tire question

[Ryan_V]

I'm in the market for some new tires on our camper. The camper is a 2001 28' travel trailer. the tires are ok on tread, but are cracking where the tread meets the sidewall. I know it's simply age. My question is this.... The spare tire is brand new, been on the camper since new, always covered, protected from the sun. I've kept it aired up and armor all applied a couple times over the years. Can I use the spare as one of my new ones and get away with buying 3? It looks like it came from the tire shop yesterday. no cracking, etc. Ihad a camper guy say that would be fine, but of course my tire guy/mechanic says I want to buy 4, simply due to the age of the spare. I'm on a severe budget, so if I can save on a tire, I will, but also will buy 4 if I need to in order to prevent the spare letting loose and ripping up a fender in my camper. thought I would check with you folks!!!

Thanks !!!

[Jigging Joe]

I would buy 4. I was always told that age of rubber is a factor, I'm also talking from my past experiences. I tried only buying 1 tire on my boat trailer once because like you it looked fine but didn't last very long after the first one blew and was replaced.

[h8go4s]

If it's the original spare that came with the camper, it's 13 years old. That's well beyond the normal life of a tire, usually stated as 6 years. For safety's sake, please replace it. I don't want to be behind you when it blows. Or beside you.

[minnesotathorn]

I owned a tire store for 30 years & a tire that old won't last long with 3 new ones. much cheaper to replace the tire than to fix all the damage that can occur if it blows out at highway speeds.

[Ryan_V]

You talked me into it. 4 tires it is! Thanks for the input!