Topic: Restoring tires? Possible?

[68 S Code]

I have found some original tires but want to see what can be done with them to make them presentable. These are not NOS just used and or spares which have been tucked away in a trunk. Two are kind of greyish from age. Dont see any dry rot in them and they were recently removed off their original rims. Would like them to appear blacker and maybe brighten the white wall up a bit. I know enough to stay away from Armor All or other tire dressing products. Heard a long time ago to use warm water and sugar to make them shine but things have changed a lot since then. Any recommendations as I dont want to make a mistake and ruin them. A third tire has a different glaring issue. Some knucklehead decided to paint the spare wheel silver without masking off the tire. So I have silver ovespray between the rim and the white wall. Any recommendations to fixing this. Would laquer thinner ruin the rubber? Ive used it on some hoses in the past and its worked but this is much harder to replace a tire than a hose. Recently I've gone to using GoJo on rubber items and it does a nice job without scratching up the surface. Would Back to Black be a good product to revive the shine?

[CharlesTurner]

Some have used black shoe polish with good results.  Mineral oil will help condition the rubber.

Would take the silver paint off with lacquer thinner or if that doesn't do it, paint stripper.

If none of those work, you could always consider spraying some black dye on the tire to get the color back.

[68 S Code]

Charles thanks for the recommendations. So the laquer thinner or stripper wouldn't harm the rubber? I thought of those possibilities on the ride home but figured I'd ask. Thought of shoe polish as well but figured that might be a frowned upon solution. The black dye is a intriguing longer lasting solution. Do you wipe it on wet and let it dry or apply and rinse off? Thanks again.

[CharlesTurner]

A few wipes with lacquer thinner won't hurt the rubber.

The vinyl dye I was referring to would be a spray-on type.  Simply paint with flex additive.  Might not ever get it to stick though without some serious cleaning of the rubber first.

[68 S Code]

Vinyl dye like for interior. I think I would rather go  with the shoe polish versus the paint. Will try to GoJo them with a Wesley white wall cleaner for the stripe. Then I will see how they look. The one with the paint will be a separate issue but may try the semi abrasive gojo to see if any comes off. Laquer thinner and stripper the last resort. I will give the Zaino boys a call.

[craig429]

I have used the Wesley's Bleche Wite cleaner along with a nylon brush on some original tires for my 67, and after a couple applications they came out great.

[mgmradio]

1+ on the bleach white.Then WD40 or Silicone.

[68 S Code]

Tried the Wesleys bleach white yesterday after a initial Simple Green wash. The Wesleys got a the white stripe to pop but tire face was still king of grey. So tried the mildly abrasive GoJo orange and a nylon brush and it made a huge difference. It must have some sort moisturizers in it as the once hard rubber now feels softer to the touch. Probably needs another GoJo application to make it look just right. Wish I could find a nylon brush wheel to put on a drill as this is a time consuming job by hand. The hand cleaner really striped off the overspray on the spare. Just need to figure out how to clean up at the tiny lettering on sidewall. Maybe the laquer thinner? Would the silicone spray harden and crack with age? WD40 sounds intriguing but any downsides?

[mgmradio]

Both the silicone and the WD40 will soak into the tire and help moisturize it.Neather one will harden.I used WD40 first on mine than silicone spray.Had to apply both a few times as they tend to soak in.Been 4 or 5 years since the last application and they still look good.

[68 S Code]

Thanks. Got three tires clean but it took probably  8 hours and a large pump bottle of GoJo and a bottle of Wesley to get them clean and a uniform black with no glossy age areas.  I gave your suggestion of WD40 a try and WOW! Two applications on and waiting to see what a third does.

[68 S Code]

Well here are some pics of the process. May not be perfect but I think a lot better than I started with.

Side by side of before and after the GoJo cleaning.

Pic of the spare with the overspray

Pic of the done spare.

Pic of the tires with WD40 and mounted on rims