Towmax Tires

L

lasvegas99fan

Member
We have an Elkridge 38RSRT and we've had 1 fail (Aug this year) on the inner sidewall but caught it thank to passers by on the highway before it came apart. Now, yesterday coming home (300 miles from Phoenix) another blew apart just leaving the bead and some of the side wall on the wheel. Thankfully no trailer damage and I sure as heck don't know how it didn't rip the plastic fender and other stuff off.

Anyway, called roadside assistance outside of Kingman, AZ to get a new tire and when they showed up he noted that the other remaining Towmax tires were going to fail due to separation. One of the Towmax that hadn't failed yet had a huge bubble on the inner sidewall and the other had separated and looked like a mountain bike tire rising up out of the middle of the tire. Ended up getting 3 tires since the one that failed back in Aug was replaced with a new Hercules, Power STR with a F load range max load of 3960 @ 95psi.

Turns out the 3 tires yesterday are Westlake (Wal Mart tire from what I can find so far) LT235/85R16 load range E with a max load of 3042 @ 80psi but they got us home and now I'm prepping for a trip from Las Vegas to Daytona (2400 miles) for the 500 in Feb and need to either get another Westlake to match the other 3 LTs, get 3 ST tire to match the Hercules, Power STR or bite the bullet and get something different. This will be one of 2 near cross country trips next year and i'd rather be looking out the windshield instead of watching the mirrors for tires coming apart.

I've been reading a lot since we got home last night and the consensus is to upgrade to the 17.5 inch wheels and Goodyears G114s, stay 16" wheel with Michelin XPS RIBS or G614s but need to be sure the current wheels can hold 100psi.

How/where on the wheel is it stamped?

Trailer is 15,500 GVWR and far from fully loaded but is still a pig. I need to run it across some scales some time. All air pressures were at 80psi except the Hercules (85psi) when we left the house on Thursday to head down as well as when we left to head home yesterday. Speeds stayed between 60-65, maybe 70 while passing slower vehicles but then back down.

Does or has anyone had any experience with either of these tires (Westlake or Hercules) and what do the full timers who travel thousands of miles a year have on their 5th wheels?

Seems these Towmax (Blowmax from what I've see) are real pieces of junk for what these 5th wheels cost.
 
M

MCTalley

Well-known member
Max PSI is typically stamped on the back side of one of the wheel spokes. Dismount a tire/wheel assembly and look in the back to verify.

Most all of the fifth wheels in your class (15,500 lb.) of rig coming off the Heartland assembly line are now equipped with Sailun S637 Load Range G tires. They are inexpensive (compared to Goodyear G614s or upgrading to 17.5's and G114s) and have so far proven to be pretty durable. Not sure I've seen anyone on the forum complain about blowouts with them yet. You can search the forum for Towmax, however, and get quite a few long reads similar to your experience.
 
Shortest Straw

Shortest Straw

Caught In A Mosh
If you can fit the Sailuns on your trailer you will not be disappointed. If your rims need to be replaced due to them not holding 110 psi, you may want to go the 17.5 inch route. I do not know the cost difference. If you search Towmax you will find a ton of info on this forum.
 
L

lasvegas99fan

Member
I have read a lot of stories a lot worse than mine and I'm hoping I can fit a load G on my existing wheels. Load rating E on 15.5k GVWR just doesn't seem enough even with a LT tire instead of a ST tire


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L

lasvegas99fan

Member
Shortest Straw said:
If you can fit the Sailuns on your trailer you will not be disappointed. If your rims need to be replaced due to them not holding 110 psi, you may want to go the 17.5 inch route. I do not know the cost difference. If you search Towmax you will find a ton of info on this forum.
Click to expand...

Would my only concern about fitting them be the psi limit on my wheels or are they wider/taller than the Towmax that came on the trailer? I'll look for specs but just thought I'd ask


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Shortest Straw

Shortest Straw

Caught In A Mosh
lasvegas99fan said:
Would my only concern about fitting them be the psi limit on my wheels or are they wider/taller than the Towmax that came on the trailer? I'll look for specs but just thought I'd ask


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Click to expand...

I don’t think so. We put them on our Oakmont when we had it without issue. I think they are a smidge taller but not much. You will definitely see the difference in quality comparatively speaking.


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SNOKING

SNOKING

Well-known member
If your wheels are the 8 lug Summits, then they are rated to 3750. http://www.tredit.com/wheels/summit

j55-8-lug-black.tmb-0.jpg
 
TexasTraveler2017

TexasTraveler2017

Active Member
lasvegas99fan said:
That looks like them but in the silver finish. Probably not rated for 110psi then.
802176502523213662a8bdc5af1917b9.jpg



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Click to expand...

I just put the Sailuns on my new Gateway before I drove it back to Texas from Indiana and have these rims. Mine were stamped 3750 and 110 psi. So while you can’t really take advantage of the 4000 lb load capacity of the sailun on these rims, you can still get the increased stability and peace of mind of the all steel tire.

I loaded the 4 factory “trailer king” tires into my truck (while having the MORryde IS and disc brakes installed) and drove over to http://www.trailertiresandwheels.com to get the sailuns. When I got back to MORryde and unloaded them, I could definitely feel the difference in just the weight of the tire. Definitely more robust than what the factory put on.


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SNOKING

SNOKING

Well-known member
L

lasvegas99fan

Member
TexasTraveler2017 said:
I just put the Sailuns on my new Gateway before I drove it back to Texas from Indiana and have these rims. Mine were stamped 3750 and 110 psi. So while you can’t really take advantage of the 4000 lb load capacity of the sailun on these rims, you can still get the increased stability and peace of mind of the all steel tire.

I loaded the 4 factory “trailer king” tires into my truck (while having the MORryde IS and disc brakes installed) and drove over to http://www.trailertiresandwheels.com to get the sailuns. When I got back to MORryde and unloaded them, I could definitely feel the difference in just the weight of the tire. Definitely more robust than what the factory put on.


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Click to expand...

Are the Sailun tires ST or LT tires? I'm guessing ST since they are coming on trailers now.
 
TexasTraveler2017

TexasTraveler2017

Active Member
lasvegas99fan said:
Hopefully last question about these but what would be a good price? I'm finding them locally at Big-O for under $700 for 4.
Click to expand...

I think that’s a good price. My total price at trailer tires and wheels was $706. The only place I found the tires cheaper was on simpletire.com, but that price doesn’t include mounting or balancing.


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M

MCTalley

Well-known member
Note that Sailun offers (edited to add: used to offer) both an ST and an LT model. My Big Country shipped with LTs. Looking at a neighbor's Bighorn at the national rally this summer, his had STs.

The only differences that I could discern is that the ST tires have a higher weight rating (slightly over 4000 lb. at 110 psi) at the expense of a lower speed rating (65 mph) where the LT tires have a lower weight rating (3750 lb. at 110 psi) due to a higher speed rating (75 mph).
 
danemayer

danemayer

Well-known member
I don't know if there's actually any difference between the Sailun ST and LT. The ratings on the LT are lower because there's a certification requirement on LT tires that requires a load margin. ST tires don't require that margin. There may be some tariff differences between LT and ST tires that drives having 2 versions.
 
TexasTraveler2017

TexasTraveler2017

Active Member
MCTalley said:
The only differences that I could discern is that the ST tires have a higher weight rating (slightly over 4000 lb. at 110 psi) at the expense of a lower speed rating (65 mph) where the LT tires have a lower weight rating (3750 lb. at 110 psi) due to a higher speed rating (75 mph).
Click to expand...

According to Sailuns website, it appears the ST tires have a speed rating of L, which I believe is 75 MPH.

http://gosailun.com/MRT/Tire/S637T



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hogan

hogan

Past Mississippi Chapter Leader (Founding)
Does or has anyone had any experience with either of these tires (Westlake or Hercules) and what do the full timers who travel thousands of miles a year have on their 5th wheels?

I think the Westlake tire is made by a tire company owned by the Chinese government. Look at the DOT ID and the first two letters/numbers following DOT will designate the manufacturing factory. It's possible this is same factory that was making the Towmax.

Check the serial on the Hercules also to see where it is manufactured. If you will post here, I will look up the manufacture ID for you.

Hogan Cooper
 
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