Trailer Tires

[FreeBeeTony]

Need to replace the 4 tires on my dual axel Load Rite Trailer.
Attached pic is the marking on the tires currently on the trailer, they are dry rotted.
Any recommendations on there to get them? What brand? I only use the trailer twice a year, once to put the boat in the water and once to take it out at the end of the season, TireRack, Amazon, etc....???
I would like to have the tires delivered to my home and bring the wheels somewhere to have the new tires mounted on the rims.....boat is currently not on the trailer. BTW........do trailer tires get balanced? Don't see any weights on them now.....

 

[matt167]

Just go to your local tire shop and get whatever they have. Likely they are going to dry rot and expire before they will be worn out..

Get a radial however, not a bias ply.. It will be an R15 and not a D15

 

[FreeBeeTony]

Just go to your local tire shop and get whatever they have. Likely they are going to dry rot and expire before they will be worn out..

Get a radial however, not a bias ply.. It will be an R15 and not a D15

Is the 'D' in the pic the load range?

 

[matt167]

Is the 'D' in the pic the load range?

No, it means bias ply . D stands for Diagonal bias. R would be Radial.. That only applies when the D is where an R would normally be.. A tire marked " Load Range D " would be load range D weather it was bias or radial

Get the load range that matches what you have or greater.. Most do not balance trailer tires, they are not even good enough to balance. But some shops waste wheel weight's on trailer tires

 

[Lou C]

Tony I've been using Kenda Load Star bias tires and am on my third set, each set I get about 8 years from and never had a failure. I replace them when I start to small see cracks developing in between the treads. Same use as you, miminal trailering.
I got them from easternmarine.com in Delaware. I think the D might refer to bias vs radial construction. I am a fan of bias tires for trailers. Steen belted radials are good for higher speed high mileage use, but I would never buy cheap ones from the far east, they are very prone to failure. Bias tires are an old simple technology not as difficult to make less demanding of low tech manufacturing.
These are a bias but a D rated tire to 65 psi. 225/75-15

 

[FreeBeeTony]

Looks like Load Range C....

 

[Earl Cordova]

If you don't drive very far then you probably don't need to balance them.
But if your lake is hundreds of miles away, like ours, get them balanced.

 

[Lou C]

These are 225/75-15s load range D inflated to 65 psi. 2540 lbs each....Good for a heavy boat

 

[FreeBeeTony]

How do these look? Have friend w/ a shop, can get them mounted cheap!
https://www.amazon.com/Set-of-4-FOU...15-225-75-15/dp/B07RPW4FBM/ref=cm_wl_huc_item

 

[Lou C]

Looks like good reviews.

 

[matt167]

How do these look? Have friend w/ a shop, can get them mounted cheap!
https://www.amazon.com/Set-of-4-FOU...15-225-75-15/dp/B07RPW4FBM/ref=cm_wl_huc_item

They are junk, but for your uses will be fine

 

[poconojoe]

I switched to radials a few years back. What a difference from biased. The boat immediately felt like it was riding on cushions with the radials.
Less bouncing, smoother ride, very noticeable.
I'd never go back to biased.
18 foot bow rider.

 

[Horigan]

Also get some tire covers. They will greatly increase your tire life.

https://www.iboats.com/shop/other-wht-dbl-axle-tyre-gard-30-32i.html

 

[FreeBeeTony]

They are junk, but for your uses will be fine

Thanks..........I think.

 

[Lou C]

Honestly I'd get the Kenda Load Stars, I've been using them since 2004 and never even one flat or other failure. As I said I would not buy far eastern made radial trailer tires, I would buy the Goodyear Endurance but they are at a different price point. Low speed towing to the ramp/home/storage the bias tire is fine. Load Rite put these tires on their new trailers as OE for many years.

 

[matt167]

Kenda gets a lot of OEM market because they are dirt cheap, not because they are good... Your going to add ~$80-100 for a set of Endurances at most over a pair of good radial tires.

Thanks..........I think.

If you told us you were going to trailer it a great distance regularly, I'd tell you to get either a Carlisle Radial Trail HD or a Goodyear Endurance if you want to spend a little more.. But if your going to trailer twice per year, it just makes no sense.

I work for a well respected high volume local tire shop, deal with tires and trailer tires every day

 

[JimS123]

After reading a bunch of reviews I ended up buying Kenda Load Stars. I've bought 3 sets now with perfect success, on 3 trailers going back about 8 or 10 years. My only road trips are twice a year for about 400 miles., so take that into consideration.

Take the best price, whatever you decide to buy. RecStuff.com and Trailer Parts Superstore were my preferred suppliers.

DON'T buy tires and have them mounted locally. Buy a tire / wheel combo. They mount them free and throw in new valve stems. If you add in the cost of the tire and local mounting it will cost more (unless your brother-in-law will do it for you for free). Besides, its easy peasy to take off one at a time and simply replace with the new one. In the end I always sold the old set on fleabay for $10 apiece, thus adding to the cost savings.

EDIT - I just saw that IBoats now sells tire combos as well. That should be the first place to look.

 

[matt167]

After reading a bunch of reviews I ended up buying Kenda Load Stars. I've bought 3 sets now with perfect success, on 3 trailers going back about 8 or 10 years. My only road trips are twice a year for about 400 miles., so take that into consideration.

Take the best price, whatever you decide to buy. RecStuff.com and Trailer Parts Superstore were my preferred suppliers.

DON'T buy tires and have them mounted locally. Buy a tire / wheel combo. They mount them free and throw in new valve stems. If you add in the cost of the tire and local mounting it will cost more (unless your brother-in-law will do it for you for free). Besides, its easy peasy to take off one at a time and simply replace with the new one. In the end I always sold the old set on fleabay for $10 apiece, thus adding to the cost savings.

EDIT - I just saw that IBoats now sells tire combos as well. That should be the first place to look.

You will pay MORE for a tire/ wheel combo than if you buy a decent tire from a tire shop, and mount it on a new rim.. A Carlisle Sport trail is not a decent tire, and that is generally what is offered in combo's as Carlisle offers them directly.. Buy one for a spare and a bracket, but not a set of them

 

[JimS123]

You will pay MORE for a tire/ wheel combo than if you buy a decent tire from a tire shop, and mount it on a new rim.. A Carlisle Sport trail is not a decent tire, and that is generally what is offered in combo's as Carlisle offers them directly.. Buy one for a spare and a bracket, but not a set of them

No kidding about Carlisle. I had 2 sets that came as oem on new trailers and they were crap.

I bought what I wanted and I found an online supplier that offered it either mounted or unmounted. Simple math made it a no-brainer. Selling the used parts was icing on the cake.

 

[matt167]

No kidding about Carlisle. I had 2 sets that came as oem on new trailers and they were crap.

I bought what I wanted and I found an online supplier that offered it either mounted or unmounted. Simple math made it a no-brainer. Selling the used parts was icing on the cake.

Radial Trail HD and USA Trail are quality products. The Sport Trail that everyone seems to market and comes OEM on some stuff is crap, and in the market's eyes, that makes Carlisle crap.
A lot of the USA trail stuff is actually made in USA, just not all of it, but the USA trail are bias ply. Basically buy the USA trail, when you can't get a radial in that size, which is generally 5.70x12 and smaller. Radial Trail HD is a good heavy tire. They are even getting into steel radial tires in LRF+ which is good.. Kenda loadstar's are not bad but the Radial HD is a better tire..

But also, If you get a combo from an online retailer, your still paying for both items.. The wholesale cost on most trailer rims are, about nothing really. $25 or less, and a shop will probably discount if you buy a new tire and rim combo, + a good shop will use freylube on the beads which is a corrosion inhibitor