A question about tires on three axle fifth whl trailers.

[Trackrig]

Before we bought our DP we were looking at fifth wheel trailers. When looking at three axle trailers specifically, I was curious if three axle trailers suffered more tire damage or wear & tear because the front and rear axles slide sideways more when making tight turns in and out of parking lots or when getting into some parking places?

What's been your experience?

Bill

[Let_s_Travel]

fj12ryder wrote:
I do know that with the mirrors on my truck, towing mirrors, I cannot see the rear tire without adjusting it so I can't see much of anything else. Personally I'd rather see the traffic beside and behind me rather than a tire.

Yeah, I hear you and exactly my point. Mirrors need to be tall rather than wide. You can get field of vision by moving forward and back in your seated position, but you can't raise up and down to see your tires and then the distance behind you. A taller profile mirror solves the problem.

[avvidclif1]

Irelands child wrote:
Wow - I'm missing something or the extendable OEM mirrors on my past '06 F350 CCSB or current '11 F250 CCLB wont go out far enough to see the rear tires on our 5er. Yeah, I can kinda see part of front ones but for sure, I'm a lot more interested in the traffic around me and what the wingnut in the econobox with a phart can muffler is doing or that person tending to their makeup or cell phone while entering the interstate on the ramp and not accelerating.

As far as an ST tire having stiffer sidewall - don't ever believe that myth. A 37 pound Tow Max, and a tire that so many manufacturers are using as original equipment cannot compare in strength to a 45-50+ pound LT, be it a highway rib or a 'standard' LT, or a G614 (which IS a 57# LT tire). As a matter of fact, just this morning I compared sidewall flexibility between an ST and a new LT, same size - there wasn't any comparison.

Now, are all the ST tires bad? No, but there are enough cases that sure make me wary with the weight and size of many of today's towable RVs that I've put LTs on our ~13K, 38' 5er

The 16" Sailuns I put on my trailer weighed 61 lb each. The sidewall is so stiff I told the DW air was an option.... GRIN

[Dtank]

Trackrig wrote:
Before we bought our DP we were looking at fifth wheel trailers. When looking at three axle trailers specifically, I was curious if three axle trailers suffered more tire damage or wear & tear because the front and rear axles slide sideways more when making tight turns in and out of parking lots or when getting into some parking places?

What's been your experience?

Bill

Most 'standard' 5hs will be two axle trailers.

If I was "wondering" - I would ask on the *Toy Hauler* forum.

*LOTS* of triple axle 5th owners there...;)

.

[Dtank]

laknox wrote:
My brother used my FW this past weekend. On the way up to Big Lake in the White Mountains of eastern AZ, he was passing through Show Low and noticed that his 2005 F350 seemed to be handling funny.

Hadn't noticed anything while driving at highway speed, only when he slowed to the 30-35 mph city speed. He pulled off and checked the 6 tires on his truck (FW was fine), all had air and no difference in sound from a quick "hammer check".

He went another 1/4 mile down the road and it got worse. Decided to pull off onto a side street and nearly didn't make the corner; truck simply wouldn't turn. He finally got if off the main drag and stopped.

As he got out, he could hear air hissing. As he walked forward, the LF tire simply gave a loud POP and sat down on the rim. Changed to the spare and drove about 1/2 mile to a Discount for them to check.

Broken belt and he's lucky it didn't happen about 15 minutes sooner, when he was still traveling at 60+. Tires are 245/75R/17 Michelin AT, about 3.5 years old, maybe 20k miles, total.

Of course, DT didn't have one in stock, so he had to roll the bones and drive another 50 miles sans spare, but he made it. Went back the next day to pick up the new tire. He'll be watching the other 5 like a hawk, for sure.

Lyle

No alterations (changes) - just easier to read...;)

.

[Irelands_child]

Wow - I'm missing something or the extendable OEM mirrors on my past '06 F350 CCSB or current '11 F250 CCLB wont go out far enough to see the rear tires on our 5er. Yeah, I can kinda see part of front ones but for sure, I'm a lot more interested in the traffic around me and what the wingnut in the econobox with a phart can muffler is doing or that person tending to their makeup or cell phone while entering the interstate on the ramp and not accelerating.

As far as an ST tire having stiffer sidewall - don't ever believe that myth. A 37 pound Tow Max, and a tire that so many manufacturers are using as original equipment cannot compare in strength to a 45-50+ pound LT, be it a highway rib or a 'standard' LT, or a G614 (which IS a 57# LT tire). As a matter of fact, just this morning I compared sidewall flexibility between an ST and a new LT, same size - there wasn't any comparison.

Now, are all the ST tires bad? No, but there are enough cases that sure make me wary with the weight and size of many of today's towable RVs that I've put LTs on our ~13K, 38' 5er

[DavinD]

C-Bears wrote:
I can tell you from pulling other things besides RV's down the road that you are not going to catch that rapid deflating tire by watching your mirrors, or by staring at the point where the tire meets the pavement.

Anyone pulling a heavy RV should invest in a TPMS. You can monitor all you tire pressures and temperatures constantly plus an alarm will immediately sound if there is a problem, prior to it causing damage.

I'm sure a lot of people successfully tow without TPMS. However, I'm glad for the peace of mind mine give me.

[laknox]

My brother used my FW this past weekend. On the way up to Big Lake in the White Mountains of eastern AZ, he was passing through Show Low and noticed that his 2005 F350 seemed to be handling funny. Hadn't noticed anything while driving at highway speed, only when he slowed to the 30-35 mph city speed. He pulled off and checked the 6 tires on his truck (FW was fine), all had air and no difference in sound from a quick "hammer check". He went another 1/4 mile down the road and it got worse. Decided to pull off onto a side street and nearly didn't make the corner; truck simply wouldn't turn. He finally got if off the main drag and stopped. As he got out, he could hear air hissing. As he walked forward, the LF tire simply gave a loud POP and sat down on the rim. Changed to the spare and drove about 1/2 mile to a Discount for them to check. Broken belt and he's lucky it didn't happen about 15 minutes sooner, when he was still traveling at 60+. Tires are 245/75R/17 Michelin AT, about 3.5 years old, maybe 20k miles, total. Of course, DT didn't have one in stock, so he had to roll the bones and drive another 50 miles sans spare, but he made it. Went back the next day to pick up the new tire. He'll be watching the other 5 like a hawk, for sure.

Lyle

[fj12ryder]

I do know that with the mirrors on my truck, towing mirrors, I cannot see the rear tire without adjusting it so I can't see much of anything else. Personally I'd rather see the traffic beside and behind me rather than a tire.

[C-Bears]

I can tell you from pulling other things besides RV's down the road that you are not going to catch that rapid deflating tire by watching your mirrors, or by staring at the point where the tire meets the pavement.

Anyone pulling a heavy RV should invest in a TPMS. You can monitor all you tire pressures and temperatures constantly plus an alarm will immediately sound if there is a problem, prior to it causing damage.

[Rancher_Will]

LETS TRAVEL wrote what I have often thought about writing in the past on this subject. I agree with all that he wrote.

We pull ranch trailers, semi truck trailers, and I have pulled five RV's over the past 50+ years. At every stop, fuel stop, rest stop, what ever, we check all the tires. We have, and adjust our truck mirrors to be able to see the trailer tires and along the sides, even in the "blind spots".

I have always followed the Manufacturer and Dealers recommendations for tires that I purchased for all of our equipment, hundreds of tires purchased over the decades. I have almost always been happy with the tires installed for the purpose as they were designed, except for two times.

One time Goodyear recommended a set of specific tires for our semi trucks that were were under Goodyear warranty. Those tires were faulty, wore down too fast. Goodyear replaced all ten of those tires after a few months use, at no cost to me and with a better warranty.

The second time I purchased a new Semi Truck that came from the factory with Michelin Tires. Seven of those tires failed within less than three months. Although Michelin has no warranty on commercial tires, Freightliner did replace all ten of the tires with Goodyear tires at no cost to me, even reimbursing me for the replacement cost of the seven tires replaced on the road away from the Freighliner dealer. apparently we were not the only ones having trouble with the Michelins since that same year Freightliner stopped putting Michelins on new trucks.

[Let_s_Travel]

fj12ryder wrote:
Exactly how do you see the last tire on a 5th wheel? I can't see the last tire on my triple axle toyhauler. How do you? What kind of mirrors are you using?

Just a stock telescoping F350 mirror. Had a light that shined down on the wheels for night driving. Mirrors need height, not width like most of the manufacturers make. Mine weren't ideal, but they were tall enough to be able to see where the tire contacts the ground.

[YnotTurbo]

Our fiver came with Goodyear G614 tires. Had them for almost 5 seasons. They have done great. Keep them at the prescribed 110 PSI and 115 when storing for the winter. I will be replacing them at the end of this season with the same tire. We hit the scales and the 6 tires on the RV had just a tad bit over 15K lbs. of weight on them. The other 4K lbs. sits on the hitch. The tires do cost $350 a piece, but it is worth it.

[45Ricochet]

15K across three axles in a TH is much different than a fiver with only 2 axles. ST tires with heavy weight loads seems to be the ones that fail the most. Heck 15k divided by 6 is only 2500 lbs each tire. Now spread say 13K divided by 4 tires you get 3250 lbs.
The bigger fivers will carry much more weight per wheel than a TH with six wheels. Most of the newer big fivers now have a 17.5 option or a G rated Goodyear tire.
Edit wheel size from 19.5 to 17.5 :W

[fj12ryder]

Exactly how do you see the last tire on a 5th wheel? I can't see the last tire on my triple axle toyhauler. How do you? What kind of mirrors are you using?