Re-grooving Tires

[jtm62942]

Has anybody had experience with re-grooving the Goodyear and/or Mitchlen 17.5" tires? Would appreciate any and all comments

[wingnut60]

No experience whatsoever. I drove my 19.5" Continentals on my 450 to 78k with one flat--at that point, there was little tread grooving left. But they were 'regroovable' on the sidewall. One, did not know where to take them for the process; 2) would not trust them after the regrooving to resist flats as much since the tread HAD to be close to a half inch thinner.
I have not read of anyone having this done, and my Michelin 17.5s after 5 seasons pulling still look new.
I also would think the dismount/remount and wait time on the process would negate any potential savings on regrooving. Any idea how long the process takes? I don't.
If you have it done, please let us know how it turned out.
Joe

[Motor31]

Regrooving is not allowed in the US. If your tires are worn to the point of no tread, especially in the case of a heavy RV or tow vehicle it's time to break out the wallet and buy replacements. I have yet to meet anyone who actually wore out the tires before they deteriorated to the point of being unsafe at or before 7 years.

[wingnut60]

Actually, looks like it is 'allowed'--check this tire website:

http://www.nebraskatire.com/tires_101/regroovable.htm

Still don't like the idea, tho.

Joe

[Motor31]

Yup it is allowed for anything but steering axle like recaps. Given the abundance of radial vs bias ply the concept is not overly usefull. Franky if I have multiple tens of thousands of dollars and my home riding on tires I need to regroove, my priorities are way off. I have yet to wear a set of trailer tires down before they get too old to be safe to run in over 8 years of full timing and 3 different RV's.