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Worn Tire Surface

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  • Member since
    October 2019
  • From: New Braunfels, Texas
Worn Tire Surface
Posted by Tanker-Builder on Friday, April 22, 2022 2:29 PM

 I am sure:

      Many have successfully dealt with this as you've built those prize winning cars. Some still lose sight of the importance of this. A model car, carefully researched, built and finished is a real shiny jewel, isn't it. BUT! it somehow doesn't look right because it is sitting in a very tiny ridge in the center of the tire tread!

       Now, with the Vinyl tires this can be corrected. First make sure both sides of the tire line up by removing the ridge carefully with the sharpest X-Acto or Excel Blade you have. Sometimes you will find the sides are not quite centered. If it's VERY MINOR Proceed with the next step. If not discard this tire and get another that is in better alignment!

      Very carefully, using a number eleven blade tip deepen the tread grooves a wee bit. You must use a magnifier for this. Now, have you done all I have described? Good. Now put the tire on an old wheel mounted on an axle that fits properly. Make sure it is not twisted. Put said wheel and tire assembly in your smallest BATTERY powered electric drill, via the axle and spin VERY SLOWLY. on a piece of 320 grit sandpaper. till it gets a flatter cross section.

 Now go to succedingly smaller( finer- grits till it is smooth,) But you carefully preserved the tread pattern. Now take the tire off, mount on your desired wheel and there you have it. Oh! if you wish a little Pucker in the bottom like a radial has then press down on the tire while pouring boiling water on it. This will help creat the Body Weight Pucker you normally see.  Want a flat? Do this till it's well, Flat. Do this maneuver while mounted on the old wheel. Because it's a model you might have to warp the chassis a wee bit around the suspension to compensate and create that "Flat Tire Lean".  See you around!

  • Member since
    April 2003
  • From: USA
Posted by keavdog on Friday, April 22, 2022 2:43 PM

I saw a neat trick using sockets and a drill.  The various socket diameters allow for different tires.

 

 

Thanks,

John

  • Member since
    August 2021
Posted by lurch on Friday, April 22, 2022 7:09 PM

Thats all great info. I will need to remember this when I get to building again. Thank you.

  • Member since
    March 2022
  • From: Twin cities, MN
Posted by missileman2000 on Saturday, April 23, 2022 8:55 AM

I use a qtip to brush the tread area with talcum powder.  Sometimes I talcum the whole tire.  I have used sandpaper with drill and chucked up tire, but it is a lot more effort unless the tread as a lot of flash and uneveness (yeah some of the old AMT kits do)

  • Member since
    October 2019
  • From: New Braunfels, Texas
Posted by Tanker-Builder on Saturday, April 23, 2022 6:53 PM

Oh Yeah! 

       I still have some of them around I spin them on 320 until they are bald and use them on my R.C.Tugs!

  • Member since
    May 2009
  • From: Poland
Posted by Pawel on Sunday, April 24, 2022 6:01 AM

Hello!

Now I could use a little help here - I started sanding the tires a bit like described here, but the material behaves badly and the sandpaper takes out little chunks of vinyl out and the tire now looks hairy, for a lack of better description. I already tried to freeze the tire before sanding but I'd like to find a way to get rid of the "hair". Any ideas?

Thanks in advance and have a nice day

Paweł

All comments and critique welcomed. Thanks for your honest opinions!

www.vietnam.net.pl

  • Member since
    April 2020
Posted by Eaglecash867 on Sunday, April 24, 2022 7:18 AM

Hi Pawel,

I'm definitely no expert on this subject (vinyl), but I have always had to deal with the "hair" on plastic and resin pieces after various cutting and modification procedures.  For plastic, I was able to get rid of the hair with liquid cement.  For resin, MEK has worked great for that purpose.  So, maybe use a thin vinyl cement and quickly brush it on without going back over the brush strokes?  It should melt down those fine hairs and make them part of the surface again.  That might smooth it out so you can start over again.

"You can have my illegal fireworks when you pry them from my cold, dead fingers...which are...over there somewhere."

  • Member since
    May 2009
  • From: Poland
Posted by Pawel on Sunday, April 24, 2022 7:29 AM

Howdy!

Thanks a lot for your message! I'd like to try it, anybody knows what would melt vinyl? I already tried butyl acetate on my tires, that don't seem to be working.

Thanks in advance and have a nice day

Paweł

All comments and critique welcomed. Thanks for your honest opinions!

www.vietnam.net.pl

  • Member since
    April 2020
Posted by Eaglecash867 on Sunday, April 24, 2022 10:13 AM

You can use the adhesive that comes in repair kits for air beds and swimming pools.  It might be a little thicker than it should be though...might clog the treads on the tires.  They list MEK and Ethyl Acetate as the main ingredients in that type of adhesive.  I know that MEK pretty much instantly melts vinyl gloves, so that would probably do the job and won't clog the treads.

"You can have my illegal fireworks when you pry them from my cold, dead fingers...which are...over there somewhere."

  • Member since
    March 2022
  • From: Twin cities, MN
Posted by missileman2000 on Sunday, April 24, 2022 11:09 AM

Vinyl seems to vary in its properties from brand to brand of kit.  Also. some old kits, either MPC or AMT used polystyrene.  These were the ones where you glued the tire sides together.  For either vinyl or styrene, use fine sandpaper.  It will take a lot longer but it will look cleaner.

 

  • Member since
    May 2009
  • From: Poland
Posted by Pawel on Sunday, April 24, 2022 2:35 PM

Hello!

I have some progress to report here! I used keavdog's way of sanding the tires (that trick with the socket is really nice) and Don's advice to take really fine sandpaper - in my case I took 1000 grit. While that didn't completely eliminate the "hair" it minimized the scale of that effect. And what did the trick - I used strong masking tape to remove most of the "hair" by repeatedly sticking and removing the tape from the tire - and the small rubber crumbles stayed on the tape, leaving the tire mostly smooth. The ones that didn't want to come off were picked up with sharp tweezers.

So thank you all for your tips and have a nice day!

Paweł

All comments and critique welcomed. Thanks for your honest opinions!

www.vietnam.net.pl

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