What helps you to maintain control and feel secure while driving? To a large degree, it is your tires. What Tires Do
Tires serve a variety of important purposes. They not only bear the weight of your vehicle but also cushion it from bumps, potholes, and other irregularities in the road. More important, your tires supply vitally
needed traction in order for you to accelerate, steer, brake, and provide directional stability under varying road conditions. Yet, only a small portion of the tire about the size of a postcard is in contact with the ground at any one time.
In view of their importance, what can you do to keep your tires functioning safely and efficiently? And when the time comes, how do you select the correct tires for your vehicle? Before answering these questions, let us take a brief look at the history of the tire.
Early Pioneers of Rubber
Although wheels have been in use for thousands of years, the idea of
attaching rubber to the outer rim of vehicle wheels is a relatively recent
development. Natural rubber was first attached to wooden or steel wheels in the early 1800’s. But it wore out quickly, so the future of rubber-coated wheels seemed bleak—that is, until Charles Goodyear, a determined inventor from Connecticut, U.S.A., came along. In 1839, Goodyear discovered a process known as vulcanization, whereby rubber is infused with sulfur, under heat and pressure. This process made the rubber much easier to mold and vastly improved its resistance to wear. Solid rubber tires became more popular, but they gave a rough ride.
In 1845, Scottish engineer Robert W. Thomson received a patent for the first pneumatic, or air-filled, tire. However, it wasn’t until another
Scotsman, John Boyd Dunlop, set out to improve the ride of his son’s
bicycle that the pneumatic tire became a commercial success. Dunlop
patented his new tire in 1888 and started his own company. Nevertheless, the pneumatic tire still had to overcome significant obstacles.
One day in 1891, a French cyclist got a flat tire. He attempted to repair
it but failed because the tire was permanently bonded to the bicycle wheel. He sought the help of a fellow Frenchman, Édouard Michelin, who was known for his work with vulcanized rubber. Michelin spent nine hours repairing the tire. That experience motivated him to develop a pneumatic tire that could be removed from its wheel for easy repair.
Michelin’s tires were so successful that the following year 10,000 happy cyclists were using them. In short order, pneumatic tires were installed on horse-drawn carriages in Paris, much to the delight of their French passengers. In 1895, to demonstrate that pneumatic tires could be used on motorized vehicles, Édouard and his brother, André, put them on a race car, but it finished last. Still, people were so amazed by these unusual tires that they tried to cut the tires open to see just what the Michelin brothers had hidden inside them.
In the 1930’s and ’40’s, durable new materials, such as rayon, nylon, and polyester, replaced the more fragile materials of cotton and natural
rubber. Following World War II, groundwork was laid for a tire that
maintained an airtight seal directly against the wheel, therefore no longer requiring an inner tube to contain the air. Later, further improvements were made.
Today, over 200 raw materials go into making a tire. And with the help of modern technology, some tires boast a life span of 80,000 miles or more, while others can endure speeds of hundreds of miles per hour on a race car. All the while, tires have become more affordable for the everyday consumer. Even at this have you bought a good set of tires lately, they can run you between $400 to $1,000++. So you want you tires to last. Tired of flats and the hassel of changing them. Check out this video, it will amaze you on what they can do with technology. The product is called Bitron, and it works. I have tried it and all they say is true.
needed traction in order for you to accelerate, steer, brake, and provide directional stability under varying road conditions. Yet, only a small portion of the tire about the size of a postcard is in contact with the ground at any one time.
In view of their importance, what can you do to keep your tires functioning safely and efficiently? And when the time comes, how do you select the correct tires for your vehicle? Before answering these questions, let us take a brief look at the history of the tire.
Early Pioneers of Rubber
Although wheels have been in use for thousands of years, the idea of
attaching rubber to the outer rim of vehicle wheels is a relatively recent
development. Natural rubber was first attached to wooden or steel wheels in the early 1800’s. But it wore out quickly, so the future of rubber-coated wheels seemed bleak—that is, until Charles Goodyear, a determined inventor from Connecticut, U.S.A., came along. In 1839, Goodyear discovered a process known as vulcanization, whereby rubber is infused with sulfur, under heat and pressure. This process made the rubber much easier to mold and vastly improved its resistance to wear. Solid rubber tires became more popular, but they gave a rough ride.
In 1845, Scottish engineer Robert W. Thomson received a patent for the first pneumatic, or air-filled, tire. However, it wasn’t until another
Scotsman, John Boyd Dunlop, set out to improve the ride of his son’s
bicycle that the pneumatic tire became a commercial success. Dunlop
patented his new tire in 1888 and started his own company. Nevertheless, the pneumatic tire still had to overcome significant obstacles.
One day in 1891, a French cyclist got a flat tire. He attempted to repair
it but failed because the tire was permanently bonded to the bicycle wheel. He sought the help of a fellow Frenchman, Édouard Michelin, who was known for his work with vulcanized rubber. Michelin spent nine hours repairing the tire. That experience motivated him to develop a pneumatic tire that could be removed from its wheel for easy repair.
Michelin’s tires were so successful that the following year 10,000 happy cyclists were using them. In short order, pneumatic tires were installed on horse-drawn carriages in Paris, much to the delight of their French passengers. In 1895, to demonstrate that pneumatic tires could be used on motorized vehicles, Édouard and his brother, André, put them on a race car, but it finished last. Still, people were so amazed by these unusual tires that they tried to cut the tires open to see just what the Michelin brothers had hidden inside them.
In the 1930’s and ’40’s, durable new materials, such as rayon, nylon, and polyester, replaced the more fragile materials of cotton and natural
rubber. Following World War II, groundwork was laid for a tire that
maintained an airtight seal directly against the wheel, therefore no longer requiring an inner tube to contain the air. Later, further improvements were made.
Today, over 200 raw materials go into making a tire. And with the help of modern technology, some tires boast a life span of 80,000 miles or more, while others can endure speeds of hundreds of miles per hour on a race car. All the while, tires have become more affordable for the everyday consumer. Even at this have you bought a good set of tires lately, they can run you between $400 to $1,000++. So you want you tires to last. Tired of flats and the hassel of changing them. Check out this video, it will amaze you on what they can do with technology. The product is called Bitron, and it works. I have tried it and all they say is true.
In my next blog I will further the discussion on "How to Select a Tire".
By: Shane Smith. If you are looking for landscape or backyard lights then check out: http://makevoltz.com
By: Shane Smith. If you are looking for landscape or backyard lights then check out: http://makevoltz.com
