New Tires

[matt167]

I install trailer tires professionally as part of my day job and not through a mcdiscount tire shop. so I can give some sound, accurate advice.

The best tire that you can buy is Goodyear Endurance radial. The Goodyear Marathon is a tire to avoid.
Michellin rates their LT truck tires for trailer service, if your size is available
A good runner up is a Carslile Radial Trail, or any other radial trailer tire that has a wider casing. Cheap junk tires will have beads that nearly touch each other when deflated.

Only buy a bias ply if you must. They are on the low end of the cost spectrum and a handful of use case scenario's where they are better ( not on a boat trailer ).. If you end up spending anything more than $40 more each per tire, give or take, you are getting ripped off.. Keep in mind tire prices are going up daily at this point

 

[Krazeehorse]

Thank you. What do you mean by “or run less pressure” ? It seems like the higher the weight rating, the more pressure the tire needs. Also, just to make sure my tire shop is giving me the right weight tire, what is the weight rating for a load range D? I can’t find a consistent set of answers online. Most just list the required PSI

The higher load range can run a higher pressure. That is what it enables it to carry more. So instead of running the max psi on a LR D you can run a lower pressure. There are load charts available. I will see if I can find one and link it.

 

[Krazeehorse]

And I concur with Matt. I've been in the tire business 49 years. We sell a lot of Carlisle radial trail hd. Most failures are user related, i.e. Under inflation or over loading.

 

[Timothyk86g]

Thank you guys. Extremely helpful and I feel great making this purchase now. Thank you thank you

 

[JimS123]

I'd probably want to compare the price of radials and bias ply tires with the 1760 capacity and see what the cost difference is. Many of us (me included) think the radial pull more smoothly, but you'd have to decide if the cost premium is worth a smoother ride.

For me, the cost difference is inconsequential. I paid big bucks for my baby and I only want the best tires, which are only 1% of my investment.

I have 4 boat trailers at present. Some have radials, some bias. "Pull smoothly" is kinda subjective. Can't put data numbers there. Personally, with the correct capacity and psi, I don't see a difference.

YMMV...

 

[JimS123]

All the people that say you should use a truck or LT tire don't seem to understand that you can't get those in 14" tires.

As far as pressure, you inflate to what the manufacturer tells you to to inflate to. You can add 10% to the weight for a safety margin.

My post said to use LT "provided that you can get the proper weight range". If you can't get 14" then that would confirm my suggestion.

Adding 10% may be an opinion. Personally, I buy tires that meet the requirement as specified.

Other posts here suggest varying psi depending on load. Not all manufacturer's agree with that spec. Regardless, if you run at or near the sidewall pressure, you should be OK. Failures occur when you run the psi too low. As long as you don't exceed the sidewall spec you should be OK.

 

[JASinIL2006]

I bet you’ll be pleased with Goodyear Endurance tires. I really like mine.

 

[phillyg]

Lots of background about tires on this and other boating forums, and especially on RV sites, where tires are discussed as nauseum. Start by knowing your towing weight, loaded as you would normally travel or go to the ramp. Remember that 10-13% of your total weight is on the hitch.

If you can upgrade to D-rated rather than C-rated, you're better off. You can go to P or LT tires, but you have to make sure they're rated for at least 1750lbs each. The best USA made tire is currently the Goodyear Endurance ST. Sailun, Westlake and Hercules get good reviews but might no be available in your size.

 

[matt167]

I don't know why Westlake or Saliun get good reviews because it's just cheap junk. Hercules is made elsewhere Cooper

 

[Harritwo]

I belong to a Travel Trailer Group with my Travel Trailer. They come from the factory with the China Bombs on them. We all recommend the Good Year Endurance as of now for safety and towing. When I changed over to them, it is a world of difference in how the trailer behaves being towed. Less bounce, Less Sway. I run at max psi cold always.

The China Bombs have a tendency to blow out and destroy a trailers side panels.

 

[bruceb58]

Adding 10% may be an opinion. Personally, I buy tires that meet the requirement as specified.

Actually not an opinion. In 2017 the RVIA started to specify a 10% margin for tires that come on travel trailers

 

[JimS123]

Actually not an opinion. In 2017 the RVIA started to specify a 10% margin for tires that come on travel trailers

RVIA's opinion / ruling is that the tire capacity must exceed the axle rating by 10%. It has nothing to do with pressure or exceeding the tire's rating. They also don't like bias and its clear in what they specify.

RVIA is just like the BIA. It's a group of "experts" that come to a consensus on how their industry should build their products. They write "standards", not laws. As evidenced by Bayliner in the 1980's I don't believe they "must" be adhered to, even though not doing so is bad publicity.

 

[bruceb58]

RVIA's opinion / ruling is that the tire capacity must exceed the axle rating by 10%. It has nothing to do with pressure or exceeding the tire's rating. They also don't like bias and its clear in what they specify.

RVIA is just like the BIA. It's a group of "experts" that come to a consensus on how their industry should build their products. They write "standards", not laws. As evidenced by Bayliner in the 1980's I don't believe they "must" be adhered to, even though not doing so is bad publicity.

Respectfully, I think I will trust RVIA's "opinion/guideline" over you.

 

[JimS123]

Respectfully, I think I will trust RVIA's "opinion/guideline" over you.

I didn't say I disagreed with them re. the 10%, et al. In fact, my own personal opinion is to exceed their suggestions.

Where I DO disagree is regarding their bias ply stance. But its a moot point anyway because of availability in certain instances.

We travel the interstate quite frequently on our various vacations. I see very few car problems. A few more boat trailers. The incidence of RV tire issues ain't all that good.

 

[Stinnett21]

With autos you're told to inflate to what the auto maker says (i.e. placard on door) rather than maximum inflation on side of the tire. Is this the same with trailers? My trailer placard says 50 lbs. my trailer tires say maximum inflation is 65 lbs.

 

[matt167]

With autos you're told to inflate to what the auto maker says (i.e. placard on door) rather than maximum inflation on side of the tire. Is this the same with trailers? My trailer placard says 50 lbs. my trailer tires say maximum inflation is 65 lbs.

It depends. Those are the load ratings for the tires that came on the trailer. If you buy the same load range tires as it came with, then you can run those pressures, but if you change the load range, then that pressure is wrong. It is safest to run a tire at max pressure. It will run colder and support more weight.

 

[Timothyk86g]

How we looking, fellas?

 

[H20Rat]

It depends. Those are the load ratings for the tires that came on the trailer. If you buy the same load range tires as it came with, then you can run those pressures, but if you change the load range, then that pressure is wrong. It is safest to run a tire at max pressure. It will run colder and support more weight.

No, it isn't safest... ESPECIALLY with bias plys, running max on a lightly loaded tire means only the very center of the tread is in contact with the ground. It wears out tires unevenly, and causes the trailer to have very little traction. (you do want your brakes to work, right) It is all about maintaining the contact patch that the tire was designed for. 100 pounds on a tire designed for 1000 at max psi means your contact patch is going to be tiny and WAY outside the design envelope.

I'm pleasantly surprised that a # of people here posted a couple tire weight charts. If possible, PSI should always be matched to the load. Only if you can't find one, and you know you are getting close to the rated load, should you go to rated PSI. More importantly, it is what the tire is designed to have in it for a given load.

Just as a real world example, my RV has big giant tires that are rated at 90 PSI. When I got the RV, it actually had that in them, and it was virtually undriveable. It wasn't safe. Took it to a Cat scale, found the load chart for that specific tire, and turns out I need 57 PSI. It was a world of difference dropping to 57, and it is far safer and better handling now.

 

[matt167]

No, it isn't safest... ESPECIALLY with bias plys, running max on a lightly loaded tire means only the very center of the tread is in contact with the ground. It wears out tires unevenly, and causes the trailer to have very little traction. (you do want your brakes to work, right) It is all about maintaining the contact patch that the tire was designed for. 100 pounds on a tire designed for 1000 at max psi means your contact patch is going to be tiny and WAY outside the design envelope.

I'm pleasantly surprised that a # of people here posted a couple tire weight charts. If possible, PSI should always be matched to the load. Only if you can't find one, and you know you are getting close to the rated load, should you go to rated PSI. More importantly, it is what the tire is designed to have in it for a given load.

Just as a real world example, my RV has big giant tires that are rated at 90 PSI. When I got the RV, it actually had that in them, and it was virtually undriveable. It wasn't safe. Took it to a Cat scale, found the load chart for that specific tire, and turns out I need 57 PSI. It was a world of difference dropping to 57, and it is far safer and better handling now.

Right, and most people do not know how to read, or where to find a load chart... If in doubt max it out. If you know your weight and have a load chart for that tire, then you can figure it out safely, but otherwise, running max pressure is going to run colder, at least to get it down the road until you can scale it and adjust accordingly.

I put 4 new tires on a handful of travel trailers per summer, and most of them have had the sides blown out of them, coming in on spares. Pressures down to 30-40 PSI on a C rate tire usually.. Overheat them, then the plies seperate, and shortly after kaboom.. We almost always put an E rate Goodyear Endurance on them.

Hankook just came out with ST tires, and they are produced in Korea. We got some in due to shortages with the Goodyear Endurance. They look decent

 

[Captain Caveman]

The sticker on your car is for optimal driving experience, meaning the manufacturer is trying to find the perfect balance between a comfortable ride and good fuel economy based on the stock tire. Car/truck tires are generally not intended to be run at max psi.

On the other hand, your boat tires are made to be run at the max cold psi, which generally is 50psi. I make sure that mine are at or within a few pounds of 50psi before each trip. They are designed to run higher once the tires heat up.

If you change to trailer tires with a higher maximum psi, then go with what that manufacturer recommends. My buddy's pop-up trailer had 80psi cold max on the side. He had to research what was truly recommended.

Internet forums are great for pointing you in a direction, but trust the verified sources (manufacturers, etc.) for the final say.