Tire date code comfirmation

[MONK]

I got my new Q5s delivered this morning. I was looking for the date code and want to make sure I'm reading this correctly. The number I see is: K52B 3021. No idea what the K52B is but if I'm reading this correctly, the tire was manufactured in March (30) of 2021 (21)? Does that sound right? If so, I'm thrilled to have tires that were just manufactured in the past couple of weeks but that almost sounds too good to be true.

Can anyone confirm what I'm seeing, please?

[Bumble_B]

30th week of 2021? Huh??

[Michaelscs]

My understanding of the date code is the first 2 digits represent the week of the year and the second 2 digits represent the year. So in your case that would be week 30 of 2021, which we haven't had yet. Are you sure your looking at the right numbers? I believe it's the last 4 numbers following the DOT number. I could be wrong.

[Bumble_B]

The date code is usually housed within smooth section of rubber that looks to the shape of a oblong 2 inch area.

[MONK]

What about this:

20210315_112030.jpg

37th week of 2020? That would make it, what? (6) months old?

[hypurone]

What about this:

20210315_112030.jpg

37th week of 2020? That would make it, what? (6) months old?

Yep! That's it! ;-)

[Michaelscs]

That's it.

[MONK]

Thanks, all. I can live with a tire (6) months old. Much more than that (especially with the mileage these are supposed to be famous for) and I'd send it back.

Again, I appreciate the clarification!

[Steve W.]

6 months on a fresh tire is nothing to worry about. It has probably been stored in a reasonable climate and under favorable conditions.

.

[MONK]

I'm good with (6) months. A year is pushing it.

[Little Blue]

Where did you get your tires? What kind of price did you get. ......

[MONK]

Where did you get your tires? What kind of price did you get. ......

Tire Rack. 84 bucks/each (plus tax). Free shipping. Someone will chime in stating that someone has a sale on the Federals for under 50 bucks/each. I get that and was torn between saving $70 and getting these. I read in some thread (and I can't keep track of all the tire threads anymore) that a few had a noise issue with the Federals. I haven't read ANY complaints about the Q5s so I went big (sort of). They should be installed Saturday in time for a quick ride Saturday afternoon. (Local tire shop will do everything including dismount/mount for $10-15/each, depending on whether they can fit them on the balancing machine. They'll even take 'em off the bike and put 'em back on the bike.)

[BLUEKNIGHT911]

Tire Rack. 84 bucks/each (plus tax). Free shipping. Someone will chime in stating that someone has a sale on the Federals for under 50 bucks/each. I get that and was torn between saving $70 and getting these. I read in some thread (and I can't keep track of all the tire threads anymore) that a few had a noise issue with the Federals. I haven't read ANY complaints about the Q5s so I went big (sort of). They should be installed Saturday in time for a quick ride Saturday afternoon. (Local tire shop will do everything including dismount/mount for $10-15/each, depending on whether they can fit them on the balancing machine. They'll even take 'em off the bike and put 'em back on the bike.)

.... Since I discovered the Q-5 ( 6 + mos. ago ) and began recommending it here more and more members are using it ...... because it is relatively new here, the most requested info is about " longevity " ...... So " Monk " keep all of us informed about " how you like it " ..... and for anyone who has put some serious miles on them let us know your mileage ...... Thanks ... Mike

[bigbadbrucie]

I put them on 6,500 miles ago and they still look new. 16 psi. Fronts only. My rear kenda is still ok. Mileage is down due to the pandemic. Didn’t do any overnite trips last year. Have to see what this year brings.

[MONK]

My front Kendas still LOOK good w/only 3k miles on them. I'll bet dollars to donuts that in comparison to the new Q5s they'll feel like what someone else said, "grease on a bowling alley" or something like that. I look forward to taking those 45mph curves at 70mph instead of the current 60mph.

[Peter Aawen]

I'm good with (6) months. A year is pushing it.

Actually, if the tires have been stored properly in 'still air' (no breezes), out of the sun, & at a stable temp between about 10 & 20-25° C, then anything up to about 5 (FIVE) YEARS old isn't really pushing it!!

It's only once you get the tires out of storage and into moving air, sunlight, and fairly significantly changing temps (especially if that occurs rapidly!) that they really start to 'age' &/or 'go off'. In fact, there's quite a few very experienced & renowned 'tire guru's' out there selecting tires for things like World Class Race Teams, Fleet Managers, Transport Companies, Rally cars et al who PREFER to use tires that've been 'aged' for a while - in some cases, at least a year or more!!

This is because the rapid 'evaporation' of the aromatics in 'fresh' or 'green' tires means that they will wear pretty damn quickly & possibly behave unpredictably until they've been put thru a few 'heat cycles', cycles that you may have little control over if they occur on the vehicle/road; while tires that are a year or so old have done all that during their 'aging' and they've done it in a relatively controlled manner! So mildly 'aged' tires tend to work better, last longer, and behave more predictably than 'green' tires fresh outto the manufacturing plant!! There's even people out there (running race teams & transport companies, fleet managers etc) who have been known to 'bake' their 'green' tires for a while in order to emulate a year or so of 'aging them properly' & in a controlled way before they even think about using them on a vehicle! And from personal experience, I can tell you the difference between 'green' & 'baked' tires (for the better) is really noticeable!

So don't be scared or even too wary of tires that have been stored in a (reputable company's) tire warehouse for as much as a few years, they might even work better & last longer for you than those 7 month old tires you would've otherwise rejected!!

[Snoking1127]

Actually, if the tires have been stored properly in 'still air' (no breezes), out of the sun, & at a stable temp between about 10 & 20-25° C, then anything up to about 5 (FIVE) YEARS old isn't really pushing it!!

It's only once you get the tires out of storage and into moving air, sunlight, and fairly significantly changing temps (especially if that occurs rapidly!) that they really start to 'age' &/or 'go off'. In fact, there's quite a few very experienced & renowned 'tire guru's' out there selecting tires for things like World Class Race Teams, Fleet Managers, Transport Companies, Rally cars et al who PREFER to use tires that've been 'aged' for a while - in some cases, at least a year or more!!

This is because the rapid 'evaporation' of the aromatics in 'fresh' or 'green' tires means that they will wear pretty damn quickly & possibly behave unpredictably until they've been put thru a few 'heat cycles', cycles that you may have little control over if they occur on the vehicle/road; while tires that are a year or so old have done all that during their 'aging' and they've done it in a relatively controlled manner! So mildly 'aged' tires tend to work better, last longer, and behave more predictably than 'green' tires fresh outto the manufacturing plant!! There's even people out there (running race teams & transport companies, fleet managers etc) who have been known to 'bake' their 'green' tires for a while in order to emulate a year or so of 'aging them properly' & in a controlled way before they even think about using them on a vehicle! And from personal experience, I can tell you the difference between 'green' & 'baked' tires (for the better) is really noticeable!

So don't be scared or even too wary of tires that have been stored in a (reputable company's) tire warehouse for as much as a few years, they might even work better & last longer for you than those 7 month old tires you would've otherwise rejected!!

Except that a tire sitting around is not getting it's chemicals stirred up. It is said using a tire is better having one just sitting.

[Peter Aawen]

Except that a tire sitting around is not getting it's chemicals stirred up. It is said using a tire is better having one just sitting.

That's definitely true, if you don't have a 'proper' controlled atmosphere/temp/environment tire warehouse.

So sometimes, there's an advantage to be had from running an odd sized tire - if your local tire bloke hasta order it up from their warehouse, where it's been stored in a controlled environment for a while (even a year or three, but not more than five, and definitely not seven +! ) then you'll be getting a tire that's good to go, even if it does sport a date code showing it's a bit older than brand new & fresh outta the mould!


But if you're just storing your tire leaning up against a wall in your un-heated/un-air-con garage, where it's exposed to draughts & temp changes & sunlight just about every time you take a car/bike/Spyder in or out, then definitely YES!! USE IT, or lose it!

[missouriboy]

.... Since I discovered the Q-5 ( 6 + mos. ago ) and began recommending it here more and more members are using it ...... because it is relatively new here, the most requested info is about " longevity " ...... So " Monk " keep all of us informed about " how you like it " ..... and for anyone who has put some serious miles on them let us know your mileage ...... Thanks ... Mike

My front Q-5s have been running 9 months now, 24,200 miles, and still have almost 9/32 tread depth remaining. I run 15-17 psi.
I did have them re-balanced at 20K miles, and that helped... I was getting some handlebar vibration, and that fixed it.

Color me Happy!

[BertRemington]

Tough luck MONK. Looks like I got the good aged tires -- date code 1920. Ordered from TireRack 3/10, delivered 3/11. TireRack is the best online tire seller in the US. Local Can-Am specialist dealer will install 3/29.

[BLUEKNIGHT911]

My front Q-5s have been running 9 months now, 24,200 miles, and still have almost 9/32 tread depth remaining. I run 15-17 psi.
I did have them re-balanced at 20K miles, and that helped... I was getting some handlebar vibration, and that fixed it.

Color me Happy!

Glad to hear this .... I get lots of PM's about these tires, and they always ask " how long will they last ( miles ) " .... so your mileage info is very helpful .... Thanks ....... As to your needing to re-balance - it doesn't happen often, but sometimes a Weight comes loose from the wheel .... this is generally because it wasn't cleaned and wiped with alcohol before attaching the weights. The folks I use to balance my wheels ( for all my veh's. ) do an excellent job .... However I always watch and bring my own Alcohol to wipe it off .... have never thrown a weight yet ..... Mike ................. Glad you using the proper PSI for those tires

[missouriboy]

My front Q-5s have been running 9 months now, 24,200 miles, and still have almost 9/32 tread depth remaining. I run 15-17 psi.
I did have them re-balanced at 20K miles, and that helped... I was getting some handlebar vibration, and that fixed it.

Color me Happy!

WHOA! Big mistake here... I said 9 months. But it's been a YEAR and 9 months! (I only looked at the month, and not the year, of the purchase date. Dummy!)

[MONK]

Got these mounted today. Balanced, too. I think it took 1.25oz on the left side and .75oz on the right side. The guy said the factory had 2.25oz on one side and 1.5oz on the other (or close to it). I told him to put 16# in the tires. He said 61# is a bit much, how about 38#. I said, NO! I want 16#, ONE SIX. I watched and the balance is now PERFECT. When I hooked my FOBO2 back up it showed 16/15.4. (I think one of the sensors on the FOBO2 is off. I've check the tire pressures on the OEM tires and gotten them PERFECT, side to side and the FOBO2 would still show 1 about a 1/2# more.) He had to add misc pieces to his balancer to make it work. Ya know, that's one thing BuRP could improve upon. Make that hub hole more "normal" size so balancing is easier. I even called the local bike shop (who doesn't normally service Spyders). He said they've tried balancing front Can Am tires before but couldn't because they don't have the "right equipment".

[Possible]

Too bad you aren't closer to Missouri. I've got a Mark Parnes balancer with the VFR adapters, so I should be in good shape. And
got the longer shaft to balance the rear too.

[MONK]

Too bad you aren't closer to Missouri. I've got a Mark Parnes balancer with the VFR adapters, so I should be in good shape. And
got the longer shaft to balance the rear too.

They were able to balance them. They just had to think outisde the box again and use multiple pieces instead of the single cone they normally would.