Retread Tire Inflation/Pressure?

[lordkenyon]

I finally got around to putting the HiTec Retreads on my D1 (245/75/R16). They're the Mud OTRs. I'm really at a loss for what inflation these should be running for the road till I get to the trail. I called Hi Tec and they recommended 10psi below the sidewall rating! This would put it at 70psi!!! I'm new to retreads but this seems really out of line. The guy I spoke with sounded busy and wasn't real helpful with my questions.

Any suggestions? Should I just do a chalk test? Maybe start around 35-38psi up front closer to where most run their stock setup?

Thanks.

 

[Asolo3j]

I've had these on for over a year (245/17-16 on a 95D1 with 2" OME spring lift). I run 35 to 37 for highway and when offroad I have aired down to 15 with no problems. If you search for the other threads on Hi-Tec Retreads, you will how impressed I am with them. After +/- 10K miles the tread still looks great and these have held up really well. My next set of larger tires will be Hi-Tec Retreads too.

 

[lordkenyon]

Thanks! That's exactly what I was looking for. I had searched but found no info on retread inflation.

I had a couple of small spots (less than an inch or so) where the retread is separating from the carcass on the sidewall. I asked hi-tec and they said this was normal. Did you have similar issues, JH? I'm going to snap some photos and document it just to be safe and might seal it up with something.

Went for a test drive on them earlier and they ride well.

 

[Asolo3j]

I think what you are seeing is some of the "over spray" from the carcass-to-retread joint. When i first got them small bits would peel up (1 or 2 cm bits is all) around where the carcas was joined to the new tread on the sidewalls. It was pretty in consistant with each tire and I figured it was the "over spray".

Here is a pic from after wheelin. I took a few DEEP cuts and it held up great.
Last pic, is hard to see with the resize, but I pointed where this "over spray" was and as you can tell it's not been an issue for me.

 

[lordkenyon]

I attached the pic of where mine has the issue. I have a little bit of the overspray you're talking about too. I'll take a pic of mine later.

 

[Asolo3j]

Hmmm... not sure. If HiTec said it was normal then I guess it is. The 4 retreads I have none are doing what you are saying. Just small bits and the "tabs" along the side. What carcasses did you get? Perhaps it could be related to that?? I believe the ones I have are all Goodyear Wrangler HT 8 ply sidewalls.

When I air down, I get some decent flex. Running at or above 40 psi was way too firm with my stiff heavy duty OME spring choice. Every crack and bump was teeth jarring. I try to rotate every oil change and since the bad cuts, I have the spare on there now. Tread wear is pretty even and with HD drag link and tie rod on there too.

 

[kellymoe]

I run my hi tecs at 50psi on the hwy. 15-20psi off road. I have had mine for a few years now and they are holding up great. I had a sidewall puncture a few months ago but that has nothing to do with the tire being a retread.

 

[Buddy]

I attached the pic of where mine has the issue. I have a little bit of the overspray you're talking about too. I'll take a pic of mine later.

I have the retreads also there is no actual seperation of the tread at all like you are explaining it. Post up a picture here so we can see it.

I run mine at 40psi on the road. But thinking of dropping it a little.

 

[MonLand]

Did you guys go with the green diamond stuff or the regular?

 

[Buddy]

Did you guys go with the green diamond stuff or the regular?

Considering I live in the south and at most see about .5" of snow a year I saved my money. If I lived in snow country I might have gotten the green diamonds.

 

[lordkenyon]

Sorry for the camera phone pic, but here's an example. The carcasses are 10ply Michelin LTRs. There are a couple of spots where I noticed this in two or three of the tires. I'll have to double check later. Like I said, I'll just take a bunch of pictures, I informed Hi-Tec about the problem today, so if there is an issue in the very near future, they should be covering this.

I did not opt for Green Diamond. When researching the this, it really seemed that all who got it said they noticed no difference. I'll keep the $20/tire for that.

 

[lordkenyon]

I have the retreads also there is no actual seperation of the tread at all like you are explaining it. Post up a picture here so we can see it.

I run mine at 40psi on the road. But thinking of dropping it a little.

See the last post. I just went for a 40mile round trip at 40 up front and 42 in the rears. The ride quality was good even over RR tracks and with lousy shocks. I'm going to leave it around here for a while until I get the new shocks and then go from there.


Thanks for posting up on this guys. There are several inflation/tire pressure threads but none that deal with retreads.


Edit: Attached some pics of my temporary solution until the new bumper is fabbed. I wasn't able to turn the front wheels without hitting before, so I just removed all the plastic nonsense from the stock one. =)

 

[mgreenspan]

I think i run like a 45 in the front and like 50 in the back or maybe it was 52. whatever they were the ride is nice and the wear is even for my truck. i've got the d-mud 285/75s. my carcasses were the big-o big foot tire or some such thing. extremely pleased with them.

 

[DblD]

Thought I?d chime in on this. I sell retread tires (Michelin Retread Technologies) in commercial and industrial fleets. The overspray that was mentioned in previous posts appears to be cushion gum that is has been forced out between the casing and the cap during the curing process. The casing is buffed to a certain width specification, them virgin rubber is extruded onto the casing. The extruded rubber acts as a bonding agent to ?glue? the cap on the casing. It is normal to see a small amount of this cushion gum on the sidewall of a retread tire.

As for tire pressure? It?s OK to run whatever PSI the manufacturer has stated on the sidewall. The integrity of the casing has not been jeopardized during the retread process. What I might caution against is running a retread tire, or any tire for that matter, at a low PSI for an extended period of time at high speeds.

Low PSI = More Sidewall Flex = More Heat Build Up = Retread Failure

Good to know that retreads are working for folks with less that 18 wheels on the ground.

dd

 

[Asolo3j]

Thanks for the info!

I did not go for the Green Diamond, I do run some in the snow, but not engough to justiy it. I would say for longer highway trips (I ran a 1500 mile trip to FL) I tried to keep the tires up at 40 and it was decent. No change in tread wear nor any significant change in MPG.

lordk, also remember to adjust your steering stops to eliminate the rubbing on the arms. Just a few cranks on the screw stops will help out for the tight turns into parking spaces and the trail.

I am also really pleased with HiTech as a company. I think their prices have only gone up slightly and the shiping rate is still awesome. I really hope they continue offering a great product and such a good price.

 

[lordkenyon]

Thanks for the info!

I did not go for the Green Diamond, I do run some in the snow, but not engough to justiy it. I would say for longer highway trips (I ran a 1500 mile trip to FL) I tried to keep the tires up at 40 and it was decent. No change in tread wear nor any significant change in MPG.

lordk, also remember to adjust your steering stops to eliminate the rubbing on the arms. Just a few cranks on the screw stops will help out for the tight turns into parking spaces and the trail.

I am also really pleased with HiTech as a company. I think their prices have only gone up slightly and the shiping rate is still awesome. I really hope they continue offering a great product and such a good price.

Thanks. I've been planning to go through and make sure everything's working well and not rubbing, so I'll double check the steering stops. Also, I emailed Hi-Tec the picture, so we'll see if they say it's anything to be concerned about.

 

[03DII]

I have been running the retreads for about a month now, same peeling on all of mine but the other day I noticed a big gash in the side wall that went from alil over an inch to well over two inches now within a day of driving on it. i'm going to try to get ahold of the company and send them pics of it and see about a replacement. There were not signs of rubbing or scuffing on the sidewall where the tear is so that is why i'm thinking its a defective tire. The sidewalls were all cracked alil from dryrot, and I think its one of those cracks opened up. I was also wondering how much pressure to run. I've been running 25 lbs with no funky wear issues on mine.

 

[lordkenyon]

I've been running the 38/40 upfront and 40/42 in the back for getting to the trails, then backing it way down once there depending on terrain. No issues at all yet with that. Hi-tech offered a warranty replacement if my separation got any worse. But it sounds like a little different issue with yours. Yours sounds not like a separation issue but just and old defective carcass. Give them a call and see what they say.