Old Rubber?

[alphaBETAdog]

All this talk about old dry tires in the thread with the video of the scooter crash has got me worried about a few cracks I see on my front tire. I bought my '03 Scarabeo 150 last summer which had only 1253 miles, and what I assume are the original tires (Maxxis) which have plenty of tread and seem to be in good shape... Except for some shallow cracks along the bead, as shown in the photo.

Do you think its risky to continue riding on these tires? The rubber does not seem hard and otherwise in bad shape, However I do run this scoot hard and up to 75 mph sometimes.

[JerseyBiker]

8 year old tires are too old to trust your life on.

Most opinion is tires should be no older than 5 years.

Do you really want to have the road rash from an unnecessary fall?

Oh, BTW, something I thought of doing next time I change tires. I'm going to try out some tire plugging kits and see how hard/easy it is to do. That way I can get some experience before I need to do it on the road. If you do decide to get new tires, you might want to do this too.

Ride safe

[alphaBETAdog]

Originally Posted by JerseyBiker

8 year old tires are too old to trust your life on.

Most opinion is tires should be no older than 5 years.

Do you really want to have the road rash from an unnecessary fall?

Oh, BTW, something I thought of doing next time I change tires. I'm going to try out some tire plugging kits and see how hard/easy it is to do. That way I can get some experience before I need to do it on the road. If you do decide to get new tires, you might want to do this too.

Ride safe

Jerseybiker, you got a good point about avoiding an unessessary fall. I'm currently recovering from 2 broken wrists from a crash on my dirt bike. Tires AREN't nearly as expensive as medical bills.

I have plugged tubless MC tires with the kits on my Moto Guzzi G5 and it worked great and held up fine for nail/screw punctures. I've heard you really should replace or patch from the inside, but it is a very decent roadside repair.
s

[techguy]

I bought my Shinko tires for a total of about $90 USD and they are about the same size as the 'beo tires.

I have had zero issues with them and the grip has been great.

[JerseyBiker]

Originally Posted by alphaBETAdog

I have plugged tubless MC tires with the kits on my Moto Guzzi G5 and it worked great and held up fine for nail/screw punctures. I've heard you really should replace or patch from the inside, but it is a very decent roadside repair.
s

Yup, I hear the plugs work great but (luckily) haven't done one myself (except years ago when I plugged auto tires). That's why I want to "play" a bit.

Yeah, spend the bucks for new tires so you can ride safely.

[fullmetalscooter]

3 years is the max that tire makers say is safe for tires . Google how to read tires age which is on the side of tires. .

[techguy]

Originally Posted by fullmetalscooter

3 years is the max that tire makers say is safe for tires . Google how to read tires age which is on the side of tires. .

IMHO... no need to determine the age...those ones are cracked and ready to be replaced. if it were a car, you still have three others if it fails. On a scooter or m/c... you really need both tires to be trustworthy.

It's cheap insurance to avoid a flat at best and the inconvenience of pushing your bike down the road... or worse; having someone push YOU into the back of an ambulance.

[alphaBETAdog]

Thanks for all the imput. I thought I would better be safe than sorry an replace the tires. I like to ride this baby fast, and I'm almost recovered from two broken wrists from a dirt bike riding accident, so I don't need to have another wreck if I can all help it!

Put on a pair of Pirelli Diablo Scooter tires and looking forward to trying them out tomorrow maybe. I've been impressed with the handling of this scooter with the stock 8 year old Maxxis tires, so I expect to be even more impressed with a new pair of paws.

[techguy]

Nice!

[tbirdsp]

I'm new to scoots. Did my first real ride a couple of weeks ago. '00 Yamaha Riva 125 - with what I think are the original tires I took off to meet my friend for the ride. The roads were very wet from heavy fog earlier in the morning due to snow melt. I was coming up on a busy intersection and the light changed to yellow. I think I was distracted by something so it kinda surprised me. I hit the brakes pretty hard. Wet road + 11 yo tires + 10" wheels + drum brakes + noob scoot rider = The front wheel locked, I released and got it turning again but now was running the red light, into the middle of the intersection. Applied both brakes again - front locked a second time, this time she started to go down and I saved it with my foot. At that point I saw that all of the cross traffic had a view of the idiot on the scooter (pure luck no one was trying to beat the light) and they were waiting for me so I got off the brakes and continued through. Stopped at the McDonalds where I was to meet my friend and cleaned out my shorts

Anyway - what's a decent 3.50X10 tire?

[Warney]

The Continental Zippy 1 is an excellent tire in 3.50 x 10 and want to try a set on my Stella next time. I would sure take a look at Pirelli SL26 as well, had a wider set on my Elite 250 and they had some grip. Would look at what Schwalbe sells as well. If you bring in the rim and tire, Pauls over in CB used to mount and balance Scooter tires for $10. Probably $20 now.

[tbirdsp]

Originally Posted by Warney

The Continental Zippy 1 is an excellent tire in 3.50 x 10 and want to try a set on my Stella next time. I would sure take a look at Pirelli SL26 as well, had a wider set on my Elite 250 and they had some grip. Would look at what Schwalbe sells as well. If you bring in the rim and tire, Pauls over in CB used to mount and balance Scooter tires for $10. Probably $20 now.

Thanks Warney I was heading north through 84th and F in the above incident. I have done my own motorcycle tires before, but if I can't do the scoot I have a friend with a tire machine which should work.

[btcn]

Originally Posted by tbirdsp

Thanks Warney I was heading north through 84th and F in the above incident. I have done my own motorcycle tires before, but if I can't do the scoot I have a friend with a tire machine which should work.

Its really not that hard for scoots. Just use rim protectors and a good tire spoon.

But I hope you've been lifting, because when you've got one side down and your poping the other side off, your gonna need some strength! Same with the installation.

Then use a good air compressor to pop the beads and your good to go.

[fullmetalscooter]

http://www.harborfreight.com/automot...ger-34552.html harbor freight sell this tire changer for 20 to 50 bucks depending on the deals offered by thing.