Tires for trailer

[Peter1959628]

A friend has a Dixie Bandit 17ft 3.0 motor open bow.<br />Replaced the Goodyear F78/14 with ST 205/75 R14<br />Is this the correct tire for this application?<br />sorry cannot supply weight of boat <br />Guy at the tire depot explained as trailer tires were built differently due to sun and being not towed 100% of the year they would gain "flat spots" This tire is 1" slimmer than the one replaced.<br />$106 also seems rather steep especially as he only had 1 in stock and had to order the other.

 

[wayne h]

Re: Tires for trailer

i dont know about the sun and the flat spot thing but usually trailer tires have more plies in the sidewall making it better and more stable for towing. also more weight load.i myself run car tires on my trailer i have for years but i am not saying thats the right thing to do i am just saying that i do it and have never had any issues with it.

 

[Butch Ammon]

Re: Tires for trailer

I run Towmaster F78-14ST tires on my single axle trailer. My old 1975 Sea Star trihull (w/ Merc I/O 165hp inline 6) and trailer weigh 2100 lbs.<br /><br />I was told NEVER run radials on a single axle boat trailer. You will be doing the "cha cha boogie" down the road at highway speeds.<br /><br />Trailer tires do have thicker sidewall tires and can handle the load better. My 2100 lb boat/trailer combo just sits there tracking right along behind my truck, and doesn't move.<br /><br />Butch

 

[Spidybot]

Re: Tires for trailer

Radials perform great on trailers. All sorts. You must obey dimensions and load requirements and, ofcourse, tire pressure.<br /><br />Each and every trailer'ish thing you put behind a car in Europe is OEM fitted with radials. And, no, European rules and laws are no less demanding than the US's.

 

[Solittle]

Re: Tires for trailer

Peter - $106.00 for a trailer tire is outrageous!! I'm buying a couple of 6 ply trailer tires (same size) for about $50.00 each including mounting, stem, tax & disposal fee - tamdem axle trailer for 23" CC.

 

[bubbakat]

Re: Tires for trailer

You can also get six ply in radials to. That is what I run and no boogie woogie for me going down the road at 70

 

[Boatist]

Re: Tires for trailer

Peter<br />The price sounds high to me also unless that is a new rim and tire. I hope he ordered 2 tires for you so they are both from the same lot number.<br /><br />Radials are the only way to go, they just roll so much eaiser. Big savings in fuel. I have a friend with a 19 foot bass boat and a single axel trailer. He keeps the boat in the garage but since it barely fits he backs it into the garage and then unhooks it and hand pushes it into the garage at an angle for the last few feet. When he replaced the tires with radials he nearly pushed it thru the back of the garage because it pushed so much eaiser.

 

[JamesGY]

Re: Tires for trailer

I piad $110 each for my tires at some tire shop. I guess I did pay too much, but they were the only store around my area that was able to get them the day I needed them. <br /><br />Also, they are 205/75/14. The ones on my trailer before were 205/75/D14. WIll the "D" make a big difference?

 

[BillP]

Re: Tires for trailer

Ditto on using car radials on a boat trailer. I switched to them on a 20' Proline and it was all over the road to the point of feeling dangerous. The rig was setup/sized correctly and well within weight limits. I immediately changed the brand new radials back to bias belted (OEM trailer tires)and the sway went away. <br /><br />If you want to do radials it seems to me there are a few companies that make radials especially for boat trailers. I think they use more belts or whatever to tame the sway. <br /><br />There is one reason I'd be careful of when running auto tires on a trailer. If you cause an accident some lawyer may have a field day with your choice of using the "wrong" tires. <br /><br />Here's an article with some details on trailer tires. http://www.championtrailers.com/tire_art.html