Want opinions on new 30 X 3 1/2 tires

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Scott Kramer
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Want opinions on new 30 X 3 1/2 tires

Post by Scott Kramer » Fri May 29, 2020 9:15 pm

I would like some opinions on what make of 30 X 3 1/2 black wall tires to buy for my 1921 T coupe. I will probably need 1 or 2 tires to replace the ones that have cracks in the side walls. Thanks Scott


Allan
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Re: Want opinions on new 30 X 3 1/2 tires

Post by Allan » Fri May 29, 2020 9:23 pm

They are all much the same rubbish, no matter what brand, except for a new player. Check out Blockley tyres website. They have tyres and tubes available, and they are made to their specifications, Blockley produce many tyres sizes and types for vintage cars and racers, and have a good reputation for quality products. The company is run by a vintage motoring enthusiast.

My next pair of new tyres will certainly be Blockleys. They are now available in Australia, and are not a whole heap dearer than the currently available rubbish.

Allan from down under.

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Steve Jelf
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Re: Want opinions on new 30 X 3 1/2 tires

Post by Steve Jelf » Sat May 30, 2020 12:49 am

As Allan says, all brands of clincher except Blockley are from the same Vietnamese source. The higher prices on some of them are for the name, not the quality.
The inevitable often happens.
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TWrenn
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Re: Want opinions on new 30 X 3 1/2 tires

Post by TWrenn » Sat May 30, 2020 10:23 am

Okay, it's great they have the 30x3.5", at $165 US, not a bad price, but of course it'll probably be $65 per tire to ship.
Then, they don't show a 30 x 3 tire....so what're ya gonna do? The fronts of the '12 need 30 x 3.... Just saying.

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Steve Jelf
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Re: Want opinions on new 30 X 3 1/2 tires

Post by Steve Jelf » Sat May 30, 2020 10:41 am

...they don't show a 30 x 3 tire...

"Note that for later model T's Blockley manufacture a newly made unbelievable quality 440/450x21, while for the earlier T's the size 30x3 is also well advanced.
Please note that Blockley has also found it has needed to manufacture its own inner tubes, made as they should be and in a different league to anything Model T owners have been trained to think of as acceptable in the past few decades !"


I don't know if "well advanced" means it's good, or they're working on it and don't have it yet.

https://www.blockleytyre.com/product/30x3-5
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RajoRacer
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Re: Want opinions on new 30 X 3 1/2 tires

Post by RajoRacer » Sat May 30, 2020 11:01 am

I thought I read in a previous thread here regarding Blockley tires were that they were also made in Vietnam BUT to specific standards exclusive to Blockley ? True or false ?

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TWrenn
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Re: Want opinions on new 30 X 3 1/2 tires

Post by TWrenn » Sat May 30, 2020 11:05 am

Steve...I read that same paragraph from Blockley.
I looked far and wide for 30x3, did not see it listed. Maybe they're still in development or just haven't upgraded their website. Still have to wonder about shipping cost though.


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Re: Want opinions on new 30 X 3 1/2 tires

Post by Allan » Sat May 30, 2020 9:45 pm

When considering any purchase, price should not be the deciding factor. Whatever is purchased should be capable of giving good service and doing so over a reasonable length of time.
The rubbish tyres offered today are cheap, but they wear very quickly in use, or crack up without use. If a quality alternative is both dearer and costs more to ship so that it may even double the outlay compared to the present offering, they only have to last twice as long to be a better value alternative. That should not be hard to achieve given the poor record of the present offerings.
A set of Blockleys was purchased by a previous poster to this forum. Perhaps we will hear of his experiences and the costs of the exercise if he reads this post.
Allan from down under.


OilyBill
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Re: Want opinions on new 30 X 3 1/2 tires

Post by OilyBill » Sat May 30, 2020 10:15 pm

I am in a machinist club in Tucson, and in the early 2000's we had a Chinese member who dropped in occasionally to see what was going on. This woman was a grinding expert. When I say expert, I mean WORLD CLASS. Companies in the U.S. hired her to set up and proof out grinding facilities for American factories. She straightened out a lot of both grinding AND machining problems for our local members. You could present her with a problem and your sample work, and in 30 seconds she would tell you how to get it right.
Over time, she got an EARFUL of complaints about Chinese machine tools. She had a very blunt response:
"Why are you so stupid that you buy such poor tools!?!. There are MANY grades of Chinese tools, and what they sell here in the U.S. is the LOWEST grade. You should check up on the reputation of the tools before you buy them, and insist on better quality! Then you will get better tools!"
This has gradually happened, as a matter of fact. If you hadn't noticed, a lot of the early products at Harbor Freight appeared to be made on an anvil, probably because they were. But if you compare Harbor Freight today, even the lowest quality tools are now pretty good. The use of laxer cutting and CNC operations is VERY clear on most of the equipment. China moved from a 1940's type industrial situation, to a 21st century industrial capability, in the space of about 20 years. I visited machine shops in China when I was over there in 2000. I saw the shop when our bus pulled up for some tourist attraction of other. I don't even remember. But when I saw the shop, I walked over there and introduced myself, and they gave me a tour of their shop, which was mostly making contract parts for motorcycles. It looked about like a 1950's machine shop in the U.S. The workers were friendly and cheerful and were very nice to talk to, even though my Chinese was non-existent, and their English was a little fractured. They took pride in the stuff they showed me, and I was surprised at the quality of the work they were turning out. The parts fit really well
(If you have ever seen those enormous enameled globes, with gold lining outlining the different countries, well, I can tell you that those were made in a coal-fired furnace, if you can believe that. I was stunned at that)
Vietnamese industry is well below the standards of China, but a LOT of that is cheapness on the part of people who manufacture tires or parts there. You can find someone to make your product. It's YOUR decision about how good it is. And what we get reflects the decisions made on our behalf by our suppliers.
It appears that Blockley has decided to produce a quality tire. That will put the pressure on U.S. suppliers such as Coker and Universal to raise their standards, as well. Either that, or drop their prices to what their tires are actually worth, which in general, is not very much.
Just my opinions. Other may vary.

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Dan B
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Re: Want opinions on new 30 X 3 1/2 tires

Post by Dan B » Sat May 30, 2020 10:55 pm

I never understood all the complaints about the current tires. 1000s of miles put on them per year by people who tour. Wonder how many of the problems are from sitting?
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Allan
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Re: Want opinions on new 30 X 3 1/2 tires

Post by Allan » Sun May 31, 2020 3:11 am

William, I am in total agreement with you. The tyres we have are those made to the specifications of the dealer/supplier. With competition from another supplier prepared to have tyres made to higher specifications, we might finally get something of merchantable quality. I just hope that those presently marketing our clincher tyres take some notice. There is no way that such lamentable quality tyres would ever be accepted on every day modern cars, so why should we accept same.

Allan from down under.

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