A tire question.

Speedy

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Speedy
How long do your tires last ? Im talking about an active bird not one getting a tan on the ramp. You we keep track of time, or landings or both.

Talked to an guy today that said "when you don't see those center groves, time to change".

:dunno:
 
They get replaced at the annual whenever the A&P decides they (whichever affected tire) needs replacement. Usually when the grooves are gone.

Mains normally have a shorter life than nose gear, due to the fact the brakes are on the mains plus that's where all the weight is.
 
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Stick to grass runways and they dry rot first :)


-VanDy
 
Desser's Monster Retreads have been good for well over 1000 landings on both planes I've installed them on.

My 172 was sold with good tread remaining after over 1000 landings.

The set on my 182 is still prox. 40%...approaching 1100.

For The last 5 years I've been based on grass though so probably 300 or so of the 182 landings have been on grass.

Desser Monster Retreads rock! :thumbsup:
 
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Desser's Monster Retreads have been good for well over 1000 landings on both planes I've installed them on.

My 172 was sold with good tread remaining after over 1000 landings.

The set on my 182 is still prox. 40%...approaching 1100.

For The last 5 years I've been based on grass though so probably 300 or so of those landings have been on grass.

This.

I'm also running Monster Retreads and getting 1000+ landings before I flip them around for another 400.
 
From one flight to six or seven months on our school planes.

May be the last year for the Michelin meats that came on my plane
 
Make good landings and they'll last longer than those "tire squealers."

I've often thought about inventing a way to get the tires to rotate before touching down. Especially commercial aircraft. The smoke coming off those tires is incredible, and they are NOT cheap. :no:
 
My Zenith 801 kit came with Condor 6.00X 8 tires.... I got 1150 landing out of them and probably could have stretched that to 1400 landing without pushing the safety envelope..:yes:
 
The Pawnee, 8.00 tires, about 1 yr. they get rotated about 7months into the year.
1 yr = ~ 150hrs = ~ 1100 landings. The grooves are about gone.
 
I've often thought about inventing a way to get the tires to rotate before touching down. Especially commercial aircraft. The smoke coming off those tires is incredible, and they are NOT cheap. :no:

Several methods of doing that were invented a long time ago, and it made little difference. An old jet jock told me that the biggest factor in tire wear was braking, not landing. Guys who look after big runways have reported lots of tire crumb in the rollout areas where the braking happens.

Dan
 
The strength comes from the cord, not the rubber. The grooves may be significant for avoiding hydro-planing but you aren't looking for cornering or propulsion traction like with car tires. If you can see cord pattern through the rubber though, it is definitely time. There should probably also be an age limit. A based Baron just experienced a blow out on a main on roll out well after touch down while away from home. Knowing the history of the Baron, it was probably due to age instead of wear.
 
I've often thought about inventing a way to get the tires to rotate before touching down. Especially commercial aircraft. The smoke coming off those tires is incredible, and they are NOT cheap. :no:

Design some wheel covers that will cause them to rotate in the wind.:D
 
Several methods of doing that were invented a long time ago, and it made little difference. An old jet jock told me that the biggest factor in tire wear was braking, not landing. Guys who look after big runways have reported lots of tire crumb in the rollout areas where the braking happens.

Dan

I'm pretty sure some business jets and RJ's have front wheel spin up systems for the purpose of reducing gravel throw that could end up in the engines.
 
From one flight to six or seven months on our school planes.

May be the last year for the Michelin meats that came on my plane

Well doing the annual today the Michelin mains on my plane showed they were mostly bald, legal to push them on but I'd like some tread. They were several years old when I bought the plane nearly 8 years ago so they lasted well.

However I have a pair of $59 monsters on the way:yes:
 
Gets flat between the grooves and or threads show there toast.

Depends on the x-winds, weight, surface etc

My personal plane has gone a few years, some work planes go 3 months.
 
Make good landings and they'll last longer than those "tire squealers."
The gentleman I bought the Baron from took me on a demo flight the first time I looked at it and when it came to landing he was doing 110 KIAS over the fence and not much less when the tires met the pavement. He was only flying 30-50 hours per year and the logs showed brake and tire replacement on the last five annuals. Depending on weight, I'm usually over the fence at 75-85 KIAS and on the ground at 65-70. I'm flying around 150 hrs/year and get 3-5 years from a set of tires and about the same for the brakes. It would appear that landing speed has a lot to do with tire life.
 
However I have a pair of $59 monsters on the way:yes:
Hmmm...I don't recall if the Dunc(m)an flies with his pants on or off but...if on...then you might want to consider a set of Leakguard tubes also.

I have them and check the air in my tires twice a year...at most.

RE: Monster Retreads...

They've been known to have an issue with out of round/out of balance. I've never had an issue but I know some that have. IF you have any issues they will cheerfully exchange your Monsters for another set of Monsters or for any other tire they carry.

Great people...great customer service.

BTW you can also spec what carcass you want when ordering Monsters. They're happy to oblige if they have them in stock. Last time I asked for, and received, Michelins.
 
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Hmmm...I don't recall if the Dunc(m)an flies with his pants on or off but...if on...then you might want to consider a set of Leakguard tubes also.

I have them and check the air in my tires twice a year...at most.

RE: Monster Retreads...

They've been known to have an issue with out of round/out of balance. I've never had an issue but I know some that have. IF you have any issues they will cheerfully exchange your Monsters for another set of Monsters or for any other tire they carry.

Great people...great customer service.

BTW you can also spec what carcass you want when ordering Monsters. Last time I asked for, and received, Michelins.

Another problem with the Desser Monster retreads is..... They only come in a few sizes...:(:(:(
 
Hmmm...I don't recall if the Dunc(m)an flies with his pants on or off but...if on...then you might want to consider a set of Leakguard tubes also.

I have them and check the air in my tires twice a year...at most.

RE: Monster Retreads...

They've been known to have an issue with out of round/out of balance. I've never had an issue but I know some that have. IF you have any issues they will cheerfully exchange your Monsters for another set of Monsters or for any other tire they carry.

Great people...great customer service.

BTW you can also spec what carcass you want when ordering Monsters. They're happy to oblige if they have them in stock. Last time I asked for, and received, Michelins.

On for the mains, and I have good tubes. Thanks!
 
RE: Monster Retreads...

They've been known to have an issue with out of round/out of balance. I've never had an issue but I know some that have. IF you have any issues they will cheerfully exchange your Monsters for another set of Monsters or for any other tire they carry.

Great people...great customer service.

BTW you can also spec what carcass you want when ordering Monsters. They're happy to oblige if they have them in stock. Last time I asked for, and received, Michelins.

I run them on my Rental fleet, but only on the mains...the balance issues can potentially cause shimmys if installed on a nose wheel....same as above though I can get a hell of a lot of use out of them...the airlines run retreads for a reason.
 
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