JowettTalk

Found this website, http://www.blockleytyre.com/index.htm and wondered if anyone had used these and how they performed?

They have a 550 x 16 available, and at £155 it is comparable with many of the other options on the market. At least a couple of my old Bradford tyres are 550s, and they should fit Javelin and Jupiter.

The design is crossply, but the tread pattern looks different to the usual design. More of a prewar style, but it makes quite a few claims about performance that I'd be interested to hear from anyone that has tried them.

Jack.

Hi Jack, the Blockley crossply looks to be a performance tyre although the 5 block tread pattern
as you say doesn't look right.
JCS supply 550x16 crossply tyres at £91, that is a lot better price, don't know the make or quality but it
certainly looks a better buy & it supports the club.

Alf.

Hi Jack! I think Blockleys are copies of the same pattern Dunlops, very popular with the VSCC boys on MGs etc for competion work and are priced accordingly. If you are looking to purchase a set of tyres soon, it may be worth a visit to the Beaulieu Autojumble because you can strike some good deals with the likes of Vintage Tyres for a full set and they will usually knock off the VAT as a show promotion - thats what I did a few years back when I was looking for Firestones for the Weasel!

Hi Alf,

I think JCS have stopped doing tyres now, referring buyers to Longstone and Northants amongst others.

Maybe we could have a club scheme with one or two suppliers like we do for insurance? It must be one of the larger purchases that many of us are going to make, at £500 for a set of tyres and tubes at their cheapest!

Jack.

In that case I would highly recomend Longstone Tyres - the service / techinal knowledge and pricing are second to none - free UK delivery and Longstones owner - Dougal is a staunch collector / racer & supporter of the vintage / classic car scene

Only reviews I can find seem to suggest they are fine on the road, but from some comments it sounds like they can develop flat spots if left for a while (obviously eventually any tyre will develop a flat spot if left) and as a result probably wouldn't suit the occasional use that the cars get. This probably is fine for racing where a softer tyre can be a benefit, but not good for me personally.

Looking at radials now to see if these improve handling, they're not cheap but then this isn't a purchase I'll have to make often.

Jack.