15 inch tire recommendations

[SCBillandJane]

We are looking at buying a used Trailmanor that comes with the 15 inch tire as standard equipment. The Trailmanors that seem to fit our preferences and budget are a one to two day trip from home. We are also planning a very long trip this summer. From the information in the forum, it would seem very risky to bring home the Trailmanor on old tires when we will need to replace them anyway before the summer trip. Are there any suggestions as to brand, type, availability on short notice, and things I haven't asked? Is taking along a grease gun for the wheel bearings a good idea? If so, can you give me help with the type of grease and how much to pump into the fitting? I hope that I posted this in the right place.

[wmtire]

SCBillandJane, we (as in the Trailmanor members on this forum) are trying hard to be able to come up with a good answer to your question. We are experimenting with different brands, as we speak, to see if we can find better choices than others. We are in the early stages of this experiment, which will take years to fairly judge how well the tires hold up. I do believe that in these 15 inch tires, that everyone in our real world experiment is utilizing ST (Special trailer) tires. This doesn't need to be confused with the 14 inch tires, where we are experimenting with LT (Light truck) tires there.

We have posted in other forums a lot of the tire choices that members have chosen to place on their trailers. In 15 inch tires, it seems that the biggest consensus is to avoid the Carlisle brand if possible. Goodyear Marathons (in 15 inch tires), is subject to debate themselves. Most of these marathons aren't being built by Goodyear currently, so the jury is still out if they have gotten better or worse.

I know that this isn't really what you are looking for in an answer, because it doesn't really recommend what to buy, but more of what not to get.

[Bill]

As Bobby says, there isn't yet a perfect answer. Since you are new to the whole thing, I think that the easiest, most hassle-free way to handle the situation is to replace them with what is already on there. If your candidate TM has 15" tires as standard equipment, then you must be looking at a 3023 or a 3124 - all the other models have 14" tires. This means that the OEM tires are Goodyear Marathon ST225-75R15 tires. Be sure that the installer balances the wheels before he puts them back on the TM.

By the way, are you sure that the tires need to be replaced? Is it possible that the previous owner replaced them within the past couple years? There is a 4-digit date code (WWYY) at the end of the long DOT code that is molded into the sidewall. It is probably on the inner sidewall, so you have to crawl under the TM to see it. Anything newer than 3 years or so is probably OK to keep.

Bill

[SCBillandJane]

I guess I should have given you more information. I am new at this. We are tent campers and have no experience with RVs. We think that we have found "our" Trailmanor, and it is one of the larger ones that come with 15 inch tires. We are going to look at it next weekend and it is about 500 miles away. The Trailmanor is 5 years old with the original Marathon tires. The trailer has not been used for 2 years due to the owners illness. Without this excellent forum, we wouldn't have been cautious about new looking 5 year old tires. We would rather buy new tires than have an "adventure" on the way home. I don't know the difference between LT and ST other than they would have to carry the same weight. I have had 225-75R15 LT sets of tires on a van and had no tire problems for 150,000 miles. I guess that they still make LT tires in that size. Are LT tires a good choice? I guess that that I am bothered that the jury is still out on the 15 inch Marathons especially with the damage that a blowout can cause, however, if that is the best advice at this time, new Marathons will be on the trailer.

[Bill]

I don't think there has been a problem with the 15-inch Marathons. The problems that I am aware of have been with the 14-inch Marathons, probably because the weight of the TM is close to their weight rating. The 15" tires have more reserve weight-carrying capacity.

As for tire sizes, the "LT" designation means "Light Truck". The "ST" designation means "Special Trailer". There are apparently differences in the tire construction, especially in the sidewall, that make ST tires a better choice for trailers. LT tires are not as good in this application - though by no means forbidden.

As for grease, let me add that the Dexter Axle web site says that the grease container MUST say NLGI #2 on it somewhere. NLGI is the organization that sets the standards for various kinds of greases, and you will find grease cartridges with several different NLGI ratings. Grease that is labelled NLGI #1-1/2 is not lower quality grease - it is different grease, intended for a different application.

My advice is to work with the grease cartridges, not bulk grease. I have a mini-grease gun (the barrel is about 6 inches long) which takes (not surprisingly) mini cartridges. I find this easier to carry than a full-size gun, but everyone has their own preferences.

The job is not hard, but it is messy. I suggest your wear old clothes, have an entire roll of paper towels within easy reach, and a package of Q-tips to mop the old grease out of the bearing cap as it oozes out of the fitting. Do NOT try to wipe out the old grease with your finger unless you also have a box of Band-Aids at hand - the sheet metal cap is sharp!

Bill

[SCBillandJane]

Thank you wmtire and Bill. You really helped ease some worries. I don't have an owner's manual yet nor do I have any experience. I laughed when I read about the choice between Q-tips and bandaids. I prefer Q-tips and would never have thought of this without your help.

[wmtire]

Thank you wmtire and Bill. You really helped ease some worries. I don't have an owner's manual yet nor do I have any experience. I laughed when I read about the choice between Q-tips and bandaids. I prefer Q-tips and would never have thought of this without your help.

If you want to get a little heads up on your reading, Bill has the owners manual posted here.


http://www.trailmanorowners.com/forum/showthread.php?t=2365

[GDORancher]

I do know that ST (trailer tires) have stiffer sidewalls. I have a farm trailer that I discovefred had two absolutely flat tires only after loading it. ----I know--- I would have checked them anyway before moving off away from my compressor.
GDORancher