The Waterbury Democrat., 1943-11-03

l JklcLLl LO QIlNc UUl or more miles per month. Previous ly, B book holders had been able to get new castings, but now a B card entities the holder only to used tire, the same as an A card holder gets in the west. In the east, As will get none.
 Operators of retail light delivery trucks which carry passenger-car sized tires will get break after Mo- vember 1. For the last 20 months, these 100000 groceries, drug stores and cleansing establishments have mt been able to get any kind of tire Now they will be eligible to buy used tires because the tires they had in service are all worn out. But aside from this, every tire rationing restriction is being frightened.
 FIGURES TELL STORY
 Reason for this necessary tight ening up is simply that the pro- duction of new tires does not meet the demand. In July, new passenger car tires made numbered only about 650,000; in August, 735, 1000; in Sep- tember, 9l5,000. For the three months, the total has been about 2.3 million or a little better than 10000 a month. Against that, the demand has been at the rate of 1.2 million a month, so the country has been running half million tires month behind It's production. build ing up an thrilled demand which will total 6.5 million tires by the end of the year.
 Demand normally drops In the last quarter of the year, and under new rationing restrictions is esti- mated to be 100000 & month. Pro- auction may get over the million-a- month mark. so there is some chance of @ pickup, and If new tires come in at an increasing rate, there is some chance of relaxation after the first of the year.
 The quality of these new synthe- tic tires Is considered good-almost as good as the old natural rubber tires. And the retail price of the standard 600xi6 four ply is fixed at a ceiling of $l7ll without taxes, which Is the same price as for natural rubber tire. Only reason the price Is that low is because the sym thetic rubber is subsidized by the government and sold to the tire manufacturers below cost to enable them to keep down the cost of the tire to the consumer. In spite of this, there is pressure from tire dealers organizations to boost prices 20 per cent or more to meet in. creased costs of labor and materials. Price increases are possible, but are not Immediately imminent.
 Manufacture of tires from re- claimed rubber is out of the picture entirely, having been dropped in March.
 USED TIRES
 Stocks of used passenger tires are lower than the tire trade has ever had, and with greater demand. At the beginning of 1943, there were an estimated five million used tires available for distribution, in the hands of dealers and the Defense Supplies Corporation, which bought Up all the extra tires 1t could find. Up to September l, about five mil- lion certificates to purchase used tires had been issued, and there were four months of the year still to go. Normally, other tires are wearing out or being replaced by new tires. But now, with tires being worn to the fabric, this source of supply has been reduced. Demand for at least a million used tires month has meant search of every scrap pile and the attempted sal- vaging of every casing, even If 1t Is beyond recapping, if 1t can just be patched and put into service as a spare or for a few weeks actual wear. If 3,000,000 used tires can be rounded Up in this search, they will nearly meet the demand.
 The real hope lies in recapping. There Is no shortage of camelback for recapping today, and the quality is good. No certificate Is required for a recap job, that technically having ben abandoned in mid Feb ruary. Recappers are busy. on the average, only about half the time. There is no check up on the num- Der of tires they have recapped, but 1t Is estimated as high as 25 mil- lion for l943 and could be more.
 For 1944, the office of the rubber director estimates a demand for from 35 million to 40 million new tires. The supply of new tires is not anticipated to go beyond 30 million, if 1t reaches that. This deficit, on top of the deficit to be left at the end of ie43, can only be met by further curbs on tire rationing.