New Tires - Manufactured Date - What is Fair and Reasonable

[Ulvetanna_imp]

In support of Guth's post, but put in a slightly different way, if you're worried about the quality of your tyres (or some other bit of gear on your bike) it will make your riding tentative as you try to compensate for the worry. It's not worth it. Get tyres you're comfortable with.

Agreed, Marc did what was right for him under the circumstances.

But the original question, and the one that still remains, is whether a tire is completely serviceable with the specified time period; that's been answered several times on several posts. It's a small matter, but if one always goes with what makes him or her feel good instead of viewing the whole picture with some kind of objectivity, eventually feelings aren't going to be a good basis for choices.

Why am I harping? Because the tire manufacturers could not sustain a series of returns of tires just because someone has the mistaken notion that a tire is not serviceable, when it truly is. They base pricing and availability on a five-year shelf life. If very many riders start thinking tires are not good after a couple of years, the older stock becomes somewhat harder to sell, not to mention additional shipping costs for returning "old" tires which are in reality perfectly serviceable.

I related my experience with a pair of Z8's which were between 36-48 months old. I have Z8's on four motorcycles and am very familiar with the tire. These tires gripped and performed perfectly, and not to put too fine a point on it, but I was not riding like a grandma.

If we expect a manufacturer to supply a product to us that is of high-quality, at a reasonable price, and readily available, some examples are going to be "older" than others. This is the same as helmets. I have heard some people say helmets should be replaced after two years. Two years? No, all helmet manufacturers state FIVE YEARS before replacement should be considered. After that time, they cannot guarantee performance.

That means the helmet has been out of the box and in the elements for five years. The countdown starts from the date of the helmet's first sale. The date of manufacture is stamped either on the strap or somewhere in the helmet. I've picked up some excellent bargains (RF-1100, for example) where I got helmets for half-price because they were discontinued or superseded. But they're still going to be serviceable for the five year period. If the helmet is stored in the box, on a shelf, out of sunlight and away from harsh chemicals, it's going to be serviceable for the entire five-year period. And so it is with tires.

I've seen many a rider who has certain habits about riding which have become feelings. They don't feel comfortable braking into turn, for example, or downshifting a certain way. So they don't try it. It doesn't feel good. They continue to ride like that, with bad habits developed over a period of time, without correction. That can lead to trouble later. Science, not feelings, needs to be considered once in a while. (If anyone is getting annoyed about these comments simply refer to Mr. Keith Code's "[url=https://www.amazon.com/Twist-Wrist-Motorcycle-Roadracers-Handbook/dp/0965045013]Twist of the Wrist" series where this exact philosophy is discussed. One of the volumes is called "[url=https://www.amazon.com/Soft-Science-Roadracing-Motorcycles-Procedures/dp/096504503X/ref=pd_sbs_14_8?_encoding=UTF8&pd_rd_i=096504503X&pd_rd_r=4KZ3JDV1QNCJWSSBE7G1&pd_rd_w=7rPlX&pd_rd_wg=hvKvR&psc=1&refRID=4KZ3JDV1QNCJWSSBE7G1]The Soft Science of Motorcycle Road Racing.")

It can do no harm, of course, to swap an older tire for a new one for individual riders, but if most or all riders begin to believe this (don't use the front brake, you'll go over the bars!) it's going to affect the market. Bear in mind also that tires are hazardous waste. To dispose of unsold tires which were rejected because of an incomplete understanding of tire service life is going to be expensive as well.

I am an aggressive rider; not unsafe, but I use plenty of lean angle and like to brake and accelerate hard. I will use any tire on a street bike within the five year specification, without concern.