Scamp 16' installing breakaway switch

[Carol H]

There seems to be a theme in many statements about BC rules, in which the province is supposed to be very strict. In at least two cases (ST tires and breakaway switches), the reality of the rules is quite different. Suspiciously, the source of the misinformation tends to be shops selling trailer equipment and services...

Ok I will bite. What does ST tires stand for? One of the other items on the list of things they will be looking at is our tires.

Carol

[Per Walthinsen]

Carol:
ST stands for "Special Trailer" and as far as I can see the consensus on this forum is that it is the preferred type of tire for our trailers. The ST type will have stronger, stiffer sidewalls and will be more stable on the road. There may well be other benefits that I don't know about.

If you put on ST tires there is another choice you may have to make: between bias-ply and radial-ply. About half hour ago I put new hooves on my Burro (wheels and tires: "Shiny Hoofies," to paraphrase and honor the late Don Ho) and changed from bias-ply to radial. What I understand is that they run smoother (to shake all your belongings less) and run cooler (to keep you from loosing your cool).

I went with a "new" radial from Duro. Harder to get, but the scuttlebut on Carlisles and Marathons (fair or not) does not inspire confidence.

[Carol H]

Carol:
ST stands for "Special Trailer" and as far as I can see the consensus on this forum is that it is the preferred type of tire for our trailers. The ST type will have stronger, stiffer sidewalls and will be more stable on the road. There may well be other benefits that I don't know about.

If you put on ST tires there is another choice you may have to make: between bias-ply and radial-ply. About half hour ago I put new hooves on my Burro (wheels and tires: "Shiny Hoofies," to paraphrase and honor the late Don Ho) and changed from bias-ply to radial. What I understand is that they run smoother (to shake all your belongings less) and run cooler (to keep you from loosing your cool).

I went with a "new" radial from Duro. Harder to get, but the scuttlebut on Carlisles and Marathons (fair or not) does not inspire confidence.

Thanks Per for the clarification. The previous owner gave me the bills for the tires and they are special trailer tires bias-ply...... seem ok.... intreasting though that he purchased a new spare last month but he went with radial.... hope we never have to go more than a mile or so with odd tires...

[Brian B-P]

Ok I will bite. What does ST tires stand for?

Sorry... didn't mean to launch another rehash of the ST issue , just using it as an example.

ST does stand for [b]"Special Trailer". They are the obvious choice of tire type for a trailer; in my example I was referring to the statements that ST tires are legally required for all trailers in B.C., which is both not logical (once you get into the details) and not true (according to the published regulations).

So, sure, use ST tires, equip the under-1400 kg trailer with a breakaway switch and do whatever else "they" say you "must" do (how about put clearance lights on a under-80" trailer, like U-Haul did?)... but none of those things is actually required. At least one (the breakaway switch) does seem like a good idea to me.

As for your combination, Carol: I would treat a [b]radial/bias combination as a low-speed emergency use setup, just like running the space-saver spare on a car... but I wouldn't panic and run out to buy three new tires. I certainly wouldn't downgrade the spare to a bias ply to match.