Split New Inner Tubes

[Penthode]

Hi All,

I recently bought two new 21" inner tubes for my '29 Ford from a respected supplier we should all know in this forum. One was to replace the one in the spare tire and the second to be kept as a spare. The old inner tube appeared okay and held air but I was concerned that it was at least 20 years old.

After I replaced the tube I rotated the tires and the spare was attached to the front left. After a few days (and a hundred miles) the tire was flat due to a split. I have attached a couple of photos which depict the split. I then replaced it with the second inner tube and lo and behold after a few days it split in the same way!

I checked the rim and it was smooth. Last year I removed the tires from the rims, wire brushed them off and applied Rustoleum. I left them drying for a week and then applied new rubber protector bands before installing for new inner tubes from another vendor and replacing the tires. I did the same to the spare tire except I reused the old inner tube. I have had no problems with the inner tubes until now.

The bottom line is I do not think the rim damaged the inner tube as it is relatively smooth and the old inner tube has been running in the former spare for the last few days without any problem.

Comparing the tubes from another vendor, they were a bit fatter than the two I just purchased. In fact the recent two when I put air to them to test appeared to be a bit skinny for my 4.50 tire even though the tubes were labelled to match my tire.

I am going to call the vendor and relay this problem. My question to the forum is have anyone else gone through this and what are your thoughts?

Thanks,

Terry