Halloween Outfit: Stella gets new shoes...

[fedoragent]

Folks,

My bias ply tires were worked on by a local tire shop, examined and mounted on my newly sandblasted and powder coated wheels. (I used Radial race inner tubes with the bias plys.)

For the piece de resistance, the Lyon Whitewalls that I purchased have been added. And soon, the hub caps will be added for the following effect.

For now, until the hub caps are polished and cleaned, the car looks like this.

Success! And I don't know why anyone making such a fuss about bias plys being deadly or defective. I drove on them for 10 to 20 miles, sometimes a jut here and there as the road changed. It has just made me more aware of the road, my driving, my speed and common sense. Let the flaming begin.

I am VERY happy with the outcome. The car drives better, steers better and is lighter. Frankly, I love it.

FG.

Edited November 1, 2010 by fedoragent

[Greenbomb]

Looks good! The caps will set it off nicely. How many pounds of air are you running?

[greg g]

No one said that Bias plys were deadly or defective. Based on the information you presented folks warned you about the possibilities of danger with tires of unknown age.

As passenger car bias plies have been off the general market for a number of years, seems Everyone concern was an OLD tires. You satisfied yourself that based on the information you found that were less than 6 years old, Had you mentioned the brand which you posted on another board (NANKING) you would probably have been told that they were OK as far as age was concerned as these Chinese made tires have only been imported to the US in the recent few years. Apparently our Chinese comrades have not fully embraced radial technology yet. Several folks on the Studebaker truck board I follow have been running them on their Studie pickups for several years. Most of the comments have been positive. A couple complained about tread noise and a couple had manufacturing defect problems, which were rectified by the sellers.

Bias ply tires will drive differently than radials, they are more prone to hunt and dart especially in the areas near intersections where pavement may be rutted and washboarded from stopping and starting. They are also more sensitive to proper alignment. You will also probably notice they are more sensitive to crowning in the road and will want to steer you a bit on paving that is not flat and level. They will steer lighter at rest because of their stiffer sidewalls, especially with 6 plies.

You might also notice longer braking distances especially in the wet. If you keep those factors in mind your experience will hopefully continue to be a positive one.

I chose to go with contemporary radials, as I wanted the durability, handling and braking performance gains of radials especially on the longer road trips we make in our car. At least if I have tire problems on the road, help is as close as the nearest Wally World as far as replacements are concerned.

Glad you like yours, Happy Motoring!

[mackster]

glad you like your bias, I think they look good! but i still believe the radials will look just as good and they will driver better too. but the bias vs radials is always a who cares drive what you want kinda deal. but all will have their opinions on this matter.

[fedoragent]

Greg,

Others via PM have been giving me grief about the bias. I remember driving these the way I did with the Volkswagen. About driving them when wet...I don't take her out if it is raining. So there won't be a problem with that. These tires were basically free, so I am going to run them for a time. After awhile, I think I might get the the radials. But for now, I will use these.

FG.

No one said that Bias plys were deadly or defective. Based on the information you presented folks warned you about the possibilities of danger with tires of unknown age.

As passenger car bias plies have been off the general market for a number of years, seems Everyone concern was an OLD tires. You satisfied yourself that based on the information you found that were less than 6 years old, Had you mentioned the brand which you posted on another board (NANKING) you would probably have been told that they were OK as far as age was concerned as these Chinese made tires have only been imported to the US in the recent few years. Apparently our Chinese comrades have not fully embraced radial technology yet. Several folks on the Studebaker truck board I follow have been running them on their Studie pickups for several years. Most of the comments have been positive. A couple complained about tread noise and a couple had manufacturing defect problems, which were rectified by the sellers.

Bias ply tires will drive differently than radials, they are more prone to hunt and dart especially in the areas near intersections where pavement may be rutted and washboarded from stopping and starting. They are also more sensitive to proper alignment. You will also probably notice they are more sensitive to crowning in the road and will want to steer you a bit on paving that is not flat and level. They will steer lighter at rest because of their stiffer sidewalls, especially with 6 plies.

You might also notice longer braking distances especially in the wet. If you keep those factors in mind your experience will hopefully continue to be a positive one.

I chose to go with contemporary radials, as I wanted the durability, handling and braking performance gains of radials especially on the longer road trips we make in our car. At least if I have tire problems on the road, help is as close as the nearest Wally World as far as replacements are concerned.

Glad you like yours, Happy Motoring!

[T120]

They look great.I drive with bias tires,I don't have a problem with them.Do the valve stems protrude through the Lyon whitewalls?

[Don Coatney]

Your wheels and tires look great and I am glad you are happy with them.

My personal opinion is I dont like to use tires that require tubes. Many tire shops today do not carry tire tubes in stock, do not know how to install tubes in tires, nor do they know how to repair them. These problems have been mentioned many times on this forum. Another benefit of using tubeless tires is a puncture flat repair can be made on the side of the road without removing the wheel from the car or removing the tire from the rim.

But as I said this is just my opinion and I am glad you are happy with your setup.

[fedoragent]

They look great.I drive with bias tires,I don't have a problem with them.Do the valve stems protrude through the Lyon whitewalls?

Ralph,

Yes, they do.

FG.

[fedoragent]

Your wheels and tires look great and I am glad you are happy with them.

My personal opinion is I dont like to use tires that require tubes. Many tire shops today do not carry tire tubes in stock, do not know how to install tubes in tires, nor do they know how to repair them. These problems have been mentioned many times on this forum. Another benefit of using tubeless tires is a puncture flat repair can be made on the side of the road without removing the wheel from the car or removing the tire from the rim.

But as I said this is just my opinion and I am glad you are happy with your setup.

Don,

As I said, these tires are for all intents and purposes, free to me as they came with the wheels. So, I went for it. I don't dismiss the idea that *someday* I may goto a tubeless radial. As I don't do much freeway driving, I wasn't too worried about it. True, most of the large tire shops don't carry or know how to install inner tubes. However, the small mom and pops do. Stella (my P15) is a weekend driver and not my main source of transport. Slowly, I'll get to a place where I feel comfortable, mentally and financially to take the car further. However, everything is one step at a time process and so far, I like the direction I'm taking her. Small cosmetics like this are a step, and the next will be engine and transmission work to make her more stable all the way around (Example, replace motor mounts, rear main seal and install over drive.) With those alone, it's something I can bare financially. Four radial tires...right now, not so much.

FG.

[P-12 Tommy]

Your tire and wheel setup looks really good. Glad you're happy with them. I've got bias on mine right now and it makes the car dart and jerk a little bit. I'm gonna get radials when I can afford it. I was glad when radials came out in the early '70s. They made my cars ride alot better. The only problem with radials is sometimes when they get old you get a broken belt and you get the "waddling" effect when you slow down to a stop.

Tom

[RobertKB]

FG, your wheels are going to look great when you get the caps on them. I have bias ply with tubes on all three of my drivable flatheads. Only three flats in 30+ years. Never bothers me to drive with them. As mentioned, they are different to drive than radials and you have to be a bit more aware but I like the fact they are "old school'. Just my two cents worth for what its worth and it may not be worth much.

[BobT-47P15]

I've used bias ply for several years, with tubes, and they do just what

everyone else says.......want to wander some, etc. Mine are reproduction

Firestones from Coker (6.70x15). Even when I ran radials a couple times

in the past, I put tubes in them due to the fact my wire wheels would

likely leak air.

It's true that they don't know what to do to patch a tube in some of the

larger, chain tire stores. When I took a flat to Firestone several years ago,

it was like a group effort to figure out about how to do it. They finally did

accomplish the job. I go to a smaller area based tire store usually, and they

still know all the old stuff. And they sell tubes if needed.

The main thing I need is to have my steering gear rebuilt as it has play.

Anyway, Jon, I understand what you're doing......one thing at a time as

you can get it done, and/or afford it. You're making progress in getting

the car back to something like original, having to undo some things done

by the previous owner. So, hang in there and eventually you'll have it

where you want it.

[48P15Annie]

Love it! Looks great!

[hkestes41]

I had bias ply on my 48 when I first bought the car and never had much of a problem with them other than one instance. Yes the did wander a bit or follow the seam in the concrete but as long as you were paying attention it was not a big deal except to passengers who did not understand bias ply.

The one time that I did have a whoa moment I was in the middle of a right hand curve in the right lane with a new BMW 7 series next to me on the left when we hit a patch that the road crew had ground the concrete for about 50 yards to do a future repair. Thought I was about to buy me a slightly used BMW for a second or two, but managed to stay off of it. He noticed too and signaled that he thought my Plymouth was number 1.

[oldodge41]

Looks great and will look even better with the caps. I've run the same setup with 6.00-16 bias for 20 years. I may go radial next time if it is cheaper but I have no complaints on the bias for a casual driver.........Tim

[Captain Neon]

Radials made the difference between having a car that I'd drive maybe 20 miles at a time to a car that I could drive hundreds of miles @ a time. No better feeling for me, than pulling the hand throttle, swinging my legs up on to the bench seat, and driving one-handed while enjoying the scenery for a few miles. I'd never attempt such a thing w/ bias ply tyres. When I had bias ply tyres, I took a risk just changing a cassette in the cassette player or changing the radio station.