Tire Tread on a TT

[MikeDupont]

Can someone explain to me how an aggressive/knobby/offroad tread on a trailer tire has any significant benefit while towing. Apart from a thick knob catching a nail or piece of glass that is shorter than the knob, i cant see this as an advantage during any towing, off or on pavement. I mean, youre dragging the thing anyway.

(beyond that it looks cool of course- thats a given 🙂 )

[goducks10]

If I owned a single axle off grid type TT I'd run BFG KO2's on it if I could find some that fit. That would make running 70-75 mph a breeze. I'd have the same on my tow vehicle as well.

[Grit_dog]

Or in short, they're just for looks. Which I'm not opposed to at all.
The little "off road" campers look kinda cool.
Mileage? LOL
I'm around 8mpg avg with the brodozer and current trailer pounding her down the road. I don't think I'd notice a difference from the trailer tires, although I agree they're not necessary and will have more rolling resistance.

[JIMNLIN]

Can someone explain to me how an aggressive/knobby/offroad tread on a trailer tire has any significant benefit while towing.

I've owned three 5th wheel rv trailers since the mid '80s but non ever went off road other than pulling into a construction work site at times.

Having towed non rv trailers full time on paved highways what I've found from actual experience is a AT or MT with large lugs and voids used on a road trailer loose traction quick on dry and especially wet pavement during hard braking events.
And like someone pointed out they wear fast....simply not a good tire tread for a working trailer. This type of work the trailer needs a long lasting tread type/good highway traction in all kinds of weather.

Now a rv trailer used in off road conditions would require a tread with larger lugs and voids.

[dedmiston]

way2roll wrote:
I guess it is possible they can handle a lower psi on sand but where exactly would people take them that they need that much float?

Follow me. I'll show you where. :B

But I agree with you in principle, and airing down sucks. Having to re-inflate twelve tires is ridiculous.

[Lwiddis]

I don’t seek “aggressive” tread on my TT but rather more puncture resistance which can be found on thicker aggressive tread tires.

[valhalla360]

If you figured out a set of tires and rims that match the truck...that would give you a universal spare tire, so if you lose two truck tires, you could just throw the trailer spare on the truck.

But I've never seen a match like this.

[schlep1967]

About the only off road advantage I can see is holding on a side slope to prevent the trailer sliding down the slope and not following in the tracks of the tow vehicle. And that wouldn't be a big advantage.

[way2roll]

Totally aesthetic to make the RV look rugged. It's marketing. Probably hurts towing MPG and I imagine they wear faster and are more pricey to replace. I guess it is possible they can handle a lower psi on sand but where exactly would people take them that they need that much float?

[MikeDupont]

Thanks, i thought i was missing something. Seems like a lot of TTs these days like to push their 'off road' tires. About the only advantage i can think of (now that you mention desert) is possibly a wider footprint for soft sand/mud.

[dedmiston]

I can't imagine any benefit to aggressive treads on a trailer tire.

We camp mostly in the deserts where we ride, so we tow a lot off-road. We camp in pretty large groups and I've never seen anybody with off-road tires on their trailers.

You need good traction on your tow vehicle tires, but as far as the trailer goes, I think the only criteria are:

* Follow me in a straight line
* Hold air
* Don't pop and shred my fenders
* Look black and pretty and don't detract from my beautiful trailer

We pick up a lot of nails & sticks out there, so I've plugged a ton of tires. I don't keep a log, but I'd say I've plugged four truck tires for every one trailer tire over the years. Come to think of it, I've probably plugged ten off-road tires to every one truck puncture, and the holes in the off-road tires usually take multiple plugs. (The record I've seen in our group is seven plugs to stop the leak and get back to camp.)