Military Vehicles, May 1997,: [MV] military tires

[MV] military tires

MAB5%GSV_BLD%SJR_RGN_FRE1@go50.comp.pge.com
Fri, 30 May 97 11:07:04 PDT

I am brand new to this military vehicle stuff, having just recently
purchased my first ever military vehicle, a 1944 DUKW. I've joined the MVPA,
got their package in the mail last night. I'm learning as fast as I can
folks, but I'm still scared to death I'm going to discard some irreplaceable
thing as I fix, repair, and resurrect this beast.

The beast came with 3 extra tires when I bought it. Apparently the previous
owner picked them up from someplace thinking he would find another 3 somewhere
else. He never found anymore, so these 3 just laid on the ground outside for
years. I didn't really pay any attention to them, other than noting their
size 11.00 X 18 and loaded them up and hauled them home. I just assumed they
were Gamma Goat tires.

As I cleaned up stuff and took stock of what I had and what I didn't have, I
looked closer at the extra tires. The tread looks deep, I estimate 80-90%?
Each tire is made by a different vendor: Goodrich, Goodyear, Continental, and
they are all 10 ply. 10 ply? I thought Gamma Goat tires were 6 ply? Do I
have original DUKW tires?

Someone said there are dates of manufacture on military tires. I can't find
any on these, anybody know where to look?

Unfortunately, each tire has small cracks showing on the sidewalls. These
vary in length and width, some are as long as 3 inches. I assume these will
get bigger should I ever decide to mount and inflate these tires on a rim, not
to mention running it down the freeway on a hot summer day or deflating the
tires to climb out of the water on a sandy beach. My first reaction is these
tires will not survive long the way I intend to operate the vehicle, so I
should look for near new, no crack, Gamma Goat tires. Does this make sense?

If it does, then I have no use for the 3 extra tires I have. If these were
normal tires I would just take them down to the local tire place and say
"Here, scrap these" or whatever they do with old tires. I'm hesitant to do
this with these tires until I check with you folks first. Would they possibly
be of some use/value to someone with a static display DUKW and was concerned
with a restoration to the nth degree? If so, let me know before I dispose of
them.

Thanks for all your help so far. By the way, I'm ready to purchase tires for
this beast. Depending on the answers to this message, I'll need either 4 more
10 ply tires or 7 Gamma Goat tires. What do the tour companies use on the
Duck Tour vehicles? Military surplus Gamma Goat tires, new Gamma Goat tires
(produced within the last 5 years) or something else? Any suggestions?

Mike Bennett 1944 DUKW
PG&E
MAB5@pge.com
(209) 434-9343
Fresno, California, USA

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