RED Sidewall Tires on Pre-War Cars

[John_S_in_Penna]

Car collectors like to debate whether white or black sidewalls

look best on pre-war cars.  Well, folks, there's an alternative--

but it's far enough back in history that few people probably

remember it firsthand:

 

RED SIDEWALL TIRES!

 

See the ad below, from The National Geographic Magazine,

March 1916.  Firestone states that the black tread and red sidewall

are a distinctive mark of their tires.  Red sidewalls were not

some obscure item in a catalog, but, since Firestone was

"America's largest exclusive tire and rim maker," these must

have been seen often on the roads back then.

 

Have you ever heard of these, or seen an early red sidewall tire?

 

 

Edited February 28, 2017 by John_S_in_Penna (see edit history)

[BearsFan315]

Wow, thanks for sharing, Would be interesting to see some pictures or tires themselves.

[Rusty_OToole]

Back then Firestone offered Blue Streak tires as well as the red jobs. I have heard of red solid rubber tires for buggies in the 1890s. Natural rubber was gray, new tires were usually light gray and faded to white in time. They added lamp black to turn the rubber black but they could as easily add a red or blue color.

[Spinneyhill]

I thought lamp black was added for UV stability.

 

Some cars had red radiator hoses and fan belts, e.g. 1930 Dodge Brothers Eight.

[John_S_in_Penna]

48 minutes ago, Spinneyhill said:

I thought lamp black was added for UV stability.

Some cars had red radiator hoses and fan belts, e.g. 1930 Dodge Brothers Eight.

 

I've heard that the black in the tires was added

to the rubber for additional durability and resistance to wear.

I can't say for sure, however.

 

I believe those red sidewalls were a natural-rubber red, not a bright red.

Here's a picture of a red sidewall tire which I came across.

It's an old color picture of a car that probably still had its

then-50-year-old early tires:

 

Edited February 28, 2017 by John_S_in_Penna (see edit history)

[edinmass]

They were also available in raised red letters, and I had a set on my 1914 Cadillac. They were non-skids. Firestone reproduced them in 1946 for Henery Ford and a few of the very early collectors. Austin Clark got several sets. It's interesting to note that they were available in late 1912, although I have never seen an ad for them. Ed

[Dandy Dave]

Red inner tubes were also common. Pulled a few out of tractor and wagon tires when I was a wee bit younger. Dandy Dave!   

[JamesBulldogMiller55Buick]

I remember red heater hose

[1937hd45]

Back in 1967 I bought a one owner 1954 Chevrolet with special heavy duty inner tubes, they were GREEN. Bob

[Curti]

Well, as long as we are on the topic of red. I recently brought home an all original 32 Auburn sedan.  The windshield wiper blade is red as well as the fan belt.  Is there any one reproducing these?

[John_S_in_Penna]

26 minutes ago, Curti said:

... I recently brought home an all original 32 Auburn sedan.  The windshield wiper blade is red as well as the fan belt.  Is there any one reproducing these?

 

Mr. Spinneyhill (posting #4) also mentioned red radiator hoses

and fan belts.  Wow, we learn something new every day.

I hope someone reproduces those, but I have never

heard of them.  If you happen to take them off your car,

Curt, be sure to save them.

 

Do the Auburn-Cord-Duesenberg people REALLY 

know their cars' histories?  If so, someone should want

to get those quite obvious items accurately reproduced.

 

[Restorer32]

Red radiator hoses are readily available.

[dei]

10 hours ago, JamesBulldogMiller55Buick said:

I remember red heater hose

 

I still have one red heater hose on my car from? years ago.

Admittedly not the early rubber initially started about, just saying.

[Curti]

10 minutes ago, John_S_in_Penna said:

 

 

Do the Auburn-Cord-Duesenberg people REALLY 

know their cars' histories?  If so, someone should want

to get those quite obvious items accurately reproduced.

 

10 minutes ago, John_S_in_Penna said:

Yes, there are factory pictures and documentation, along with some very original and complete survivors. The ACD club is making a very diligent effort to compile all this information for the future generations. The ACD judging guidelines are constantly being updated to insure accurate restorations.  The bar is being raised. 

Reproducing fan belts might be a bit of a challenge due to all of the different sizes.  However, new technology is doing some great things now days.   

 

[Curti]

13 minutes ago, Restorer32 said:

Red radiator hoses are readily available.

Yes, Restoration Supply in California has it .

[West Peterson]

14 hours ago, Rusty_OToole said:

 Natural rubber was gray, new tires were usually light gray and faded to white in time.

Natural rubber is white.

The reason that there were grey tires way back in the day is because during the tire making process (when white tires were being made), oil and/or grease from the machines would work its way into the rubber, turning them grey. They were not made grey on purpose.

[Restorer32]

Growing up in Dad's tire shop he taught me how to tell a natural rubber inner tube from a synthetic tube by the different sound they made when tossed onto a concrete floor. Very distinct difference.

[28 Chrysler]

I have a late 1920s NOS red V belt  that is hard as a rock. It was hanging on a nail until 1996

[John_S_in_Penna]

If, as that 1916 Firestone ad implies, red sidewall tires

were common back then, we ought to be able to find

old photographs with red sidewall tires.

 

Look at some of the old black-and-white pictures.

If the sidewall looks medium gray or darker gray,

could the sidewall really have been red?  

What might look like a dirty white sidewall might

actually have been red.

Edited February 28, 2017 by John_S_in_Penna (see edit history)

[Rusty_OToole]

I was informed by someone who was there and working on cars and motorcycles in the teens and twenties, that new tires were light gray and faded to white in time. The question came up when he was showing me pictures of some early cars and bikes he owned and worked on.

[C Carl]

Do any of you guys know when tire companies stopped producing "Redwalls" ? AACA Library ? I like these a lot ! Thank you , John ! - Carl

[Rusty_OToole]

Red line and blue streak tires made a comeback in the late 60s for muscle cars.

[John_S_in_Penna]

On 2/27/2017 at 7:16 PM, Rusty_OToole said:

Back then Firestone offered Blue Streak tires as well as the red jobs.... 

 

Does anyone have any more information on

"Blue Streak" tires from those years?

What were they--blue sidewalls and black treads?

[dibarlaw]

I just pulled the red rubber inner tube from the petrified 600X22 Riverside that was the spare on my 1925 Master. Most of it stuck to the inside of the tire. So all I have are shreds. I believe with about 6 patches.

 I sent a 22" rim to friend Hugh in Texas. The rim and tire I rolled from the Orange Field to our spot in the Chocolate Field. It had a 4.95X22 GENERAL tire probably from the 1930s. Neat tread pattern. When I removed it from the split rim I thought what ever was left inside would be toast. I pulled out a very nice Dayton tube (no patches) which was grey. After I washed it the grey turned to brown. I put a new valve in and it has held air for 2 months!. The flap I pulled out of the Riverside was beautifully made with woven rubber/canvas fabric covered with soft felt facing the tube. 

This type of flap would be tremendously easier to manipulate than the heavy rubber flaps available now.

[Mark Gregory]

Good topic John , There was an article in Hemmings Classic Auto in the Spring ? about coloured tires in the early 1930's . They came in blue , yellow and red . The complete tire was coloured and I bet a dollar they did not turn brown like the white walls nowadays !

[John_S_in_Penna]

Can anyone dig up some old pictures 

that might indicate red-sidewall tires?

 

What looks like a gray sidewall in a

black-and-white picture might really be red!

[Doug Novak]

Remember when you could buy a white wall cover that you placed over the Black Wall tires by deflating the tire and breaking the bead to the rim to place the white wall cover over the tire then re inflate the tire? Haven't seen or heard of them in years but if available you could probably die them Red?

[JACK M]

1 hour ago, Doug Novak said:

Remember when you could buy a white wall cover that you placed over the Black Wall tires by deflating the tire and breaking the bead to the rim to place the white wall cover over the tire then re inflate the tire? Haven't seen or heard of them in years but if available you could probably die them Red?

 

I bought a set of those once and mounted them tubeless.

They all leaked.

[Doug Novak]

Yep about the leaks, it was so long ago I'm guessing it had to be for tube tires.

 

Edited March 1, 2017 by Doug Novak (see edit history)

[lump]

On 2/27/2017 at 7:16 PM, Rusty_OToole said:

Back then Firestone offered Blue Streak tires as well as the red jobs. I have heard of red solid rubber tires for buggies in the 1890s. Natural rubber was gray, new tires were usually light gray and faded to white in time. They added lamp black to turn the rubber black but they could as easily add a red or blue color.

 

I don't know about the really older days of tire brands, but in the early to mid 1960's, "Blue Streak" was a Goodyear tire brand. It was a 70 series "performance" model tire. 

[lump]

3 hours ago, Doug Novak said:

Remember when you could buy a white wall cover that you placed over the Black Wall tires by deflating the tire and breaking the bead to the rim to place the white wall cover over the tire then re inflate the tire? Haven't seen or heard of them in years but if available you could probably die them Red?

 

Yep, they were called, "Porta-Walls," as I recall. Once they became scarce, hot rodders wanted them for the "nostalgic hot rod" look. I got a bunch of them in the late 1970's or early 80's at an estate auction, and assumed they would be hard to get rid of. But hot rodders bought all that I had. 

 

Those things could be a pain to work with. Unless they were well-made, and fairly fresh, they grew stiff and tended to stick out from the sidewall in places. And as someone else mentioned, they were prone to leak with tubeless tires. 

[John_Mereness]

On 2/28/2017 at 8:09 AM, Curti said:

Well, as long as we are on the topic of red. I recently brought home an all original 32 Auburn sedan.  The windshield wiper blade is red as well as the fan belt.  Is there any one reproducing these?

You can get new red wiper blades for Model A Ford (you may have to trim them) - try some of the better reproduction sources that specialize in people doing MARC high point cars.

[Curti]

That is Interesting John. I need a couple for the 31 coupe & 32 sedan . I also need red fan belts. 

[John_S_in_Penna]

On 2/27/2017 at 8:40 PM, edinmass said:

They were also available in raised red letters, and I had a set on my 1914 Cadillac. They were non-skids. Firestone reproduced them in 1946 for Henery Ford and a few of the very early collectors. Austin Clark got several sets. It's interesting to note that they were available in late 1912, although I have never seen an ad for them. Ed

 

Ed, if you had those red-letter tires on your 1914 Cadillac,

do you have any pictures to show us?  Any pictures you

can find would really enhance our knowledge.