Welcome again, Bob. You've ventured into a venue where you can learn a few things and be amused by many. As I mentioned above, your post was well thought and put. Do not be discouraged. There are folks here who delight, in thousands of posts, to nay say whatever comes along. There are a few who don't simply love to see themselves type. You'll soon discern the difference.
You wouldn't worry so much about what others think of you if you realized how seldom they do. - Eleanor Roosevelt
Bigdog wrote: I may be wrong,but isn't one difference between bias and radials,the fact that the sidewalls on a radial is softer than on the bias.I grew up driving on bias and when radials came out we were always telling folks that they needed air in their tires.Softer sidewalls means that you are going to have more sway,especially if they are underinflated or overloaded.That combined with excessive speed can lead to all kinds of problems.
On the other hand,have you looked into light truck tires for your TT. There are a lot of folks doing that.
My dealer told me never to use LT tires on an (ST) trailer application. They are just not designed for trailer use. He gave me legitimate reasons. I looked it up, and he was right. He also said that the ST radials are specially made just for a trailer just as the ST bias tires are. Having pulled both now, I will never go back to bias.
Welcome to the forum.
With a statement like that you and your dealer have a lot to learn about LT/P and ST tires and what they are designed to do and not to do.
A ST "is" designed for a trailer. However the LT can be used in a trailer position and is prefered if the right size/weight capacity can be found.
We used car (P) and truck tires (LT) many many years before the infamous ST tire started showing up on trailers (not just RVs). Back then P tires were limited to 32/35 psi and came on liteweight trailers. The heavier multi axle trailers came with light truck tires. Many owners grumble about the high cost of the LT tire hense the "economical" (per Goodyear Marathon) ST tire.
If you tow a lot at some point you may get a belly full of ST tire issues. Come back and ask questions. You will get advice from a very experienced forum dealing with tire issues as most on here have been through your same issues many years ago. Good luck with your choice.
"good judgment comes from experience, and a lot of that comes from bad judgment" ............ Will Rogers
'03 2500 QC Dodge/Cummins HO 3.73 6 speed manual Jacobs Westach
'97 Park Avanue 28' 5er 11200 gvwr two slides
Bigdog wrote: I may be wrong,but isn't one difference between bias and radials,the fact that the sidewalls on a radial is softer than on the bias.I grew up driving on bias and when radials came out we were always telling folks that they needed air in their tires.Softer sidewalls means that you are going to have more sway,especially if they are underinflated or overloaded.That combined with excessive speed can lead to all kinds of problems.
On the other hand,have you looked into light truck tires for your TT. There are a lot of folks doing that.
My dealer told me never to use LT tires on an (ST) trailer application. They are just not designed for trailer use. He gave me legitimate reasons. I looked it up, and he was right. He also said that the ST radials are specially made just for a trailer just as the ST bias tires are. Having pulled both now, I will never go back to bias.
Welcome to the forum.
With a statement like that you and your dealer have a lot to learn about LT/P and ST tires and what they are designed to do and not to do.
A ST "is" designed for a trailer. However the LT can be used in a trailer position and is prefered if the right size/weight capacity can be found.
We used car (P) and truck tires (LT) many many years before the infamous ST tire started showing up on trailers (not just RVs). Back then P tires were limited to 32/35 psi and came on liteweight trailers. The heavier multi axle trailers came with light truck tires. Many owners grumble about the high cost of the LT tire hense the "economical" (per Goodyear Marathon) ST tire.
If you tow a lot at some point you may get a belly full of ST tire issues. Come back and ask questions. You will get advice from a very experienced forum dealing with tire issues as most on here have been through your same issues many years ago. Good luck with your choice.
I stand corrected on this. I do, however feel that for my purpose the ST tire is a good choice. It may be that is what my dealer was telling me that for my application ST is better. My camper is not extremely heavy as compared to some.
Thanks.
I bought 2 Goodyear Marythons for my tow dolly and on there infation chart they say to add 5lbs. of air over the max on the tire if you are going to exceed the 65mph limit.
NOTE
DOT does not certify tires. The DOT symbol is a certification by the tire mfg to DOT that the tire is capable of passing the required tests.
Slight difference.
If it is found that tires do not pass the test there are a number of possible responses including recalls and fines.
There are no requirements for components to be in a tire or for certain materials to be used. The regulations are not specification or material regulations but test performance requirements.
You can learn more if you visit my tire blog RVTireSafety
In my opinion as a QS9000 and ISO/TS 16949 Quality auditor the word "Quality" does not appear to be in the RV industry dictionary.
I wanted to follow up on my orginal post that I made last summer. I have used the Westlake tires on my travel trailer now for a decent number of miles. I must say that I am very pleased with the performance. I did not experence any issues with them. If they continue to perform as they have so far, I will buy them agian.
Bigdog wrote: I may be wrong,but isn't one difference between bias and radials,the fact that the sidewalls on a radial is softer than on the bias.I grew up driving on bias and when radials came out we were always telling folks that they needed air in their tires.Softer sidewalls means that you are going to have more sway,especially if they are underinflated or overloaded.That combined with excessive speed can lead to all kinds of problems.
On the other hand,have you looked into light truck tires for your TT. There are a lot of folks doing that.
My dealer told me never to use LT tires on an (ST) trailer application. They are just not designed for trailer use. He gave me legitimate reasons. I looked it up, and he was right. He also said that the ST radials are specially made just for a trailer just as the ST bias tires are. Having pulled both now, I will never go back to bias.
Welcome to the forum.
With a statement like that you and your dealer have a lot to learn about LT/P and ST tires and what they are designed to do and not to do.
A ST "is" designed for a trailer. However the LT can be used in a trailer position and is prefered if the right size/weight capacity can be found.
We used car (P) and truck tires (LT) many many years before the infamous ST tire started showing up on trailers (not just RVs). Back then P tires were limited to 32/35 psi and came on liteweight trailers. The heavier multi axle trailers came with light truck tires. Many owners grumble about the high cost of the LT tire hense the "economical" (per Goodyear Marathon) ST tire.
If you tow a lot at some point you may get a belly full of ST tire issues. Come back and ask questions. You will get advice from a very experienced forum dealing with tire issues as most on here have been through your same issues many years ago. Good luck with your choice.
LT tires are not 'preferred' on tires. They can be used, and may be better in certain applications, and ST are better in others. Each has its own advantages and disadvantages. Read up on the differences and decide which is better for your use.
IMHO there is no advantage to using P tires on a trailer.
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Log off and go camping!
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Bigdog wrote: I may be wrong,but isn't one difference between bias and radials,the fact that the sidewalls on a radial is softer than on the bias.I grew up driving on bias and when radials came out we were always telling folks that they needed air in their tires.Softer sidewalls means that you are going to have more sway,especially if they are underinflated or overloaded.That combined with excessive speed can lead to all kinds of problems.
On the other hand,have you looked into light truck tires for your TT. There are a lot of folks doing that.
My dealer told me never to use LT tires on an (ST) trailer application. They are just not designed for trailer use. He gave me legitimate reasons. I looked it up, and he was right. He also said that the ST radials are specially made just for a trailer just as the ST bias tires are. Having pulled both now, I will never go back to bias.
Welcome to the forum.
With a statement like that you and your dealer have a lot to learn about LT/P and ST tires and what they are designed to do and not to do.
A ST "is" designed for a trailer. However the LT can be used in a trailer position and is prefered if the right size/weight capacity can be found.
We used car (P) and truck tires (LT) many many years before the infamous ST tire started showing up on trailers (not just RVs). Back then P tires were limited to 32/35 psi and came on liteweight trailers. The heavier multi axle trailers came with light truck tires. Many owners grumble about the high cost of the LT tire hense the "economical" (per Goodyear Marathon) ST tire.
If you tow a lot at some point you may get a belly full of ST tire issues. Come back and ask questions. You will get advice from a very experienced forum dealing with tire issues as most on here have been through your same issues many years ago. Good luck with your choice.
LT tires are not 'preferred' on tires. They can be used, and may be better in certain applications, and ST are better in others. Each has its own advantages and disadvantages. Read up on the differences and decide which is better for your use.
IMHO there is no advantage to using P tires on a trailer.
let me start by saying I use ST tires myself, and believe some of the design feathers (rounded sidewalls, shallow tread, heavier cords, and heavier beading) have merit and are the makings of a excellent trailer tire…
but
here is the problem… design quality and build quality are completely different things…
for trailer use the ST has better design qualities, but the LT has better built qualities… if the ST tire had to be built to the same testing and certification standards as the LT tire it the ST tire would be a superior trailer tire… BUT ITS NOT…
what makes the ST tire a better choice for a trailer in most cases is that there isn’t a properly sized LT tire to use as a direct replacement… because of that there are trade-offs when choosing a LT tire…
as long as they are allowed to build to a lesser standard they will be a lesser standard, and the only thing that will change that is for them to be mandated to build to the same higher standard use for the LT tire…
don’t buy into all the marketing about the superiority of the ST… it is primarily just marketing…
example of the marketing…
the ST has larger cords to carry heavier loads…
translation: since they are allowed to be built and rated for their full load with no reserve capacity, they have a higher rated capacity than the LT that has a reserve built into their ratings…
endurance testing and certification for the ST tire is almost nonexistent when compared to any other highway tire used today…
quite simply put, the DOT certification for them is very low and that certification requirement is the target that most tire builders use to mfg. the tire to meet…
Love my mass produced, entry level, built by Lazy American Workers, Hornet
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