Hot Rayon

Inside an automobile tire streaking along at 50 or 60 miles an hour, the temperature often hits 220DEG F. This heat bakes the cotton cord, makes the whole tire wear out. After years of searching for a heat-resisting fabric, several manufacturers have lately experimented with rayon. Unlike cotton, which grows weaker under heat, rayon grows stronger (up to about 175DEG); at 200DEG it has about 45% more tensile strength than cotton. Last month, a U. S. Rubber Co. subsidiary brought out the first rayon-cord passenger-car tire. Last week, Goodyear Tire & Rubber Co. followed suit.

Both U. S. Rubber's and Goodyear's rayon tires will sell for more than the similar articles made with cotton. But both companies claim that four-ply rayon is as sturdy as six-ply cotton. Should rayon ultimately prove more practical, U. S. cotton farmers will lose one of their biggest customers: last year the rubber industry bought some 283,750,000 lb. of cotton, used an average of 5 lb. per tire.

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