Tire solutions before pushing off fulltime

[Roadventure]

We bought our (slightly used) 2011 Road Warrior 385RW about a month ago. We started researching tires and there are about as many recommendations as there are opinions and it is hard to sift so many. I'm sure ya'll are sick of the same ?, but I'll try to be more specific for OUR situation to help get a more guided answer. Our trailer has the original TowMax King tires on it from 2010, they have tread and appear normal, but the trailer also sat in storage for 18 months before we bought it. So obviously we need to get new tires.

Facts:
I have a triple axle with each axle rated at 6000 lbs
Dry weight is 13,750
GVWR is 18,000
My need is for 7 tires - 6 mounted and 1 spare (or would you recommend more?)

Two options seem to be the path we should pursue:

Option 1: Keep 16" aluminum wheels (80psi) and buy a highly recommended E rated 10 ply tire
This is attractive until finding that the most recommended tire is usually a $400 Goodyear tire - I also priced some Toyo Tires from Les Schwab and it was somewhere in that ballpark. I have looked into Sailun and Maxxis as well.

Finding this option will cost somewhere between $1700 - $2800. Some folks seem to shy away from 16" wheels and say to upgrade. The guy at Les Schwab said it would be easier to have assistance on the road with a 16" wheel.

Option 2: Upgrade to a 17.5" high pressure (120 psi) wheel that can handle a commercial H rated 16 ply tire
The lowest I could get this package price was $3100 from http://www.trailer-wheels.com/, but as you can see that is only $300 more than just 16" nice higher end E rated tires.
This option includes HiSpec 17.5 aluminum wheels and a Hercules H-902.

I did talk to Scott from http://www.trailertiresandwheels.com/ and his recommendation is the same exact wheel, but Sailun S-637 tires - This package came to close to $3500 (a used sedan in price).

We weren't expecting this nor budgeting for it, but the initial investment to be less likely to have blowouts is attractive. The BlowMax tires gotta go either way. We were considering waiting(and praying) for the first month while we will mostly be parked in N. Idaho. to save up (no more $ to our landlord).

If you need more infos please ask, it would be great to hear from a fulltimer with the same type setup/weight rating and how things are working for them.

Thanks ahead of time!

 

[danemayer]

You definitely need to change out the Towmax tires before going anywhere. They're certainly at end of life, and most people would say they'd need to be changed even if new.

Maxxis ST 235/80R16 LR E tires are rated at 3420 lbs capacity when inflated to 80psi. With 6 tires, that gives you a total capacity of over 20,000 lbs. Part of your 18,000 GVWR, probably around 15,000, sits on the wheels and the other 3,000 or so on the pinbox. So the Maxxis would give you a very good safety margin on capacity. They also have a good reputation.

Goodyear Marathon LR E tires would be comparable except that they do not have a good reputation and there are many failure reports posted on forums and on the NHTSA website.

Sailun S637 is a 16" Load Range G tire with a rated capacity of 3,750 at 110 psi. BUT, you must have wheels rated for 110 psi/3750 lbs or you'll have a safety issue. You can look on the inside of the wheel, from underneath to see the rating stamped in your wheels. Sailun has an outstanding reputation and you'd have even more safety margin.

Goodyear G114 Load Range H tires would be considerably more than you need.

If your wheels support 110psi/3750 lbs, Sailun would be my choice.

Be sure to check the specs on the tire you settle on before actually buying it. And check the manufacturer's website, not the seller. You'll want to compare outside diameter to make sure you don't have a clearance problem between tires.

 

[iowaone]

I had several failed tires with the towmax. Since I also have 3 6000 lb axels I decided that LT tires might do the trick. At about $160 each they certainly where a reasonable cost option. After about 6000 miles and no troubles I am very happy with my Firestone transforce tires. They are slightly larger Diameter but even with the small Clearance between tires no problems.

 

[KenandKK]

I know what you are going thru,(to the penny), we had the same decisions to make. We chose to go with newer Towmax... (bad choice). First trip, blew the right front, $3000. damage... Second trip, blew the 'new' right front, another $3000. Talked with a tire loading expert and he advised, triple axle's destroy the belts on ordinary trailer tires in tight turns. (trailer tires are not turning tires as they are made for straight line loads) He suggested 17.5" Sailun 637's class H, and that's what we bought. NO more problems!! I checked tire pressures at every stop and also have a t.p.m.s..... it didn't help! Think about 'all' the possibilities not just the cost. It was a

 

[Roadventure]

You definitely need to change out the Towmax tires before going anywhere. They're certainly at end of life, and most people would say they'd need to be changed even if new.

Considering you have a triple axle, the Maxxis ST 235/80R16 LR E tires are rated at 3420 lbs capacity when inflated to 80psi. With 6 tires, that gives you a total capacity of over 20,000 lbs. Part of your 18,000 GVWR, probably around 15,000, sits on the wheels and the other 3,000 or so on the pinbox. So the Maxxis would give you a very good safety margin on capacity. They also have a good reputation.

Goodyear Marathon LR E tires would be comparable except that they do not have a good reputation and there are many failure reports posted on forums and on the NHTSA website.

Sailun S637 is a 16" Load Range G tire with a rated capacity of 3,750 at 110 psi. BUT, you must have wheels rates for 110 psi/3750 lbs or you'll have a safety issue. You can look on the inside of the wheel, from underneath to see the rating stamped in your wheels. Sailun has an outstanding reputation and you'd have even more safety margin.

Goodyear G114 Load Range H tires would be considerably more than you need.

If your wheels support 110psi/3750 lbs, Sailun would be my choice.

Be sure to check the specs on the tire you settle on before actually buying it. And check the manufacturer's website, not the seller. You'll want to compare outside diameter to make sure you don't have a clearance problem between tires.

The Sailun S637 I'd be considering is the high pressure for the 17.5" high pressure wheel. It sounds like a solid choice from what I've seen on RV.net and here.

- - - Updated - - -

Yeah, 2 $3000 incidents would put us in quite a predicament. Avoiding incidents is the key here. I appreciate your feedback, since you lived that. Smart people learn from experience super smart people learn from other's experiences. Trying to be in the latter group . I also was looking at adding a TPMS, but was told that they work better for high pressure systems - not sure of the validity of that. Project RV on YouTube did an install/review that found it was decent. I like that you can add the sensors to your tow vehicle and have stats and alerts for all tires on the pavement.

 

[KenandKK]

Sort of messed up the other post..... wanted to also say, Scott at "Trailer tires and wheels" had mounted tires to us the next day (not sure how he did that) at a very reasonable price.

 

[Roadventure]

Scott at "Trailer tires and wheels" had mounted tires to us the next day (not sure how he did that) at a very reasonable price.

That is amazing service. I am guessing you were close to OH?

 

[KenandKK]

Central Pa! When Scott said, You should have them tomorrow, I laughed.... FedX call at 10am. next morning. Six new, mounted, and balanced. Didn't do the spare!

 

[mlpeloquin]

Do the spare as soon as you can. If it is a BlowMax, you can't trust it. Not even for 200 miles.

 

[rayk4e]

We have a 2015 Road Warrior 415. Before even taking delivery I had the dealer swap out the 7 towmax tires with 12-ply Hercules Power STR tires rated at 95 pounds each using the original rims. Rated load is 3,968# per. I researched them like crazy and did not find any negative reviews of these tires and have been extremely satisfied with them. I purchased them for about $125 apiece and about $20 per tire mounting (total cost approx $1100 after taxes . A lot less expensive than the Goodyear 614 and still a very high quality, smooth running tire. Put the saving toward a quality TPMS system.

Hercules is known for high-quality truck tires and the quality has translated well into their STR line. I love these tires and am very happy I did not get caught up in the idea that I had to spend $350 per tire with upgraded rims to be safe. My hunch is that if you check the markings on your rims that they are rated for 110-125 lbs.

Best of luck!

Sent from my SM-T810 using Tapatalk

 

[Roadventure]

We have a 2015 Road Warrior 415. Before even taking delivery I had the dealer swap out the 7 towmax tires with 12-ply Hercules Power STR tires rated at 95 pounds each using the original rims. Rated load is 3,968# per. I researched them like crazy and did not find any negative reviews of these tires and have been extremely satisfied with them. I purchased them for about $125 apiece and about $20 per tire mounting (total cost approx $1100 after taxes . A lot less expensive than the Goodyear 614 and still a very high quality, smooth running tire. Put the saving toward a quality TPMS system.

Hercules is known for high-quality truck tires and the quality has translated well into their STR line. I love these tires and am very happy I did not get caught up in the idea that I had to spend $350 per tire with upgraded rims to be safe. My hunch is that if you check the markings on your rims that they are rated for 110-125 lbs.

Best of luck!

Sent from my SM-T810 using Tapatalk

I'll have to look into the Hercules STR. My trailer is in the shop getting bearings repacked, for a few more days. I'll look closer at the wheel rating this week sometime. Thanks for weighing in!

 

[CarterKraft]

If your wheels are high pressure 3750 lb rated I would put the 16" sailuns on there and sleep well.

I just put a set on last month and the difference in construction is amazing.
$143 (shipped) ea.

 

[Roadventure]

If your wheels are high pressure 3750 lb rated I would put the 16" sailuns on there and sleep well.

I just put a set on last month and the difference in construction is amazing.
$143 (shipped) ea.

Crossing my fingers. I have my doubts since the Towmax tires are only 80psi. If new wheels are needed at all for high pressure I'll bump up to 17.5".

 

[Bob&Patty]

If you have 8 lug wheels, they are most likely rated for 110#. Look at an inside spoke of the wheel and you should see a stamped 110. If the wheels are off now....now would be the time to look.

 

[rayk4e]

If you have 8 lug wheels, they are most likely rated for 110#. Look at an inside spoke of the wheel and you should see a stamped 110. If the wheels are off now....now would be the time to look.

Agreed Bob. If they aren't off and you have trouble looking at the mounted wheels, drop your spare and check that one.

 

[mlpeloquin]

My spare is not the aluminum rims that are on the axles, but is steel. Go under the rig with a flashlight and look on the inside of the rim. It is stamped in. Mine are rated at 110psi. I didn't fool around and put on five Good Year G614's. I have read if one fails, Good Year will repair the damage to your rig.

 

[Gaffer]

Goodyear Marathon is not comparable to Maxxis in quality. The Marathon is in the same class as the Towmax IMO.

You definitely need to change out the Towmax tires before going anywhere. They're certainly at end of life, and most people would say they'd need to be changed even if new.

Maxxis ST 235/80R16 LR E tires are rated at 3420 lbs capacity when inflated to 80psi. With 6 tires, that gives you a total capacity of over 20,000 lbs. Part of your 18,000 GVWR, probably around 15,000, sits on the wheels and the other 3,000 or so on the pinbox. So the Maxxis would give you a very good safety margin on capacity. They also have a good reputation.

Goodyear Marathon LR E tires would be comparable except that they do not have a good reputation and there are many failure reports posted on forums and on the NHTSA website.

Sailun S637 is a 16" Load Range G tire with a rated capacity of 3,750 at 110 psi. BUT, you must have wheels rated for 110 psi/3750 lbs or you'll have a safety issue. You can look on the inside of the wheel, from underneath to see the rating stamped in your wheels. Sailun has an outstanding reputation and you'd have even more safety margin.

Goodyear G114 Load Range H tires would be considerably more than you need.

If your wheels support 110psi/3750 lbs, Sailun would be my choice.

Be sure to check the specs on the tire you settle on before actually buying it. And check the manufacturer's website, not the seller. You'll want to compare outside diameter to make sure you don't have a clearance problem between tires.

 

[Ron-Cookie]

I replaced my Towmax tires with Sailun's and never looked back... I have at least 7000 miles (maybe closer to 8000) on them now and they are holding up well... They were a little larger in diameter than the Towmax tires but not enough to cause a problem with clearance on my Sundance... My 16 inch rims were stamped for 110 pounds. Whatever you do install a TPMS, monitor the pressures before every trip, and cover them while in storage! Because I live in Arizona I also spray them with Aerospace 303 Protectant as well... Anything you can do to protect your trailer's paws will protect you in the long run...

 

[justafordguy]

Same here, my wheels were stamped 110psi so I got the G rated Sailuns. Very heavy duty tires and a reasonable price.

 

[Roadventure]

I replaced my Towmax tires with Sailun's and never looked back... I have at least 7000 miles (maybe closer to 8000) on them now and they are holding up well... They were a little larger in diameter than the Towmax tires but not enough to cause a problem with clearance on my Sundance... My 16 inch rims were stamped for 110 pounds. Whatever you do install a TPMS, monitor the pressures before every trip, and cover them while in storage! Because I live in Arizona I also spray them with Aerospace 303 Protectant as well... Anything you can do to protect your trailer's paws will protect you in the long run...

I figure the TPMS is a good idea after investing so much in said "paws". Where does one obtain Aerospace 303? I guess I can search Amazon for it. Any solid reco on a TPMS?