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Man, sounds like a real bummer! Would be nice if Goodyear would build a tire for the street with big letters for us cobra owners. We are a picky bunch aren't we?
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I use a product called Wesleys Whitewall Bleach. It is a cleaner you spray/pump on and wipe right off. They turn instant New white and is cheap also. About $5.00 bucks at Checker or Autozone or any Auto type store on the West coast anyway.
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That stuff only works on the kind of white lettering that is moulded in - it does not work on the billboard Goodyear lettering that is painted on.
For a while you can get away with cleaning the painted on Goodyears using thinner but that eventually takes all the paint off. After most of the paint has been removed by cleaning with the thinner, that is when you use the tire crayon I mentioned in my previous post. Believe me, I have tried everything - Brillo pads don't even faze the brown scum that appears on the lettering. Pat Buckley |
I smell a tire crayon in my future.
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Maybe somr thinking "outside the box" is in order: maybe oil-based paints in the tubes; or even "White-out"? Just guessing, really!
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Like Pat said above.....
The white tire chalk stick has been around for a long time. Very easy to use. Nothing else will get your letters whiter that I know about. Been using the stick since the 70's. - Bill - |
listen to Pat
The tire crayons are good. They are easy to use easy to clean up after and easy to store, don't mess up the drive way like the tire bleach does and are very cheap. Go get one and quit messing with the other junk! |
Rdorman,
I am not convinced your idea is so bad,I actually thought of it myself,but bit the bullet and bought the new bluestreak repros because thats the look I wanted,the tires look like crap,I could have painted them on better,next time I may make a stencil and use my td's,I would scuff the hoosier name off first however,I have seen lots of old school street rods with simulated M&H slicks,and every one here has GOD knows what kind of car with a Cobra or ac emblem on it,I dont see the difference if your after a certain look. Tk |
Also, the Cobra Tire is a bias ply - not exactly cutting edge technology. I agree that buying a good blackwall radial (or whatever,) & spraying on the big letters accomplishes the same purpose - i.e. The Look. But the Cobra Tire does have the raised outline that makes hand painting possible.
Again & again & again. Durt |
Cobra owners can't be the only people who want these tires? Back to my point, does anyone have a stencil? or a pattern? I'm more than willing to by a good set of tires & stecil them on myself. Best of both world!
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As I said in an earlier post, I did a websearch for stencil companies & found a couple that were real helpful, but needed graphic dimensions, original art, etc... at which point I glazed over & made lunch.
I tried a home-made variety, but getting a flat piece of stencil material to conform to a rounded curved surface proved less than successful. I'd like to know what the factory that paints them uses to get some ideas. |
I would imagine that they use a metal stencil, curved to match the sdewall. Hard plastic could work also I would think.
They must not spend a lot of time on them as most of the time the "Goodyear" raised outline on the tire is missed by 3/8" or more. Pat |
Considering we pay $800 basically for the lettering, It's laughable (better than crying) that it's done almost as an afterthought at the factory - with all the enthusiasm & pride of putting a tag on a mattress.
Ah well - what price authenticity. |
I think that if you were really going for period authenticity, you would have Goodyear blue straks with small lettering. I think that the big letters came out in the mid-seventies or later.
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You are right Lew - maybe even later then that.
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NOW you tell me.
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I agree as well the small lettering would be best,,to tell the truth,thats what i thought I was getting when RKrauss told me "excact repro of the original bluestreaks",but oh well,,live and learn,I explored the stencil idea though,a sigh and graphics maker would be the way to go,you could get a pattern from one of these tires by scanning,then shrink it to the correct size,they can cut the stencil on vinyl {peel&stick}for a few bucks,Jc Whitney and simular companies used to sell white tire paint for antique cars and such,it will work,,Tk
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I had a '67 Vette roadster(bought used in 70) that had the Goodyear tires just like the ones that were on Cobras--they had much smaller lettering than ones I've seen on pics of the same "type" of tire on current Replicas--The current Goodyear logo is larger--look in any of the Cobra books, those tire logos do not in any way look like what some some mount as "period" correct Goodyear tires.
You have two choices 1) Get Goodyear to produce the "correct " tire or 2) live with the tire choice you have available. After all it is only a "replica":JEKYLHYDE |
Just a note regarding the BIG "Goodyear" I mean "GOODYEAR" tires which are now sold via Shelby Enterprises as the authentic "COBRA" tire. First, these tires for years were produced in Chile with apparantly very poor quality control standards with a wide range of weighting variances. Second, the price of $800 "for authencity" is just not true. This tire is the best tire I have ever had when it comes to harnessing the power and giving a predictable feedback at it's limits. The best thing I have done with my car (and like most of you that means alot) is put these tires on. It immediatly made my car 10 times safer and more predcictable to drive and accelerates like never before! I used to spin my tires in 1-3rd when pushing it - now I get just a little spin in 1st and the rest is hook-up.
As for painting the letters I used a paint pen that is water proof from the arts store Michael's and it has held up well minus it turning a little yellow/brown on me. Best wishes! |
Cracker you make a strong case for SOME kind of "race" tire for these Cobras!!! I USED to run the T/A's, which are considered "good" street traction tires.
Then I switched to Yokohamas DOT Auto X "race" tires. The difference is night and day! The Cobra feels much safer on the street and is WAY faster on the track. You can't beat "sticky" tires when it comes to controlling your car! ,,,,uh,,,,the down side is I promptly wasted my posi track rear end unit (Ford 9") due to excellent traction! If the tires don't "give" SOMETHING has to. Ernie |
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