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What type of foam for tires?
Posted: June 15th, 2015, 5:16 am
by Emilio
Hey folks, anyone have any idea what type of exact foam is used or would work to make tires? I need to make a set for my 2 1/2" tether car rims. Thanks for your help!
Emilio
Re: What type of foam for tires?
Posted: June 15th, 2015, 6:46 am
by Al Gibson (QSL)
Emilio
John Foster would be a great source for that information. Al
Re: What type of foam for tires?
Posted: June 15th, 2015, 8:03 am
by Emilio
Good idea thanks!
Re: What type of foam for tires?
Posted: June 17th, 2015, 4:21 pm
by Emilio
Fortunately I went with my wife to the craft store and found the foam that is almost identical to the foam used in the RC industry more or less, and to be honest they seem almost the same foam as the one on my Gilmer. With that said, I'm posting what I purchased and how I achieved the size and look I was going for, after determining the size, I cut out 2 X of the 2mm foam and 2 x 6mm to get my 5/8 width, then glued together and sanded down to 4" diameter using my dremel as a lathe.Forgot to mention, these foam sheets come in various sizes, I only needed a 5/8 width but you can make these for 1/4 scale up to any size width and diameter using thicker foam sheets. Hope this helps and hope you enjoy 
Re: What type of foam for tires?
Posted: June 17th, 2015, 4:42 pm
by Al Gibson (QSL)
Emilio
Very nice, you found a great way to solve a long standing problem. Al
Re: What type of foam for tires?
Posted: June 17th, 2015, 8:08 pm
by oldschoolmidget
Someone here might know the proper name of that type of foam used for the rc tires.
Re: What type of foam for tires?
Posted: June 18th, 2015, 3:02 am
by Emilio
It's called Closed-Cell foam, the problem is there are so many type of closed-cell foam ranging from neoprene to soft and hard types that it's hard to know what you're looking for unless you can physically touch or see it. What I found for my project is close to what's on my Gilmer. But if someone can chime in on the standard that would be great, either way for me I found what I'm looking for.
Re: What type of foam for tires?
Posted: June 18th, 2015, 4:23 am
by quartermortar
i will post the information that you need as soon as i get to the shop today. John
Re: What type of foam for tires?
Posted: June 18th, 2015, 4:35 am
by quartermortar
The foam you need is from Foam and More you will want neoprene closed cell. This is where i buy my foam from. I have a question for you. What does the tire look like at 30,000 RPM?
Re: What type of foam for tires?
Posted: June 18th, 2015, 7:29 am
by Emilio
Thank you John for the information! John I don't know the RPMs on the dremel but I accidentally went full throttle instead of turning it off and there was very little to no vibration, no wobble or oblong movement, I made sure that all the cuts were perfectly centered. On the other hand, these are just for static display, if I would to run my tether car with these, they would wear down in less than a few circles at over 50 mph. I will definitely try the neoprene closed cell, is this what I'm looking for?
http://www.foamforyou.com/neoprene.htm#Neoprene
Re: What type of foam for tires?
Posted: June 18th, 2015, 7:57 am
by Mike Casey
nice thread. Well done guys!
Re: What type of foam for tires?
Posted: June 18th, 2015, 1:51 pm
by oldschoolmidget
I don't think it's neoprene. I researched it a few years back and it had a different name. I will have to look it up again.
Re: What type of foam for tires?
Posted: June 18th, 2015, 2:53 pm
by oldschoolmidget
Well I looked it up and came up with (EVA) Ethylene-vinyl acetate. Haven't tried it yet, but the neoprene looks good too. Is neoprene all the same? What type would you use??
Anthony
Re: What type of foam for tires?
Posted: June 19th, 2015, 6:52 am
by Emilio
Anthony I'm the last guy to question John.F, he uses neoprene closed cell, which type? that's the answer I'm waiting for from John, I trust he knows best.
Re: What type of foam for tires?
Posted: June 19th, 2015, 2:32 pm
by quartermortar
There is another company that i buy from also. It is the Foam Factory.This is a on going search to find a better rubber. The search goes on. John