The Stovebolt Site Forums The Shop Area General Truck Talk Square Wheels

I had my truck out on the road for the first time in about ten years. Felt like I was driving on square wheels. Some people said that the tires get flat spots when sitting for long periods. Does anyone know the facts on this? The tires were brand new Goodyear Workhorse tires. I put them on new over ten years ago and the truck has not really been on the road it's just been sitting in its garage with a gravel floor.

That's actually common on the old style bias plys. Once you drive it for a while, they should come out of it and roll true.

My dad bought a van years ago that had been sitting for several years. The funny thing is it rode fine when he test drove it. Later that evening he took us for a ride and it felt like "square tires." I think he ended up replacing those tires.

That was a common problem, we would over inflate about 10# and drive them on a real hot road. They would true up and work fun. Remember to reset the tire presure. Long time storage should be on blocks to keep tires off ground.

Even though the tires may look brand new, the safer choice is to replace them with new. Age has a funny effect on rubber.

Way back in the dark ages, we called it "Nylon Thump". Even after only sitting for a week or so, nylon-ply tires would rattle teeth for the fitst couple of miles. Some of the other ply material such as rayon, polyester, or Aramid didn't have as much of a problem, but tires that sit for months or years at a time might end up with permanent distortion to the plies. At highway speed, old tires can have catastrophic ply failures with virtually no warning, so if you're planning to do more than just tool around the neighborhood at low speed, better replace them.
Jerry

Doubt they are really square....

Ever heard of jack stands??

Grigg, only you would be able to find something like that.

Thanks everyone for all the advice. I doubt that I will ever drive it more than a few miles at a time , but who knows. Taking it out on a real hot day doesn't happen much in Northern Minnesota. I have heard of jackstands, but they are in use under another project and I thought this one would have been on the road years ago. I guess I will just deal with the bumpity bump and hope it goes away.

http://www.wisebread.com/are-your-new-tires-really-6-year-old-ticking-time-bombs

Here's an article about tires and age (tire age that is)........

I was thinking of this one.

We seem to have gotten off topic here.

The topic is "square wheels".

Square wheels are a good thing- - - - -they keep the truck from rolling away if you forget to set the parking brake! Not so great for ride comfort, however!
Jerry

The topic was flat spots on bias ply tires. The topic now is closed.