Tire Shred

[inair]

Yesterday was the best weather we've had on a weekend in a long time. We took advantage and hit the lake. On the way home we got this cool tire shredding action! It was really cool pieces of tire came flying past my window and scared the poop out of me. Ive only had a tire blow up on the highway one other time and it was a single axle trailer. All of that came screaming through my mind when I saw the flying rubber. With the tandem axle though, it was really a non event. It was a rear tire so I couldn't see the situation till I was off the road. We were only a few hundred yards from an exit so didn't even stop on the freeway. Even with the short drive on the bad tire I expected at least a ruined wheel. Turned out the wheel wasn't even scratched. The only damage seems to have been the fender. Just a quick look on google and I think the fender may be a more costly repair than a ground up wheel. All in all still a good day on the water:cool:

http://i1202.photobucket.com/albums/bb375/kennash737/DSC_0242.jpg (http://s1202.photobucket.com/user/kennash737/media/DSC_0242.jpg.html)

http://i1202.photobucket.com/albums/bb375/kennash737/DSC_0243.jpg (http://s1202.photobucket.com/user/kennash737/media/DSC_0243.jpg.html)

[Kma4444]

Little hammer and dolly work and you will have nothing but some sweat equity, well and maybe a little paint, in that fender repair. Nothing wrong with getting off easy!

[Moor]

Prob some filler too, unless your REALLY good with a hammer and dolly :cool:

[jasun]

Same thing happened to me...
http://i919.photobucket.com/albums/ad38/jasunderland/boat%20rebuild/null_zps894ce7f1.jpg (http://s919.photobucket.com/user/jasunderland/media/boat%20rebuild/null_zps894ce7f1.jpg.html)

[wotan2525]

Are these retreads??

[jasun]

Are these retreads??

Not sure. Came with the boat, but they are Good year Trailer Tires.. I think...

[jasun]

Also, they were old with lots of dry rot on top, not the side walls. I go 2 miles to the launch and it happened on the way back one night.

[wotan2525]

I've seen way more bias ply failures than I have passenger radial failures. The fact that the OEMs are now using passenger radials on "custom rims" was enough for me to switch over. I don't trailer much but I haven't had any problems in the 2-years I've been running radials.

[Kma4444]

Towed lots of miles with trailers, mostly race car stuff. They tend to be overloaded or close to it and towed too fast as everything is usually behind schedule. Tire failures just like these are the norm and my rule is always once I have a failure that wasn't an obvious puncture, I replace all the tires. Sometimes that leads to replacing tires that still have life left in them. Sometimes that stops having to replace every other tire on the trailer in rapid succession, on the side of the highway, at night, in the rain, when, as I may have already alluded to, I'm running behind. Sometimes the tires lose pressure, overheat and delaminate, other times they just shed a tread surface. I don't have a good explanation for it other than the tires/axles are usually barely able to handle the load they are being asked to shoulder.

The worst are the stacker trailers where you have a lift inside or a liftgate that will carry a car upstairs. These most often have 16" wheels and use tires like you put on a 3/4 or 1 ton truck. Any "trailer" tires we try are rubbish, the best so far are the Firestone Transforce HT. They hold up well and have the side benefit of when we do lose one, the rest that are taken off ASAP make good tires for the dually. We never wear out the tread on the trailer, just eventually have the carcass failures like the photos above show.

[inair]

All of mine were new radials last spring; that is spring of 2012. I have never seen bald trailer tires and have been told it is the side force while making tight turns that pulls them apart from the inside. I have been as careful as I can in my turns but there are just times you can't make nice wide turns, like gassing up or any thing else that happens in a parking lot and I'm guessing it is as Kma4444 says, I will need to replace them all now.

I have also seen on other web boards that folks have had some success using automotive tires with the appropriate load range. The tires that came on my trailer were load range C. I'm not a tire guy but have been told that the higher the load range the beefier the sidewall? Maybe that is the thing to try next......or maybe just move closer to the lake :)

[TitanTn]

I have also seen on other web boards that folks have had some success using automotive tires with the appropriate load range. The tires that came on my trailer were load range C. I'm not a tire guy but have been told that the higher the load range the beefier the sidewall? Maybe that is the thing to try next......or maybe just move closer to the lake :)

I'm not sure if it means specifically that the sidewalls are beefier, but it does mean that can support more weight. You can go to a D-load, and they'll likely last longer, but they'll also ride a little harder. I really don't think you need anything heavier duty than a C-load.

[NorCalPR]

Tell me that after you curb it one time. I see two radial failures right here. That's two more radial failures than I've ever seen from Bias. Of course, I'm bias as mine only have twenty years on them and just returned from a 220 mile stint.

That's because the new tires nowadays are all Made in China...

Your tires are probably made in USA. No issues with those...



The tires on my trailer are 10 years old, no dry rot, and I've never had an issue. I have a buddy that never had an issue till he bought new trailer tires. The ones he replaced were made in USA, the new ones now are Made in China...

[DAFF]

Tell me that after you curb it one time. I see two radial failures right here. That's two more radial failures than I've ever seen from Bias. Of course, I'm bias as mine only have twenty years on them and just returned from a 220 mile stint.

They just don't make them like they used to, Period. Those old trailer tires use 150% more rubber and banding in the building process compared to the other ones. New tires after 5 years are ticking time bombs. I generally loose 1-2 trailer tires per year. That's with no rot and proper inflation.

[Jetlink]

I'm not sure if it means specifically that the sidewalls are beefier, but it does mean that can support more weight. You can go to a D-load, and they'll likely last longer, but they'll also ride a little harder. I really don't think you need anything heavier duty than a C-load.

My tires are D-Load on my single axle trailer under the comp. They actually ride better in my opinion than the old C-Load tires that failed and got replaced.

[Zim]

I put some E load tires on my single axle. I never want the tires to even be close to overloaded. They won't be with the E's.

[Kma4444]

That's my thinking as well. I always go with as high a load rating as possible. Stiffer all around and that can't be a bad thing on a trailer in my mind anyway.

[tg0824SSVGG]

at least 3 times a year, I trailer my boat 600 miles each way to lake powell -- I don't mess around with old tires, or not-properly-rated tires. I do hate the low profile
rims/tires that Supra put on my trailer ... too hard to find replacements (even at home).

I realize for most folks, the mileage I put on my trailer in one trip is more than they will do in YEARS - but that's what I have been doing for 15+ years.

[blackout_58]

On average, how long do you guys go between swapping out your tires? Also what tire pressure are you running based on your boat size? Just curious.

[TitanTn]

I swap them out when they start blowing or have bad wear patterns. I pressurize them to the maximum cold PSI which changes depends on the load range. Mine is 50 psi.

[Jetlink]

Mine are right at 48psi with max load at 50psi cold. I always check the tires before I leave the house and I have not had to add any air in the last 12 months or more.

[CornRickey]

more times than not trailer tires are replaced due to age or failure due to age than being written out. Seven years is the general rule but I'm more in the 10 year range. All of my tires that won't wear off prior to age ( boat and rv) are stored inside and protected from uv 95% of the time.

[Blackntan90]

Replaced mine last year due to cracks in the sidewall- the ones that came on my trailer were car tires. I read somewhere that trailer tires are made with a different compound, more resistant to UV and stresses that are put on the while towing. So far so good...now I cover them from the sun, and coat them with tire shine that says it blocks UV. Only time will tell. Oh, and I am running 50 psi.