Supercab... Thanks for bringing this up.

The tire looks good, no dryrot or cracking... If it is the original spare, that would make it about 7 yrs old.

I have found an exact match for my spare. I am getting ready to go and pick up this other tire from the original owner who states it was also his original spare on his F350. He states he has kept it in his garage and it has never been on the pavement and still has the little hairs/nubs on it from production.

Any and all comments are welcome and needed.....

Thanks,
Andy

 

If you are having them put on by a tire shop I would have them inspect them see what their thoughts are. As long as you know the shop they should be up front with you.

 

I probably would not use a tire that old if I didn't have to. But if you do I would try it on the rear first, and keep the speed down. Maybe you could check with the manufacturer to see if they think it is safe.

 

Good idea trike. I will try and call Firestone on Friday.

 

I am going out to find me a decent used 285 to throw up in my truck as a spare.

 

Follow Bob's excellent advice and put those old suckers on the rear. If you just don't have the money for new tires I can understand, but if you are just trying to save money it could cost you more in the long run. JMHO

 

I wonder how much of this has to do with UV exposure? A spare that has been mounted for the life of the truck might not be as bad as a tire that has been sitting out in the sun that whole time. Just a thought.

 

There are no dryrot cracks... or anything... I inflated the tire up to 65psi and no issues.. tmrw I am going to test run it on the rear for about 20 miles and see how it looks when I get back....

 

Wasn't there a thread about how to read the date code on the tires? Some of the "new" tires on shelves ended up being a few years old.

 

My thoughts exactly.

 

if the tire has been on the truck for 7 years....its prolly around 10 years old.

look at the 4 digit numbers stamped on the tire, i believe its stamped after the size
should have 2 stamped that have a circle around the the number and 2 that arnt.

Before 2000, the date code had three digits. Since 2000, it has had four. The first two digits are the week of the year (01 = the first week of January). The third digit (for tires made before 2000) is the year (1 = 1991). For most tires made after 2000, the third and fourth digits are the year (04 = 2004).

old tires may LOOK GOOD but are in fact very dangerous....only way to tell if its a good tire is to use em...which is pretty much like russian roulet


goodluck and keep an eye on that sucker if u do decide to us it

 

AFONDA: PLEASE DON'T USE THESE OLD TIRES, DO YOUR OWN RESEARCH, LOTS OF PEOPLE HAVE DIED FROM OLD TIRES COMING APART AT HIGHWAY SPEEDS, I know that you are trying to save money and I sure don't blame you for that, but what is YOUR life worth???

 

honestly i wont say much everyones already said it. hope ya got good insurance if it does blow. but to each their own just be safe about it.