Tireman9 wrote:
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Bottom line...Tires on tandem axles are not de-rated according to published standards.
That does not mean they shouldn't be per my opinion based on actual unique tire loading of tandem mounting.
I think there may be something to that. You rarely hear of blowouts on single axle trailers but the number of reports on tandem and triple axle trailers is too much to ignore. The manufacturers aren't doing any better with putting tires on the single axles than they are the tandems, so it must be related to the service conditions.
The problem it, who is going to do the study? Ultimately, if we did end up with a system where there were dual ratings, it would require federal legislation to allow it into practice. Where I am going here is that the legislation would have to protect manufacturers from liability where they installed tires prior to the change in ratings provided they met the regulations at the time of installation (i.e. those regulations that have been linked above).
Were truck tires dual rated from day 1? If not, how was that phased in?
