RV Tires

[MC1]

Originally Posted by Jim Bennett

a)
d) I wish. Come on retirement.

Patient's Jim, but once you are there it is pretty special.

I could have worked at the corporation til 65 and made a lot of money but I'm sure glad I took the freedom 50 door.

[Raz]

Originally Posted by steve dunham

Heading out West in a couple weeks and I don't want to miss seeing the Rockie Mountains cause I was driving too fast.

Trust me, they'll slow you down. Raz

[Jim Bennett]

Originally Posted by P. Raz

Trust me, they'll slow you down. Raz

Plus, pretty hard to miss them, even going real fast.

[Jim Bennett]

Originally Posted by MC1

Patient's Jim, but once you are there it is pretty special.

I could have worked at the corporation til 65 and made a lot of money but I'm sure glad I took the freedom 50 door.

Soon. Going to at least semi-retire soon. A little short of the $2M mark yet.

[MC1]

Originally Posted by Jim Bennett

Soon. Going to at least semi-retire soon. A little short of the $2M mark yet.

LOL, 2M would be nice but I wasn't even close but did it anyway. I had a fellow worker who worked til he was 65 and a year later he pass away. I guess that memory had sunk in so it had much to do with my decision.

[honda03842]

We've been on the road because two friends died, one of mine and one of Ginny's. Ginny's friend turned her retirement papers in one afternoon and was found dead the next day in her home. You just don't know when.

Of course Ginny's mother played a part when she said "The golden years aren't so golden". Referring I'm sure to the effects of aging on the body.

Ginny wondered about the finances. I told her we had enough to live, maybe not in a 4000 square foot house ('definitely in a 92 square foot trailer'.

[The Minimalist]

Goldfinger's girl's bodies were golden. Look what it got them!!

[MC1]

Originally Posted by The Minimalist

Goldfinger's girl's bodies were golden. Look what it got them!!

LOL, yes but she was golden in a very memorable way.

[Kip in Ga.]

Originally Posted by floyd

I doubt you'll hear a Who, but then nobody(but us) believes in them anyway.

While I am not claiming Discount Tire as the definitive authority,I did find the following page from their web site to be interesting reading.
Note the admonition in the left margin, it is the same as the one given by Carlisle Tire Company.
Trailer Tire Facts - Discount Tire

Gotta agree with Floyd on this one!

Both Discount Tire and Tire rack have good information.
Been doing a fair amount of studying this subject for several years.

Conclusions:

-On a trailer, use ST or LT tires.

- Combined load capacity of the tires should be 20% higher than loaded trailer weight. If the loaded trail weight is consistent.

- Because trailer loaded weight can vary, another idea is to use Combined
tire load capacity to be the same or greater than the axle load capacity.
Example: If the axle capacity is 3500# , the tires should be at least 1750# each. (Keep in mind that as a tire ages it looses load capacity)

- "ST" tires usually have engraved on the sidewall to not exceed 65 mph.
So I don't for two reasons.
A. The extra weight behind the Tug will require more stopping and other emergency distances.
B. The folks that build those tires probably think the forces on the tire at higher speeds may stress the tire past what they consider to be safe.
- Run the tires at the Maximum PSI as engraved on the sidewall. Generally, with a few exceptions, 50 lbs PSI.
- Playing games with attempting to somehow make the suspension softer by "Swag-ing" what may work with a given trailer can be dangerous.

- Read about the various Brand's successes as well as failures, and act accordingly. Even when/if a trailer has been brought to a safe stop following a tire failure, there may be considerable damage to the trailer. And that $70 tire will have cost a lot more than a $120 tire that didn't blow. Plus the added dangers of changing a tire on the side of the road and lost time.

- Our used Casita came with black marks under both wheel wells, results of blown tires. It was likely delivered to the that owner with Goodyear Marathon tires, as that was the spare. I don't know anything about the age, condition, maintenance, care, or speeds of those particular tires. So can't say for sure. Because I've read bad reports from others concerning that brand, I stay away from Marathon. Someone else may have had wonderful success with them.

- ST Trailer tires tend to "AGE OUT" sooner than other type tires. "Discount Tire" says they should be replaced every 4-6 years. Even if they still have plenty of tread left. One person explained it this way!

"A gallon of milk may look fine, the contents and container may look new. But when it goes past it's expiration date, those contents become real iffy. They may be OK and they may not."

FWIW: Oliver trailers are using Michelin Truck tires on their very expensive trailers.

Recon there is not really an absolute answer to this much discussed subject.

kip

[MC1]

Gotta agree with Floyd on this one!


FWIW: Oliver trailers are using Michelin Truck tires on their very expensive trailers.

On a trailer, use ST or LT tires.

Recon there is not really an absolute answer to this much discussed subject.

kip

Your post is right on and reflects everything that I have researched and understood for many years.

Our local top towing Guru has been installing Michelin Truck tires on 100's of their very expensive trailers and the reliability stats improved immensely when compared to most previously used ST tires.

[John Linck]

My 2014 Scamp shipped with Super Trail tires. I had never heard of them and had little luck in a quick online search. Seems a brand sold by Amazon and JC Whitney. And while I put 20,000 trouble free miles on them so far, I wonder about them. Does anyone know anything about their manufacturer, level of quality, etc?

Thanks, john

An hour later -- I did a bit more digging and found Super Trail is a Chinese tire imported by Allied Wheel Components of Garden Grove, CA. They have handled them for 17 years with good results and they have a 10 year warranty (at least 5 years longer than I would keep them). My guess is they arrive at Scamp fully mounted on wheels. Not sure how I feel about them.

BTW. The fellow I spoke with had never heard of Scamp, but claimed all trailer tires are from China.

[Raz]

John. my first trailer came with a bias ply tire called American Trail. One day they were fine. Next day they were coming apart. The tread literally separated much like a retread. No one had them listed. Nothing on the Internet. They were apparently an inexpensive OEM tire. Imported of course. Keep an eye on yours. Raz

[MC1]

Originally Posted by P. Raz

John. my first trailer came with a bias ply tire called American Trail. One day they were fine. Next day they were coming apart. The tread literally separated much like a retread. No one had them listed. Nothing on the Internet. They were apparently an inexpensive OEM tire. Imported of course. Keep an eye on yours. Raz

Our local towing specialist took delivery of some trailers and when they arrived at his location to his surprise they had bias ply tires. He was not comfortable selling the trailer with those tires on it and quickly replaced them with LT tires.

[Jim Bennett]

Originally Posted by MC1

.... quickly replaced them with LT tires.

You mean radial LT's, as they make both them and bias ply.

I don't think I would have changed out the tires. With pressuring these tires right up to give rigid sidewalls preferred with trailers to help with tracking, the stiffer sidewalls of the bias would likely be as good, or better. Of course, they don't run as cool, and thus wear out quicker.

That said, I would only buy radials for a trailer, myself.

[MC1]

Originally Posted by Jim Bennett

You mean radial LT's, as they make both them and bias ply.

Yes. Note the RV dealer always talks Michelin so I suspect those were the replacement tires. For 10 years we had Sears branded Michelin P/XL radial tires on our trailer and they performed perfectly. For sure the LT's would have an even firmer sidewall.

[V'sGlassSleeper]

Greetings All,

First, I thought this posting was helpful and interesting and wanted to share: Trailer Towing – ST Tires vs. LT Tires | RV 101® your education source for RV information

The ST205/7514 tires and spare are going to need replacing on my 1988 Bigfoot B19 Deluxe (tandem axle, about 3,500 lbs. probably closer to 4,100 lbs when towing). I have read through this forum and other online resources, checked what reviews I could find, and have decided on:

ST Radial not Bias (for longer and cooler wear that STs are supposed to provide)

ST not LT (many posts indicate that ST are specially designed for travel trailers with stiffer sidewalls and weight bearing capacity, while light truck tires are designed for gripping the road and other issues that are specific to tow vehicles)

However, I would welcome input on the following considerations:

1. Would it be beneficial or just unnecessary to increase the tire size to 15"? I had the drop axles replaced so there should be room. I am planning to have my mechanic add shocks. I will at times go on dirt roads, some of which may be washboardy, but I will not be going off-road.

2. Brand? I am leaning toward the Maxxis because they are well-rated on many websites and forums: Robot Check

Does anyone have additional suggestions? I could not find ST tires by Michelin, and while I have had good experiences with Cooper tires for my cars and truck, they only seem to have LT tires. Another brand that was mentioned with some favorable reviews was Loadstar by Kenda.

Although I normally get my tires from Discount Tires, I am avoiding the Carlisle brand (which is the brand they sell as most-recommended) because they historically have a bad reputation for dangerous blowouts and although they supposedly re-engineered their tires in 2010, I don't see enough positive reviews to risk trying them. Prefer a tried and true brand if any such thing exists these days. Reading the forums, there are a number of brands that seem to have more than their fair share of blowouts and other issues.

3. Maximizing tire life? I live in Phoenix, AZ and while I have my travel trailer parked under a metal shade structure and use wheel covers, the ambient air temperature is still very hot in summer. I wonder if I should start taking the wheels off and storing them in my warehouse during stretches of non-use? Would I store them laying flat and stacked on top of each other or?

4. In reading the forums, it looks like making sure that the frame and axles are balanced and that there are no alignment issues is a major consideration. I will ask my mechanic if he can check on these things when he is doing the brakes, etc. but I think alignments are not his thing, so I may have to take my trailer into a shop for that. Sadly, never got any responses from Phoenix area folks on travel trailer repair shop recommendations, but if I find any good ones, I will share that information.

Any other considerations? Thanks in advance for your input!

[Tom Trostel]

I have no interest in changing from 14" wheels on my Bigfoot. It weighs 2295 lbs. totally empty. There are only 3 tires I will put on it. Hankook RA 08, Maxxis UE 168, or Kumho Radial 857 which I've used for five years with zero problems. None of these are ST tires. I bought the Kumhos online from TireRack.

Kumho Radial 857

[V'sGlassSleeper]

Hi Tom,

Thanks for your response! Did I understand correctly that each of those brands/models lasted you 5 years? (If so, that sounds pretty good for travel trailer tires!) How interesting - no ST tires - why is that? Is your TT is so light that you aren't concerned about needing stiffer sidewalls? Much of the online discussions focus on how important having the radial ST (special trailer) tires is important because of how the trailer weight sits and rides on a trailer versus on a truck, but perhaps that's only true for trailers of a certain weight (not sure if my B19 would be lightweight enough to be in that category). Would be interested to have others weigh in on this too.

[Tom Trostel]

First let me state facts then opinions about trailers tires. Eleven years ago I bought a Compact Jr and spent lots of time, effort, and money fixing it to meet my standards for camping. Part of that process was removing old passenger car tires and replacing with 175/80/13 Goodyear Marathons ST tires. The new tires had almost twice the load rating of the 1200 lb. trailer. On a trip returning to Texas from South Dakota one of the tires totally lost its tread but did not deflate. Tire pressure had been checked that morning. Speed was 60 mph. Outside temperature was 100 degrees F. Tire was less than 2 years old and not made in China. Luckily the trailer was not damaged and I put on the spare and sweated the 300 miles back home. I told myself to get better tires. I replaced both Goodyears with Maxxis M8008. Still ST but in 13" there is little other choice. When I got the Bigfoot now we are looking at 14" tires and lots of other choices. A Kuhmo Radial 857 in size 205R14C has a load rating of 2271 lbs., speed rating of Q (99 mph), and weighs 29 lbs. A Goodyear Marathon in size 205/75/14 has a load rating of 1870 lbs., speed rating of ? (65 mph), and weighs 23 lbs. It is slight smaller that the Kumho, but if it's more robust and stiffer how can it weigh less, support less weight, and fail at much lower speeds? And I almost forgot, the ST has to be thrown away after 3 years regardless of mileage. IMHO the tires companies are not willing to do R&D to make better trailer tires due to lack of financial return. I can think of no other tire type where the consumer is asked to use tires made to 50 year old standards and be happy.

[Jim Bennett]

I have successfully run ST radial tires for many, many years on trailers of all sizes. No issues at all from the tires themselves. Out of alignment axles, nails, etc, all did cause problems though.

I bought a used tandem utility trailer that had light truck tires on it, and it never really seemed stable being towed, even though my truck was an Ford F-350. The manager at the tire shop I have used for over 20 years for both my personal and work vehicles, strongly recommended using a 10 ply ST tire, which allowed higher pressures and larger loads. Once I put them on, all the stability issues were gone.

Also, at his recommendation (as well as that of many others), i have always run my ST tires at maximum pressure, to keep the sidewalls as stiff as possible. Running lower pressure results in less stable loads, and a higher possibility of tire failure.

So, I for one will follow the recommendations of those that design and supply tires for the trailering industry.