As I understand it, there only two things that would require that you
run tubes on your wheels:
1) Your tires are ancient and were made back when tires required tubes.
It's probably a good idea to get your tires replaced, because they are
now obselete and probably dangerous.
2) You've got wire wheels. Wire wheels won't hold air because of the
way the spokes meet the rim.
Gene, in your case, since you are installing alloy wheels, you don't
need tubes (unless for some reason you are fitting ancient tires).
Now, if you have wire wheels, you need tubes. I was told by my
Goodyear dealer many years back that it is fine to run tubes with any
kind of radial tire, but perhaps this is incorrect. The Michelin site
seems to infer that you can't run tubes on radial tires, but then
again, this is a website for aviation tires, not auto. When I had wire
wheels, I used modern radial tires with tubes for several years and
never had a problem.
Tim Holbrook
1971 TR6
--- Gene Holtzclaw <motrv8d@hotmail.com> wrote:
> I hope an answer comes quick as I have just told my local tire shop
> to get
> tubes for a set of these that I am going to mount on my new minilite
> knockoffs.
>
> >From: "Paula J. Graffam" <pjgraffam@juno.com>
> >Reply-To: "Paula J. Graffam" <pjgraffam@juno.com>
> >To: 6pack@autox.team.net
> >Subject: Tube Type Radial Michelins
> >Date: Mon, 7 Apr 2003 14:17:33 -0400
> >
> >Listers,
> >
> >I just had my tube type radial Michelin X (185/15s) replaced with a
> set
> >of new Bridgestones (195/75/15s). The tire shop that did the
> mounting
> >and balancing told me that one should NEVER be riding on radials
> with
> >tubes in them because of the stress, hardness and heat generated
> when you
> >have two separate rubber surfaces rubbing against each other. He
> was
> >reasoning why I have been riding on tubes is because without the
> tubes
> >the P/O was probably leaking by the wheels . . . maybe!
> >
> >Then I directed his attention to the lettering on the side wall of
> my old
> >Michelins that states, Tube Type, written on it. He was at a loss
> to
> >explain it.
> >
> >Does anyone know of a reason why Michelin created tube type for this
> >particular tire? Could I have been riding WITHOUT tubes all this
> time
> >and had a smoother ride?
> >
> >No tire expert here,
> >
> >Al Graffam CT. 74
> >
> >________________________________________________________________
> an answer
>
> _________________________________________________________________
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