ExRocketScienti
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Re: Revived Trailer Tire Thread (formerly on the 5th Wheel Forum
CapriRacer wrote: ExRocketScientist wrote: ......John I think those are P tires. You would have to divide the load capacity by 1.1. So the one that is 2535 at 75 psi would give you only 2305 pounds. No, those tires are "C" type tires - the European equivalent to LT tires. They are as suitable for trailer usage as LT tires are. Once again . . . learned something new.:C366Views0likes0CommentsRe: Revived Trailer Tire Thread (formerly on the 5th Wheel Forum
JBarca wrote: ExRocketScientist wrote: Something doesn't add up here John. My fiver came with 28.3 OD tires and has a 9.5 inch tall frame. After we adjusted the suspension so it would tow level with our truck, we had about 5 inches of clearance in the wheel wells, which is just the flat bottom of the floor. It is a triple step camper, and the first step up was about an inch more than the rest. So we have to step up four times to get in, just like you. Your camper sounds very similar to my fiver, I would only expect the bottom step to be about a half inch higher off of the ground because your frame is a half inch taller. I would think you should have about 4 inches or so of clearance in your wheel wells. The other option you have if you want to do the LT upgrade without doing an axle flip is to have a commercial truck frame shop put a 2" subframe on it (oh wait a minute -- you weld and would probably do that yourself). I know you ended up reinforcing your frame and doing the equivalent of the Mor Ryde X-Factor -- the subframe would preclude the need for that. Hi Ex, I only have 2 1/4 to 2 1/2" worth of clearance. Here see. This is on the original setup when I had Maxxis tires Here is the max suspension travel for my loaded weight. I am at the limit. After I added the hanger stiffing and the 1 1/4" lift due to the loss of the EZ flex height and shocks. I now have 6 1/4" effective hangers. Odds are high on your 5er you had a piece of 2 x 2 tube welded to the frame and then the hangers put on it. Lik this. This is off an old Jayco Here is a side shot the day I put these Denmans on. Gee, 3 years and here I am.... I really do not want to do an axle flip on this setup. Yes I can build something to raise the camper 1" or 1.5" but boy, moving all 6 hangers down again.... I'm still collecting ideas at this point. John I have been so busy getting my new TT ready to go for spring gobbler season I haven't had time to get on the computer at home and see your pictures (can't see them at work due to blocking of picture sharing sites). On my Jayco, they didn't put the tubes on the bottom of the frame. Instead, they built their own spring hangers. Each side is a single piece that serves the purpose of all three hangers. The hole closest to the frame is 6" from the bottom of the frame IIRC. There are two more holes below that, with 1.25" spacing. If you go back and look at your thread on the shock install, you can see them in my picture of my Dexter shocks. You may also be able to see them in the pictures of my spare tire hoist that you looked at a while back. What I am suggesting to you is to not only put a tube on the bottom of your frame with new hangers, but also put tubes from side to side attached to those tubes at each of the hangers. From above, the tubes would look like the number 8 on one of the orignal 7 segment LED digital displays. That would give you your frame reinforcement and the correct wheel well clearance at the same time. Thought occured to me . . . when you give the numbers for you clearance, is that with the thing just sitting level, or is that when you have jacked up one axle to the maximum articulation of the suspension? I think the 3" figure from Dexter (which is actually given for their torsion axles -- they don't give a figure for leaf spring suspensions) is for a static situation on level ground with the trailer loaded. I think your shorter springs are going to have less flex, and thus less suspension travel when hitting bumps than those of us who have the 33" axle spacing. Another thing -- what is the distance between your tires now (not on the left side with the bad tire -- the right side where the tire diameters are normal)? I have 33" axle spacing on my fiver and put the BFGCTA LT245/75R16 on. They have a diameter of 30.6, and I can barely get a BAL scissor chock between the wheels. So as long as your axle spacing is 32", the 225s should fit as far as distance between the tires.366Views0likes0CommentsRe: Revived Trailer Tire Thread (formerly on the 5th Wheel Forum
JBarca wrote: FastEagle wrote: JBarca wrote: If coming out of this I end up needing new wheels and tires my options are not many. So far I have the ST E range that Capri Racer suggested and that is about it. I have not found any LT tire that fits the diameter and at least a 2,500# max load rating. If some one knows of a 28.3" OD tire with that load rating in a LT please point it out. John Take a look at the very last item in this reference. Can you make a 29.3" tire work? Maxxis LT FastEagle 29.3" OD creates wheel well issues. I need to change the hangers to make them work. However they list a (4th up from the bottom) TL22212000 - 205/75R16C - 113R 10 BSW - 28.1"OD - 8.20" wide - 75psi 2,535# 5.5"rim. I just do not know if that tire is acceptable in a trailer situation or if I need extra reserve capacity. I do not understand what type it is. LT is not listed there. And I cannot find a rim that narrow in 16". Yet anyway. There is also a TL22214000 -215/75R16C - 113R 8 -BSW 28.7"OD - 8.80" wide 70psi 2,535# /6.00" rim And I can buy a trailer rim for that one. I have to deal with 0.2" of wheel well clearance though. John I think those are P tires. You would have to divide the load capacity by 1.1. So the one that is 2535 at 75 psi would give you only 2305 pounds.366Views0likes0CommentsRe: Revived Trailer Tire Thread (formerly on the 5th Wheel Forum
JBarca wrote: ExRocketScientist wrote: John -- Unless you have only 3" of clearance in your wheel wells, if you don't mind getting new wheels, you might consider the BFGCTA in LT225/75R16 Load range E. It is about 29.6" in diameter. Your current tires are about 28.3 inches. If you have about 3 and 3/4 inches of clearance now, these would probably work for you. You could get a tire and wheel package from trailertiresandwheels.com in Edon -- the shipping shouldn't be too bad for you since you are in the Columbus area. Hi Ex, Another forum member tipped me off on these. I wish they would work. Sunline built this camper as a low rider. Even with a flush floor slide and a 10" wide frame. I have 2 1/2" tire to wheel well clearance and this is on a rubber equalizer. So 2 1/4 to 2 1/2" is what I have. I am at the limit. Another hit is I have the shorter springs. I'm on 32" axle spacing not 33 like many other brands in this size TT. This one will not get me as bad as the wheel well but still a concern with this rubber equalizer. Long term I can deal with the 5 new rims cost and 5 new tires. I will soon be buying a 10,000# GVWR flat deck trailer to haul equipment on here locally and it uses these same tires I have now on the camper. This is a private trailer maker and he may make me a deal for me to bring my own wheels and tires so I can reuse these with new ST's on them. Running ST's on a flat bed use for 1 hour hauls not often is a lot better then the TT that gets a lot of towing and in 6 to 8 hour stretches some times. If coming out of this I end up needing new wheels and tires my options are not many. So far I have the ST E range that Capri Racer suggested and that is about it. I have not found any LT tire that fits the diameter and at least a 2,500# max load rating. If some one knows of a 28.3" OD tire with that load rating in a LT please point it out. Doing an axle flip to gain 4" more inches is not great in my case. DW already does not like the 4 steps I have to get in, going to 5 steps to get in is a concern. The extra wind drag does not help either. This truck sucks enough fuel now... Thanks for the info, If I can come to grips and work in 16" tires then the options open up. John Something doesn't add up here John. My fiver came with 28.3 OD tires and has a 9.5 inch tall frame. After we adjusted the suspension so it would tow level with our truck, we had about 5 inches of clearance in the wheel wells, which is just the flat bottom of the floor. It is a triple step camper, and the first step up was about an inch more than the rest. So we have to step up four times to get in, just like you. Your camper sounds very similar to my fiver, I would only expect the bottom step to be about a half inch higher off of the ground because your frame is a half inch taller. I would think you should have about 4 inches or so of clearance in your wheel wells. The other option you have if you want to do the LT upgrade without doing an axle flip is to have a commercial truck frame shop put a 2" subframe on it (oh wait a minute -- you weld and would probably do that yourself). I know you ended up reinforcing your frame and doing the equivalent of the Mor Ryde X-Factor -- the subframe would preclude the need for that. One of the things I have never posted is pictures of the "thing" I put in front of my door and throw a mat on. We started out using wooden pallets so we could have a mat that did not sit in the mud. Then we progressed to nice little platforms of 5/4 deck boards attached to 2x4s laid flat (gives a 2.5 inch high platform). I got on a weight reduction kick and wrapped some 1" think extruded polystyrene in epoxied fiberglass biaxial mat (I made saw cuts almost a half inch deep 1" apart on both sides with the direction perpendicular from one side to the other and put in some fiberglass there as stiffeners). This gives me a 1.25" platform for the mat and evened up the step heights getting into my fiver.267Views0likes0CommentsRe: Revived Trailer Tire Thread (formerly on the 5th Wheel Forum
CapriRacer wrote: JBarca wrote: ......Before I buy anything new, I need more research into why my tire failed and what to buy to help not have the same problem then next time......... To do that you'll need to take the tire off the vehicle and PAY a tire forensics specialist about $2K. That's the going price. But if you are willing to accept educated guesses that are worth the price you paid - tire is too small (based on my analysis earlier) What do you think of replacing it with the LT225/75R16 LRE BFGCTA?229Views0likes0CommentsRe: Revived Trailer Tire Thread (formerly on the 5th Wheel Forum
allen8106 wrote: ExRocketScientist wrote: John -- Unless you have only 3" of clearance in your wheel wells, if you don't mind getting new wheels, you might consider the BFGCTA in LT225/75R16 Load range E. It is about 29.6" in diameter. Your current tires are about 28.3 inches. If you have about 3 and 3/4 inches of clearance now, these would probably work for you. You could get a tire and wheel package from trailertiresandwheels.com in Edon -- the shipping shouldn't be too bad for you since you are in the Columbus area. I don't see an LT225 on their web site. This is one of those things you have to call them about. A number of people have done it, and those folks usually put together a package for them that saves them a little bit of money, even though the tires are not listed on their website.222Views0likes0CommentsRe: Revived Trailer Tire Thread (formerly on the 5th Wheel Forum
John -- Unless you have only 3" of clearance in your wheel wells, if you don't mind getting new wheels, you might consider the BFGCTA in LT225/75R16 Load range E. It is about 29.6" in diameter. Your current tires are about 28.3 inches. If you have about 3 and 3/4 inches of clearance now, these would probably work for you. You could get a tire and wheel package from trailertiresandwheels.com in Edon -- the shipping shouldn't be too bad for you since you are in the Columbus area.221Views0likes0CommentsRe: Revived Trailer Tire Thread (formerly on the 5th Wheel Forum
CapriRacer wrote: ExRocketScientist wrote: allen8106 wrote: Copied from Goodyear bulletin PSB #2011-13 dated May 18, 2011 Many trailer manufactures establish the recommended tire inflation pressure based on the 65 mph (104 km/h) rated speed for ST tires. In these cases, the ST tires should be inflated 10 psi (69 kPa) higher than the trailer placard for speeds up to 75 mph (121 km/h) (wheel must be rated for this higher inflation pressure). If the trailer manufacturer’s placard specifically states that the cold inflation pressure is suitable for speeds above 65 mph (104 km/h), no additional inflation pressure adjustment is required. But then again, there is the issue of exceeding the max inflation pressure listed on the sidewall of the tire. Most of the time the trailer manufacturer already has you inflating to the maximum pressure anyway -- so this is a help to virtually no one. Just an FYI: In the world of tires, there are exceptions to the rules, and this is one of them. Besides, if you look at the sidewall of an ST tire, it will say "Max Load XXXX at YY psi". That is NOT a statement for a maximum pressure, but it is a statement for maximum load. Good info. This is easily misunderstood. Thanks for clarifying it.272Views0likes0CommentsRe: Revived Trailer Tire Thread (formerly on the 5th Wheel Forum
allen8106 wrote: Copied from Goodyear bulletin PSB #2011-13 dated May 18, 2011 Many trailer manufactures establish the recommended tire inflation pressure based on the 65 mph (104 km/h) rated speed for ST tires. In these cases, the ST tires should be inflated 10 psi (69 kPa) higher than the trailer placard for speeds up to 75 mph (121 km/h) (wheel must be rated for this higher inflation pressure). If the trailer manufacturer’s placard specifically states that the cold inflation pressure is suitable for speeds above 65 mph (104 km/h), no additional inflation pressure adjustment is required. But then again, there is the issue of exceeding the max inflation pressure listed on the sidewall of the tire. Most of the time the trailer manufacturer already has you inflating to the maximum pressure anyway -- so this is a help to virtually no one.272Views0likes0CommentsRe: Revived Trailer Tire Thread (formerly on the 5th Wheel Forum
Tireman9 wrote: Great_Danes wrote: OK... so I read through the majority of posts on this thread and there is definitely a lot of good information here!! The only thing I am a little unclear about is how the load ratings are calculated between ST and LT tires. I am in the process of researching new tires for my 5er and have found that the Goodyear G614 (LR-G, 14 ply, 3750lb capacity, LT tire) would meet my criteria. One of the shops I spoke to also recommended a Kenda Karrier HD Radial (LR-F, 12ply, 3960lb capacity ST tire). I am confused as to how a LR-F tire can have a higher max laod capacity than a LR-G tire even if they are ST vs. LT. Obviously the Kenda is about 1/2 the cost of the GY. My trailer axles are rated (according to the placard) at 6840lbs but I know they are 7k axles that the manufacturer reduced the rating on to ensure that the standard LR-E tires (rated at 3420lbs) can be used. And to top it all off, I found I can upgrade to a 17.5" tire (Hercules H-902 245/75R17.5 135/133L 16 ply) including new steel rims for the same cost as the G614. I am leaning towards the 17.5" option because it seems the tires are more readily available than the G614 (at least around here) and of course because the load rating is total overkill for my trailer at 4805lbs per tire. Also, the replacement cost of the 17.5" tire is about $100 less per tire than the G614, so in 5 years when I need to replace tires, my costs will be less. Does this logic make sense, or am I going way overboard here when I could safely go with the Kenda tire in terms of load capacity and in turn save a whack of dough? Comments? Others have and will suggest you consider the 17.5 option. I think you have considered the details as long as you confirmed all the components such as axles, springs, hubs, wheels etc. RE LT load limits vs ST Load limits. Ther is no direct simple factor to convert load/inflation tables from ST loads to LT loads. ST tires have higher rating becsuse they have shallower tread depth (cooler running), A lower speed limit 65 vs 75 or higher for LT and ST type are intended for Trailer use only in Highway Service. I know of no state that allows people to travel in trailers while in motion so would interpret this to mean not intended to transport people. And if you go way back through this thread you will see where we discussed the "K" factor. It is a variable in the equation for computing the load capacity of a tire and is related to the severity of the expected service of the tire. The K factor is different between ST tires and LT tires such that if you had two tires of identical construction, size, and inflation pressure, the one that is designated an ST tire will have a higher load rating than the one designated LT. This is because they think a trailer tire has a cushy life compared to a tire on a truck. Your conclusions about the 17.5 inch upgrade is the same as many others -- and those that plan on keeping their units long enough to go through at least two more sets of tires have chosen to do it for both the economics of it, the serviceablity out on the road, and the reliability of the products.333Views0likes0Comments
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