Tires and floors, oh my.

[CynSum]

Yikes, I just took a closer look at the tires on my 1973 13' Tote n Tarry (similar to older Scamp or Boler trailers) and they are cracked and funky. Where should I look for replacements? The tires are considered "antique", ie the sizing is now done differently. They read 6.15-13, which I understand to mean the width and rim size.
Secondly, oye, the underside of the flooring appears to be just plywood...with some soft spots and possibly black moldy spots. Am I looking at needing to replace the entire bottom or are there any ideas for fixing what I've got. Thanks for your help.

[Dennis mn]

I don't believe that you will find that size tire, but one of your local tire stores will be able to cross reference a proper current size for you. There are other people here that are experienced with floor replacement that will be able to give you advice on the other issue!

[The Minimalist]

Welcome to the forum.

Any tire place will be able to convert those old tire numbers to the new sizes. Just make sure you are getting actual trailer tires and get radials while you are at it.

I'm seeing both rot and and what appears to be a lot of flaky rust. Most rot is caused by fungus living in the wood. The fungus spreads through the wood via mycelium, which is the vegetative body of the fungus and is composed of fine hairy tendrils that spread through the wood and likely go much farther than you can see on the surface. It will be difficult to tell how far the fungus has actually spread.

Given the rust and rot, it may be time for a frame off restoration, which would allow you to replace the entire floor and get the frame blasted and painted.

Given it's a 42 year old trailer, none of this would be surprising.

Short term, if you aren't ready to go this far, and the floor is not actually threatening to fall through and the frame appears to be sound, you may be able to knock of the rust you see, spray it with Ospho or some other rust converter and spray paint the bad areas. Also, look for any water leaks that may be causing the wood to stay wet and repair them. You will need to do this in any case for either a short term fix or a frame off restoration to last. Also, wherever you store the trailer, be sure there is plenty of air flow underneath to prevent/slow down rot development.

You might also have those rims checked on the inside for rust and at least blast and paint the outside of those rims.

[tractors1]

On the tires, I'd pull one and take it into a good tire shop. Probably more cost effective to get new rims along with the tires, particularly if they are tubeless as rust around the valve stem hole could pose a sealing problem when they put in new stems. Painted rims are pretty cheap.

[stude]

Originally Posted by CynSum

Yikes, I just took a closer look at the tires on my 1973 13' Tote n Tarry (similar to older Scamp or Boler trailers) and they are cracked and funky. Where should I look for replacements? The tires are considered "antique", ie the sizing is now done differently. They read 6.15-13, which I understand to mean the width and rim size.
Secondly, oye, the underside of the flooring appears to be just plywood...with some soft spots and possibly black moldy spots. Am I looking at needing to replace the entire bottom or are there any ideas for fixing what I've got. Thanks for your help.

Quote: they recommend that tires on all Vehicles be changed as soon as u see sun damage like Cracks in the sidewalls, or every 9-10years the other problem is they crack on the inside where you cannot see them, so if u ever have a flat have them take tire off the rim to see if any damage on interior of tire.
I change our MH tires every 8-10 years whether they need doing of not, I really do not want a front flat doing 60mph with 7 tons going down the road.
Not fun at all and if you live through it you will always change your tires on time.
Stude

[Bob Miller]

8-10 years is a bit above the suggested 6-7 years usually recommended for trailer tire replacement. I, for one, have personal knowledge of numerous tire failures in the less than 8 years old range.

[stude]

Originally Posted by Bob Miller

8-10 years is a bit above the suggested 6-7 years usually recommended for trailer tire replacement. I, for one, have personal knowledge of numerous tire failures in the less than 8 years old range.

Quote: but 8-10 years is what we do with our Michelins but never more if they need or don't need to be done. We run a 26' MH which weighs 7 ton when full.
My Utility trailer I run sometimes with very old tires but if I see Cracking in the sidewalls I replace them quickly and I do not travel very fast when I have a load in the trailer, but usually they get new tires when I see that they are ready to replace them. Now a FG Trailer is mostly new to us and when I had the bigfoot we immediately installed new tires took the best for a spare put a cover on it to keep the sun off it, re did the bearings check out the brakes and made sure they were working. Had the propane lines checked yearly but a licensed propane dealer as I did a lot of Gravel road driving into Fishing lakes. Never had a problem with the trailer but sure had a lot of problems with that old truck, but it was old and that was the problem.
It is now sold and were into a whole different ball game, sure would like to see some interior and exterior pictures of a Hunter 11 as the weights are similar to a Cadet Trailer.
Stude

[Bob Miller]

Tires sitting in the sun and not being used can lead to more rapid deteriorating than actual use due to the side walls drying out from lack of flexing. Actual deterioration can start from the inside and waiting for cracks to appear may be a false method.


We had 2 Michelin tires fail three years from new on a new mini-van a few years back. Just blew out there side walls without warning.


Just last month I pulled my new, never-been-on-the-road original full size spare from my 2003 Blazer TV and replaced it. Looked brand new. We cut the side wall to prevent future use.


Yes. many do get more than 7 years use from a tire, but is it worth the risk?

[Wayne Collins]

Here we go again. Tire life is largely affected by how they are used and stored.
Out of the sun, and weather, they will last a long longer.
Exposed to sun, and ozone, they will age faster.
So, don't go by years alone. look at tread wear, look for cracking. If none, you're good to go.

You can go to a local Farm & Fleet store, or Home Center and find trailer tires already mounted on new rims.

[Bob Miller]

Quote: So, don't go by years alone. look at tread wear, look for cracking. If none, you're good to go.


Sorry, I can't agree with that evaluation method, and none of the tire companies or recognized tire experts out there can either.


As I just mentioned in Post #8, I just took a 12 year old tire out of service that looked like new, including the telltale rubber mold nubs. If someone put that on his vehicle it might last a week, a month, maybe more, but it sure didn't have any cracks showing.


Next time you have a tire taken off at a dealership have them use the casing spreaders to look at the inside of the casing, it will look a lot worse than the outside, I've seen that.


Tires with cracks need immediate replacement regardless of age, but those without showing cracks, 7 years tops in my book. And for those that just look at sidewalls, cracks first start showing up in the spaces between the tread.


And as motioned this past week on national TV (ABC) some tires have been found that were already 10 years old, being sold as new off the rack. Always insist that any new tires you buy be 6 months old or less.... it's your money and your life....

[Cathi]

Agree that tread condition has nothing to do with it for trailer tires. The tread can look good but the tires need to be replaced due to age. Some would say at 6 or 7 years as above and some might say a little earlier. Sun is a factor and covers can be used while stored.

[Dennis mn]

I really don't know that there is an absolute answer for tire replacement! I have pulled utility trailers with 15 YO tires that were cracked and checked, and even though I was uncomfortable, I got away with it. I have also had a brand new tire explode on my Scamp. It's kinda like ya pays your money and you take your chances. That said, I replaced perfectly good looking tires on my Scamp this summer after about eight years. On my cars and trucks, I tend to replace at about 6 years.

[Pam Garlow]

http://www.discounttire.com/dtcs/inf...rTireFacts.dos

There are also numerous threads you can 'search' to in this group for more tire discussions. This subject comes up regularly.

[Randy J.]

The advice to go to a tire shop is good. Someone had actually put car tires on my old Trillium. The tire shop recommended a suitable trailer tire, saying they have stiffer sidewalls and thus less sway. They work great.

[Bob Miller]

Originally Posted by Pam Garlow

http://www.discounttire.com/dtcs/inf...rTireFacts.dos

There are also numerous threads you can 'search' to in this group for more tire discussions. This subject comes up regularly.

Great link Pam
I consider Discount Tire/America's Tire to be the go to source for correct tire information as well as above excellent service. I have been banking on them for almost 20 years to do the right thing and have never been let down.

[Donna D.]

Originally Posted by CynSum

Yikes, I just took a closer look at the tires on my 1973 13' Tote n Tarry (similar to older Scamp or Boler trailers) and they are cracked and funky. Where should I look for replacements? The tires are considered "antique", ie the sizing is now done differently. They read 6.15-13, which I understand to mean the width and rim size.

OH MY STARS! Didn't the tire sizing information change back in the 1980s? I mean really, you don't want those very old tires on your trailer and sharing the roads with the rest of us, honest. Check out a tire shop.. they'll be able to tell you what size you need (now) based on the information on your OLD tires.

Be safe.

[stude]

Originally Posted by Bob Miller

Quote: So, don't go by years alone. look at tread wear, look for cracking. If none, you're good to go.


Sorry, I can't agree with that evaluation method, and none of the tire companies or recognized tire experts out there can either.


As I just mentioned in Post #8, I just took a 12 year old tire out of service that looked like new, including the telltale rubber mold nubs. If someone put that on his vehicle it might last a week, a month, maybe more, but it sure didn't have any cracks showing.


Next time you have a tire taken off at a dealership have them use the casing spreaders to look at the inside of the casing, it will look a lot worse than the outside, I've seen that.


Tires with cracks need immediate replacement regardless of age, but those without showing cracks, 7 years tops in my book. And for those that just look at sidewalls, cracks first start showing up in the spaces between the tread.


And as motioned this past week on national TV (ABC) some tires have been found that were already 10 years old, being sold as new off the rack. Always insist that any new tires you buy be 6 months old or less.... it's your money and your life....

Quote:especially buying new off the rack being way more than 6months old, It happened to me but lucky my sharp eyed wife caught it before it was installed as she turned the tire over and looked at the date it was made, (she reads this kind of stuff) saved me a lot of bucks as were in process of Buying 4 tires, so we cancelled buying there and headed for Costco.
Stude

[Bob in Mb]

I would think that if the tires are in this condition then the wheel bearings will need attention as well as the brakes if so equiped.