Maybe this is just a case of me discovering what a lot of modelers already knew, but I found a cheap source of spare/old tires to detail garages, junk piles, etc.
I picked up a package of 70’s automobiles at a train show recently. Got it out of a vendor’s junk box for a dollar. They weren’t even from the era I’m modeling, but I got them for the tires. Just cut them off the axles and out of a package of six cars you get 24 spare tires. So if you’ve got some cheap vehicles in your spare parts box, here’s a good use for 'em![^]