15 inch tires on 14 inch axle - Page 3

**fcatwo** · 04-21-2005, 02:13 PM

Ray

Did Ed venture an opinion of how much weight the 5K axle and 15" wheels will add? If not we'll have to wait until after you do the upgrade to find out.

RockyMtnRay · 04-21-2005, 02:41 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by fcatwo

Ray

Did Ed venture an opinion of how much weight the 5K axle and 15" wheels will add? If not we'll have to wait until after you do the upgrade to find out.

Nope...subject didn't come up, probably because he didn't think it critical to discuss.

My educated guess is that the 5K axle won't be much heavier than the 3.5K axle. I compared the two axles on Dexter's website and the 5K has a 3 inch tube; the 3.5K has a 2.6 inch tube. Brackets are about an inch longer but appear to be made of the same gauge steel. So maybe a 15 to 20 lb difference in weight.

The slightly larger wheels/tires will undoubtedly be a bit heaver...maybe around 10 lbs more apiece...so the whole swap (axle, 3 wheels/tires) will probably add something on the order of 50 lbs to the trailer's empty weight. I'll be very surprised if adds much more than 60 to 70 lbs to the weight.

But even if the swap added 100 lbs to the trailer's empty weight, the ability to carry as much as 4300 lbs on the larger tires way more than makes up for it.

**fcatwo** · 04-21-2005, 03:46 PM

So the 4.5" increase in height would be the biggest adjustment. I'm a little reluctant to admit it but I don't know whether we have the 2" lift. I think I'll go out and crawl under to see. What am I looking for?

ripp1202 · 04-21-2005, 04:39 PM

Looks like this!!!!!!!!!!

The Rip

**Caver** · 04-21-2005, 06:38 PM

Ray,

I can adjust the break controller to lock the brakes on my TM by using the manual control. The Prodigy instructions tell you to adjust it just short of the wheels locking at about 25 mph or for maximum breaking.

Are you not able to do this or am I missing something or are you referring to normal TM brake activation by deceleration? I'm fairly impressed with the TV/TM breaking.

Ray

**fcatwo** · 04-21-2005, 06:56 PM

Leon and Rip

Thanks, we do have that.

04-21-2005, 11:52 PM

Ray,

I liked your piece on ST tires. It seems reasonable to me that trailer tires certainly have different storage needs than a car/truck tire.

My TM is new. I keep it parked in the garage when not in use. This keeps it out of the sun, rain, heat, cold, etc. but probably not the smog of San Jose.

If I don't go camping enough to wear them out first, should I have plans on replacing the ST tires after 5 years or will the improved shelter of the garage have a significant impact on tire longevity?

It seems to me that the 5 year tire replacement recommendation that I have seen posted is somewhat arbitrary. I would think that there is a big difference between parking the TM in my garage versus outdoors in Arizona or Montana.

RockyMtnRay · 04-22-2005, 05:59 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Caver

Ray,

I can adjust the break controller to lock the brakes on my TM by using the manual control. The Prodigy instructions tell you to adjust it just short of the wheels locking at about 25 mph or for maximum breaking.

Are you not able to do this or am I missing something or are you referring to normal TM brake activation by deceleration? I'm fairly impressed with the TV/TM breaking.

Ray

I'm referring to using the manual control to attempt to get tire lockup so I can follow Tekonsha's instructions to adjust it to just short of lockup. Have only tried it with the trailer loaded for travel (as that would be the circumstances where I would need the max braking). Even with the Prodigy's gain set to maximum, I don't get lockup. Didn't get it when I towed with the Jeep and am not getting it when towing with the Tundra so I'm pretty much ruling out TV wiring. I do get noticeable deceleration of the rig when manually applying only the trailer brakes, but I have no sense the trailer tires are close to lockup. Tests were done at about 25 mph on dry, aged asphalt pavement.

I suspect that you have larger brake drums on your 3023 (to go with the 5K axle/15 inch tires) than I do on my 2720 (3.5K axle, 14 inch tires) and that might account for the difference in your experience. After I get the 5K axle, 15 inch tires installed on my TM this fall I'll be repeating the braking tests before I pull the trigger on a disc brake conversion.

RockyMtnRay · 04-22-2005, 06:29 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by PopBeavers

Ray,

I liked your piece on ST tires. It seems reasonable to me that trailer tires certainly have different storage needs than a car/truck tire.

Thanks. I was previously aware of the issue but this thread caused me to really do some research and get it posted up for all to read.

Quote:

My TM is new. I keep it parked in the garage when not in use. This keeps it out of the sun, rain, heat, cold, etc. but probably not the smog of San Jose.

Keeping it out of the sun will help...though many folks who park outside use tire covers that largely stop the UV damage. Heat/cold will be moderated...but if your garage is like mine, it does get pretty warm on a summer afternoon. Definitely won't have the water induced weathering though. I garage store my TM as well...protects the trailer itself from UV damage and especially from hail damage (Colo Spgs is the hail capital of the US). But I don't do it so much for tire protection.

The SJ smog...more precisely the ozone in the smog...will definitely permeate your garage and attack the tire rubber. I lived in Moreno Valley (east of Riverside) for 2 years...in summer that was basically the exhaust pipe for the LA basin and so I have some real first hand experience with smog. Garage storage doesn't help a lot.

Quote:

If I don't go camping enough to wear them out first, should I have plans on replacing the ST tires after 5 years or will the improved shelter of the garage have a significant impact on tire longevity?

It seems to me that the 5 year tire replacement recommendation that I have seen posted is somewhat arbitrary. I would think that there is a big difference between parking the TM in my garage versus outdoors in Arizona or Montana.

Yeah, I'm sure the "5 year" number is some sort of statistically based average and possibly a bit conservative. It's thrown around as a "if-you-replace-by-5-years-you-probably-won't-have-a-blowout" kind of number. Emphasis on probably. The problem with blowouts isn't just the potential loss of control, damage to the tire rim, etc. As the tire disintegrates, it tends to cause a whole lot of collateral damage...flying chunks of rubber often destroy the external drain pipes and sometimes come through the wheel well liners and do a lot of damage to the internals of the cabinets. A blowout can do thousands of dollars of damage to the trailer itself...which is why people fear them so much.

Yes, off-season garage storage might make a difference but then it might not (see above). I think that lifting the trailer fully off the tires during storage (to remove the vulnerable sidewall bulge) and reducing the pressure to 10 psi during storage (to prevent oxygen/ozone migration into internal the tire structure) would help even more. But what would help the most is just taking the trailer out camping at least a couple of times during the winter months...if you exercise the tires at least every month or two, you'll activate their intrinsic anti-oxidant protection and that will greatly extend their life. Since you live in a region with relatively mild winter weather, you could do this. Me...from about Oct through April, it's not very prudent to take the trailer out camping...plus most of the nice campgrounds are deep in snow.

**2manypets** · 04-22-2005, 07:50 AM

Ray,

I'm having the same experience as you. Even with the Prodigy at maximum gain I can't get the brakes to lockup. I've checked the adjustment of the brakes and they seem to be correct. I was begining to think the problem might be in the controller.

BTW My TM has the 15 inch tires.