Tire mold for ventless tire molding

A tire mold having one or more moveable elements displaceable to bring the tire mold into an open or into a closed position, the tire mold comprising an actuating ring, a top plate and a bottom plate, upper and lower side members, a plurality of mold segments and slide blocks;

• the upper and lower side members and the plurality of mold segments defining a mold cavity;
• the tire mold further comprising a vacuum device arranged to remove a gas from the mold cavity upon its activation;
• and wherein the tire mold has sealing means comprising one or more closing seal members configured to cooperate with associated cooperating surfaces for sealing the mold cavity by contact with each other, the one or more closing seal members and the associated cooperating surfaces being moveable relative to the other upon the displacement of the one or more moveable elements, further wherein, both in a partial closure position of the tire mold in which the one or more moveable elements still have a stroke of at least 3.0 mm before the tire mold is closed, and in the closed position of the tire mold said one or more closing seal members are arranged to face their associated cooperating surfaces without contacting them in a rest condition wherein they are spaced with a distance of at most 1.5 mm and are configured to change from their rest condition to a working condition in which they are in contact with their associated cooperating surfaces upon activation of the vacuum device.