Huntindog wrote:
Gdetrailer wrote:
TomG2 wrote:
Seven pages and nobody had come up with anything except, "ST tires are no good" type of comments. What design deficiencies did they built into this type of tire? Why did they think the basic design was good for travel trailer applications? Was it just, "Build the cheapest tire possible"? "The ST tire is an affordable solution for your trailer tire needs"
That is a quote from a tire manufacturer.
Cheap and affordable are pretty much the same thing. Wouldn't a cheap common automobile tire have been even cheaper than coming up with a separate classification? That is not so easy. The govt. testing standards minimum is much more strict for passenger car tires. IOW, Tire makers are FORCED to build better tires for autos. Good reasons for this. Human cargo is more precious that just a trailer. Aren't ST tires "supposed" to be better at handling the twisting of tandem axles for instance.There is NO testing standard for this supposed attribute. I am not a tire design engineer, but there must have been some thought that went into the ST type of tires??? Did they just glue some rubber together at the lowest cost possible? How do you know that?
Tom, you will notice I did not say ST tires are no good, in fact, that IS all I run on my TT and my 10K open flat bed trailer.
Cheapest, yeah right, has anyone REALLY priced ST tires?At one time, LRE Marathons cost me 63.00 at Tire Rack. Yes things have gone up, but that was way cheaper than LT tires. Which brings up another point. LT tires are available in a wide range of price points and quality ranges. Not so for ST tires.
It simply is not a fair comparision to to pit my Michelin XPS RIBS and their steel retreadable carcass against any ST tire... But that is the choices that are available if one chooses to go with LTs.
Just put a new set on my 10K flat bed trailer this spring, those tires cost me a cool $800 mounted.. That is $200 PER TIRE.
Last LT tires I bought for my F250 were just UNDER $200 per tire with mounting and balancing..
My TT the last tire I bought for it was $180 with mounting..
Not sure where folks are finding these supposed cheaper ST tires but they sure are not cheap in my neck of the woods..
From what I understand from the tire manufacturers literature, ST tires are supposed to have additional UV stabilizers to reduce the breakdown of the rubber compoundsAnd that is just marketing Lititure. There is no testing standards for that. From my personal experience LT tires last at least 5 years in that regard. And that is uncovered in Phoenix AZ, probably the toughest place in the USA for UV exposure. STs.... I don't know. None of my many sets made it to their second birthday.
All of my LTs have been replaced at 5 years just because of age.My personal cutoff. In fact I have been able to easily sell them on CL for about the price of 1 new Michelin. They look great, and have 90% tread left. They sell fast. and the sidewalls are built a bit heavier (this could be additional layers of "cords" rather than rubber) in order to handle the high sidewall stresses that happen during sharp turns.The lititure I have read states fewer, but thicker cords. And few plies for cooler running. Of course this method is cheaper to produce,,,, but they don't bring that up.
I get it, folks just like to vent their frustrations and that makes it look like all ST tires are inferior to LTs on trailers.. But in reality, what typically happens is folks who HAVE had an issue tend to VENT their anger on online forums like this one..
Venting is all over for me. My troubles stopped cold in 2006 when I made the jump to LTs.
My only agenda is to tell others about my experience, so that if they are having trouble like I was, that they are aware there are ways to get better tires. Tires that are every bit as reliable as their TV tires, and tires that do not have to be babied.
Whether others choose to believe it or not. And one more fact. Before tossing in the towel on STs... I was a believer in them. I bought into all of the marketing hype about their supposed superiority. In fact I often wrote about it here, in debates on this very forum.
This can be checked out by anyone that chooses to do so.
I changed my mind after reaching the end of my rope in trying to get STs to work for me. I should have done it a lot sooner. I wasted thousands of dollars and had many trips marred by tire failures to show for my allegiance to the ST tire altar.
Chances are that there are tens of thousands of folks who have NEVER had an issue and NEVER posted on this forum.I actually believe this. I once read an industry survey that found that the average TT bought new is only used 3 times per year, for short distances. And after 3 years, it is never towed again! (By the original owner)
Your "examples" are worthless comparisons and at best a "feel good" measure.
Since neither of us are actual tire engineers nor do we work in a tire manufacturing plant there is no sure way to determine if LTs truly are "superior" to ST tires.
You among many other folks feel there is a "conspiracy" among tire manufacturers regarding quality and safety of ST tires and "feel" that just because a tire COSTS more that it is VASTLY BETTER.
That could not be further than the truth.
Just "because" something costs more or less than something else does not mean that it is better or worse than something else.
One must consider somethings have a specific design and use in mind and sometimes when designing something for a SINGLE purpose you can forgo some design considerations.
For instance, a trailer does not need a tire with full depth of tread as you would need for a car or truck, so the manufacturers can save a few nickles in materials and labor costs by not placing and molding as much rubber onto the tread surface.
Even having too much tread could potentially DAMAGE your trailers suspension and frame..
Build up on the sidewalls IS important as trailer positions REQUIRE the tires to SKIP under sharp turns. This creates huge amount of force onto the tire sidewalls..
Sure, a LT might handle that but it was not really DESIGNED for that and the manufacturer DOES NOT WARRANT that tire for that purpose.
Carry on with what you are doing if it makes you feel good.
