BLOWMAX grrrrrr

[JDCHAMP909]

I am sure this will sound like a groundhog day story to those following the BLOWMAX issues. I had a failure after only several trips with my 14' BigHorn Silverado 36TB. I picked it up mid April and 4th of July weekend trip I was done with them. The day I took delivery I weighed my new rig for peace of mind and just being OCD about things. I noticed the load rating on the tires were close to the weight of the trailer as I took delivery so I questioned it, but trusted someone else's decision ie manufacturer of the trailer. Low and behold several months later BOOM! I also know several other Heartland owners from the San Antonio area who had the same issue and were meticulous about tire pressures speeds etc. At the end of the day I took it in and told the dealer I was NOT going to lift a finger and that I expected at a minimum the tire replaced and the damaged repaired. The dealer took care of me in that the damage was repaired and tire replaced. I pick it up this Wednesday from the dealer and am headed directly over to the tire shop for something beefier. I'm trying to do some research and am wondering why so many people caution against running a commercial truck tire on a travel trailer? The reason I didn't go with 17.5" rims and tires is due to availability and cost. I went with some G rated 14 ply tires which are 235 85R 16 vice the 235 80R 16's that were on there. Though slightly larger they are rated higher in every aspect over the stock junk that came on it. So IMO they should handle the weight at highway speeds much safer so why all the hub bub about running "non trailer" tires on a trailer when they seem to be far superior. I run bias ply tires on my flatbed trailers and have for years with zero tire failures. I run at highway speeds max loads and get great tire life ie no dry rot as well as great overall wear from them. I think because they don't have steel belts they dissipate heat better maybe I don't know if that's just my ignorant assumption? I was tempted to go with bias ply for the 5th wheel, but couldn't find any readily available with high enough ratings so I went with a radial. Thoughts, comments, or general discussion is highly encouraged. Much obliged Steve.

 

[danemayer]

Hi JDCHAMP909,

Sorry you had to go through this. If you look at prior threads, you'll find that the questions you've raised have been discussed many times.

 

[ILH]

Your blowmax support group membership card is in the mail... You'll love the secret handshake.

 

[JDCHAMP909]

Hahaha! Secret handshake? Could that be the reason I had such a cramp afterwards? Oh wait that was from changing the tire digging the 4ft strip of lava hot tread from back around the axle. God bless the fact I was raised by a man who well prepared me to always be ready for the unexpected. I had plenty of Jack and a torque wrench to boot.

No worries and I appreciate the empathy, but I try to see the brighter side of things. I learned a valuable lesson that my instincts are usually right....AND of course the fun part was that the "secretary or war" freaking out when it blew and my 4 yo didn't even wake up till I was back on the road. I will keep crawling trough trying to figure out the hub bub. The tires I got coming are rated for 99mph! Though I'd consider it the better part of me refrains from setting land speed records with 22k plus weight on public roads. I just hope the decision will be a good one to deviate from "standard trailer shoes" Much obliged Steve.

 

[Westwind]

Took them off my 2012 Bighorn December 2013 after traveling to Florida two years on them! What a relief! I've got Goodyear G614's on it and I can actually say that I enjoyed the ride to Florida for the first time with the Bighorn! I've had TPMS on the wheels since I got the trailer and that and the new tires make the ride so much more enjoyable. I think the Guys pulling the tires off the trailer must thought I had money to burn since they looked new.

 

[scottyb]

Steve, if you read every thread on this topic, you will find that a lot of us are running commercial LT's, especially on the 3 axle rigs. I will never run a ST tire on anything other than an equipment trailer.

 

[ILH]

...The tires I got coming are rated for 99mph! Though I'd consider it the better part of me refrains from setting land speed records with 22k plus weight on public roads. I just hope the decision will be a good one to deviate from "standard trailer shoes" Much obliged Steve.

Which tires did you decide to get? Goodyear G614s?

 

[MCTalley]

The tires I got coming are rated for 99mph!

Which tires did you decide to get? Goodyear G614s?

See first quote. Sounds like LT tires are on the way. G614s are rated for 75 MPH.

 

[Jim.Allison]

Yes, I had to use a pair of large channel locks to get than dadgum tire loose from the axle and springs. And you are right it was about 4 foot long piece of hot rubber. You did not mention the stickers and grass burrs then the black rubber all over my hands having to get back into my truck with sweat and black grime all over me. Then stare at that damage all weekend, and about traveling without a spare because one was not available. People keep buying cheap tires to replace cheap tires. I dont get it.

Hahaha! Secret handshake? Could that be the reason I had such a cramp afterwards? Oh wait that was from changing the tire digging the 4ft strip of lava hot tread from back around the axle. God bless the fact I was raised by a man who well prepared me to always be ready for the unexpected. I had plenty of Jack and a torque wrench to boot.

No worries and I appreciate the empathy, but I try to see the brighter side of things. I learned a valuable lesson that my instincts are usually right....AND of course the fun part was that the "secretary or war" freaking out when it blew and my 4 yo didn't even wake up till I was back on the road. I will keep crawling trough trying to figure out the hub bub. The tires I got coming are rated for 99mph! Though I'd consider it the better part of me refrains from setting land speed records with 22k plus weight on public roads. I just hope the decision will be a good one to deviate from "standard trailer shoes" Much obliged Steve.

 

[JDCHAMP909]

Well after much internal debate I ended up going with an ST over LT. I found that the trailer tires were in fact stiffer then the LT's. My buddy arpund the cormer has the same identical rig as me and went with LT's and I can see the tires "squatting" a bit more then the stock blowmaxes do/did. I was leaning towards the G614's but the price was awful steep in comparison. I paid 750.00 for all four everything included with lifetime everything etc from Discount and went with Load Boss 235 85r 16 load range g and 126q speed rating. I did a lot of searching and found OLD complaints about them, and nothing but descent reviews as of late. I even found derogatory stuff on the G614's, far less albeit. So I'm hoping I'm not swapping junk for junk. If so I know the tires shop will stand behind any premature failures as they have done so with me in the past. The justification to me is cost it "appears" to be essentially the same tire as the G614 though arguably with any other look alike the proof will be where the rubber meets the road literally. I see the added strength and greater capacity of these tires NOT being pushed to the max as the load E blowmaxes were clearly there just sitting still. I did simple math. The rig weighed in at 12600 the day I bought it (not the advertised 11500 or whatever) with nothing else in it the way it came from the dealer. Load range E can hold 3400lbs each round it off to an even 3 for stupid people like me and u got 12K of trailer over 12K of tires. Ok so I know some of that weight is on the btruck etc etc but I over build everything. So I'm just saying for the sake of simplicity if I had a tire with greater capacity hauling the same load in my theory I should not have the same failure. Either way we shall see. Now I have to figure out if the stock rims can hold 110 psi....Yikes!

*

As far as the circus act on the side of the super slab I actually go well prepared. Some have said you could easily build a shopping mall with the things they find in my truck. So I threw on my old Coast Guard coveralls had some leather gloves to stave off the razor sharp "tire teeth" ready to bite, and had my trusty 3 ton floor jack to aid with the lifting of that behemoth. The sticker burr attack was hastened by a heavy welding blanket. Removal came by way of electric impact bc frankly, though I'm NOT on a NASCAR pit crew my goal is to get back into my vehicle as fast as possible in that drivers ed was taught by someone who was deaf and blind. At least around the greater San Antonio area imo. So I managed not to get creamed by one of them unwitting drivers texting away at mach speeds only to live hopefully to not deal with it again. If I do back to the drawing board. Luckily i was on my way home from the trip to the coast and not very far from the casa. I'm not one for replacing junk with junk and if it appears to be I'll eat crow and swap them with the wallet busters. I'll let you know some initial thoughts when I get them on and dragging this pig down the road. Much obliged, Steve

 

[ILH]

Yes, I had to use a pair of large channel locks to get than dadgum tire loose from the axle and springs. And you are right it was about 4 foot long piece of hot rubber. You did not mention the stickers and grass burrs then the black rubber all over my hands having to get back into my truck with sweat and black grime all over me. Then stare at that damage all weekend, and about traveling without a spare because one was not available. People keep buying cheap tires to replace cheap tires. I dont get it.

Albeit it took about 90 minutes to arrive, I sure am glad I had AAA with RV Plus. I just sat back and let the guy change it for me. I'm not intimidated by the effort, but the danger of the cars wizzing by without regard is what got me.

 

[JDCHAMP909]

So does anyone know where I can find the rim specs on my rig? I dont wanna spend all day on hold with Heartland just to find out.

 

[TravelTiger]

You should see it stamped on a spoke on the backside of the wheel. It should say XXXX LBS. And XX PSI MAX. Also, you could look on Tredit's website to find what your wheel looks like and see the specs there, based on the bolt pattern. Www.tredittire.com/aluminum-wheels-C10.aspx

3750 is 110psi, 3580 is 80psi

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[JDCHAMP909]

It says 8hH 165.1 3750lbs but no psi. I'll dog on that site you are my hero!

 

[Jim.Allison]

Is it a T04 16 inch rim?

It says 8hH 165.1 3750lbs but no psi. I'll dog on that site you are my hero!

 

[JDCHAMP909]

Going by the previous posted website they are T02

 

[Jim.Allison]

http://www.trailerandtruckparts.com...railer-Wheel-8-on-650-Bolt-Pattern_p_989.html

According to this spec chart, this T02 is a 3750 wheel at 110 psi. It is a 16 inch 8 on 6.5 in bolt pattern. Is this what you have. If it is, then the G614 is a perfect match.

 

[JohnD]

You should see it (wheel specs) stamped on a spoke on the backside of the wheel. It should say XXXX LBS. And XX PSI MAX.

I wonder why they don't make it easy for us to find that info . . . perhaps by stamping that info on the FRONT of said wheel(s)?

 

[TXBobcat]

On my 2008 Bighorn 3400RE I changed to 17.5 rims. Expensive? Depends how you look at it. The tires and rims (I got all 5 rims the same) cost $3,350. If you purchase a cheaper tire or a tire that will not handle the weight or speed rating. Say $200 per tire time 5 is $1,000. Repair damage to the trailer $2,500. Time lost on the road? Depends on how bad the damage ended up being. I have no worry about the tires and the safety they give me. I think it is cheaper in the long run to have the better tire on my trailer.

FWIW
BC

 

[JDCHAMP909]

Jim & John thanks a heap. I feel a lot better not having to swap rims. The new shoes should go on today or tomorrow. Then it's down the road this weekend!

BC great point of view and I completely agree with what you are saying. This is a bit out of the norm for me as I do a 99% of the work to my vehicles etc I spend more on better parts to include brakes tires etc. However for a weekend used rig new rims and tires just aren't in the budget and most of our trips are within the state of Texas. So the trade off is at least a better rated tire that if it will do what it says should be fine. If I start traveling outside my comfort zone often I absolutely will look into way heavier. I don't ever see having more weight or even being close to the 15k gvw of the rig as I have everything I need. I am not looking forward to having anymore catastrophic failures and would easily use that as leverage to secure repairs. A hassle yes, but again just couldn't swing the 3k + shipping etc for 17.5's just to run down the road a couple hrs on the weekend. Old uncle sam pretty much gives what he gives and it ain't much so I make due.

On another note the service folks HAVE taken note of my observations and have some weekly "huddle" meeting or something where they bring up issues. Heartland obviously knows about this, but they said it would be brought up at this time from mine as well as the dealers perspective as they felt I should have had at least a better rated tire to begin with. Something at least commensurate with actual gvw of the trailer.

Again much obliged all for your insight and time educating me. -Steve