Reply To: Tire tubes problems

[Jim Chase]

Thanks to all.

I really appreciate that there are companies supplying the wide range of low production antique tire sizes, however it is a bit frustrating if they know the flaps and tubes they recommend have problems.

It was probably covered a few years ago, but the original tubes were much more robust. 25 years ago when I needed to get tires on my Pierce the installer pulled out the old tubes. He was a bit of a tire nerd and told me one of the tubes was probably original as the Goodyear symbol on the side was a style discontinued ca 1936. That inside diameter that rides on the inside of the wheel was semi-rigid,molded somewhat to the shape of the wheel and perhaps 4 times thicker than the outer part of the tube. It was also a safety tube with a tube within a tube to not run flat if the outer tube looses air. I don’t know if P-A supplied these as original equipment or perhaps it was a premium tube added after a flat ca 1936. Too bad we can’t get those!

Jim