trailer tires

[rsr]

Currently running single axle trailer. Noticed after last trip that my tires had a lump in them, (when on jack stands, spin tires and they have a bump when they spin). Told that the steel belts have are separating. Just had the tires balanced before last trip and they seemed fine. Question -with a single axle trailer is it best to run biased tires or steel belted? I've been told that each has it's draw backs - looking for more opinions. Thanks for the help.

[BowTie Rick]

I prefer bias ply, ST 6PR. Less sidewall flex and therefore less sway. They would not still make them if radials were good enough.

[Hotcrusader76]

BowTie Rick:
I prefer bias ply, ST 6PR. Less sidewall flex and therefore less sway. They would not still make them if radials were good enough.http://www.boattrailertires.com/

[malcolm]

I have a single axle trailer under my Spectra 18. I wanted new tires for the first Spectra Regatta. I looked all over and not to many tire places had trailer tires (at least not in 15"). It got down to crunch time so I called Discount Tire. What a shock, they had 18 of them! I picked up 2 Carlisle ST (trailer) radials for 120 bucks.
That was in June, now they have almost 4,000 miles on them! I pulled that boat from Washington all the way to Parker AZ and back again with no problems. All in all I think they're great tires. :cool:

[Banshee]

I have the Goodyear Marathon radial tires on my tandem axel trailer. I’ve had them for about a year now and so far I’ve been happy with them. You can get them with raised white letters too (outline white). Whatever you do, don’t use car tires, the sidewalls just aren’t strong enough.

[Mohavekid]

Been there done that. Go with Bias Ply ST tires. They can be a pain to find but you'll save yourself a lot of trouble, especially on a single axle trailer. Radial non ST tires just have too much sidewall flex to trailer well and they don't last long either. They tend to flex too much and heat up then they fail with typically unpleasant results. If you're lucky, all you have to do is clean up bits of exploded rubber from your trailer and boat.

[RH]

Why would side wall flex be a concern for a trailer and not a car , my boat weights 2500 lb. on a tandem axel trailer [ 4 tires ] our mini van weights 4000 lb. on 4 tires . If car tires are good for 4k why not 2.5k. RH

[Bahner tunnel]

All I can add to this is that as cool as my trailer looks on 50 series tires to match my lowered truck , they sure don't hold up. I have only been to the river 5 times this year and have had one flat and another time a tire completly seperate. They all appeared to be in good shape before each trip. Car tires just don't seem to take abuse of trailer use even though the boat and trailer is lighter than a car.

[LVjetboy]

<The difference>
I'm guessing four things; loading, scrubbing, alignment and speed.
First, loading. If your boat and trailer combo weighs 2.5k, on a single axle, that's like 5k on four wheels...pretty heavy compared to a car. Even some trucks. Higher loading makes for extra stress and heat build-up in the tire. Especially if that tire is near the load limit as it may be for a radial, and more sensitive to under-inflation.
Scrubbing. For tandem or triples, turning forces a scrubbing action or side loading of tires. Swaying from side to side during normal towing would do the same for a single axle...extra heat. And heat destroys the tire.
Alignment. Some trailers are made cheap (relative to a car) and passenger comfort or liability isn't an issue, so both parallel and axial alignment between axles is crappy at best. Not to mention the tow hitch-to-trailer center relationship. All these factors cause scrubbing and tracking problems even when towing straight down the road with single, dual or triple. More stress on the tires. How bad depends on the trailer.
Speed makes heat whether how fast you tow, what size the rim, or what the tire profile. I've had Tow Master F780-15ST bias on a tandem for 10 years, towed from Maryland to California, with no failures on a 19' jet. Although my axle alignment is wearing cups on the tire treads...causing annoying vibrations. But had a 14' Crestliner single axle with 12" bias that failed on a regular basis until I replaced the rims with 14's. Then no problems.
Bottom line, trailer suspensions and designs are much different than passenger car designs, so tire design is different too.
Marketing and liability I'm sure have their place. The varied experiences of tower's both good and bad a result of how well their trailer was made, how many wheels it has, how heavy their boat is, and how fast they tow. Not to mention tire manufacturer and size. Radials do give a smoother ride, but if it was up to me, this job would be that of the trailer...better suspension and shock absorbers...better alignment. Seems the least they could do for some expensive investments out there. Leaf springs being ancient freakin' ox cart technology and all. Suitable for maybe a farm tractor towing cow shit and hay to the barn and such...not suitable for towing an expensive mega $$$ fiberglass sculpture with high dollar sensitive electronic equipment down our poorly maintained highways at 75 mph+.
Just some ideas, I'm certainly no trailer expert.
jer
[ August 24, 2002, 02:34 AM: Message edited by: LVjetboy ]

[Banshee]

Interesting comments from LVJB. I have a Competitive a tandem axel trailer for my 20’ tunnel. My rig tows beautifully down the highway at 75. However, I did notice that the front and back tires are slightly closer together on the right side than the left. I found this out by cutting wheel chocks from wood 4x4’s with 45 degree bevels on each end. I cut them to the exact length required to fit between the front and back wheels on my trailer. This prevents the trailer from moving in either direction when the chocks are installed. Although the chocks are as close to the same length as possible, the one for the right side fits tighter every time, no matter what kind of surface I’m on.
Another thing I was wondering about is why don’t trailer manufactures put shock absorbers on boat trailers? I was thinking of trying to do it myself. Am I on drugs?

[wsm9808]

Last year I sold a TX-19 and bought a picklefork, both boat/trailer combos weighed close to the same, but the new pickle towed like it weighed twice as much. Always figured the axles were out of line with each other and srubing. A good trailer makes a differance.

[grimreaper]

interesting...........if the tires were NOT scrubbing then why would it have been that difficult to tow?
Aero of the boat/trailer combo?

[Super D]

2 Questions: What is the proper inflation psi for trailer tires? 225/75/15. Tire wall says 50psi max cold, AND 32psi to seat bead... I put it somewhere in between...
Second Q: I, too am getting the cupping. Is there anything to be done to prevent this? Alignment or something?

[Mohavekid]

Super D, You're getting cupping because the tires are underinflated. Trailer tires work better at max inflation. This is because of the lack of shock absorbers on trailers. As the weight of the trailer is oscilated up and down due to road irregularities, that movement is absorbed by the springs and tires. That constant flexing is why ST tires are better than regular passenger car tires. Stiffer sidewall means less flexing, more inflation makes the tire firmer as well.

[Super D]

Thanks, MohaveKid!
So do you run yours at 50psi? Or max cold, whichever applies?

[Mohavekid]

Super D, I keep them at the max cold presure rating. The tires on my 82 Sanger with a V/M tandem trailer are the originals and I've got many thousands of miles and many trips to the river on them. Good luck.