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Old 07-04-2017, 04:29 PM   #1
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Name: ChrisAnn
Trailer: 2004 Bigfoot 17CB
Florida
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Need some educating on tires please

Finally got my 04 17CB here to my home in Florida. I need to replace the tires, would greatly appreciate a little education on type, mfg, places to buy (in case something happens on the road warrant etc) the tires on there now are
Vail sport ST225/75D15

EVERYTHING is new to me, never owned a camper and have never towed anything😳 So I am on a learning curve for everything lol. I will be keeping it at a friends place that has an RV hookup for a couple months while I learn about it and go through everything before I take it away for camping trips.

The trip from Wa to Fl (thanks to a few of my wonderful friends) was pretty uneventful 👏👏 except that the wheel bearings on one side went so it got left in Tallahassee for a few days while both sides were re done. The side effect....both tires need to be replaced. And I am wondering, the spare is "new" but I have no idea how old that "new" is.

Thanks in advance, I did try to search but my peramiters must be wrong cause I get nothing.
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Old 07-04-2017, 05:49 PM   #2
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I'm a fan of Discount/America Tire because of its wide network of dealers and good service (at least in my personal experience).

As to brand, you'll get a lot of varied opinions on that. Carlisle, Maxxis, and Goodyear are mentioned a lot. Goodyear just introduced a new ST (special trailer) tire this year called the Endurance. I believe it's the only ST tire made in the US, if that matters to you. Discount is currently switching from Carlisle to Goodyear as their primary ST tire, though they will special order any tire you want. I am currently running Carlisles.

I don't know if multiple load ratings are available in your size. If so, choose one that will carry the full loaded weight of your trailer with a substantial safety margin. Remember that each tire carries approximately half the axle weight, but one side is often heavier than the other.

The big debate is whether LT (light truck) tires or ST (special trailer) tires are better for larger trailers. Since LT tires don't come in 13" sizes for my Scamp, I duck out of that debate. However, there is widespread agreement not to use regular passenger car tires. They aren't designed for load-carrying ability, and flexible sidewalls make the trailer more prone to sway.

You can determine how old a tire is by looking for the date code stamped into the sidewall. It is a 4-digit number in the form WWYY, week and year, so 3613 means the tire was manufactured in the 36th week of 2013. Depending on how the tires were mounted, the date code may be on the back side.
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Old 07-04-2017, 07:06 PM   #3
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Trailer: 2004 Bigfoot 17CB
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Thank you for your reply. I just noticed another thread on tires..don't know how I missed that duh but I will go and read through it. Found some stuff on you tube as well.
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Old 07-04-2017, 08:21 PM   #4
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Not a bad idea to take your trailer to a scale (truck stops are a good place to look for one) and weigh it. Preferably loaded for camping. Then you know what tire capacity you need. There is no absolute guarantee the P.O. Had an adequate set on it.
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Old 07-04-2017, 10:05 PM   #5
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first....

first off I'm surprised at the size of your tires....on my 97 they are 205/75/14s.....I wasn't aware that BF upsized the tires in later models....or course I am assuming that yours is one of the last of the 1500 series....Is this correct? Got a picture of your new trailer?

second, if it was me, in your situation, I would go to a good tire shop and talk to them to see what they would recommend and how much they would charge to supply and install....in the grand scheme of things tires are a pretty small investment and if you do develop a problem you have a place to go......

if one of your tires shreds itself on the Interstate it's not like you can call Amazon or Ebay to complain about it....congratulations and good luck
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Old 07-04-2017, 10:30 PM   #6
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Jon in AZ View Post
You can determine how old a tire is by looking for the date code stamped into the sidewall. It is a 4-digit number in the form WWYY, week and year, so 3613 means the tire was manufactured in the 36th week of 2013. Depending on how the tires were mounted, the date code may be on the back side.
ChrisAnn,

I don't think I read it in the above replies, but tires are generally acknowledged to "age out" and require replacement after a number of years, even when plenty of tread still remains. Opinions vary regarding how many years service you should allow before swapping out for new.

I have come to realize over time that our trailer's tires are often loaded much more heavily (as a percent of their rated load-carrying capacity) than typical passenger vehicle tires are. That's just "built-in" to many trailer designs; they don't provide a lot of excess capacity in the tires. So, between running and sitting, I think it is fair to say that trailer tires experience different stresses than our vehicle tires do.

I think that as you look and read further, you'll find plenty of information and opinions to ponder.
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Old 07-05-2017, 05:58 AM   #7
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Name: ChrisAnn
Trailer: 2004 Bigfoot 17CB
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Thanks everyone for the input so far. Franswa I believe bigger wheels/tires were put on when the axel was flipped or changed, I'd look underneath to see but wouldn't know what I was looking at til it was pointed out to me. jackL looked at the camper with me before I bought it last year and seemed to think the above was the case. I'll see if I can remember how to put a picture on here.
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Old 07-05-2017, 06:05 AM   #8
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Hmm why did the photos flip and how do I fix that?
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Old 07-05-2017, 06:15 AM   #9
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For some reason, the forum software doesn't recognize portrait orientation on newer mobile devices. If you take the photos in landscape orientation (home button on right) they should display correctly.

There are lots of old threads on tires. Best way to find them is the "Site Search/Google" function at the bottom of the drop-down search menu (on the website, not available on the FGRV app). Just a warning- they can get pretty contentious at times...
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Old 07-05-2017, 07:16 AM   #10
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While you will get some great, but varied, advise here, my suggestion would be to take it to a trusted tire shop. Having built up a good relationship over the years with the one I use has given me lots of benefits. I now know the manager and get great advice from him regarding all things tire and suspension wise, get good pricing, and fast service.
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Old 07-05-2017, 07:50 AM   #11
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MAXXIS Tires from Discount Tire.

Why Maxxis? One was from an article I read where someone tried them and explained the manufacturer standards, the solid 3 rings of rubber that circle the tires, and not ONE complaint found on these tires when I was doing alot of research.

Our local trailer company told me to stay away from Carlisle tires what EVER brand I bought. I did.
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Old 07-05-2017, 08:08 AM   #12
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Darral T. View Post
Our local trailer company told me to stay away from Carlisle tires what EVER brand I bought. I did.
I would trust a tire shop long before a trailer dealer on tire advice. Though I have used others brand too, I have successfully used Carlisle tires on many trailers, and never had an issue.
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Old 07-05-2017, 08:22 AM   #13
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Jim,
How many tire shops do trailer tires vs how many will a trailer shop do?? I'm just going by what they say and as with anything, it's quite possible they had a "run-in" with the big C's and now out to get them. Who knows? I've personally never ran Carlisles.

I was pushing the MAXXIS because as I said, I've never read/heard one complaint on them. Cant say that for Marathons, Carlisles and alot others.

Additional- ALOT of the trailer tires nowadays are made in China with their name "stamped" on them. Maxxis are made in Thailand and they own the factory, machinery, quality- thus making their own tires by their specs....not a generic company that will send a trailer tire down the line and change the mold to "MAXXIS" for their run. Just something to think about.

EDIT: I will add the "trailer shop" is a "utility trailer" shop and not "RV".

Quote:
Originally Posted by Jim Bennett View Post
I would trust a tire shop long before a trailer dealer on tire advice. Though I have used others brand too, I have successfully used Carlisle tires on many trailers, and never had an issue.
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Old 07-05-2017, 09:28 AM   #14
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I'd guess upwards of 80% of replacement trailer tires are sold by tire shops. I would trust a tire shop more than an RV dealer/shop. In any case, the person behind the counter matters more than the type of business or the name on the marquee.

Even though it's a chain, the sales manager at my local Discount Tire has over 25 years experience in the tire business locally and knows as much as anybody around. Between horse trailers, utility trailers, boat trailers, and camping trailers, there's almost always at least one on the property getting tires.

I will not enter the brand debate because unless one manages a fleet, no one has enough data involving all the major brands to reach any kind of statistically defensible conclusion.

I suspect how you take care of the tires and the kinds of roads you drive on matter a lot more than the brand.
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Old 07-05-2017, 09:46 AM   #15
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I've often wondered how hard it would be to find the right person to talk to at "U-Haul". THAT would be a "fleet" that would probably be the most used AND abused!

Quote:
Originally Posted by Jon in AZ View Post
I will not enter the brand debate because unless one manages a fleet, no one has enough data involving all the major brands to reach any kind of statistically defensible conclusion.

I suspect how you take care of the tires and the kinds of roads you drive on matter a lot more than the brand.
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Old 07-05-2017, 10:26 AM   #16
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I would add two pieces of advise to this conversation. First, buy you tires at a tire dealer that sells a lot of trailer tires. The tires will more likely be fresh. Second, check the date code on the tires before they are installed. Some dealers are more conscientious about rotating inventory, but even then the guys who put up the stock are generally the newer employees and might not be so concerned. If you have ever been in a tire warehouse, especially in summer, the heat can be oppressive. They just want to get the job done and get back to busting tires in the open bays.
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Old 07-05-2017, 10:53 AM   #17
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Cooper light truck tires are as good as they come!!!! Many are us made to boot.
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Old 07-05-2017, 12:31 PM   #18
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So, what to do with the spare?

I saw mention of tires aging out, and they do. Exposure to air and sunlight are two factors. Actual age is another. Bear in mind that the tire store guy makes a living selling you new tires. You need to evaluate whether to deploy your spare, taking its age and condition into consideration. I'm sure opinions will vary. One option is to swap with your best used tire and use the spare actively to get use out of it, if it has not aged out. Another option is to keep it as the spare. Another is to "retire" it. Pun intended. Someone will say tires must match exactly. Google it.
Presumably it is the size of your active tires/wheels, which were larger than original. I would have somewhat more confidence using the spare if its load rating exceeds the actual load by some margin. How much, I don't know. As mentioned, I would load the trailer and weigh it. Maybe discuss the situation with a tire guy or two before taking your trailer in.
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Old 07-05-2017, 05:06 PM   #19
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Name: ChrisAnn
Trailer: 2004 Bigfoot 17CB
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Thanks everyone, I will research this and think on it for the next few weeks. I appreciate all the help and advice. I'm staying away from the sticky tire thread because most of the conversation is over my head and just adds confusion.
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Old 07-05-2017, 05:58 PM   #20
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Originally Posted by Solowalkin View Post
I'm staying away from the sticky tire thread because most of the conversation is over my head and just adds confusion.
This confusion of everyone's opinions is why I recommend going to a reputable tire shop. There expertise is what they get paid for.
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