Firestone tyres
As we learned in part one, Harvey Firestone was an innovator and he and his team worked hard to produce products that were built to withstand the rigours of their respective environments.
Internal heat build-up had always been a perennial problem in the carcass, causing the ply to separate – with disastrous results. During 1920 the company developed ‘gum dipping’, a technology that comprised dipping and impregnating every tyre cord fibre with rubber to insulate them against heat and ply separation.
From this development flowed the manufacture of the balloon tyre, which was initially produced, I believe, in 1922/23. The high ratio aspect of the tyre and slightly elliptical profile permitted the
