AJW2W11E

Can I use old Tires as Bike Trainer Tires vs discarding them? I have about six of them on my garage wall. Its snowing today.
I was going to head out and buy a bike trainer tire and then I thought, "Why not just use these?" Will they burn up or smell?

Steel Charlie

Burn up or smell??? What kinda speeds you planning on ?

Herzlos

They'll eventually burst when you wear through the tread, but if you're on a trainer that holds the bike by the axle you'll be fine.

I'm not sure I'd use them on a roller, but then I can barely stay on a roller anyway.

KerryIrons

Many people define "old tires" as slightly squared off but no where near worn out. Old and worn out tires are exactly what I use on the rollers and I've never (in 50 years) had one "burst." Without the rough surface of the road, they last forever. And regards the OP's question, a typical trainer might wear out tires faster than the road, but you have nothing to lose by putting your old tires on for that use. The only potential problem is if the rubber has hardened with age and is too slippery to properly grab the trainer roller.

Iride01 

I thought the main reason for trainer tires over regular tires was that some regular tires make more dust as they scrub some on the roller. And that doesn't look good inside on your carpet or floors and nearby walls.

Otherwise the only other concern might be if they slip on the roller. But if you try them, you'll figure out if they work for you or not. Perhaps the worst thing will be is that you'll go through all your old tires quickly and not have any old tires left to use.

caloso

Same here. Don’t really see why anyone would buy a special tire for the trainer.
I’ve heard they’re quieter, but I wouldn’t be able to hear the difference over the fan.

pdlamb

I'd have thought the worn/squared off tire would be the quietest possible surface.

If you use an old tire, do keep an eye on it. Older tires sometimes develop a bubble in the sidewall -- if that happens, replace it ASAP. If you don't, the blowout will scare everyone in the building and your ears will be ringing for a few hours.

datlas 

It’s what I do with old tires. Works for me.

Lombard

A bubble has nothing to do with age. It has everything to do with a defect in the manufacture of the tire.

A few hours? I had a bubble explode once next to me. My one ear was ringing for about 4 months!

genejockey 

And then I put on loud music to cover the noise of the fan(s), so I REALLY wouldn't hear the difference!

tomato coupe

Short answer: Yes
Long answer: Yes, you can, if that's what you'd like to do.

indyfabz

What is the medium answer?

tomato coupe

The medium answer is: "Absolutely not, you'll die in a fireball that will wipe out half a city block." I left it out to avoid confusion.

pdlamb

I've got to disagree with you. I've had a couple tires develop sidewall bubbles near the end of tire life, including one tire I took off and set aside for a couple years. It didn't have a bubble when I took it off, but within a half a day of putting it back on, there was a bubble at lunch. Only an hour or so left, so it'll last until the end of the ride, I thought. Nope! (And to make it worse, it was only a few yards past a road kill skunk.) Since it didn't show that bubble for the first 1,000 miles or so, I have a hard time ascribing it to a manufacturing defect.

msu2001la

I honestly have no idea why people buy trainer specific tires for road bikes. I can see doing this if you've got a MTB/CX/Gravel bike with knobbies and you just need a cheap slick that will only be used indoors, but otherwise just run old road tires.

genejockey 

It's what I'm doing with a GP5000 that got a cut that makes me not trust it on the road. If it blows out on the trainer, I lose nothing but my hearing.

Lombard

I've had two tires bubble. One was a Bontrager Race tire, the other was a Specialized. Neither was at the end of its "natural" life, but probably about mid-way.

bbbean 

Absolutely. No need to buy trainer tires when you've got last season's road tires handy. Ride 'em til there's just the idea of a tire left.

BB

alcjphil

I have seen a road tire that has been used on a trainer later fall apart(almost) on the road. The tires in question were Michelin Pro4 service course, a pretty nice riding road tire. They had very little mileage before they went on the trainer. They were on my girlfriend's bike. She would come and ride with me about 50% of the time that I did almost always quitting about 2/3 of the way through my workout. They probably only had 10-15 hours on the trainer. Once we actually started riding outdoors I was riding 3 times as much as she was, but less than halfway through the summer her rear tire started splitting in the middle of the tread. My take is don't ever use really good tires on a trainer

alcjphil

I pretty much agree with this. Trainer tires work best, but there is nothing wrong with getting that last bit of service out of your old tires

Camilo

I recommend putting an old blanket or towel under the rear wheel area, they do put off some ground up rubber. At least they have put out a bit in the total of about 10 hours I've put on the indoor trainer in the past 10 years.

urbanknight

Sure you can. They will last a very short time, but what have you got to lose?

Trakhak

The medium answer is what we get when we have to read tea leaves because an OP is doing the dance of the seven veils. Unnecessary in this case.

Herzlos

True, it depends on what you mean by old. I was picturing the worst case: a tire that's worn the tread off down to the visible cords.

If you wear any tire long enough it'll eventually burst when you've worn it away to the point it can't handle the pressure coming from the tube. It could take thousands of "miles" though.

Lombard

The solution is simple. Wear hearing protection when riding your worn out tires on the trainer.

https://www.amazon.com/Cyber-Profess.../dp/B078JWXMVR