Michelin tire blow out!!

pnichols wrote:
......In My Humble Emotional Opinion I just cannot buy that a tire that can hold off higher burst pressure isn't also more tougher/rugged/robust when used at pressures below it's maximum.......

Yup. It's counter intuitive. It's kind of like the egg carton where the best ones (the one that don't break eggs), are kind of flimsy. In that same way, tires that are more rugged aren't necessarily the stronger ones.

Look at it this way: The "strength" of a tire relates to its load carrying capacity. But "ruggedness" is related to things other than a tire's ability to carry load - things like a thick tread, or the tread compound. In fact the best off road tires are large tires in the "Flotation Size", which would use LESS inflation pressure and are therefore of a lower load range.

pnichols wrote:
......However, I'm open to a dramatic change in my intuition. What I DO KNOW is the offroad crowd (and Expedition Vehicle manufacturers) always strive for high ply ratings on their tires regardless of how heavy the vehicle is. Those offroad guys of course even air-down their tires for improved grip .... but always stick with high ply ratings for terrain ruggedness.......

As I pointed out, the most rugged tires are in the Flotation sizes and use lower inflation pressures, What makes these tires more rugged is NOT their load carrying capacity.

pnichols wrote:
......Hence ... I would feel more secure when we're off-road rock-hounding if our Class C tires were rated Load Range G instead of Load Range E, even though our RV's corner weights are way below Load Range E maximum weights when using 80 lbs. of pressure in the rear duals and 65 lbs. of pressure in the front singles.

If you feel more secure, so be it. Just be aware that this feeling is derived from something emotional.