I have 750x16 Firestones on the rear of my roadster. Someone alerted me on the problem today. I did notice a slight wobble , side to side, looking in the rear view mirror, with those huge 750's, but driving down the freeway, the car feels like a Cadillac (not quite), but at 70 it feels good and I don't notice any vibration. Should I worry or keep on truckin'. BTW, the axle shafts are straight and the wheels are perfect (Thanks to the Wheelkid), I'm just concerned about the tires.
mine do the same thing, just the way they come out of the mold i guess. at first i thought i had a bent rim but when i spun the wheel on the car i noticed the tread wobbled from side to side, i dont feel it when im driving but my friend alerted me to it one day while i was driving. i say F*it and keep on truckin'
does shaving the tires help this situation? I think the are a few posts on this http://www.jalopyjournal.com/forum/search.php?searchid=2048561
no this is a different kind of wobble, it is a side to side wobble of the tread, the tire shaving helps tires that are out of round.
I have had some 7.50-16 firestones that did the side wobble to. I couldnt really feel it, but I didnt like the fact that people were telling me I had a bent rim. I had the wheels checked, axles and bearings checked, then noticed when we were balancing the tires after remounting them, that it was indeed the tire wobbling. Call Coker and see what they say.. Jimmy White
It's really slight, and the ride feels great, just the fact that someone told me he saw a wobble, made me wonder. I guess on a 750, the side walls are so tall, there has to be a little wobble. BTW, these are my first bias-ply tires and I'm surprised how good they handle.
Its funny, I have never driven a hot rod or old car with anything other than Bias-plys. I would like to try a hot rod that has radials just so I can see how it handles. I have always been pleased with bias-plys! Jimmy White P.s. I couldnt feel the wobble, I just got sick of hearing " your left rear tire has a little run-out".
Jimmy, it's not my first old car with bias-plys, this is just the first time I have an open wheel car, and I can see the damn thing, goin' bananas.
This seems to be a constant "problem" with the new versions of old tires. I don't ever remember this when I was growing up after becoming aware of cars and the stuff surrounding them. I always had bias plys on my cars as a kid and young adult and never experienced these situations or heard of them other than the out of round shaving stuff and mostly that was big truck tires. The wobbly tire tread and so on just says "defect" to me.
You may find the same thing to be true on radials. Not a whole lot, but the center line in between the two center-most treads does seem to go side to side very little. Noticed on a front radial when using my home-made toe-in measuring device that scratched a center line on the tire's center tread area to measure from when the wheel was rotated. The two center treads don't seem to go side to side when viewed from the drivers seat - left front tire anyway - but there is a small amount of movement as evidenced by the scratched line noted above. The 32 runs very smooth at highway speeds. If your car is running smooth with the bias-ply tread moving side to side a bit I wouldn't sweat it. True running wheels, well balanced tires that are genuinely round will do the job whether radial or bias.
try letting the air out and reseat the tire to the rim if it needs it. If I (try) to do a burnout or get a little squirrely in the dirt, the tires seem to get tweaked. Usually the air trick helps it. TP
Dreadman, I have to apologize, I didnt mean to sound like " hey check me out I am such an old school Bad-Ass, that I have only driven on Bias-plys". I meant it to sound more like "I would like to drive a hot rod with radials so I can see what it is like". That is why the internet is tough, its kind of hard to explain stuff, or hard for me atleast. Good luck with the tire.. Jimmy White
Jimmy, I did not take it the wrong way at all. You are much more experienced in all this, and I am happy to learn and listen.
Good tip about letting air out and resetting it, I'll try that. Or maybe, I should stop doing burnouts
@Chris Casny I know this is a very old thread post. But, did you ever resolve your situation? I have one rear 750x16 as well wobbling. No shaking, it's just the tire. People have alerted me of it, it's annoying, as I was told it's very common and it doesn't affect the ride. I can imagine, it just looks like a** Did letting air out and re-seating the tie work? or....?
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