The effect of zinc oxide and testing rate on tack, peel strength, and shear strength of styrene‐butadiene rubber (SBR)/standard Malaysian rubber (SMR L) blend adhesive was investigated using coumarone‐indene resin and toluene as the tackifying resin and solvent, respectively. Zinc oxide concentration was varied from 0–50 parts per hundred parts of rubber (phr). A Lloyd Adhesion Tester operating from 10–60 cm/min was used to determine the adhesion property. Results show that tack and peel strength increases with zinc oxide concentration up to 20 phr of the filler loading. This observation is attributed to the varying degree of wettability, which culminates at 20 phr of zinc oxide content. For the shear strength, it increases steadily with zinc oxide loading, an observation that is associated to the steady increase in cohesive strength due to the interaction between the adhesive and the filler. The adhesion property increases with testing rate and coating thickness. J. VINYL ADDIT. TECHNOL., 22:3–7, 2016. © 2014 Society of Plastics Engineers