ST Tire Manufacturers: Any Difference?

[Harry Womack]

I run the Maxxis 10 ply tires at 70 psi. They do not look low like the load range D tires did.

[ShrimpBurrito]

Originally Posted by pauloh

Is there any problem with 80lbs. of air in the TM 15-inch rims? E is probably going to give a little rougher ride at 80lbs, did I read somewhere that some folks run them at lower pressure?

Yes, there is a problem. Running with 80 psi will shake everything in your TM loose -- screws, brackets, toilet seat, etc. Been there, done that, won't do it again. While they are rated for a max pressure of 80 psi, I run load range E tires and keep them at ~65 psi. So far, that has worked well, so I am going to keep doing that. I also plan on changing my tires at 3 years, regardless of wear.

Dave

Just a comment on the value of posts in which different manufacturers are hailed or hung, I did a lot of online checking around before buying my new tires and it seems that what is really important is not so much who made the tire as it is how was the tire treated in use by the buyer. No tires last long if:
1. Driven over potholes and/or sharp debris in the road.
2. Driven under-inflated.
3. Not balanced.
4. Left without movement for months on end (outside or inside storage doesn't change this).
5. Driven in desert conditions of heat.
6. Driven with the TM overweight for tire specifications.
7. Stored on pavement directly and/or in Sun without cover.
8. Store sold tire that was out of date already.

Other factors, of course, apply, but this is probably enough to indicate that any poster who says a particular manufacturer is bad, or good, should be required to swear that they followed all good habits in the treatment of the tire. Just my thoughts and I am not saying that there really aren't some bad tires being manufactured.

Thanks all - I'm joining in this thread as we just bought our lift kid for our 2004 2720 and are about to install 15" wheels. The service place says our current tires are in fine condition but we are tired of the 2-3 hours it requires to move it up/down the driveway (see my earlier thread) and are upgrading to help with that plus help prevent blowouts. The lift kit was surprisingly cheap but now we need to buy the tires and wheels and to get it all installed. We are looking forward to our first trip in a few weeks The TM is new to us so we are excited

-Amy

[pauloh]

And I just want to thank all who have thoughtfully replied about tire selection and best practices in using them on the TM. I'll order the "E" Maxxis, and report back here as I gain experience with them. Now on to the other TM projects so we can hit the road once all this snow melts!

[Philip]

Originally Posted by pauloh

Like Philip, I've also been looking (online only in my case) this winter for a new set of tires (incl. spare) for my TM. I am leaning toward Maxxis (M8008 Trailer Tire) based on reading here and elsewhere. I finally found the "specs" chart at maxxis.com at this specific link (I copied their chart below the link, hope it reads OK, if not, try the link):
http://www.maxxis.com/Industrial/Tra...ST-Radial.aspx

Part, Size, Ply, Diameter, Width, Max Load, Max PSI, Tread Depth Side Wall type
TL15712000 225/75R15 6 28.3 8.90 2,150 50 9/32 BSW
TL15710000 225/75R15 8 28.3 8.90 2,540 65 9/32 BSW
TL15711000 225/75R15 8 28.3 8.90 2,540 65 9/32 OWL
TL15713000 225/75R15 10 28.3 8.90 2,830 80 9/32 BSW

(Google says: BSW means "black sidewall" OWL means "outline white lettering". I did not know that.)

Notice they don't have a "D" or "E" rating anywhere on this chart, but this retail site does:
http://www.gripston.com/tires/TL15713000
It says the Maxxis "D" tire handles 2450 lbs. ($119. each) while the "E" tire handles up to 2830 lbs ($136. each) and the part numbers for their D & E tires correspond to the Maxxis chart for #2 and #4 in the chart. (These are higher prices than what Philip was quoted, but the price includes shipping...wonder where Philip got his prices?)

These prices are lower than what is shown at discounttire.com for Maxxis tires, "D" and "E" rated, at $134. and $157. respectively. However I've never heard of Gripston and I do know of Discount Tire (might even be able to pick up the tires at one of their stores in Denver sometime, 6 hours from here). DT asks site visitors to let them know of lower prices at other vendors, maybe they'll match if I email or call them this week.

I'm tentatively planning to buy online, have them shipped to my rural location, check those date codes, and have a local shop put them on the rims with those steel valve stems.

So...whatya think? 8-ply "D" or those 10-ply "E"? Is there any problem with 80lbs. of air in the TM 15-inch rims? E is probably going to give a little rougher ride at 80lbs, did I read somewhere that some folks run them at lower pressure? Maybe D will do since in my paranoia I'll probably inspect them every 10 miles...once I finally get on the road (for the first time) with my TM this spring!

Paul,

The price I got for Maxxis is from a local supplier. I was not able to find a better price online. Also, the more I thought about it, I felt that even if I did order online and the tires shipped were old it may be a problem shipping them back. I can check the age at the local shop before I buy them.

With the help of forum members information I have also been investigating whether to go with a "D" or "E" load range. I did talk with a local Goodyear dealer(for what it is worth) as to his recommendations. He was quite adamant that if you go with a higher load rating you do realize a further reduction in failure possibility. He was also adamant that you should run the tires at very close to max pressure, no matter what load range you chose, since this is best for the tire durability. He conceded that you could reduce the pressure by perhaps 10PSI below the max pressure if you still remain well above your load requirements. He said this is not the best thing to do but if you want a bit softer ride you could do this. I was concerned about the hard ride at 80PSI with an "E" load rating. I also went onto the Carlisle Tire website and they also say that you should also always run the tire at the max pressure.

So, where am I now. I am leaning toward getting a "D"load rated tire and running it at virtually max. pressure. Actually, if you look at the load rating of a "E" rated tire at 70PSI it is only 80 lbs more than a "D" rated tire at its max. pressure of 65PSI. Since my TM is approx. 3500 - 3600lb loaded, I feel comfortable with the 2450 load capacity of a "D" rated tire. 80 PSI for a "E" rated tire just seems like a rock hard ride!

I am still not sure of the brand as yet. Perhaps any of the major brands will be fine at this margin of safety.

Take care and happy trails,

Phil

[Philip]

Originally Posted by ShrimpBurrito

Phil -

You can see a picture of my lift kit from the factory in post #2 of this thread:
http://www.trailmanorowners.com/foru...ead.php?t=8732

But given your 2008 model TM, you may not have that but still have a lifted frame due to the spindle arms on the axle having a different angle. If you read through that thread you can read some folks' ground-to-frame measurements. Of course, that doesn't mean you still can't add the lift kit. It just means if you do, it might be higher than an older TM with the lift kit due to the different axle.

Dave

Dave,

Thank you for leading me to your picture of the lift kit installed. I know my TM does not have anything that looks like that.

I will have to check to see if my 2008 2720 TM has the higher lift suspension that Bill and others have talked about. Will check wheel well clearance as Bill suggested.

Thanks to you and all the forum members for the help.

Take care,

Phil

[pauloh]

An update to earlier posts here, which may assist someone pondering new tires: I'm in a rural area far from the big tire stores, so chose to order my tires online at discounttiredirect.com (the online version of Discount Tire, a national chain). They seemed to have the best prices with free shipping. I ordered the Maxxis 225/75 - 15" ST "E" range tire ($121. each, I ordered 3 to include my spare). Got a call next morning from a nice service manager (who said he was in Phoenix) explaining they did not have that tire in stock, trying to get me to order "D" rated they had in stock, but offering to call (either Maxxis or his supplier, I'm not sure which) to see how long it would take to get the "E". This I hope he did, before he emailed me the next day that they weren't currently available and that there was no information about when they would be again; did I want to backorder "E" tires or get the "D" tires now. I had been waffling on whether to order the "D" or "E" range anyway (see previous discussions), so I just ordered the "D" instead (these were also cheaper at $108. each, delivered by UPS). Anxious to get them on the TM and move on...

FYI, the tires are not boxed/bagged or anything, just 1 loose tire and the other 2 tied together with plastic straps, shipping labels stuck on them. (UPS man baffled why I only ordered 3 tires for my NTM 2005 Toyota 4Runner. I pointed to TM.) The tires look good, each one has a date code of 5109, which I decipher to mean they were made in the 51st week (late December) of 2009, so about 15 months old. I had asked the service mgr. about the issue of "old tires"--he stated that Discount Tire has so much sales turnover on tires, they never ship anything older than 18 months from manufacture, and to return the tires if I was unhappy for any reason. I'm OK with tires of this age, they sure look "fresh" for over a year old.

So now I'll take off my old TM tires/rims, go down to the local service station and get them changed to the new tires adding the steel valve stems, put on the ebay tire pressure monitors I just bought (Secutire wireless tire pressure monitors, 4 for about $25.), http://tinyurl.com/4dvwnw5 , get the tires balanced, put them on the TM, and go for a test drive (once that last snow drift between the TM and the road melts down). Hope I don't drive over a nail in the first mile.

[Wavery]

Originally Posted by Philip

Paul,


I was concerned about the hard ride at 80PSI with an "E" load rating. I also went onto the Carlisle Tire website and they also say that you should also always run the tire at the max pressure.

So, where am I now. I am leaning toward getting a "D"load rated tire and running it at virtually max. pressure. Actually, if you look at the load rating of a "E" rated tire at 70PSI it is only 80 lbs more than a "D" rated tire at its max. pressure of 65PSI. Since my TM is approx. 3500 - 3600lb loaded, I feel comfortable with the 2450 load capacity of a "D" rated tire. 80 PSI for a "E" rated tire just seems like a rock hard ride!



Phil

Phil,


I went through the same process that you did. I figured that I was upgrading from tires that were rated @ 1875# each (which is what comes from the factory). I figured that going with a 35% increase in capacity was a sufficient margin to make me feel comfortable with the tires under any conditions that I will ever use them in.

The Maxxis that I purchased from "Just Tires" had a date code of 2810. They ordered them from a local warehouse that had plenty of the "D" or "E" tires in stock (at that time).

According to the Maxxis manufacturer, I could run my tires @ 50PSI. I run them @ 60PSI and I feel comfortable there. After-all, I was running 50PSI on the lower rated tires that I took off and that pressure supported the trailer just fine. I would think that 60-65PSI in "E" rated tires would be more than enough too but to each his own.

My thinking is that if the tire pressure is too high for the load, one may experience uneven tire wear in the center of the tire tread.

[Philip]

Originally Posted by harveyrv

Phil,

Wayne,

I am thinking much like you. I will get and "D" rated tire and probably run it at 60-65 PSI. Plan to keep an eye on center tread wear

I just haven't quite decided to get Maxxis or Goodyear brand. I guess there is probably no difference.

Planning a trip to the northern parks and Canada this summer for ~3 months.

Happy trails,

Phil

2008 2720 TM - soon with 15" wheels!
2005 Toyota 4Runner, V8 TV

I went through the same process that you did. I figured that I was upgrading from tires that were rated @ 1875# each (which is what comes from the factory). I figured that going with a 35% increase in capacity was a sufficient margin to make me feel comfortable with the tires under any conditions that I will ever use them in.

The Maxxis that I purchased from "Just Tires" had a date code of 2810. They ordered them from a local warehouse that had plenty of the "D" or "E" tires in stock (at that time).

According to the Maxxis manufacturer, I could run my tires @ 50PSI. I run them @ 60PSI and I feel comfortable there. After-all, I was running 50PSI on the lower rated tires that I took off and that pressure supported the trailer just fine. I would think that 60-65PSI in "E" rated tires would be more than enough too but to each his own.

My thinking is that if the tire pressure is too high for the load, one may experience uneven tire wear in the center of the tire tread.