Author Topic: 14" tires are hard to find these days  (Read 25099 times)

wtexz10

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Re: 14" tires are hard to find these days
« Reply #15 on: June 06, 2016, 10:30:11 PM »
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mikefam

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Re: 14" tires are hard to find these days
« Reply #16 on: June 08, 2016, 12:17:00 AM »
Thanks for all the input, I put a set of 225/70 Radial T/A's on today. They do rub just slightly at full turn as jeff68 said earlier and that doesn't bother me. They ride much nicer than the tires that I removed and fill the wheel well better. They look good. I couldn't justify the cost of the repro replica tires because I don't take the car to shows and cruises often, it's a driver.

Mike.
68 Convertible w/327 275hp donor engine from a 67 Impala and TH350

mikefam

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Re: 14" tires are hard to find these days
« Reply #17 on: June 08, 2016, 12:23:47 AM »
They still sell BFG RAdial TAs in many sizes for one reason; they are VERY popular as most of us think there's not better 'era relevant' tire to run on a muscle car.. :)
I like my new Cooper Cobras. I think they have the right "look." ;) I've always loved Cooper Tires. They perform excellently and they are reasonably priced. They'll be on it tonight finally.


They still sell BFG RAdial TAs in many sizes for one reason; they are VERY popular as most of us think there's not better 'era relevant' tire to run on a muscle car.. :)
[/quote

I like the look of the Goodrich radial T/A but don't agree that it is correct for the era. As I recall there were a lot of Firestone and Goodyear tires around in 1968. I think that the Goodrich T/A's became popular a little later.

Mike.

Mike.
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69Z28-RS

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Re: 14" tires are hard to find these days
« Reply #18 on: June 08, 2016, 04:06:37 AM »
They still sell BFG RAdial TAs in many sizes for one reason; they are VERY popular as most of us think there's not better 'era relevant' tire to run on a muscle car.. :)
....

I like the look of the Goodrich radial T/A but don't agree that it is correct for the era. As I recall there were a lot of Firestone and Goodyear tires around in 1968. I think that the Goodrich T/A's became popular a little later.

Mike

Mike is right... in the late '60's and early '70's no one was running radial tires on a muscle car, because they really weren't available, or at least not available in the low profile sizes for muscle car.. If radial tires were available at all, they were being used on luxury cars - and I really can not recall when they became available on luxury cars, but it was the mid-70's probably before the Radial TA BFG became the 'popular car' on muscle cars, just as the 60's muscle cars were becoming in vogue.   When I said 'era relevant', the era I was speaking of was mid-70's forward...  and I still don't know of a radial lower profile RWL tire that looks better on our cars than the BFG Radial TA.. :)

Thanks Mike for correcting the thought I may have created inadvertently.   In the late sixties and early 70's, the tires being sold on and for our cars were all bias belted tires... Firestone Wide Ovals, Goodyear, etc...  My wife's '70 Mach I came with F70-14 Firestone Wide Ovals; most muscle cars came with F70-14 or F70-15 bias belted tires when new and were generally replaced with those type tires the first times they needed tires.  I ordered a '70 RR in late '69 and ordered it with F60-15 Polyglas GT tires, and my car was the only car around my area with even those tires at the time; I think it was 1973 before the new Corvettes were delivered with radial tires...
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mikefam

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Re: 14" tires are hard to find these days
« Reply #19 on: June 08, 2016, 11:42:21 AM »
My first set of Radial T/A's was on my 1976 Chevy Blazer. When I think of them I think of Monte Carlos and Trans AM, definitely a lot of them around in the 70's but then again there were still a lot of 68 Camaros around in the seventies. They're not incorrect on a sixties car but just not what's in my mind's eye when I think about 60's muscle cars. When I think back to the 60's I picture big ole G60 or H60 bias ply on the back and skinny tires on the front.

I was very close to buying a set of F70 wide ovals RWL but the Goodrich radial cost $100/tire less and is a great tire. If I was showing the car I would have gone with a set of F-70 bias ply, maybe even whitewalls as the car is a convertible cruiser more than a muscle car.

Mike.
68 Convertible w/327 275hp donor engine from a 67 Impala and TH350

mikefam

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Re: 14" tires are hard to find these days
« Reply #20 on: June 08, 2016, 11:44:59 AM »
My 14" Goodyear GTII's are over 15 years old now and I'm just nervous about driving them on the highway for any amount of time. So,I just bought a set of 17" rally's and mounted them with my derby caps.  These are Firestone Firehawk Indy 500.  Now I'm debating weather to paint the letters on the sidewalls.   
My 14" Goodyear GTII's are over 15 years old now and I'm just nervous about driving them on the highway for any amount of time. So,I just bought a set of 17" rally's and mounted them with my derby caps.  These are Firestone Firehawk Indy 500.  Now I'm debating weather to paint the letters on the sidewalls.   

I'll now be able to use the Goodyears exclusively for shows.


I'll now be able to use the Goodyears exclusively for shows.

Those are beautiful wheels! Not correct but they sure look nice. Very nice car too.

Mike.
68 Convertible w/327 275hp donor engine from a 67 Impala and TH350

Kelley W King

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Re: 14" tires are hard to find these days
« Reply #21 on: June 08, 2016, 12:58:02 PM »
If my memory still works I believe 73 was the year radials came on certain cars. I remember my boss had a Mark something that had them and a friend had a olds with them. I run the BFG TA,s myself.
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BULLITT65

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Re: 14" tires are hard to find these days
« Reply #22 on: June 08, 2016, 04:14:09 PM »
Surprised nobody mentioned The Goodyear Eagle ST. I ran them for years on my first Mustang, and they are on one of my cars now. Not sure if they still use the "ST" designation, but they still make the Goodyear Eagle in different varieties, and they still have the raised white lettering.
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JKZ27

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Re: 14" tires are hard to find these days
« Reply #23 on: June 08, 2016, 06:52:34 PM »
I liked the look and feel of the Eagle ST over the Goodrich also but I don't think you can still get them. I'm not sure if GY even makes a raised white passenger tire anymore.
John
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BULLITT65

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Re: 14" tires are hard to find these days
« Reply #24 on: June 08, 2016, 07:10:50 PM »
I think Goodyear makes the Eagle in a raised white letter and it has a Nascar white letter as well. Not sure of they still make it. A couple of years ago they did though.
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-Looking for 3192477 (front) spiral shocks 3192851 (rear)
-Looking for an original LOF soft ray windshield
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69Z28-RS

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Re: 14" tires are hard to find these days
« Reply #25 on: June 08, 2016, 07:41:04 PM »
IMO....   one of the reasons that the BFG Radial TA is still a desirable tire is the size/font of the RWL...  it's a radial tire and has RWL that are very much like the RWL used on the original polyglas and Polyglas GT bias belted tires.. ie.  small and neat letters, NOT the big garish letters used on those Eagle ST's that Austin just posted...  :)
« Last Edit: June 08, 2016, 08:35:33 PM by 69Z28-RS »
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BULLITT65

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Re: 14" tires are hard to find these days
« Reply #26 on: June 08, 2016, 07:47:50 PM »
IMO....   one of the reasons that the BFG Radial TA is still a desirable wheel is the size/font of the RWL...  it's a radial tire and has RWL that are very much like the RWL used on the original polyglas and Polyglas GT bias belted tires.. ie.  small and neat letters, NOT the big garish letters used on those Eagle ST's that Austin just posted...  :)

Man all this time I thought we were talking about tires... ;D
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-Looking for an original LOF soft ray windshield
-Looking for original Delco side post negative battery cable part # 6297651AV

69Z28-RS

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Re: 14" tires are hard to find these days
« Reply #27 on: June 08, 2016, 08:36:13 PM »
kinda like feet and inches.... sometimes the wrong words pop out of our keyboards..  :)
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BULLITT65

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Re: 14" tires are hard to find these days
« Reply #28 on: June 08, 2016, 08:53:53 PM »
hmm, that is one key buddy "(inches) vs (feet) '......lol (really just me not holding on to the shift button) (or proof reading, "doh"   :o    )

What is your excuse???

 :D
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-Looking for 3192477 (front) spiral shocks 3192851 (rear)
-Looking for an original LOF soft ray windshield
-Looking for original Delco side post negative battery cable part # 6297651AV

69Z28-RS

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Re: 14" tires are hard to find these days
« Reply #29 on: June 08, 2016, 08:58:43 PM »
For some reason the site wouldn't allow me to delete or edit your post....  :)
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69 Corvette, '60 Corvette, '72 Corvette
90 ZR1 red/red #246, 90 ZR1 white/gray #2466
72 El Camino, '55-'56-'57 Nomads, '55-'57 B/A Sedan