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Weather Crack (?) on the nose wheel


M20S Driver

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My Flight Special II nose wheel shows cracks in the center grooves after two years and 150 hours.   Is this normal?  

I double checked the pressure and it was right (49psi).  I also checked  a few planes (various brands) at the airport and only found another Mooney with cracks but it did not look as bad.

I will replace it before the next flight. 

2021-02-14 15.04.11.png

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From a rubber point of view...

That is called weather checking...

The tire is built up in layers...

The outermost layer with the soft tread... is looking pretty ugly...

That layer is on top of the next one that has the fibers for strength....

Beneath that is the nice smooth layer to house the tube...

With the tube... no air is going to leak out.

As long as the tread layer is attached to the next layer... the weather checking isn’t going to affect how the tire behaves... until parts start to fall off...

Take a look at your car tires... you might see it there as well...

You get more nervous, because there isn’t a tube holding the air in.... 

Technically their is a barrier layer on the inside holding the air in place similar to fancy tubes of today...

Keep an eye on it at each pre-flight... don’t fear heavy braking... if you flat spot them... they are good to toss out...  

 

Keep in mind you are getting rubber technical ideas from a PP, not a mechanic...

Best regards,

-a-

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I haven’t seen Goodyear’s crack like that. I wouldn’t replace it yet. Those are great tires. 
Michelins on the other hand I have seen cracked after a month.  
I have a set right now on a jet that were installed last fall. Zero flight time. Side walls are cracked like the tires I just replaced on the Mooney. However they are still serviceable. 
-Matt

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4 hours ago, RLCarter said:

@M20S Driverdo you use anything on the tires (armor all, tire shine...etc) ?

No.  I only have done Armor All on the side walls a few times in the past two years.  Sounds like it helps if I do it more frequently covering the whole wheel.

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8 hours ago, PT20J said:

Thanks PT20J.  This is very informative.  

Protecting Tires From Chemicals and Exposure:  Tires should be kept clean and free of contaminants such as oil, hydraulic fluids, grease, tar, and degreasing agents which have a deteriorating effect on rubber. Contaminants should be wiped off with denatured alcohol, then the tire should be washed immediately with soap and water and inspected for surface damage such as blistering or softening. When aircraft are serviced, tires should be covered with a waterproof barrier. Tire coatings or dressings: Goodyear adds antioxidants and antiozonants to the sidewall and tread to help prevent premature cracking from ozone and weather exposure. There are many products on the market that are advertised to clean tires and to improve appearance and shine. Since many of these may remove the antioxidants and antiozonants, we do not endorse any of them unless the tires are to be used for display purposes only. Aircraft tires, like other rubber products, are affected to some degree by sunlight and extremes of weather. While weather-checking does not impair performance, it can be reduced by protective covers. These covers (ideally with light color or aluminized surface to reflect sunlight) should be placed over tires when an aircraft is tied down outside. Store tires away from fluorescent lights, electric motors, battery chargers, electric welding equipment and electric generators, since they create ozone which can have a deteriorating effect on rubber.

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1 hour ago, M20S Driver said:

No.  I only have done Armor All on the side walls a few times in the past two years.  Sounds like it helps if I do it more frequently covering the whole wheel.

I thought armor all was supposed to dry tires out and be bad for them. It’s why it fell out of favor in the 90’s. 

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20 minutes ago, RobertGary1 said:

I thought armor all was supposed to dry tires out and be bad for them. It’s why it fell out of favor in the 90’s. 

Wow...  1990's?  I was not born yet.  Just kidding-- I was flying then :)

Please see see the updated info and my correction in the post before yours.  My take away is to keep it clean and covered.  see below from the post:

Protecting Tires From Chemicals and Exposure:  Tires should be kept clean and free of contaminants such as oil, hydraulic fluids, grease, tar, and degreasing agents which have a deteriorating effect on rubber. 

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1 hour ago, M20S Driver said:

Wow...  1990's?  I was not born yet.  Just kidding-- I was flying then :)

Please see see the updated info and my correction in the post before yours.  My take away is to keep it clean and covered.  see below from the post:

Protecting Tires From Chemicals and Exposure:  Tires should be kept clean and free of contaminants such as oil, hydraulic fluids, grease, tar, and degreasing agents which have a deteriorating effect on rubber. 

Also from the same paragraph, though:

"There are many products on the market that are advertised to clean tires and to improve appearance and shine. Since many of these may remove the antioxidants and antiozonants, we do not endorse any of them unless the tires are to be used for display purposes only."

The main thing to do with tires is keep them out of the sun and away from ozone.   

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I used armorall a lot...

Things that you will notice...

On car tires... it makes the tire shine, but rain makes it go away pretty quickly....

Putting it on the tires, leaves plenty of overspray, everywhere... slippery surface to walk on...

Putting it on the tread... is a bad idea, as it lubricates the frictional surface... (not good for braking)

So... you get that show car appearance, and accidentally give up the high performance expected from the tire....

 

When taking this idea to my M20C’s tires.... I immediately noticed a difference.... there is no shiny-ness to be improved upon...

The tire essentially absorbed the armorall like a coarse sponge...

 

 

I have a neighbor...

That has dark oily spots in front of his house on the street...

He parks a car in the same spot, solely for the application of Armorall.... I haven’t seen the car... it must only come out for the monthly Armorall...

:)

-a-

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