of quite flat MB tyres, was that running off-road i couldnt tell they had a flat (it just bounced anyway). But when going on tarmac, i could see and hear that the tyres were flat. I have all my cars on stands just to be sure. Perhaps running them every now and then helps as they say here, as my MB tyres is much better nowadays.

[Hibernaculum]

Thanks for your time guys

I'll give the hot water a go.

I actually tried putting my tyres in hot tap water last night for about 2 hours, but the effect was minimal.

How safe is it to use boiling or near-boiling water on rubber tyres?

cheers,

H.