White tires/Black tires

[Harry P.]

When did Ford switch from white to black tires?

[freakshow12]

I am not sure I know what you mean but I have turned many sets of tires into a white smokey material.

[Casey]

http://www.mtfca.com/discus/messages/179374/202087.html?1301784348

[Edsel-Dan]

I guess the question should be.

When was Carbon Black added to tire rubber for Black tires.

[Harry P.]

I guess the question should be.

When was Carbon Black added to tire rubber for Black tires.

And the answer would be.....???

[Edsel-Dan]

Not sure.

Read it some where, but forgot!!!! (and where I read it)

But, That was the additive that changed White rubber tires to Black.

That much I remember

Edited May 6, 2013 by Edsel-Dan

[Harry P.]

Yeah, that much I also know. But I need to know when the switch was made, by Ford, specifically.

[customsrus]

B.F. Goodrich started adding carbon black to their tires in 1910, but it was invented to add longer life to tires, the color black was just a side effect.LOL

[Ace-Garageguy]

Period photos available online show Fords with white tires in 1911...

...1912...

...possibly black available by 1914...

...black in a photo dated 1916, but this is an early hot-rod w/ aftermarket tires...

...black in 1919...

.

..definitely black in 1927...

Edited May 6, 2013 by Ace-Garageguy

[johnbuzzed]

What if Henry's last name was... say, Schultz. Would people be driving Schultz Mustangs?

[gtx6970]

I want to say it was late teens or very early 20's all tires were black

[Harry P.]

So going by the photos Bill posted, looks like a 1913 Model T would still have had the white tires. That's what I needed to know!

[Guest]

Shouldn't this have been posted in the Questions and Answers section?

[Harry P.]

Shouldn't this have been posted in the Questions and Answers section?

It's not a question about model building, it's a question about Ford history.

If it bothers you so much, file a report.

[Longbox55]

_{The tires were never actually "white". They were actually a light tan/buff color when new, similar to the sidewalls on a 10 speed bicycle. Photography from the era tended to make the tires appear to be white in pictures, plus as the tires aged, they would bleach out to a white color over time.}

[sjordan2]

I think Art Anderson addressed this question before (but that would require searching the forum, which is not very fruitful).

Anyway, according to the Toyo Tire tech department, carbon black for tires was invented in the U.S. in 1912. At first, only high-end cars had them.

Edited May 6, 2013 by sjordan2

[Guest]

It's not a question about model building, it's a question about Ford history.

If it bothers you so much, file a report.

In other words, you can post questions, request parts etc. in the General section or wherever you like. But, no one else better dare not do it. And Gregg wonders why this forum doesn't generate more subscriptions and sales for the magazine.

[Ace-Garageguy]

In other words, you can post questions, request parts etc. in the General section or wherever you like. But, no one else better dare not do it. And Gregg wonders why this forum doesn't generate more subscriptions and sales for the magazine.

As Harry said, THIS is a question about REAL automotive HISTORY. If you look in the Question and Answer section, Harry DID post a SPECIFIC MODELING question about color-changing black tires to the earlier whitish look.

Maybe I'm stupid, but I'm not seeing the problem. This could have just as properly gone over there, but jeez... ...where's the logical link to subscriptions and sales??

[Harry P.]

As Harry said, THIS is a question about REAL automotive HISTORY. If you look in the Question and Answer section, Harry DID post a SPECIFIC MODELING question about color-changing black tires to the earlier whitish look.

Maybe I'm stupid, but I'm not seeing the problem. This could have just as properly gone over there, but jeez... ...where's the logical link to subscriptions and sales??

He has made a career out of dogging me and jumping on me every chance he gets. I have no idea why. I don't take him seriously.

A question about when the Ford Motor Company switched over from white tires to black ones is clearly a "general automotive" type of question, not a model building question. If he doesn't understand that, I can't help him. Like I told him, if he's that upset, sent in a report.

If anyone here knows the proper place to post things, it would be me.

I think Art Anderson addressed this question before (but that would require searching the forum, which is not very fruitful).

Anyway, according to the Toyo Tire tech department, carbon black for tires was invented in the U.S. in 1912. At first, only high-end cars had them.

Ok, then that would pretty safely put a 1913 Model T in the white tire category, I would think. Thanks.

[vypurr59]

I believe that in reading the article in one of the previous posts, Ford switched to "black" tires on all cars in 1925,

[Ace-Garageguy]

I think Art Anderson addressed this question before (but that would require searching the forum, which is not very fruitful).

Anyway, according to the Toyo Tire tech department, carbon black for tires was invented in the U.S. in 1912. At first, only high-end cars had them.

Other sources identify Binney and Smith as the supplier of carbon black to B.F. Goodrich in "the early 1900s", and there's also this quote from a paper titled "Tires and Nano Materials" from 2012: : "Obtained by incomplete combustion of a feedstock, in 1910 carbon black introduced into tires increased their durability by 40 times". Photographs of concourse restorations of high-end 1911 cars like Packard show both black and white tires, and the period photos seem to confirm the availability, but not necessarily universal fitment. Period shots of 1914 Packards also show black and white tires, so a 1913 T would most likely have been built with the cheaper white ones.

Edited May 6, 2013 by Ace-Garageguy

[mr moto]

I agree that Art Anderson covered this in detail in the past. I'm not sure that I could find the thread but if Art gets wind of this one he can surely answer the question.

[Harry P.]

Unless I hear otherwise from Art, looks like the evidence would suggest that Ford was still using white tires in 1913. Thanks for the help, guys.

[Guest]

As Harry said, THIS is a question about REAL automotive HISTORY. If you look in the Question and Answer section, Harry DID post a SPECIFIC MODELING question about color-changing black tires to the earlier whitish look.

Maybe I'm stupid, but I'm not seeing the problem. This could have just as properly gone over there, but jeez... ...where's the logical link to subscriptions and sales??

You just said the key words Bill. It's a modeling question. The link to the forum and magazine sales? Read Gregg's post about the forum shut down.

[Ace-Garageguy]

You just said the key words Bill. It's a modeling question. The link to the forum and magazine sales? Read Gregg's post about the forum shut down.

The actual MODELING question is in Q&A. THIS thread is an automotive HISTORY question.

Look, I like both you guys. Is this really a big deal ?