Regroovable tires

[Tom]

Maybe not very technical, but something I don't understand....

Every time I kneel down to take the air pressure in the coach tires I see the word Regroovable on the side wall of each tire. Does this really mean that the tread can be re-cut after some degree of wear?

Everyone I've talked to says that we'll replace the coach tires before the tread wears. So what's the meaning of regroovable? Is it conceivable that I'd need to re-cut the tread at some point in time?

 

[Ned]

A quick search on Google on "regroovable tire" turned up http://www.nebraskatire.com/tires_101/regroovable.htm, a good description of the term.  You'll never wear your tires down to the point that they would need regrooving.

 

[Ron]

I guess if you and Chris start putting 100K miles on each year then you might just get to the point where you might consider regrooving.  However it is more likely your tires will die of age before regrooving would even be an option.

 

[Tom]

Thanks Ned & Ron. Doesn't sound like we'll need to think of regrooving. Reading that article, I'm reminded of an acquaintance who owns a trucking business; His drivers put 1.25 - 1.5M miles on a truck, so I assume he might regroove tires  ;D

 

[Karl]

Ned,

Interesting article, but seeing as they are retreaders, it may be a little slanted. After seeing all the truck tire treads strewn along our highways, it would be interesting to know the main cause of the failures: Overloading, incorrect pressure, bad retreading job? And how many of those weren't retreads at all? When you consider all the millions of miles trucks travel, I'm actually surprised we don't see more.

 

[Tom]

After seeing all the truck tire treads strewn along our highways....

Aren't those re-capped tires that shed their caps?

 

[Karl]

My understanding is that retread and recap are the same nowdays. Different from re-grooved. Someone correct me if I'm wrong, please.

Now us old guys - we're definitely retreads ;D

Added: I looked up the terms in the glossary for that website, and they say recaps and retreads are the same; old carcass with new rubber tread.

 

[Tom]

My understanding is that retread and recap are the same nowdays. Different from re-grooved.

That's my understanding too Karl. I misread your prior message and attempted to clarify something that didn't need clarifying  :-[  Maybe I should have gone fishing before getting online this morning  ;D

 

[Karl]

Tom,

I went fishing last night - pulled four beautiful Tilapia out of the freezer ;D

 

[Tom]

Karl,

I sometimes feel like getting in the freezer and closing the door (aka crawling back under my rock).

 

[Just Lou]

Guys,

My trucker buddies tell me that the tire treads you see along the road are almost always from a recently recapped/retreaded tire.  It seems that if one is going to fail from the retread process it will happen within the first few hundred miles.  May be a flaw in the process or material.

 

[John From Detroit]

Re: Retred. Recap and Regrove.

Yes, Regrove means to cut the grooves deeper

Retred means to replace the tread, or, in other words, recap the worn out tire.  And that is what you do indeed see along the road

Or slapped up under your rig wrapped around a drive shaft causing thousands of dollars in damages

I also heard a rumon, and I stress I have not researched this, but I have heard that Recaps/Retreads are a no-no.  Regrooves however are a-ok

 

[blueblood]

Re: Retred. Recap and Regrove.

Yes, Regrove means to cut the grooves deeper

Retred means to replace the tread, or, in other words, recap the worn out tire.? And that is what you do indeed see along the road

Or slapped up under your rig wrapped around a drive shaft causing thousands of dollars in damages

I also heard a rumon, and I stress I have not researched this, but I have heard that Recaps/Retreads are a no-no.? Regrooves however are a-ok

Recaps/reteads have been mandatory in US Government since 1998. Over half all tires purchased (36 million) by trucking firms every year are retreads (18,000,000+)

 

[Just Lou]

I didn't mean to imply that retreads were bad.  They save the trucking industry, and thus, save us, billions of dollars a year.  I simply meant that the process is so refined that the average retread tire DOES NOT FAIL,  BUT.... if it fails, it will be in the first hundred miles or so...  The process has come a long way from the old "cold cap" process of the '50's.  They originally tried to "glue" a ready made tread ring to a reconditioned tire casing.  It didn't work very well although my first set of recap's were Firestone 500's.  I got 23k miles out of the originals and 27k miles from the same set of casings recaped, on an old "53 Ford flathead V8.  That really brings back memories  I think the re-tread is now actually a liquid "rubber?" molded to the reconditioned casing.  I seem to recall the term, vulcanization?  Have no idea what that means....  that's my story and I'm sticking to it.... lou

 

[Tom]

Lou,

Here's one explanation of vulcanization.

I too recall the "cold cap" retreads at a time when those were the only kind of tires I could afford.

 

[John From Detroit]

Recaps/reteads have been mandatory in US Government since 1998. Over half all tires purchased (36 million) by trucking firms every year are retreads (18,000,000+)

Thansk BB.  As I said, I had not done the research,,, I very strongly suspected the information was faulty

 

[Just Lou]

Tom, I can't believe you referred me to a site with a formula as complex as the "vulcanization of  rubber" when you know full well I can't prove that 2 and 2 are 4.  LOL  see attached... 

 

[Tom]

LOL Lou. I never took a single chemistry class, so I thought you might be able to explain it to me  ???

 

[Karl]

Hey, way cool Lou!

As anyone can plainly see, it's the sulfur that makes it more elastic, harder, and more wear resitant.

Thanks!

 

[Alaskansnowbirds]

Re: Retred. Recap and Regrove.
I also heard a rumon, and I stress I have not researched this, but I have heard that Recaps/Retreads are a no-no.  Regrooves however are a-ok

What you may have heard is that it is illegal to run recaped tires on a steering axle. This is true on a commercial vehicle carrying passengers.