Chris wrote:
ExRocketScientist wrote:
CapriRacer wrote:
I started this thread with the idea of discussing what can be done to improve the situation with the failure of ST tires. My Recommendation? Use tires with larger load carrying capacity. I even developed a simple to use guide that outlines everything that is needed to implement my recomendations:
Barry's Tire Tech - ST Tires
Everyone should be well aware of where I am coming from - I'm a tire engineer, currently employed by a major tire manufacturer. There are things I can not discuss - certain questions I can not answer - because I enjoy my job and I don't want to jeopardize it.
I hope everyone has noticed that I've never once mentioned a particular tire brand. I've talked in general terms. I've discussed the difference between ST tires and LT tires from an engineering perspective - both how they are designed, and how they are used.
I find it very disturbing that this thread would be used to attack any particular poster. There is no reason to do this. I have seen absolutely nothing to warrant such an attack.
I see no brand names being promoted. I see no retailers being promoted. All I see is an honest assessment that when it comes to ST tires, there is a quagmire. There doesn't appear to be a brand of ST tire that performs. You just can not simply replace an ST tire with another type of tire - like an LT - without creating other difficulties. There's the fact that ST tires come in 13", 14", 15" and 16" - and there isn't a "One size fits all" approach that works - a fact that seems to be ignored.
I am requesting that the personal attacks stop.
I agree that there is not a one size fits all approach. For each axle weight rating/OE tire and wheel combination, there is a solution for that combination. For those with 13" and 14" wheels, the solutions often involve getting the next size larger wheel and putting the appropriate ST tires on. For those with 15" wheels, it is often getting 16" wheels and putting LT tires on. For those with 16" wheels already -- it can be difficult. For the 7K axles and above, the 17.5 inch wheel and medium truck tire solution often works. The one that is real difficult is the 6K axle. If the wheels will handle it, the G614 works. If the wheels won't handle the pressures of the G614, it becomes more difficult. If the GVWR is above about 12.5K, perhaps the 17.5 inch upgrade, or new wheels and the G614 is a good solution. For a GVWR of less than 12.5K, the XPS Rib/Duravis R250 -- although controversial -- has proven itself in the real world. But even with those who have used this solution, I will see them tell the person with the 14K GVWR that the Rib/R250 solution is not for them. So there are people here who put some thought into this before they start typing so that they don't recommend something that is potentially dangerous.
Please tell me what is difficult about the 6K axle. It is the Keystone 6750 GAWR axle that is the most difficult to resolve. And what is controversial about the XPS Rib/Duravis R250. They work fine on the axles up to 6K. The only controversy I have seen is when one poster says that you can not use them. Remember the Placard is only require to indicate the tires at first retail sale. It has not "Do not remove under penalty law"! The legal requirement is to have a tire that meets or exceeds the GAWR. This is a bit like the pickup weight police that think that GVWR is a legal weight, when in fact the DOT bridge weights are the legal binding weights, followed by GAWR.
Most RVer are novice tire users. We have a few people that have towed commercial with hotshot type rigs like Jimnlin. I will take his input over any novice what to be expert.
Even if you use a ST tire with a rating of 115 percent of your requirement, you still have a light weight tire that is easily damaged by road hazards. And again how does one do that with a 6750 GAWR or 7K axle?
We have been going around and around this subject for several years and are not any closer to resolving it then we were in the beginning, other that finally admitting that the trailer manufacturers are not doing us many favors in the OEM tires they buy in bulk and install on their units!
Chris
The only controversy on the 6K axle is that 99 times out of 100, the OE tires are load rated to 3420 pounds each, while the Ribs/R250s are load rated at 3042. So you would be replacing a tire with one that technically has a lower load capacity -- and that is the only thing controversial -- and only with a small part of the population. Go back many many pages in this thread and I discussed these two tires . . . and it is by personal opinion that they are so overbuilt, that their capabilities actually meet or exceed those of the higher rated ST tires. This is the only thing I have to explain their stellar success in the real world. I will also point out that it would have been legal for the trailer manufacturer to have supplied the Ribs/R250 as an OE tire, so I don't think the controversy is that significant.
