Which date codes are acceptable to you and which aren't?
date codes are 4 digits now a days
i.e. 4302 = 43rd week of 2002
Untill this century they were 3 digit
i.e. 438 = 43rd week of 1998 or 1988 or 1978 or 1968 or who knows
So with the 3 digit you really have no idea how old it is.
With the NDCC or NDT's which are bias ply and were designed to last forever.
Age is a factor, personally on the front of a deuce anything older than T Hawks should be avoided.
Radials are a different animal, I have been cautioned not to put anything over 8 years old on the front. I've heard some truck tire company's won't even mount a tire older than 6 yrs old. (Hear Say)
The 1100R20 XL's I bought were never on the road, they had Inspection stickers on them with "shelf life codes" 5 years and due for re-inspection.
That was shelf life in storage, no idea what the life on the truck was to be expected.
Now sure there will be some here saying the date codes don't matter, and some will even say dry rot cracks don't mean anything either.
I say if you're out on the highway along with soccer mom and the kids, I hope you are running good tires,
especially up front!
Something to think about too, is the speed ratings. They have as much to do with load and pressure as they do centrifical force, think about it a 250lb radial with lots of rubber spinning at 70+ MPH !!!!!!!!