Flogged to death but require info on tires

LOFAT36 wrote:
Okay my question is why should I go to light truck tires as opposed to trailer tires ? I do no off roading unless you consider a 1/8 mile of gravel off road. I don't get it, better ride, stability, price ? Please explain.

We have GY LRD Marathons with 3 seasons and 15-20K miles on them. I expect to get another 2 seasons out of them at which time they will be retired regardless of how they look and replaced with same. ST tires are quite different than LT tires and need more "care" in their use. Stay under 65 mph at all times. (There are one or two brands that are rated higher tho.) Never tow under-inflated and keep them at max. sidewall psi. Don't whack them hard in potholes or speed bumps all the time, avoid road shoulders and don't "curb" them. Check pressure before every leg of a trip and add or subtract air as needed. If you have enough change in elevation and/or temp. on a trip, the pressure can change quite a bit. On our last trip it went up and down about 5 psi. We carry a 12 volt compressor.

You want to have a good cushion of reserve load capacity in ST tires. It is recommended to have at least 15 percent. We have about 30 percent. Some TT manufacturers put tires on their TTs that have almost no reserve capacity. Also, some TTs can weigh a fair bit more on one side due to slides, kitchen, etc. and cause one side to be near or even over the rated load capacity. It's a good idea to go to a scale and weigh a TT.

Internal heat buildup is a killer on ST tires and that's why it's important to stay under 65, to maintain the correct psi at all times and to have decent reserve load capacity. Many will also recommend replacing ST tires at 5 year intervals despite how good them may look on the outside.

For some good reading, go to rvtiresafety.com and read what a retired tire engineer has to say about ST tires.

Many are adamant LT supporters while others are quite happy with their ST tires. If you want to go above 65 mph a lot, then install some LTs. I've found sometimes that 65 is just a bit on the slow side and a rating of 70 mph would be better, but it will depend n where you intend to travel.