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iTrader: (30)

Question for you guys in regards to your drag tires and how you maintain them after a pass or for a couple of days storage. Just found out our 6 month old 28x11.5x15 ET Drags are now oblonged and started causing a serious vibration at the top end, now the car can be seen vibrating while doing a burnout. When these tires were new, we did not have a problem. I had the axle flanges checked and the are straight! I checked the wheels on a tire/wheel balancer and the wheels are perfectly straight, but you can see the tire wobble up and down and it rotates, and the side wall wobbles left to right compared against the wheel. I was told this is due to the tires being hot and we do not unload the tires in the pits, or we quickly load it on the trailer after a run when we head home. Other possiblilities are that the heat of the day and then the cold of the night damage the roundness of the tires when mounted on a trailer. Would axle hop and high rpm during the burnout contribute to this condition?

So what I am looking for from you guys is, how do you maintain your tires when parked or stored? Do you lift the axle off the ground when ever possible. Also do you try to keep the car off the trailer as much as possible? I am going to purchase a new set of tires, possibly a 29x10x15 tire (narrower since these tires' sidewall stick out further than the wheels' rim). Thanks for the help guys!

Coach 02 A3 Z/28

iTrader: (10)

If my Hot Rod sits in ther garage more than 2 weeks, I jack up the rear and put the car on jack stands.

Coach

Maggie

Ah, I have egged a few sets of Mickys in my day...I don't think I ever had any last for 6 months though.
As far a taking care of them, what Coach said. Also, keep them clean and don't let them soak up any fluids like fuel, oil, solvents, cleaning solutions, detergents, etc. Sunlight is a killer too.

Villain281H

iTrader: (5)

yep, mine get changed to my street tires within a day or 2 after racing, and definately keep them away from sunlight. some people have suggested stacking them on their side instead of standing them up or leaning against a wall to avoid problems.

Derek

12secSS

iTrader: (30)

Thanks guys/girl! I guess I need to start doing that, I've seen other, more serious racers do it, but didn't think it would matter much on ours. Guess again. I will take good care of my new tires, as well as invest in some tire covers.