OK I am beating this subject to dead ( TIRES)

[Steve,N,Jan]

I have a 30 foot RLO '99 and it currently has Cooper LT tires on it.They are old shiney and look glazed. I do not feel comfortable with them so off they come.
Now after ALOT of studying and searching I have narrowed it down to two Tire brands for replacement.
Existing are LT 235/85/16

1) GoodYear Marathons. 235/80/16 3420 single tire load rateing at 80 psi They do not seam to make an 85. This is an E rated tire

2) Hurcules Hercumile 235/85/16 E 3042 load rateing at 80 psi single tire.
HMMM #2 is right size 380 lb. lower rateing per tire.

at 14000 lb. rateing less 2500 pin weight will #2 be sufficiant?

[joneldbrat]

I'm not absolutely positively sure but the tires you have are LT for Light Truck. I think there is a tire that is RV specific. Like ST Special Trailer for RV'S. The Marathon is one of them. Here is a link that explains a little about them. Maybe you have already seen it. In fact I just looked in the file and I had replaced the 6 on my 5th wheel before I sold it and they were Marathon's.

http://www.goodyear.com/rv/products/marathon.html

[RustyJC]

If you're looking for an E-rated LT235/85R-16 5th wheel tire, arguably the one that's proven to be the most trouble-free is the Michelin XPS Rib. Many individuals who have experienced tread separation problems with other brands have solved those problems by going to the all-steel, commercial rated XPS Rib. As with all E-rated tires of this size, the XPS Rib is rated for a maximum load of 3042 pounds at 80 PSIG inflation pressure in single tire service.

If you need a G-rated LT235/85R-16 5th wheel tire, you're pretty well limited to the Goodyear G614 RST. This is an all-steel construction trailer-specific tire that is rated 3750 lbs @ 110 PSIG inflation pressure in single tire service.

Both of these tires are rated for commercial trailer service (in fact, the Goodyear G614 RST is designed specifically for trailers only) but carry a size designation of LT235/85R-16. Don't be put off by the LT - this is commonplace in 16" and larger diameter tires.

Rusty

[rockintom]

As usual, when it comes to tires, Rusty is on the money. This boy has done his research! Great advice! rockintom

[Steve,N,Jan]

The Michlins have a 3042 load rateing also for singlke tire and the good years are 325 dollars apiece alittle pricey for this poor boy

[RustyJC]

All E-rated tires have a 3042 lb load rating at 80 PSIG in the LT235/85R-16 size. The difference is - the all-steel Michelin can survive running close to this rating where many fabric-and-steel other brand tires cannot.

After experiencing four (4) tread separations over my years of RVing, I don't cheap out on tires. The damage, inconvenience, stress, etc. is far more costly than a quality tire.

By the way, the truck has 6 each LT235/85R-16E Michelin XPS Ribs on it now because of my excellent experience with this tire on our previous 5th wheel. I only wish it were available as a G-rated tire for the 5th wheel.

Rusty

[Ed R]

Quote:

After experiencing four (4) tread separations over my years of RVing, I don't cheap out on tires. The damage, inconvenience, stress, etc. is far more costly than a quality tire.

What brand or brands did you suffer the separation? Were they ST or LT and what size?

thanks
ed

[RustyJC]

The first was on our old 1978 Jayco Cardinal pop-up. I don't recall the tire brand or size, but they were trailer-specific tires.

The second was on our 1996 Jayco Designer 3030RKSS 5th wheel. The tire was a 15" Goodyear Marathon ST trailer-specific tire, and the other 3 were replaced by Goodyear as they were showing early stages of tread separation as well.

The third and fourth were on our current DoubleTree Mobile Suites 36RE3 5th wheel. The tires were Goodyear G614 RST tires that carry an LT235/85R-16G size designation but are trailer-specific tires as shown on Goodyear's website (ref. my previous link). All 4 tires have been replaced by Goodyear. Supposedly, the early G614s had a design or manufacturing flaw that has been corrected - we'll see....

We had no failures on our 2000 Jayco Designer XL 3610RLTS, but I attribute that to my changing the tires out to LT235/85R-16E Michelin XPS Ribs early in the game. The RV came equipped with Goodyear Wrangler HT tires in the same size and load rating as the Michelins. The Wrangler HT is an RV tire as shown HERE - note the page header.

Rusty

[Steve,N,Jan]

well I got 4 tires that I feel comfortable with fotuneatly after haveing them mounted and ballanced I thought to check the preasure when I got home ...sure enough they all were the same .....32lbs. OMG that could have been deadly.