Had our first major tire issue

[ddschuman]

Based on all of the threads I have read here, I had already come to the conclusion that we would replace our FW tires prior to our trip to Colorado in September even though our FW is only a year old. Unfortunately, we will need to replace sooner as after our arrival home from our trip this weekend we noticed one tire was low. We had checked all tires before the trip and all tires before coming home...all had adequate pressure. We to thought perhaps we ran over something along the way so we took the tire off to get repaired but found out it was not repairable. The belt separated and the tire has a bubble. I am just sitting here being very thankful that we did not have a blowout. That would have been a good way to ruin a trip. Now, time for the real decision...what to buy? I believe I will be looking back through all the tire threads (well maybe not ALL of them) and doing some tire research. I sure wish I would have gotten a few more months in first. Oh well...price we pay for our passions in life.

[elkhorn98]

milo wrote:
OMG! ....Lots of hysteria about ST tires...FWIW ... been running ST tires pertnear 40 years and so far not single blow out. Have had 2 tires torn up becuz of fender support failures but nary a Kapow. :C

How many years have st tires been around?

[Mile_High]

gmw photos wrote:

milo wrote:
OMG! ....Lots of hysteria about ST tires...FWIW ... been running ST tires pertnear 40 years and so far not single blow out. Have had 2 tires torn up becuz of fender support failures but nary a Kapow. :C

Hey, you wanna run ST....have fun with that.
Just remember what Inspector Callahan said, "do 'ya feel lucky punk ? Well, do 'ya.... ? :B

X2 🙂 Kind of like a testimonial on luck!

[gmw_photos]

milo wrote:
OMG! ....Lots of hysteria about ST tires...FWIW ... been running ST tires pertnear 40 years and so far not single blow out. Have had 2 tires torn up becuz of fender support failures but nary a Kapow. :C

Hey, you wanna run ST....have fun with that.
Just remember what Inspector Callahan said, "do 'ya feel lucky punk ? Well, do 'ya.... ? :B

[laknox]

milo wrote:
OMG! ....Lots of hysteria about ST tires...FWIW ... been running ST tires pertnear 40 years and so far not single blow out. Have had 2 tires torn up becuz of fender support failures but nary a Kapow. :C

Lost my first China bomb in 1 year and < 1,000 miles. Lost the other three the next year and < 3,000 total miles. Had to replace the 2nd set after 4 years and all 4 would have failed within 100 miles as all 4 had separated tread. Had I the room in the wheel wells,as well as the cash, I'd go to 16" wheels.

Lyle

[ddschuman]

I feel we need the LT tires because of the speed factor. Most nearly any trip we take requires us (from where we live) to spend some time on one of the interstates in Texas (I-35, I-20 & I-30 are heavily traveled with truckers who will RUN OVER you if you are not going the posted speed limit). I personally liked it in TX when truckers had to go 5mph less than other vehicles and stay in the right lane but some time back, that changed and all the posted speed limits all went up as well. Anyway, we are definitely not speed demons but do find it is hard to maintain 65mph or below which those ST tires rated for. Therefore, a safety factor for us (I feel) is LT tires. Some will argue that going over 65mph towing is not safe but I fully trust and believe in DH judgment as he has been towing heavy trailers for 30+ years. A few years ago, he switched from trailer tires to commercial tires on both of his gooseneck trailers. According to him, that was one of the best moves he ever made and has saved him a bunch of money in tires ever since. From all the reading and researching I have done on this forum, the internet & speaking with tire professionals, I believe LT tires will be our best move on the FW. I really appreciate all the replies I have received on my original post. Everyone has had valid points and opinions.

[Me_Again]

The telling thing in your post is you have a 4 year old trailer on its second set of tires, when there are tires that will go 6-7 years without a problem.

You wrote "for further piece of mind", you might get LT tires next time!

I ran Michelin XPS Ribs for 6.5 years for piece of mind and now am running Bridgestone Duravis R250's to continue that piece of mind.

Chris

[caberto]

We just completed a 3400 mile trip across six states, on believe it or not, Goodyear Marathons (ST235/80r 16E's), and had no issues. The towing weather ranged from 40 degrees to 110 degrees for hours at a time. I kept speed at 65 mph and below, and checked tires each time before departing (kept them at 80 psi). The fiver weighs in at a little under 12K loaded.

One thing I did notice while on this trip, was how many heavy 5th wheelers and bumper trailers passed me up while I was doing 65 mph and continued on their higher speed after they passed me. I wondered how many of these trailers had LT tires - looking at them from my point of view (I've seen some LT tires on trailers and noticed they look different/beefier), they did not look like LT tires, but even if SOME of them were, I'm pretty sure not all them had LT tires, as there were probably dozens that I saw on the road doing more than 65 mph, which is what the ST tires are rated for. I have a feeling those are probably some of the same people who then later complain about "unexplained" blowouts.

I'm not trying to start an argument against LT tires, I myself may get some when it comes time to replace these for further piece of mind. But so far, staying under 65 mph (as they are intended for) and at 80psi, the original PowerKing Towmax tires and now these Goodyear Marathons have done their intended job as expected within their limits.

[Mile_High]

Ya, they seem to be issues on the heavy trailers. Ran them on my boat trailer for 18 years (of course Marathon was a US tire back then) and no issues. Replace then with the only available overseas junk because that is all there is. None of that goes on my real trailer.

[milo]

OMG! ....Lots of hysteria about ST tires...FWIW ... been running ST tires pertnear 40 years and so far not single blow out. Have had 2 tires torn up becuz of fender support failures but nary a Kapow. :C

[jaycocamprs]

I'm not unhappy with the service the current BFG's have given. Oh I'd have liked another year, but I'm not complaining about 5 years. With the prices I was given today I can't justify the XPS Ribs, 50% higher than another set of BFG's. I will check with another dealer on the R250's, my usual dealer doesn't carry Bridgestone tires.

[Me_Again]

R250's based on price. Can go wrong with that choice. To many BFG C TA problems lately.

[jaycocamprs]

CC-skipjack wrote:
I just had my second set of BFGoodrich commercial T/A's installed after having 7+ years of trouble free service from the 1st set. Don't mess with success!

Just pulled one off this weekend. Saw the bulge while at the campsite. Tire is dated 1409, so it's 5 years old. They were bought to go on a 07 JayFlight, and spent 2 years on that trailer. Then were put under the Mountaineer in Nov 2011. Now I just need to make the choice, Ribs, R250s, or another set of BFG Commercial T/A's.

[Southern_Mist]

We put brand new Firestone Transforce HT's on our FW, have had no problems after 3000 miles cross country. We are happy campers.

[outback_06]

You might want to contact the tire manufacture you will probably get some money being they were only a year old. I had the same problem when my tires were less than two years old and the tire manufacture paid my damage and pro rated the tires and sent me some money. It took a while but they finally paid up.