what were these old tires?

[Oldhippie]

these were the tires I had on my '68 bronco back in the mid-late '70s and I can't remember much about them... Desert Explorers 11-15 size maybe Kelly or Cooper...I think they were 31" tall (about the biggest I could find at the time) but that is really the question I was asked and couldn't really answer for sure...Anyone know?

Sponsored

 

[Valhalla]

Check Coker tire

 

[Doc TOC]

The "Desert Dog" and "Desert Explorer" were made by Armstrong Tire during the 70's and early 80's. Those monikers were dropped mid-80's. Pirelli bought Armstrong Tire in 1988.

Travelstar (private-label for Horizon Tire in Texas) revived the Desert Explorer moniker and came out with their paddle-style version in 2015 for the Baja/dune crowd.

The tire pattern on your '68 rig is a footnote in the books now.

And for general knowledge, Coker Tire is a vintage/classic/specialty company that licenses a tire format (and sometimes the actual molds) from other brands to keep 'in-demand' tires in supply. They are not a 'close-out' house.

 

[Oldhippie]

Do remember looking at Desert Dogs (think they started out as retreads?) at the time but fell into these cheaper…didn’t know they were both Armstrong…had Armstrong 33” radial Norseman’s on my ‘82 CJ7 Jamboree…great tire at the time…also got radial tires for my Model A from Coker…at any rate since the current farm/construction 11-15 tires are 31”s I‘m saying that is the right answer…

 

[Valhalla]

I felt like these looked like old retreads that trucks used to get.

Sponsored