Trailer Tires

S

Salty Dog

New member
Not sure if this is normal wear and tear on tires, but wanted to pose the question before I get new ones and have the same potential problem. On the right side of the trailer, the front tire has worn very badly and the rear isn't far behind. On the front tire I've got cupping/bald spots wearing on the outside of the tire, while on the rear tire I've got cupping/bald spots wearing on the inside of the tire. The tires on the left side are wearing a little bit, but not nearly as bad as the right side. On the left side I've got some small cupping/bald spots on the outside of the rear tire and the front tire hasn't shown any signs yet of cupping/balding. Does this sound like normal wear? The tires are the original ones from the manufacturer (Carlisle "C" bias ply). Now, I've heard many bad things about Carlisle, so I don't know if it's the tires too. Trailer is a 2001 model, although it sat on the dealer lot for 3 years before I bought it last year. Tires probably have about 5,000 to 6,000 miles on them, with me putting about 2,500 miles on them in June of 2005 alone. Does this sound normal, or should I have the axle alignment or something else checked on the trailer first?

Jack
 
Cupping is usually due to the toe being off on the tire (IE: The tire is being dragged sideways along the pavement). This is not normal.

There are a couple of possibilities here. Since you see a problem on both sides of the trailer it is possible that the axles are not aligned correctly. It sounds like one axle is going left and the other is going right! Pretty tough on any tire! I would put the trailer on jack stands and then measure from the center of the ball to the center of the spindle at the inner race (without the hubs as this needs to be VERY accurate). Then take the same measurement on the other side. If it is off you need to make it the same. This needs to be done for both axles. Once you have the axles aligned you now need to make sure that your toe is correct. To do this simply put the wheels back on and measure from the front of the wheels on the axle and then behind the wheels. They should be within 1/8". If not the axle or a spindle is bent.

I imagine that once you get the trailer aligned the boat will tow MUCH better and you will see a significant improvement on tire wear.
 
I had the same tires on my Pacific tandem 5,000lb trailer and they cupped and chopped up. It helps to have the tires balanced. Mine were not balanced at the trailer factory and I didn't notice for quite a while.
 
I have some questions about trailer tire inflation and ideal pressures.

My trailer is a King 6700# (8375 gvw) tandem axle with these tires:

  • Trail America
    ST 225/75D15
    Load Range D
    Max. Rating: 2540 at 65 PSI

Total miles on the trailer is about 5000. The gross weight for trailer and boat is around 7500#. The tires look good, with very little abnormal wear. Yesterday, getting ready for a tow, I checked the tire pressures. They were all 35-40 psi. I pumped them up to 60 psi, and they are hard as rocks. Towing empty, I really noticed the extra bounce. Towing loaded (just from the ramp to home), it was not much different than with the lower tire pressure (but then the 1-ton truck doesn't really care what's behind it).

I don't remember what the tire pressures were new, but no way were they pumped up as hard as they are now. So, should I run the tires at near max pressure or let them down closer to what I have been running, with what I thought was great success? If I didn't have the wisdom of this place to check with, my tendency would be to take off for the run to Cornet Bay with the tires at 60 psi, and see how they feel on the road. I make frequent stops (between 50 and 100 miles is frequent for me) to check the hub temps and give everything a cursory inspection. On the other hand, I have that dreaded 50 miles of concrete freeway between Olympia and Seattle to go over, and I don't want the boat bouncing up into the back of the truck.

Les Schwab lives just down the street, and I suppose I could go ask him about it, but you guys have more experience towing boats than the kids who work there, and you won't be trying to sell me anything.

Thanks,

Mike
 
Jack,

We had a similar wear problem with our tires (King Trailer). With less than 1000 miles on the trailer, the right front was nearly worn through on the outside edge with the rear not far behind.

Gary gave good advice, check that axle alignment! Our problem was caused by an out-of-round wheel (no apparent damage, just mis manufactured on the horizontal plane). The factory replaced two wheels plus two tires and we upgraded to radial tires for a very nominal cost ($40/ $120 total).

Mike, the tire pressures are set by the manufacturer as a guide for maximum weight carrying capacity. Your trailer is rated at 6700 lbs. at 60 psi (rock hard tires). If you're carrying less than 6700 lbs. (empty trailer) you can lower the pressure but your 25, like ours, is heavy enough to warrant the maximum pressure.
 
Mike
I keep the tires close to the max when towing.
I agree, that stretch of freeway north of Tacoma is the worst! The last time we went to the San Juans,(Lopez), I turned off I-5 just south of Tacoma. Take 512 to Puyallup, then north on 167. You will go right by Auburn (if you need anything from the factory) :lol: 167 turns into 405 and runs on the east side of lake Washington 405 and I-5 meet near Lynnwood.
The freeway is MUCH better than I-5, and was less stressful :crook than driving thru Tacoma and Seattle. I think the distance is about the same.
 
Yeah, thanks, Terry. That north Tacoma stretch, while only about three miles, gives Bambina epileptic fits. She bounces and carries on such that I barely manage 50 MPH. Our pleasant roadmates blowing by at 70+ offer cryptic hand gestures and stare at me as if I were a hideous halloween character.

I like your alternative route.
 
I've been using 512/167/405 for years :) There is NO WAY I will pull a trailer down the Fife area on I5. That is some of the worst section of freeway in the state. Quite often I will head down to fish Pt Defiance and I still bypass all of it and take the 512/167 section. Of course I'm usually coming down Highway 18 to 167 so it isn't that much of a difference.

An out of balance tire could cause cupping but usually you would see it evenly across the tread and not only on one edge or the other. For cupping on one edge of the tire you have to have an alignment problem.

Mike, you want to keep your tire pressure up. As the pressure drops so does the load rating. Since you are pushing the load rating of the trailer with your boat you need to have the pressure very close to the 60lbs rated pressure IMHO.
 
Nancy H":3fi5xa5i said:
I had the same tires on my Pacific tandem 5,000lb trailer and they cupped and chopped up. It helps to have the tires balanced. Mine were not balanced at the trailer factory and I didn't notice for quite a while.
Click to expand...

Yeah...and it also helps to have a tire brand that doesn't suck. I'm guessing Pacific put Carlisles on your trailer, as they did on both of mine. They seem to have about the worst reputation of the many brands of trailer tires out there. After getting a blowout on Da Nag 22 last year, on tires less than a year old with under 2K on them, I spent some time researching to see if my experience was a fluke or not - it's not.

And yes...being the towing road warrior that I am, I check tires daily, and always run them at the max cold pressure. I never drive over 65 when towing, and had the cruise set at 60 when I had the blowout. Fortunately, mine let loose on a flat and straight section of freeway, right before an exit - not a big deal. Had it happened in the twisties of I-5, the pucker factor would have been much higher...

Check out this Carlisle search at rv.net - Carlisle failures are far too common for my comfort level. These folks tow far more than most of us do, and the general consensus over there is the same as Red Fox suggested a while back - Goodyear Marathons are tough to beat.

I called just about every tire place within 20 miles of my house, and the vast majority of dealers agreed with the above as well. Many of them have stopped selling Carlisle, due to the high failure rate. Most agreed the Marathons were the best, but several also suggested Towmasters as a slightly cheaper alternative - also made by Goodyear. These dealers claimed they were virtually the same tire as the Marathon, but were typically about $10 less per tire.

Da Nag is going in to Goodyear tomorrow for 5 new Marathons...I hate the fact I'm spending almost $500 to replace new tires, but it's worth the peace of mind to me.
 
I bought a set of Titan tires and wheels five years ago from Cabela's and have had no problems at all. Has anyone else used this brand and had any good or bad experiences? Joe.
 
Thanks for the responses everyone. Took some preliminary measurements after talking to the dealer and manufacturer. Looks like the axles are about 1/4" off right now. Going to offload the boat tomorrow, readjust the axles (thanks for the post on doing that gljjr) and I've ordered 4 Goodyear Marathons to replace the Carlisle's. Will also check the tongue weight to be sure the boat is sitting on the trailer properly. Hopefully all will be well after that.
 
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