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4 year old front tire with cracks?

mfcummings

Member
Hello fellow RV'rs,

Please take a look at the attached two photos of my RV10 front tire. Last week I took the front wheel faring off to grease the caster wheel gear and noticed the cracks in the tire that is indicated in the attached photos (located in both of the tire grooves).

To me this doesn't look good but perhaps this is common and normal.
I'm looking for others input as to if this is normal and still airworthy?

Thanks in advance for your help.

Mike

4 yr old front tire I.jpg
4 yr old front tire II.jpg
 
I agree, I plan to get another one on order soon.

4 years old seems to be a bit pre-mature for a front tire but guess it is what it is.

Thanks
 
Hello fellow RV'rs,

Please take a look at the attached two photos of my RV10 front tire. Last week I took the front wheel faring off to grease the caster wheel gear and noticed the cracks in the tire that is indicated in the attached photos (located in both of the tire grooves).

To me this doesn't look good but perhaps this is common and normal.
I'm looking for others input as to if this is normal and still airworthy?

Thanks in advance for your help.

Mike

4 years old since you put it on or 4 years since you bought it? Tires sitting around can dry out even if not in use. Goodyear says auto tires can crack from dry rot in 5-6 years greatly depends on environmental conditions.
If you bought it and put it on right away I may contact the place you bought it from just to let them know your issue. You will probably never get any kind of refund but good to let them know they may have had a batch of bad tires. If you bought and it sat awhile during build, I would write it off as storing it in a place allowing it to dry out with exposure to sun or with large temperature changes.
I would Replace with a new tire.
 
I am curious as to what brand that tire is. All of them can deteriorate over time, but the better ones will likely last longer. I would get rid of that one no matter who made it.

I put Goodyear Flight CustomIII tires on my RV10. The mains lasted for 250 landings and I put on another set of the same. I also got the first set recapped by Desser. They are still on the shelf so I don't know how well they will perform.
 
There is usually some sort of date code on the tire which will tell you exactly how old it is. Cracks like this call for replacement.
 
tire cracks

My theory is either trash a cracked tire or trash your plane on a landing. Your choice.
Ya I'd replace it
Kinda funny. I had a Cessna 206 that I removed the checked/cracked looking mains from. Seems my hay Tedder (rake) needed the same size.
Been on there for about 20-25 years and still work fine.
Art
 
Goodyear has a tire manual that is free and available online. It has pictures of common damage and the causes. The damage in your picture is typically caused by under inflation or overload. The Goodyear manual says to replace the tire if the fabric is visible for more than a quarter of an inch.

Best regards,

Bill Wuorinen
Osprey 2 amphibian N137W
RV-7A N237W
A&P/I.A
 
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