Does ANY trailer manufacturer use adequate tires/axles?

My 2006 TT

GVWR= 10k

GAWR 10,400 (2x AL-KO 5200#)

Tire rating 2620x 4= 10,480

Wheel rating 2600x 4= 10,400

JaxDad wrote:

JIMNLIN wrote:
DJ
Higher rated axles and wheels and especially the LT tire will make a excellent upgrade.

I hope that's a typo there friend, running anything but ST tires on a trailer (regardless of load rating) is a very bad choice.

Truck tires are designed to work with a different type of suspension, and also to give the passengers a smooth ride. ST tires are designed with stiffer sidewalls and for trailer suspension.

Baloney! The sidewalls on the ST tires I junked when they were new, were so flimsy they were like bicycle tires in comparison. You obviously have never compared them yourself and are basing your comments on what you read...Truck has leaf spring suspension, trailer has leaf spring suspension. What's different??...I will never use ST tires again and have run my LT tires for thousands and thousands of trouble free miles.

B.O.

JaxDad wrote:

JIMNLIN wrote:
DJ
Higher rated axles and wheels and especially the LT tire will make a excellent upgrade.

I hope that's a typo there friend, running anything but ST tires on a trailer (regardless of load rating) is a very bad choice.

Truck tires are designed to work with a different type of suspension, and also to give the passengers a smooth ride. ST tires are designed with stiffer sidewalls and for trailer suspension.

Your joking...Right.
We used nothing but P (passenger tires) and LT (light truck tires) many years before the tire industry gave us the infamous ST tire.

Many upper end RV trailers and commercial transport trailers come OEM with the better LT tires or are a upgrade option.

full_mosey wrote:

restlesswind wrote:

full_mosey wrote:

restlesswind wrote:
Our fifth wheel.(see sig)
GVWR 14,900
GAWR 14,000
"G"rated tires 3750# per tire 15,000# total
US made GY
More than adaquate

Not picking on you, but 1000/14000=7% safety margin.

The unanswered question is "At what psi are your tires overloaded?".

I have a single axle TT, have been to the scales, and my heaviest wheel is 1060lbs. The tires are rated at 1360lbs at the 50psi max. I can run anywhere from 35 to 50psi per the tire load/psi tables published by the Tire and Rim Assoc. I have a 22% safety margin at 50psi(300/1360).

Your 7% is pretty good compared to some of the posts I have read.

If we all wait until the tire failure, we will be in no position to choose replacement tires!

HTH;
John

Actually,I think it's a little better than 7%. Figuring pin weight at 15% of GVWR (2,200#) leaves 12,700 on the axles that are rated at 14,000.I run the tires at 110psi

I'll finish the math for you.

You have:

1. 1300/14000 safety on the axles, or 9.3%.

2. 2300/15000 safety on the tires, or 15.3%

You should keep your tires at the max psi to maintain that 15%.

If you want more tire pressure flexibility in maintaining that 15% safety, start looking for more tire.

HTH;
John

Thanks John,The next set of tires will be H rated with new 17 1/2 rims.$$$$$!

~DJ~ wrote:
I was looking at trading my TT for a TH. Brand new 24' Sandstorm by Forest River. It was loaded. Had everything I wanted. 40 gallon gas station, 4000 genny, 155 watt solar, big shower, front bedroom and HUGE tanks.

No more lugging gas cans, generators and have a free pickup bed for more junk!!!

But when I look at the "nuts and bolts" of the thing:

GVWR = 7758
GAWR = 7000
C rated China Bombs = 7280

I know, I know. They get away with it by saying the truck (hitch) carries 10%. But that is under IDEAL conditions with the trailer sitting perfectly level and loaded so both axles are carrying the same amount of weight.

But I thought Toy Haulers would be different. Load 1200# of quads in the back end and I'll bet the rear axle is overloaded!!!

I am still considering the TH but I WILL swap out the tires/axles for 4400# axles, 16" wheels and LT's.!!! :M

Good plan and will be necessary if you want the trailer to be reliable on your Idaho washboard forest/blm lands access roads. FR builds their trailers with the lightest components that meet minimum capacity for base trailer standards -then they use up the available payload by making everything on the trailer an option either elective or mandatory.

Also, a good idea to review and reinforce the mounting as needed for fuel station, potable, grey, and black, tanks. FR has been known to be a minimalist here too.

restlesswind wrote:

full_mosey wrote:

restlesswind wrote:
Our fifth wheel.(see sig)
GVWR 14,900
GAWR 14,000
"G"rated tires 3750# per tire 15,000# total
US made GY
More than adaquate

Not picking on you, but 1000/14000=7% safety margin.

The unanswered question is "At what psi are your tires overloaded?".

I have a single axle TT, have been to the scales, and my heaviest wheel is 1060lbs. The tires are rated at 1360lbs at the 50psi max. I can run anywhere from 35 to 50psi per the tire load/psi tables published by the Tire and Rim Assoc. I have a 22% safety margin at 50psi(300/1360).

Your 7% is pretty good compared to some of the posts I have read.

If we all wait until the tire failure, we will be in no position to choose replacement tires!

HTH;
John

Actually,I think it's a little better than 7%. Figuring pin weight at 15% of GVWR (2,200#) leaves 12,700 on the axles that are rated at 14,000.I run the tires at 110psi

I'll finish the math for you.

You have:

1. 1300/14000 safety on the axles, or 9.3%.

2. 2300/15000 safety on the tires, or 15.3%

You should keep your tires at the max psi to maintain that 15%.

If you want more tire pressure flexibility in maintaining that 15% safety, start looking for more tire.

HTH;
John

JaxDad wrote:
I think your math is a little of friend..

According to the Forest River website, that unit (never mind tongue weight) has a payload of 2,508 pounds. Considering the engineering that goes into it almost anything these days, I bet 1,200 pounds of cargo will have that safely under both the GVWR and axle weights.

Don't forget, a tandem axle setup has an equalizer in between the axles, and as the name suggests, it spreads the load between the axles, whether the trailer is level or not.

This is dead wrong and an assumption many make about the purpose of a suspension equalizer.

First suspension design parameters assume that the trailer frame will be level or parallel to the ground. This puts the equalizer in a neutral position - parallel to the ground. This allows each wheel position to operate in an arc as the tires step into and over roadway obstacles. Without the equalizer or with the equalizer out of the neutral position the axle and suspension will physically bind up and something reactionary happens -maybe just an excessive sway or porpoising action or a spring hanger is ripped out....

Suspension engineering also assumes that payload distribution is in the proper percentages and evenly distributed. RV's are notorious for ignoring proper fixed payload distribution to get that perfect floor plan -especially in slide out models.

full_mosey wrote:

restlesswind wrote:
Our fifth wheel.(see sig)
GVWR 14,900
GAWR 14,000
"G"rated tires 3750# per tire 15,000# total
US made GY
More than adaquate

Not picking on you, but 1000/14000=7% safety margin.

The unanswered question is "At what psi are your tires overloaded?".

I have a single axle TT, have been to the scales, and my heaviest wheel is 1060lbs. The tires are rated at 1360lbs at the 50psi max. I can run anywhere from 35 to 50psi per the tire load/psi tables published by the Tire and Rim Assoc. I have a 22% safety margin at 50psi(300/1360).

Your 7% is pretty good compared to some of the posts I have read.

If we all wait until the tire failure, we will be in no position to choose replacement tires!

HTH;
John

Actually,I think it's a little better than 7%. Figuring pin weight at 15% of GVWR (2,200#) leaves 12,700 on the axles that are rated at 14,000.I run the tires at 110psi

Simple answer.....................YES, the Mfgs that build Real trailers................By that I mean Built to last, DRV...Mobile Suites, NuWay, Spacecraft.. Etc...................l am talking about trailer builders., that are willing to build to a purpose, and you are willing to Pay Extra for that .





So, yes.......BUT, you have to be willing to pay for it....Cheap.......is Cheap.

I like to fill the tires to the air pressure stated on the tire. Not more, not less.

CapriRacer wrote:
A couple of thoughts:

I'll bet there were (and maybe are?) trailer manufacturers who are under-estimating the amount of stuff their trailer will carry - the payload. Maybe they were doing it in ignorance or maybe they did it to cheat on the regulations. Doesn't matter. The net result is the same - overload axles and tires. I recommend EVERYONE weigh their trailer.

Loads on tires vary front to rear and side to side - and that doesn't seem to be accounted for. I recommend folks weigh their trailer tire by tire - and if not possible, then add some sort of factor to account for this. Currently I am using 10% side to side variation - 10% front to rear - and 15% for both.

Tires should NOT be inflated according to the charts. Those are minimums! Use more than that. I like 15% more load carrying capacity - which is about 15 psi more for ST and LT tires (up a Load Range)