Today, I was at Suicycle (motorcycle shop in Roseville, CA), looking for a tire for my Moto Guzzi, when I noticed (3) 160-60-16 tires for sale. I almost fainted. The were selling them for $132.00. The clerk said he would blow them out to me for $50 each. Of course I bought all three. I was just at this shop a month ago, after modifying my swing arm, looking for a 150-80-16, which I bought. Had I only known they had what I needed, I would have been golden (at least for a while).

Does anyone have any ideas on how to do a long term storage on tires without them degrading?

I dont think it is possible to stop tyres degrading, just slow it down.

Oxygen, ultraviolet light and the polymerising agents will all continue to work over time.

I read somewhere that a tyre looses half its grip by the time it is 5 years old due to natural hardening processes, and will therefore become dangerous on slippery roads.

I bought a 750 paso with new michelins on it last year. You could feel the tyres are hard and takes from riding confidence and enjoyment when compared with my 907 on new bridgestone radials. Even my old CB900 with new narrow continentals gives better feedback and confidence at similar speeds.

Essentially if you tour at low speeds, dont brake hard and dont ride in the wet...........

Sean

So you bought old tires and want to wait that they become even older to ride them ?
Unless you put the bike on display only I would`ve saved the money for a new 150/80 or 180/60-16 instead.

G.

Thanks for all the tips. I love my paso. I will post a picture of it soon. I happen to think I have one of the best looking Paso's around.

All tire rubber is partially cured when a tire is new, and will continue to cure over time, getting harder all the while. Cool and dark will slow the curing process. Heat and sunlight will accelerate it. If you have a wine cellar, that would be good. Or your crawl space under the house.

Old bicycle racers used age tires several years in a cellar to get them to harden up just a bit while keeping some level of traction. It was thought that it made the tires faster since the casings were just a bit harder, and had lower rolling resistance. But then again, would you trust the lore of guys who regularly reach oxygen deprivation?

Good luck with those tires.
Cheers,

Just as an FYI for older tires....

Two years ago, I traded a 90's 900SS triple clamp to a buddy of mine for five front tires. These were all race takeoffs that he used for one session each - in 2001 and 2002. They were stored in a climate controlled room and kept away from direct sunlight. We burned through four of them the last two summers (reserving these older tires for warmer summer months since they were race compounds), and my wife is currently burning through the last front, a Michelin Pilot Race. She's got about 500 miles on the front tire, and she says it is sticking like glue and it only has about a 1 cm "chicken strip". Thing is, the tire was manufactured in September of 1999 - eleven years ago.

If a tire is stored correctly, it'll stay in good, usable shape for quite a number of years.