The retreadability of a worn truck tire casing is not solely a function of its age. The condition of the casing is a function of a number of things. Among these are the applications in which the tire has performed – longhaul, on- and off-road, pickup and delivery – the type of equipment on which the tire has been mounted, such as single-axle or dual axle tractors, cement mixers, etc., how well the equipment on which the tire has been mounted, has been maintained, and how well the tire has been treated while in operation.

A new tire in a service application with poor attention to equipment and tire maintenance may turn “old” well before its calendar life is over, and may not, in fact, be retreadable.

On the other hand, a tire which, by the calendar is older, but has not been subjected to overloaded or underinflated conditions and which has been on equipment that has had regular maintenance, is likely to be retreadable multiple times. It is the retreader’s job to determine the retreadability of incoming casings through a visual inspection as well as the use of a growing arsenal of sophisticated non-destructive test equipment. The use of these inspection techniques allows the retreader to make a determination of the retreadability of a worn casing based on more than just its calendar age. The last thing any quality retreader wants to do is retread a tire that will not endure a useful second or third life.

When a retreader rejects a worn tire, the trucker will have a better understanding why and can take steps to improving their tire maintenance, and prolonging the useful life of the operational casings.

– Information provided by the Tire Retread Information Bureau (www.retread.org).