Hartland ST235 80R 16 tires

mayorms1 wrote:
Well, the more I read, the more questions I have. What about the Michelin XPS Ribs w/max load rating of 3042 pounds, to replace ST235/80R16 w/max load of 3520 pounds. Will this cause any problems? Our 3 axles are rated at 6k. I am also worried that the larger diameter of the XPS may not fit.

If LT235/85R16 are to large in diameter then look at LT245/75R16's. Both are rated at 3042. With six of them you have 18,252 pounds of capacity on the tires, which is more than the 18K total GVWR of the trailer. Given a 20 percent pin weight you would have around 14,400 of the axles. The high pressure marketing of ST tires does the public a dis-service.

Here are three excellent tire choices for the rig, arranged from the most expensive to the least.

1. Michelin XPS RIB (All Steel plies)
2. Bridgestone Duravis R250 (All Steel plies)
3. Bridgestone Duravis R500 (2 ply poly carcass, and true commercial grade tire)

As Cummins12V98 says go back and get LT's, if you want to be happy with your tires for the next 6-8 years. I ran the ribs for 6.5 years and 40K+ miles (then sold them on CL for 200 bucks with 60 percent tread left) and now have been running R250's for 4 years. My loading on 4 is about the same as your loading will be on six.

Chris