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240 Tire softener

dl242gt

dl242gt

The world of the smiling Dogo
Joined
Jun 21, 2002
Location
S NJ, a suburb of Phila.
Have any of you used these tire treatments? Any good? I have a set of Potenza
SO 3 that have good tread but are kind of old.
https://www.ebay.com/itm/2651004236...6zywgbpg7acvIFOV8YEtfaWNw=|tkp:Bk9SR9LyiNTpYA

https://www.ebay.com/itm/3833511273...IFxNmYlOKd5+PBPzYHp2HRVkbc2d|tkp:BFBM0vKI1Olg

Those are two I looked at. They also have Stripper Glitter and Hot Lap brands.
What do ya think?

For some background at work we used to use Fedron to revitalize rubber platens
on the old teletype and Extel printers. That stuff worked great but seems very
limited in supply now.
 
dl242gt said:
Have any of you used these tire treatments? Any good? I have a set of Potenza
SO 3 that have good tread but are kind of old.
https://www.ebay.com/itm/2651004236...6zywgbpg7acvIFOV8YEtfaWNw=|tkp:Bk9SR9LyiNTpYA

https://www.ebay.com/itm/3833511273...IFxNmYlOKd5+PBPzYHp2HRVkbc2d|tkp:BFBM0vKI1Olg

Those are two I looked at. They also have Stripper Glitter and Hot Lap brands.
What do ya think?

For some background at work we used to use Fedron to revitalize rubber platens
on the old teletype and Extel printers. That stuff worked great but seems very
limited in supply now.
Click to expand...

From my understanding, and what I was taught in class, they will all be snake oils. The oils in the rubber come to the surface with regular use, but will eventually "dry out." When they are worn, they are worn and must be replaced. I would reccomend the safe option, which is replacement of the tire. Safer for you, and safer for the car they are mounted on :)
 
IDK how similar Karting tires are to street or track tires, but nobody uses softener at the kart track. It seems to work once, then that tire is done and needs to be changed (to stay competitive).

We wrap our kart tires in cling wrap for storage. Makes them stay sticky for longer. Wrap them at the end of a race day and keep it on until next race.
 
They work. Some better than others.
I?ll reach out to those I know that do this, and see what they?re using. I see that Pegasus sells a tire softener, and the bottle looks familiar to what my friends were using.
Toluene also works.
 
Long ago to soften the platens on the printers we used Fedron which the main ingredient was xylene. If you forgot a platen and left it in there overnight it would swell and get stuck in the can. :lol: So I figured some one here must have tried a similar tire treatment. It's just for street tires but I hope to get a bit more use out of them. Those Potenza S03 tires were expensive.

Thank you for the replies.
 
I wonder if I could use it on the snow tires I got suckered into buying in 1989 for the 740. They were used 2 winters and have been stored in the cellar since.

(Honestly, they still look new.)
 
kyote said:
Xylene would be the ticket I'd think.
I would recommend wearing gloves.
Click to expand...

This or toluene is the cheap way to soften up some rubber... but with the cost of solvents these days, new tires might be cheaper :lol:
 
Somewhat related, I once sprayed a tire with a ton of fluid film, and 24 hours later the tire must have absorbed it because it was completely gone and it looked bone dry. I avoid the tires when spraying the car now
 
I browsed buying Xylene and it's quite pricey. About 100$ a gallon similar in price to the tire softener. I'll think about it. Probably get the tire softener to try if I buy something.
 
Honestly I'd be concerned about the structural integrity of the tire once you start painting chemicals on it. Xylene is also a nerve poison when inhaled and with the quantities required to cover 4 tires, I'd say a respirator, good ventilation and correctly rated gloves would be a minimum.
 
Looks like a good product. Thank you.

I really don't want to use the Xylene since it is such a dangerous chemical. I breathed in enough of that stuff 30 years ago when working with all those old printers.
 
dl242gt said:
I browsed buying Xylene and it's quite pricey. About 100$ a gallon similar in price to the tire softener. I'll think about it. Probably get the tire softener to try if I buy something.
Click to expand...

eh? I use Xylene for paint projects it's like $20/gal at the hardware store.
 
dl242gt said:
That's great. I guess I'll shop around a bit. Thanks for the info. No more local
hardware stores around here anymore. I guess I was just seeing the ebay top
dollar pricing.
Click to expand...

ah yeah that makes sense, prices on "chemicals" online can get crazy; I think due to hazardous material shipping and handling etc. I was running some xylene through the paint gone just a few weeks ago (with an n95 respirator on...).
 
My bottle of MG chemicals Rubber Renue says it has Xylene, Ethyl benzine, Methyl Salicyate. I use it to soften up reel to reel tape deck capstans. Says don't breath, warning Cancer..
 
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