The previous owner told me that the only time he dropped the bike was when he was doing 50km and hit a bump...The tires look very new but the date on the rear is 2002 and the front is 2003...It seems like a waste to throw out tires that look new.  I will buy some new Kenda or Shinko's in the spring.  Has anyone used old tires?  or do you change them no matter what after a certain age?  I'm guessing they have gone hard and have little traction causing his drop...

Throw them out and get new ones before they kill you.  Are there any cracks in the rubber yet? The sidewalls around the rim seems to crack up first.

RobinW wrote:Throw them out and get new ones before they kill you.  Are there any cracks in the rubber yet?

Nope the rear is older than the front and it looks really good, won't ride on them for sure.  No cracks, nothing.

From the old tyres I've seen, about 4 years is it then you have all sorts of handling issues.

I have Metzler NOS 2004 since may 2013, looks great and black, but the sides crack open
They only did 2000 km.
Before I kick the bucket I will replace asap.

The rubber absorbs gases from the atmosphere and from the pressurized air that cause deterioration.  The signs might not be visually noticeable but the effects cause a dangerous situation.  It is false economy to keep using past-due tires; Replace the tires as a matter of course, even though they may look OK.  Don't accept new tires that have sat on dealers' shelves for a while.  They will also have deteriorated.