trailer tires

[TOXIC]

I’ll tell you what it won’t help with and what seems to be an alarming trend in trailer tires…..separated belts.  My same buddy had a strange vibration on his trailer so he took the tires/rims into a tire shop to have the balancing beads taken out that Ranger uses from the factory and have them traditionally balanced.  When they unmounted his tires from the rim, they found 2 of them had separated belts.  This was on brand new tires.  They were warranty replaced but they could have blown at any time going down the highway.  

[A-Jay]

50 minutes ago, TOXIC said:

I’ll tell you what it won’t help with and what seems to be an alarming trend in trailer tires…..separated belts.  My same buddy had a strange vibration on his trailer so he took the tires/rims into a tire shop to have the balancing beads taken out that Ranger uses from the factory and have them traditionally balanced.  When they unmounted his tires from the rim, they found 2 of them had separated belts.  This was on brand new tires.  They were warranty replaced but they could have blown at any time going down the highway.  

Not sure we can call two tires failing, out of the millions sold, a trend. 

Definitely bad luck, but not really a trend. 

A-Jay

[TOXIC]

10 minutes ago, A-Jay said:

Not sure we can call two tires failing, out of the millions sold, a trend. 

Definitely bad luck, but not really a trend. 

A-Jay

Agreed but I moderate a Ranger Boats Facebook page and the number of posts made about belt separation is definitely alarming.  That would tend to make me believe it’s an increasing problem.  ?

[A-Jay]

9 minutes ago, TOXIC said:

Agreed but I moderate a Ranger Boats Facebook page and the number of posts made about belt separation is definitely alarming.  That would tend to make me believe it’s an increasing problem.  ?

Fair point,

but it's coming in after the fact.

Any particular model or brand that's a repeat offender ?

That could help

A-Jay

[TOXIC]

1 hour ago, A-Jay said:

Fair point,

but it's coming in after the fact.

Any particular model or brand that's a repeat offender ?

That could help

A-Jay

Yes there is but I’m not one to cast a negative light on any manufacturer for the exact reason you gave, there’s a lot of them in service and I have nothing to back up failure rates.  If you know what tire is factory mounted on the new rangers you’ll know.  It’s no different than when the Goodyear Marathons moved production to China and the failure rate seemed to skyrocket.  

[A-Jay]

3 minutes ago, TOXIC said:

Yes there is but I’m not one to cast a negative light on any manufacturer for the exact reason you gave, there’s a lot of them in service and I have nothing to back up failure rates.  If you know what tire is factory mounted on the new rangers you’ll know.  It’s no different than when the Goodyear Marathons moved production to China and the failure rate seemed to skyrocket.  

Got it ~

Thank You.

A-Jay

[Bdnoble84]

On 11/30/2021 at 2:01 PM, gimruis said:

 

That is interesting.  My trailer came with them and other than a bad valve stem, I have had 6 full seasons of satisfactory performance with them.

 

Perhaps there are more factors at play here when it comes to tires.  Like the person driving the truck.

To this point. Driving style/conditions matter. I bought the cheapest walmart tires for my little boat. Reason being I never thought at the tine that I would be traveling more than 50 miles/ interstate speeds. However I had an opportunity to go up north 5hrs at interstate speeds. When i got home, my tires were practically bald. 
so there is something to be said for driving conditions and tire quality.

[gim]

10 minutes ago, Bdnoble84 said:

However I had an opportunity to go up north 5hrs at interstate speeds. When i got home, my tires were practically bald.

I don’t foresee myself driving 5 hours one way with my boat/trailer in tow. About 2 hours one way is the most I’m going. And even that is only twice/year.

 

I replaced my trailer tires about a month ago now and it’s made a noticeable difference. The trailer is hauling more smoothly again on the road. I probably should have done this a little earlier, but I just didn’t have time.

[TOXIC]

19 hours ago, Bdnoble84 said:

To this point. Driving style/conditions matter. I bought the cheapest walmart tires for my little boat. Reason being I never thought at the tine that I would be traveling more than 50 miles/ interstate speeds. However I had an opportunity to go up north 5hrs at interstate speeds. When i got home, my tires were practically bald. 
so there is something to be said for driving conditions and tire quality.

Not to be argumentative but if your tires went bald in one trip you have a trailer problem, most likely an axle.  Driving style is hard for me to grasp for a trailer unless you are fishtailing it around corners and hitting curbs, etc.  There is an issue with dual axles scrubbing the front tires on turns.  Pulling at above the speed rating may cause a tire to blow as will over or under inflation.  All of my trailer tires are balanced.  But to give you a little comparison, I hauled my little 2 man pvc Bass Hunter to both Wisconsin and Florida from my house in Virginia on a tiny wheeled trailer from Tractor Supply and had no problems and still had plenty of tread left.  Would I do it again…..no! I was pretty naive.  Bottom line, you should get your trailer checked.  

[J Francho]

Balding tires in five hours sounds like an alignment issue to me. 

[TnRiver46]

Leave it to fisherman to overcomplicate a round rubber tire

[gim]

21 minutes ago, TnRiver46 said:

Leave it to fisherman to overcomplicate a round rubber tire

 

[Kirtley Howe]

First let me say that for 13 years I drove a 3500 pickup truck towing a 28' gooseneck trailer that weighted 16,000 lbs. I have over 750,000 miles towing like that. I also have often towed boat trailers and utility trailers for personal use. My observations are as follows: 

Most trailer manufacturers (boat, gooseneck, utility....it doesn't matter) will put tires on their trailers that barely meet that load requirements for that trailer. They do that to try to keep the price of said trailer down to a certain price point. You can almost always get an upgraded tire package (at extra cost),, but only if you ask for it.  

In almost all cases owners of trailers underestimate the total weight of what they are towing (trailer weight plus the load on the trailer). That is not due to stupidity or carelessness, but simply because of what I call "creeping load". For instance, let's assume that your new boat and trailer, fully equipped from the factory, weights 10,000 lbs (just an arbitrary weight for discussion purposes.). The tires that came on the trailer are rated to carry that much and maybe even more, so you are good right? Maybe not. Did you opt for the larger gas tank? (Gas weights about 8lbs per gallon...adding 30 or 40 more gallons can another 250-350 lbs to the overall weight of the rig. Did you ditch the 24 volt trolling motor and go to a 36 volt model? More weight...and don't forget the extra battery you just added. Did you add a couple of Power Poles? More weight.  How about the 15-20 rods and reels you may carry? A heaver or extra boat anchor? The 40 boxes of lures? And, as your boat ages, don't forget that the fiberglass may absorb some water (you would be amazed how much water is actually trapped in the hull of an older fiberglass boat!) And so many other things that each do not weigh much but can really add up....Anyway, your 10,000 pound rig now weights 12000 or 13,000 lbs.....or more. If the tires on the trailer were near their load limit with the "stock" weight, they may well be overloaded now. And as the tires age, their load carrying capabilities DECREASE....so the tire that was doing OK 2 years ago may be way overloaded now. 

My advice is to fully load your boat (as if you were going on an extended fishing trip with you and a buddy) and go to a certified scale and find out exactly how much you are actually towing. Then check to make sure the tires are capable of handling that load, PLUS at least another 10% weight. 

Then make sure to keep the tires properly inflated, and check them EVERYTIME before trailering. Always inspect the tires for damage; Don't just look at the outside of the tires, and the tread. Get a hand around the back of the tire and feel for damage, bulges, and cracks. I also keep small inspection mirror in my tool kit, and can use that to actually see the back side of the tire. And don't forget to check the spare tire for damage and pressure...nothing worse than finding out your spare is flat or damaged after you blow out a tire on your trailer. 

Carry a jack that can lift one side of your loaded trailer. Carry a lug wrench that fits the trailer lugs. A battery powered impact wrench can be a real life saver...and are not that expensive. Consider carrying one of those. 

Always carry a set of warning triangles and some flares. You can get a nice kit with the foldable triangles, warning flags, and flares at any truck stop, RV place, and a lot of trailer dealers. They are a good investment.

Always carry a portable air compressor..in the event of a small leak you may be able to just reinflate the tire enough to get to a safe place to change it.  If you carry a portable "jump box" you should consider getting one with the built in compressor. Carry a bright light...working in the dark just does not cut it.

All that may seem like overkill, but believe me it is worth it. Changing a tire on the side of the interstate with cars and trucks blasting by is not fun...and is down right dangerous. The best bet is to try to prevent the problem. But, flats can still happen, so be prepared to easily, swiftly and as safely as possible to change that tire.

Also, I would never consider running a tire that was over 6 years old on any trailer It is just not worth the risk.

Some people recommend carrying a can of Fix-A-Flat, for emergency use. Personally I hate the stuff and will not use it, but to each their own. The reason I hate it is that people tend to use it, and then think the problem is solved because the tire is not currently leaking.....NO THE TIRE IS NOT FIXED...that stuff is just a temporary bandage, and the tire must be repaired ASAP by a professional....and he/she is not going to like dealing with a tire full of that crap....but for heavens' sake DO tell them if you have put it in your tire.

OK...rant over, and I will get off my soap box now. 

Be safe out there.

 

[Bdnoble84]

6 hours ago, J Francho said:

Balding tires in five hours sounds like an alignment issue to me. 

They werent brand new and when i got back, they werent at full pressure (slow leak i noticed the last day but not serious) so im sure that had something to do with it as well.

[Glenn]

So do y'all fill up to the max PSI on the sidewall, or the max PSI listed on the trailer when the two disagree?

[gim]

21 minutes ago, Glenn said:

So do y'all fill up to the max PSI on the sidewall, or the max PSI listed on the trailer when the two disagree?

My trailer doesn’t list a max PSI. I fill my tires to the max PSI listed on the sidewall.

 

I actually did think about this more than once though. My truck has a VIN sticker inside the driver door that lists the recommended PSI for the truck tires that I follow. I don’t inflate my truck tires to the max PSI on the sidewall.

[Sphynx]

1 hour ago, Glenn said:

So do y'all fill up to the max PSI on the sidewall, or the max PSI listed on the trailer when the two disagree?

I would always follow the tire manufacturer's recommended pressure, being a professional driver I deal with my fair share of tires (pay for them too) and I am a big time believer that simply maintaining proper inflation, and replacing tires as tread/life dictates helps keep the maintenance on my tractor and trailer much more reasonable as the various suspension components get much, much less wear on them, the same can be said about regularly greasing your zerks, and regularly changing fluids/filters.

[TnRiver46]

10 hours ago, Glenn said:

So do y'all fill up to the max PSI on the sidewall, or the max PSI listed on the trailer when the two disagree?

I just fill it to 50 without reading either recommendation and roll on . I probably drove my trailer 20-30 hours in the month of June, and I can make the classic forum claim of “no issues”

 

my tires are probably way over 5 years old too, I bought one of them used 

 

guys, it’s a tire. They’ve been rolling down the road long before computers and the internet 

 

I pulled one out of the river and took it to a tire shop. I asked if they could mount it on a better wheel that I had and the guy was skeptical. It locked on there and he said “you got lucky on your floater” (I use the floater as my spare haha)

[gm4511]

There is one tire on the market today that is heads and shoulders better than the rest.

 

Goodyear Endurance Trailer tires are universally recommended on many boating discussion groups. 

[TOXIC]

4 hours ago, gm4511 said:

There is one tire on the market today that is heads and shoulders better than the rest.

 

Goodyear Endurance Trailer tires are universally recommended on many boating discussion groups. 

While I agree the Endurance tire is a good option, there are some other things to consider when purchasing.  I made this post a while back and copied it here for reference:

 

I've recounted this story many times when I was looking for tires 2 sets ago on my dual axle Ranger trailer.  Here in Virginia, we have to get our trailer inspected every year.  The shop I take my trailer to is an independant (no brand loyalty) for inspection.  He specializes in very high dollar equestrian horse trailers that carry a lot more weight and travel a lot more miles than we as bass fishermen do.  Some of these equestrian setups run over 100k and get pulled 10's of thousands of miles a year.  That being said, here's what he told me.  

 

When choosing a trailer tire you need to buy a tire that fits your trailering style.  The golden rule of trailer tires is to buy a tire that is going to be replaced in 4 to 5 years, every tire manufacturer recommends replacement by age and not tread life on a trailer tire.  Depending on how many miles you put on your trailer in that timeframe will dictate the amount you spend on the tires.  If you buy a high mileage more expensive tire that you are going to pull a limited number of miles per year for 4-5 years (replacement time frame), you have wasted your money.  Second consideration is weight.  You don't need high capacity tires on a dual axle where the weight is spread out over 4 tires.  Single axle are more of a concern.  

 

While the Endurance is a very good trailer tire and has excellent weight and tread life as does Kuhmo and Maxxis, my trailer guy recommended Power King Towmax, he felt the Endurance were overkill for my trailering habits.  He does not carry the Power Kings but had installed a lot of them and none had come back for replacement.  I took his advice and ordered a set to be drop shipped to his shop.  He balanced and installed them.  They were flawless for the 4 years I ran them and I make some long pulls.  I put a second set on 1 year ago and they have performed well. 

[gim]

I took a closer look at my trailer yesterday.  Sure enough, on one of the cross beams under the boat, there is a stamp that indicates specific information and one of the items listed is tire PSI.  Its says 50 PSI.  Which is exactly what the max PSI listed on the outside of the tire is.

[TnRiver46]

16 minutes ago, gimruis said:

I took a closer look at my trailer yesterday.  Sure enough, on one of the cross beams under the boat, there is a stamp that indicates specific information and one of the items listed is tire PSI.  Its says 50 PSI.  Which is exactly what the max PSI listed on the outside of the tire is.

Easy to remember also 

[Elkins45]

On 7/10/2022 at 9:36 AM, gm4511 said:

There is one tire on the market today that is heads and shoulders better than the rest.

 

Goodyear Endurance Trailer tires are universally recommended on many boating discussion groups. 

My trailer came with 13” wheels. Unfortunately 14” is the smallest Goodyear Endurance available, so I will need to buy different wheels. There’s only a 2” diameter difference between 175/80-13 and 205/75-14 so I’m hopeful there’s enough clearance for the larger tires under my plastic fenders.

[Johnbt]

" The golden rule of trailer tires is to buy a tire that is going to be replaced in 4 to 5 years,"

 

I always have, but that assumes I get a new tire or one made in the last 6 months or so.

 

I recently bought 3 5.30-12" wheel/tire combos online from my usual well known vendor. I went with a radial this time due to increased time spent on I-95 and I-64. This tire is tested to 81 mph and has an M rating fwiw.

 

They sent me 3 tires made in January of 2021. I sent them a note of disappointment and got a canned answer about how tires are good for a long time and the manufacturer (in China) says they're good to go, etc.

I'd been trying to buy them since 12/2020 but they've been out of stock and the vendor recently cancelled my standing order.     Oh, and the ones I got cost more.  Gee, imagine that.

 

I always run the full 80 psi stated on the sidewall.