SIDEBAR: Wrangling Retreads

Retreaders have a term for chunks of tread cast off and lurking in the weeds at the roadside: alligators. The hunk of rubber by itself is harmless, but the loss of a tire because of a shoddy retread job can take a nasty bite out of your budget. A tire may be on its second or third time around, but the quality of the retread job still ought to be first-rate.

One way to ensure that you’re getting the most out of your retread efforts is to visit the shop or plant where they’re made. A quick look around will tell you something about how the place is run. A careful look will tell you a lot about quality of products that are being turned out.

A dealer may do his own work right on the premises, which makes your inspection fairly easy. Or he may obtain products from a large plant nearby or within a few hundred miles.

The American Retreaders’ Association and The Maintenance Council of the American Trucking Associations suggest you start by seeing if the place is clean, orderly, and well-lighted and ventilated. Then ask if it is certified by an industry association or a known and trusted tire or retread supplier. Are workers uniformed, do they wear protective gear, do they go about their tasks in a confident, professional manner and do they seem content in their jobs? Where does the plant get its casings? Are the casings scrutinized with specialized testing equipment to find hidden flaws?

You can get deeper into the product. Is it a “pre-cure” (also called “cold-capping”), where pre-cured tread rubber is applied to a prepared casing? Or a “mold cure,” where uncured tread rubber is cured as it’s baked onto the casing in a mold? Both methods use pressure chambers for baking. Each type is good if properly done, so do not reject one type for another strictly on theoretical grounds.

The casing used for either type of recap requires many steps. Knowing what they are and what the industry standards for them are will help you evaluate the plant and its products. The Maintenance Council’s Recommended Practice No. 221A discusses some of the intricacies of retreading in four concise pages. For instance, it suggests you ask the retreader if his baking/curing equipment has thermocouples through which temperatures and pressures can be checked for accuracy. Ask to see how the timing is checked, as well.

At the beginning of the line, casings should be inspected for hidden damage. Does the inspector look like he knows what he’s doing? Does he have strong light to work under? Does he have a modern inspection machine that uses ultrasound, magnetic imaging or other methods to find punctures, cable breaks or other flaws that can’t be seen? Do you see rejects stacked in his area, or is he passing everything?

Further down the line, is the guy who buffs off old tread using modern equipment? Ask him what speed his hand buffer runs at (it shouldn’t exceed 5000 rpm for rubber or 20,000 to 30,000 rpm as he gets to the steel cords). Does the repairman probe holes carefully and make cuts precisely as he works on the casing? Are his materials (glue, patches, etc.) from the same manufacturer or are they mixed? (If mixed, ask why; TMC says competitors’ materials don’t always work well together.)

Is the face of the casing prepared with gum or other material prior to application of the tread? Does the tread guy measure the material precisely and apply it carefully? Do he and all the other workers have wall charts to guide them in their tasks?

Asking informed questions will mark you as a smart customer. You might also pick the brains of the workers if they have time to talk. For instance, what would they look for if they were buying retreaded tires? Compare their answers with what you’ve learned from TMC’s recommendations or from other industry sources. Then make your best deal with the dealer, maintain the retread as you do your new tires, and start adding up the savings.

For more info about TMC Recommended Practices and other tire resources, contact 703/838-1763.