ST vs LT tires.

CapriRacer wrote:

McZippie wrote:
.......So to fit ST tires on my Ford F350 dually, can ST tires be mounted on Ford F350 16" dually rims to increase the load capacity of my truck's tires? .... Or do I need to use the ST trailer rims on my truck and have custom lug bolt adapters and dually spacers milled to fit the 6 lug ST trailer rims to the truck's 8 lugs bolt pattern?

Assuming you are not joking, I hope you are aware that part of what makes an ST tire an ST tire is its compromise towards the task - which means it doesn't have good handling and good braking as part of its design emphasis.

I also hope everyone realizes that the difference in load rating between ST and LT tires is the speed. ST tires are restricted to 65 mph and the load rating reflects that. Want to go faster? Reduce the load.

In my opinion, LT's and ST's are interchangeable except for those things that are designed in for the task. So ST tires would be unsuitable for motorvehicles, but LT's are OK for use on a trailer (taking into consideration the tread pattern, tread compound, etc.) In theory, ST's should perform better on trailers, and they do except for the durability aspect. We can speculate about why that is so - 3rd tier manufacturers, cost pressures, testing requirements, etc. Everyone has an opinion - as do I.

Also, the issue of the rim's load rating. While it would be ideal if trailer manufacturers outfitted their trailers with adequate sized tires, it appears that the wheels are OK and can be used without worry (provided the tires properly fit on the rims.)

But occasionally, a situation arises where the need to use a higher inflation pressure is called for - and I would argue that exceeding the max inflation pressure stamped on the wheel (if it is even there!) is a better situation than continuing on with potential failures on tires with the lower inflation pressure. Sort of the opposite of "the devil you know vs the one you don't."

Capri Racer, thanks for your reply and no offense intended but you didn't answer my questions.

In reply to your information about running ST tires on our F350 dually Pick-up Truck:

China bombs ST tires cost about 1/4 to 1/3 the price of top of the line LTs.
....and since this truck is mostly used to pull a 5er, that will have the STs.

The 5er STs are 65mph speed rated and if the truck had higher speed rated LT tires, when towing, the max speed would be limited to the 5ers STs 65 mph.

Since can't exceed 65 mph anyway, because of the trailer's ST tires, why not saved a lot of money and have less expensive China Bombs on the truck too?