Trailer Tires

[McRod]

Originally Posted by waterjosh

You couldn't pay me enough to run Firestone Transforce AT again. That's what came on my Ram 2500, at 19k miles I am looking at buying tires in the spring because they are almost to the wear bars.

I have the Transformer AT2s on my Ram 3500 and they are the best ones so far. Had the HTs prior (good on highway only), and the truck came stock with Rodians (worst ones).

[Searching_Ut]

Originally Posted by waterjosh

You couldn't pay me enough to run Firestone Transforce AT again. That's what came on my Ram 2500, at 19k miles I am looking at buying tires in the spring because they are almost to the wear bars.

Had the same tires on my Ram, nothing good to say about them. Fastest wearing tire I’ve ever owned from both a treadwear and sidewall weathering/cracking perspective. On the 5er I have the Saliuns, running 110 psi, trailer generally around 15k. Treadwear excellent, no evidence of weather affecting them as of yet. Of course who knows what you can’t see. Also, not saddled with a 65mph speed rating.

[grindstone01]

Since the thread has drifted to truck tires, Michelins seem the best for long wear. I could get 70k miles on a set with my Chevy dually and went through 4 sets like clockwork hauling Hot Shot loads. I tried to get 7 years out of my last set and ended up with side wall cracking and 2 blow outs. So the 7 year replacement rule is critical with the Michelins.

[MtCamper]

To get back to the OP, I'm very happy with Sailuns from simple tire. I converted to metal valve stems because I also added TPMS. I also checked to be sure my wheel would hold the max psi of the tires you choose. I went form E to G rated tires. 110 psi rated as are my wheels. The wheels had the max psi stamped inside, some have it stamped on the outside. There are rubber valve stems that are rated to 110psi. Your tire shop should know. I went to the 85 profile without problems. They are rated to carry a few hundred pounds more weight. My Anderson levelers still fit between the tires, but it is close. By going to the G rating, you have more capacity before your tire becomes the limiting factor. BTW, I run mine inflated to 80 psi. Came up with that doing the chalk test. They only have about 10000 miles but look good. I know of one set with 50K that are still on the road. Hugh milage for heavyweight trailers.

[PulNSerenity]

I ended up getting the new Carlise HD's. Time will tell if they hold up well. Can't comment on the ride with them cause the wind was really bad when I took it back to the storage unit. I was getting pulled all over that road. Glad it was only a few miles.

[road dogs]

Originally Posted by PulNSerenity

I ended up getting the new Carlise HD's. Time will tell if they hold up well. Can't comment on the ride with them cause the wind was really bad when I took it back to the storage unit. I was getting pulled all over that road. Glad it was only a few miles.

I would be concerned about getting "getting pulled all over the road" unless you are getting 40-50+ mph side winds! I have pulled thru some fierce side winds on I70 in Kansas and many windy rides thru the Columbia River Gorge and never got pulled around, even when motor homes and pull trailers were ducking off the road to seek refuge from the wind... Did your old tires do the same?

[Paul R. Haller]

I ended up with 5 Michelin LTX 235 85 16 tires. They are quite a bit larger then the original tire on the rig. They do rub on the floor a bit over hard bumps but only a bit. I have had no troubles and they wear very well with about 40,000 on them so far. They look virtually new but they were pricy at about 300 each. I would buy them again however.

Paul R. Haller

[akeagle]

Originally Posted by PulNSerenity

Ok something else... I have seen where some guys insist on metal valve stems. Are these best or is HD rubber just fine?

If you ever contemplate equipping your rig with a Tire Pressure Monitoring System (TPMS), you should get the metal valve stems due to the sensors that need to be added to the stem. The sensors don't weigh but a few ounces, but the metal stems will hold them steady whereas rubber stems will allow movement and may lead to cracking of the rubber stem.

[FastEagle]

Originally Posted by grindstone01

I had the metal stems and when the tire dealer mounted my Sailuns 1 1/2 years ago, they changed to rubber stems. I didn't notice the change until later and decided it's not worth the bother to change them until my next tire change. I figured the tire shop knew what they were doing and I was also curious on how the rubber stems would hold up? So far so good, and that's with the TPMS mounted on the rubber stem.

The tire shop didn't know what they were doing.

USTMA Quote: Bolt-in (clamp-in) metal valve stems are recommended for RV applications. They must be used when valve extensions are installed because the extra weight of the extension or hose can distort rubber stems and ultimately cause loss of inflation.

[FastEagle]

Originally Posted by Paul R. Haller

I ended up with 5 Michelin LTX 235 85 16 tires. They are quite a bit larger then the original tire on the rig. They do rub on the floor a bit over hard bumps but only a bit. I have had no troubles and they wear very well with about 40,000 on them so far. They look virtually new but they were pricy at about 300 each. I would buy them again however.

Paul R. Haller

Wrong designated tire size rubbing on the floor......

[grindstone01]

Originally Posted by FastEagle

The tire shop didn't know what they were doing.

.

I will report if I have any issues with the rubber stems and TMPS at 105 PSI, but so far they have worked good for 15k miles and 1 1/2 years. Like most mechanical problems, solutions are shades of gray, very few black and white solutions.
I too would be concerned with the tire rubbing. What will result when you hit a really deep pot hole and the rub becomes a major contact? I would keep a close eye on them.

[tuffr2]

Fyi - I looked at Flagstaff travel trailers yesterday. They had no name Chinese ST tires with a speed rating of 75mph.

Does anyone know if 75 mph speed rating is the new standard for trailer tires. It used to be 65 mph?

Yikes, bigger tires sometimes hit the floor a bit. That is not good.

[kdauto]

Originally Posted by tuffr2

Fyi - I looked at Flagstaff travel trailers yesterday. They had no name Chinese ST tires with a speed rating of 75mph.

Does anyone know if 75 mph speed rating is the new standard for trailer tires. It used to be 65 mph?

Yikes, bigger tires sometimes hit the floor a bit. That is not good.

All of the 14, 15 and 16" trailer tires I have sold in the past few years had the 75 MPH rating.

My Lakota is running stock tire size, stock suspension, all is in great shape, no sagging nor broken springs and I also noticed very slight tire rub marks on the kitchen slide underpinning (fender liner).

[Tireman9]

Originally Posted by PulNSerenity

Are the Carlisle Radial Trail HD tires any good? I can't afford to go crazy here but don't want to have a blow out either. The Goodyear Endurance were crazy expensive but got great reviews. Tires on the trailer "look" ok. Plenty of tread left & no dry rotting but went to take off this weekend & one of the tires had a huge knot on the inside. Talking the size of a grape fruit! We hit a huge bump in the road our last trip out in WV. Is it possible this broke a belt or is this just maybe a bad spot in the tire? Also we load this thing right up to it's limits. It's a 06' Montana with 2-6,000lb. Dexter axles. Last time we went out with the trailer it weighed in at almost 13,700lbs. There was about 5,800 on the back axle & 5,550 on the front axle. So right up close to max axle weight. Most E tires are rated for 3,550lbs. should I bump up to an F rated tire or am I good to go with the E's?

Yes hitting a large pothole or a piece of road trash (2x4 or 4x4 for example) or curb can all result in an impact break in the sidewall or even the tread area. A well-lit picture might help identify and possibly confirm the reason for the "knot". Impact breaks can happen to any brand and to new or old tires.


RE Carslile tires in your size. I suggest you go to NHTSA and confirm if there are any recalls or investigations.


RE Tire/axle loads. Your axles may be rated 6,000# but what is your GAWR as shown on your certification sticker? For longer tire life your actual scale weight for each tire should be less than 45% of GAWR (90% for the total of tire capacity) RVIA current rating requires tire capacity to be 110% of GAWR (this also assumes perfect 50/50 side to side load split.)


If you are considering going up in tire load capacity or inflation you need to confirm you are not exceeding the load or inflation rating of the wheels.